Deeper - Final

This journey through the book Deeper has been great. It’s given me a new perspective on how to grow in my faith and in my relationship with God. This week we are going to return to where we started in Week 1.

We already have everything that we need for the deeper relationship we are looking for - a saving faith through Jesus Christ, the presence of the Holy Spirit living within us and 24/7 access to the God of the universe. Purer behavior, sharper doctrine and richer emotions are all wonderful offsprings of a “closer walk with thee” but they don’t provide the sole path to get us there.

The Holy Spirit is a universal gift to all of God’s people. Jesus spoke if his departure being necessary so that the Spirit could come in John 16:7. The Spirit is our ever present “helper” in our faith journey. God ordains salvation to us, Jesus accomplishes salvation for us and the Holy Spirit helps us apply our saving faith in Christian life. Everything we “experience” of God is through the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Because of the Spirit, we are able to grow. The Spirit gives us life by turning our beliefs into power. As possessor’s of the Spirit, it’s not just ourselves in our own strength. We are “supernaturalized” by our helper.

John 14:26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you

Authentic Christianity is actually enjoying God. Growing as a disciple of Christ isn’t just adding Christ to our lives but having Him become our lives with Christ at the core of everything we do as husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, workers and students. As a result, our lives will have the flavor of Christ in every setting.

Growing closer to God isn’t the multi-step sequential process that we are prone to believe - like trying harder to become more obedient. It’s a daily relational pursuit of God through His Word, speaking to Him in prayer and growing in dependence on the Holy Spirit. It begins on the inside through our relationship with Him and then it is reflected on the outside. Our focus is not on growth but on Christ. Proper focus will produce growth. Exposure to the love of Christ everyday will have a “greenhouse” effect on our spiritual lives. Healthy things grow and growing things change.

Stay Hungry,

Big E

Matt. 5:6