Pastor Tim Gleeson
Apparently succulents are the easiest plants to grow. And yet, I seem to be able to kill the plants very easily. I just want them to grow.
As a person I want to be growing. I want to be improving. I want to be better than I was yesterday, a month ago, a year ago. I want to be better than I was the moment before I accepted that Jesus was my Lord and Saviour. That means I need to grow.
Jesus gives us this picture of growth in Luke 8:5-8 NLT:
5 “A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it. 6 Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants. 8 Still other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted!” When he had said this, he called out, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”
The cool thing is that Jesus explains this parable to his disciples, helping us to understand what he is sharing.
11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is God’s word. 12 The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved. 13 The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation. 14 The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity. 15 And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.
Luke 8:11-15 NLT
I hope that my life when I am much older than I am today is producing a huge harvest. But it means I need to grow. I need to put myself in a position where I am going to grow – not like my succulents which keep dying. My succulents weren’t getting the right kinds of things that helped them grow – maybe not enough sunlight or too much water. In this parable, Jesus tells us that there are actually things that don’t grow us. The enemy. Ourselves, and our desires and temptations. The world bringing it’s own message. These voices wont help you and I grow. It might look like it, but it wont.
The bible shows us three things that when we get in proximity to it, we will grow. The reason why is because we are putting ourselves in proximity to God who grows us.
The Word Grows You
When we read a book we often imagine ourselves in that book. We imagine ourselves in fantasy books, being the main hero or helping the main hero. The issue though is that these books don’t actually grow us into the kind of people God wants us to be.
The Bible is different to every other book. It not only is a book that we can imagine ourselves in (especially the action packed books of Judges or 1 and 2 Kings), but the Bible reads into our lives today – it actually impacts our lives where we are. The best thing about the bible is that ALL of it can speak to us, and God uses it all to speak to us, growing and stretching us in the right ways. Paul, writing to Timothy says this:
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realise what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 NLT
A few months ago, God spoke to me through my bible reading. I was having issues with the house I live in and I was becoming impatient with the length of delays we were having. God spoke through a passage, and told me to have patience. I got to chat to the person who was overseeing the work and I had patience in that conversation.
The bible can grow us as we spend time in it. This picture in Psalm 1 shows us the kind of grow we can have when we spend time in the bible on a regular basis.
1 Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. 2 But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. 3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.
Psalm 1:1-3 NLT
The word grows us into great people who have a huge harvest.
The Holy Spirit Grows You
The Holy Spirit also grows us. The Holy Spirit is the third person of God. The Holy Spirit is a person, not just some mystical force, but a person who lives in us and directs us. The Holy Spirit was sent by God as an advocate to teach and grow us.
26 But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.
John 14:26 NLT
The Holy Spirit also guarding everything that you are learning, especially the truth of who Jesus is.
14 Through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us, carefully guard the precious truth that has been entrusted to you.
2 Timothy 1:14 NLT
Listening to the Holy Spirit takes time to learn the Spirit’s voice. Sometimes I get it wrong. Sometimes I get it right. Sometimes I doubt. I learn the Spirit’s voice by understanding who God is through the Bible which He has spoken through.
I was meeting someone a number of years ago. As I wait for them to arrive, the Holy Spirit said to me to be generous and pay for the coffees. Being generous is something that God speaks about in the Bible. I normally let other people buy me a coffee. But this time, and from then on, God kept asking me to be generous to buy others drinks. God, The Holy Spirit, was growing my capacity to be generous.
Godly Leaders and Family Grows You
God uses people to grow our faith. The people that God uses are Godly leaders and family. Take Timothy in the New Testament. Here’s what Paul writes in his letter to him:
5 I remember your genuine faith, for you share the faith that first filled your grandmother Lois and your mother, Eunice. And I know that same faith continues strong in you. 6 This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid my hands on you.
2 Timothy 1:5-6 NLT
Paul reminds Timothy that Lois, Eunice and himself have all play a part in growing Timothy’s faith. Timothy is the leader of the church in Ephesus. He has great godly leaders and family.
I had a great mentor a few years ago who helped my realise that my focus in life wasn’t about computers, but about people. God used that conversation to pivot me from one career to the calling he had one my life. Being part of a bible connect group with a leader who will grow you is so important too.
I also have an amazing godly family. We have great conversations.
You wont have the same people I do to help grow you. That’s okay because God uses different people to do different things. Paul writes to the church in Corinth:
6 I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. 7 It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow.
1 Corinthians 3:6-7 NLT
It’s not specifically about the leader or the family that you are a part of. It’s about God. The word brings us into relationship with God. The Holy Spirit is God. God uses people. God does the growing in our lives. He plants us. He stretches us.