A call to maturity

Listen to the word of God right now, for your life, for your spirit. Chapter 4 of the book of Ephesians, the letter to the Ephesians: it is a call from God towards maturity. I might as well title this sermon "A Call to Maturity." A call to maturity. That is what God is calling the Lion of Judah congregation.

The apostle Paul in verse three of Ephesians, calls this congregation and by extension calls us through the centuries, since this epistle was written and tells us the Lion of Judah congregation: "Be eager to keep unity of the spirit in the bond of peace". Being solicitous means careful, diligent, committed to keeping the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.

“A body and a spirit as you were also called in the same hope of your vocation. One Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all." That part of the Apostle Paul's call is to unity; to unity in spirit, unity in commitment, unity in mind, unity in the understanding of the word of God The unity of flowing together as a body flows in its movements in harmony and coherence towards a specific purpose.

God has made our church a very diverse church: all colors, different economic levels, different nationalities, different educational levels. But from that diversity God wants there to be a unity in the spirit. And God wants our church to flow in commitment to God. May we all drink from the same water and may we all receive the same baptism of the Holy Spirit.

In our times of prayer and worship is the moment when God sends his spirit upon us and melts the metal of different temperaments and personalities and cultural backgrounds. And it melts all those metals of different compositions and makes of them a single substance of unity in the spirit.

God wants that for this church. God wants us to love each other, to visit each other, to prefer one another, to put aside barriers and to become one spirit; that we drink from the same water.

God wants that when there are times of adoration, in which the spirit is exalting, that there are no people - as one sometimes sees - with a lost look while there is a big party. Sometimes one sees those people for a moment, when crossing, when one looks across the Congregation, there are people filled with the spirit: adoring and experiencing the glorious presence of God and there are others with their eyes lost, empty.

And I'm not saying it to attack, but to express, I think the desire of the Holy Spirit that these people also enter the same party and the same spirit; Let there be unity, let there be fellowship in the spirit. God wants that in that unit the anointing can fall.

The word of the Lord says: "Look how good it is and how delicious the brothers live -how?- together in harmony". He says it's like oil, it's like oil that runs from the head and goes through the beard and continues down the garments until it reaches the edge of the garments. And when there is that anointing of God that can come down because there is unity, there is nothing to interrupt it, he says that: "Then there the Lord sends blessing and eternal life."

So in this time of our life as a Congregation, God wants all of us to enter into the same flow and in the same unity. I believe that God is preparing big things, big things. Not only for this congregation but for all his church on earth but a unity of spirit is required.

Then later in verse 11 the Holy Spirit says through the apostle Paul: "And He himself -that is, God- established some apostles, other prophets, other evangelists, other pastors and teachers."

Notice something, when God poured out his spirit on the church on the day of Pentecost, he declared certain gifts, certain skills in the midst of his people so that these skills would enable and bless the people of God. And some of those gifts and some of those functions of the body of Christ are the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and the teachers. They are different functions. Teachers teach, instruct; shepherds shepherd, nurture, govern, direct, give order, shelter, advise, administer.

Evangelists collect souls and bring them and not only evangelists like Billy Graham or Yiyi Ávila, I believe that every church has people with an evangelistic spirit, anointing.

There are evangelists in the churches, people who have a love for souls, who have an appetite for souls, and who have a special endowment to reach souls. There are evangelists. There are also prophets, there are people with a prophetic endowment. They hear from God, they receive impartation of visions, dreams, revelation and God wants to activate more the true, genuine movement of the prophet in the midst of his people.

There are a lot of people, it's like a somewhat defective antenna, it's like those television antennas: they receive a little but what comes out on the screen is sometimes a little blurry and sometimes there are lines and other things. I don't know if that happens now in the new televisions, maybe I'm thinking of the old ones from before, right? There I reveal my age.

But God wants well-tuned prophets, like those high-definition, high-definition, perfect-definition televisions, who listen to God and put aside emotions and agendas and wounds and temperamental defects and put that aside. side. And that they directly receive the word of God and channel it pure, clean to his people. And that prophetic anointing, God wants to extend it more. And also apostles.

The Ministry of the apostle has been like sotto voce, it has been low for a long time in the people of God. It has been like there soaking. But now the Lord is raising up the apostolic ministry more and more because God needs it. The apostolic ministry is not a local ministry, the apostolic ministry is for his Church with a capital "i", the apostolic ministry is for the order that God needs to restore in these times.

The apostle is not for a single Congregation, but is owned by the church in general and speaks to the church in general with a special anointing to declare the message that God has for a specific time and for a specific purpose. And God is raising up, too, his apostles.

So these functions that God declares over his people are in effect. Now for what? God pours out these functions. That is, He himself constituted. To constitute means 'declared', 'installed' officially designated some apostles, other prophets, other evangelists, other pastors and teachers.

So that? Look at this, very important, it says: "In order to perfect the saints for the work of the ministry." There are some words that must be refined and defined. Perfect: that is, look, the purpose, the reason why God poured out those specific gifts as drops of blessing and specific anointing on his people was to perfect.

What does perfect mean? When an artist who has been studying an instrument for years goes to another country or goes to a conservatory - you have heard: "did he go to perfect himself? To perfect his gift?" That expression is used in Spanish. What does that mean? To polish, to complete, to refine, to advance, to develop.

So look at that. God has decreed his supernatural anointing on his church in the form of these ministries, not for those ministries to display themselves, or simply spread freely over the people of God, but for a purpose: to be channels for perfection, the improvement, the advancement of who? of the saints Say everyone: "Saints".

Now let me tell you, if you come from the Catholic tradition, which I respect, that word is not going to make the sense that it sounded to Paul. Because for many people Saint Teresa of Jesus is a saint, or what was the name of the last one who was in India? Mother Theresa or Mother Teresa. People of incredible achievement and ultra-human strength, or whatever; chosen to inhabit the spiritual stratosphere.

Know what? When Paul says "the saints" who is he referring to? To you, to the church. Say: "To me." Saints means those set apart, for God, the consecrated, designated. Do you know that you are holy? There are saints whose fangs still have to be ripped out a little - I understand - and their nails; but in the mind of God, you are... because you have been set apart.

The word holy comes from the original Hebrew: the word "agios" or from the Greek. It means "it is separated, separated", it is as we say to an instrument that has been separated for the adoration of God only. The ark, for example, was holy, the temple was holy, the priests were holy because they had been set apart for a purpose.

Well, in the economy of the gospel every believer, every Christian is set apart by God. And it is something that we have to understand, brothers, when God calls you, when you enter the ways of the Lord, he understands something and it is that you are now supposed to distance yourself from certain practices. You live in the world, but you are not in the world - in a sense - you are not of the world. You have been set aside. Now you are an instrument, it is supposed, for the glory of God.

You live for Christ, all that you are belongs to glorify God.

Hey, how different is that from the idea that many people have of the Gospel! What it is: “well, I am an Evangelical, I already have an Evangelical card, I go to church, I sing three choruses, I listen to a half-cooked sermon and I go home until next Sunday” and that makes me an Evangelical. That is not the idea. The idea is total consecration of your life, it is a radical change. And it is one of the things that the holy spirit is speaking to the people of God.

Saying: "Congregation Lion of Judah remove the veil and remove everything that prevents direct connection with God and acknowledge that God has called you to live a life consecrated to the service of the Lord." Because you are by definition a saint. If you truly believe yourself to be a Christian, you must be a saint, who must be set apart for the Lord. There are no middle terms. The Lord hates lukewarm people.

In the book of Revelation the Lord says: "Because you are neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth." The lukewarm times every day become more and more inappropriate for the children of God. Then the Apostle Paul says: "God poured out his spirit in the form of apostles, prophets, pastors, evangelists, teachers so that they perfect the people of God." So that they work to perfect the saints, he says, for what? "for the work of the ministry." For the work of the Ministry.

Brother, understand what he is saying here again: God has poured out his spirit to prepare you through his designated ones, so that you perfect yourself, you grow for the work of the ministry. Sometimes we think that the only ones who are in the ministry are who? the pastors. right yes? oh! Those are, he is in the ministry. But you know what? The Bible tells you over and over again that you are also called for the work of the ministry.

You are a part of it and God wants it, God has invested his power, his supernatural essence so that you perfect yourself and continue to grow and improve and learn and develop so that then that growth redounds in service to the Lord. And how does one work in the work of the ministry? One works in the work of the ministry visiting the sick, bringing people to the knowledge of the Lord and preaching the word of God, doing work of personal evangelism.

One works for the Lord visiting the hospitals, visiting the widows, visiting the lonely people, visiting the depressed people. One works for the ministry serving in the Congregation so that every need that there is in the community of faith in which one is is filled by someone who says "I am part of the ministry" and that you give of your time and prepare for be useful in the kingdom of God.

God uses you in ministry when you give your tithe to the Lord so that your church has what your church needs to carry out the tasks that God has assigned it. It is also a way for you to work for the work of the ministry. So what he's saying here is that "everything that happens in the life of a child of God is designed to prepare that daughter, that son of God to be a useful member of the kingdom of Jesus Christ."

How many can say Amen if you understand what I'm saying?

There are many people who believe that being a member of a church is to come and like a wine taster listen to the sermon and swish: "Mm! Let me see if I liked the sermon today or not", if it is salty, if it is too tasteless. And they go away and make comments: "Today I liked the sermon." "No, but this was missing", they are wine tasters and they never swallow it, listen to it as wine tasters do.

And what God wants is that you come to the church and that you receive the anointing that is in the church, receive the blessing but then that it be like the gasoline that you use to serve in the work of the ministry; that when you leave the church, you go out to serve. There are many people who criticize what is given in the church and who demand that it be done in the church but do not work on the work. They are consumers, but God wants producers. God wants doers, God wants ministers.

And that is the clear message of God for these times in our congregation and in all the people of God. God is saying to God's people: 'I want an army activated for service. I want men and women there in the streets, in the neighborhoods of my community preaching the word of my Son because I am coming soon".

He does not want undercover Christians, he does not want secret agents of the Kingdom, God wants openly open people, who come out of the closet. There are a lot of people coming out today but there are a lot of Christians who are still in the closet. And those who are coming out should stay and those who should be out are not where they need to be. The Lord says "Come out, minister, serve in my name."

In order to perfect the saints for the hour of the ministry for the edification of the body of Christ. Everything that is given in the church is to build up the body of the Lord. And to what extent? When can we say, Okay, I already have everything I need, and God has moved enough in the midst of his church? Look says: "until we all reach the unity of faith and knowledge of the son of God."

To a man, to a perfect woman, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. God wants, brothers, understand this, God does not want you to stay small. Your goal as a servant of God, as a servant of God is to grow every day.

You know, when kids get to a certain age they love to measure themselves to see if they've grown another inch? How many of you have had kids like that who say, "Mom, look at me" because they want to see if they've grown a little bit more in the last few months? God wants that same mentality to be in us too. That we ask ourselves, in the last three months, have I grown? How have I grown? Have I grown in character? Have I grown in commitment, have I grown in knowledge of the Word?

Have I grown in the move of God's spirit in me? Have I grown in discernment of God's will in my life? Have I grown in love for souls? Have I grown in understanding of the mysteries of God's word? Have I grown in zeal for the Lord? Have I grown in holiness? Have I grown in eliminating a little more the defects that distort my personality in Christ? Have I grown in giving the Lord more and more of my life? Have I grown to be a contagious Christian?

We have to be asking ourselves that continually. People come to church and many times they just come to sit there but there is no sense that the son of God, the daughter of God has to be continually growing. It has to be in continuous process. The only way that a Christian does not stagnate is by flowing, changing, processing, evolving.

Christians are not lakes, we are running rivers. The Lord said: "Rivers of living water will flow from within." He did not say placid lakes. The non-flowing Christian is like a stinking well of water, stagnant water, water - that was the holy spirit saying Amen.

Brothers, if the Christian does not use the anointing of God, if the anointing of God rots inside him and becomes something harmful, the anointing of God is made to flow. That is why if you do not serve the Lord, if you do not do something with the anointing of God, the anointing of God becomes hostile against you. Because the anointing of God is made to run. The anointing of God that does not start to run and evolve for the advancement of the Kingdom of God is like a nail that grows through the flesh. And how much does a grown nail hurt?

Excuse me, I would like to find a more pleasant example, but I think you are going to remember that one. There are Christians who are like this, they have the anointing of God, it is breaking their flesh because it wants to flow and they are not leaving it because they are consuming it, consuming it and the anointing hurts them. When you serve God and give to God, when you use what God gives you… you know what? God gives you more. But when you don't use what God has given you, you contrite the holy spirit.

What does the word say? "To those who have will be given more and to those who do not have what they do not have will be taken away." God's anointing is done, if you look at the scripture over and over again; over and over again, all the teaching of Jesus Christ, all his parables were like that. God gives you something and he expects you to invest it in his kingdom and return it to him how? multiplied. Yes or no?

Always, look for all writing. And if you don't give it back multiplied, he is displeased and lets you know. It is the only way, brothers, the Lord wants you to invest, negotiate with what He has given you and return it multiplied. So that's why it says here that: "God wants to perfect us so that we work, so that the body of Christ may be built up, may be increased. Let everyone continue" and it says: "Until we all arrive at the unity of the faith of the knowledge of the Son of God".

How far do you want us to go? Until unity. Do you remember that we started with the idea of unity? Until we all reach the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God. Do you know what normally happens in churches? That there are people who have grown a lot, there are some who have stayed halfway and there are some who are still spiritual little children.

And there is tremendous inequality in the Kingdom of God. There are different levels of commitment, different levels of delivery, many different levels of knowledge of the word, discernment, use of gifts. It is a tremendous mismatch and what God wants is that we all grow parallel.

Brother, God is calling you. This is a time when God expects all of us to grow. I hope in the Lord that in the coming weeks we - this weekend we were in a leaders' retreat, some ministry leaders and church pastors - and God is speaking to us, God is calling us to prepare and I want Brothers, when we give that call, many of you come to receive intensive training.

God has put in my mind, in my heart, an event that is repeated a few times a year on weekends where new people come to the gospel, people who still need to learn and need a basic introduction to the truths of the Gospel and who for an intensive weekend we introduce you to like a basic immersion in the truths of the gospel and minister to your life and conclude this with a graduation - so to speak - on Sunday and for some perhaps a baptism so that that is the beginning and hence you continue in the discipleship that we offer so that we all grow in the unity of the knowledge of the Son of God.

Because many of you need - I'm not telling you except as a clinical medical need - and Glory to God that you, I know you will be willing and eager. Because it is through teaching that the people of God grow. There are many people in the people of God who are being left behind and God is telling us as a church, he is telling us to "get ready, enter the ranks of Christian service."

I shared with the brothers, and I am finishing brothers, our church grows and continues to grow and glory to God for that, many lives are added to the knowledge of God. But there is a problem and it is that I do not believe that we are being as effective as we could be in helping these new people and also in others who have already been here for many years in the church who should already be at another level of service and dedication to the Mister. To enter that mature life of the spirit and… what happens?

When a church continues to grow at the edges, but people don't enter towards the center, what happens then is that that church -in English there is an expression "top heavy"- is a church that is like a very wide house on top but with a small foundation with weak columns that every day increases the weight on top and if there are no wider columns and if the base does not get bigger, the upper weight causes it to collapse.

And souls are added every day, but I believe that we have to go further to the extent of helping those lives to become contributors to the ministry. Saints serving in the gospel ministry. Because otherwise, what happens? More people to baptize, more people to bury, more people to marry, more people to advise and there is no expansion of the group of pastors, the group of leaders, the group of teachers.

So that group that remains, that is not growing at the same speed that the needs are growing, feels more pressure every day and the needs increase, but the supply of leaders does not increase because there is no...

These people who come with their needs do not serve the Lord as they should, they do not know the word as they should, they cannot help in the ministry, they do not give to grow the base of the church and then there are needs that are left behind every day. back, back and proportionally the church is losing ground instead of being the opposite. The more they come to the gospel, the more we prepare them, the more we train them, the more we induce in them a mentality of service and consecration to the Lord and therefore we have more leaders and more servants who can do more of the work of the gospel. You understand?

That is why God wants us to grow in that knowledge until we all come to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God. To a man, to a perfect woman to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ so that we are no longer fluctuating children carried everywhere by every wind of doctrine by the stratagem of men, who cunningly use the tricks of error to deceive '.

I'm going to leave it there. Every part of that text is pregnant with teaching and meaning.

What you are saying, clearly brothers, we can no longer continue with so many immature children in the church of Jesus Christ. We need more leaders, we need more people to die to the world and give themselves up to serve the Lord.

Brothers, the Lion of Judah is already reaching the point that God wants this church to explode and cover this community. But it cannot do it until this church unites more in the maturity that Christ wants and that we have more leaders and that there is a warlike mentality, a mentality of people radically delivered to the interests of the kingdom of God.

And I want to do my part as your Pastor and your church wants to do its part; we want to give them the tools. But we need you when you hear the call to come. Amen. That's the part.

How many here, for example...? Let's see a question: how many here have taken the discipleship classes that we offer? Stand up for a moment please. If you have taken a discipleship class at some point, any of the classes. If you look, I believe that no more than a quarter of the Congregation and yet that is delicacy.

I was speaking as a sister who is serving as an usher and who has been here in León de Judá for a few years and now I am seeing her through that fire for the Lord. I am realizing the gifts that are in her and I stopped her -this morning between the two services- and I said, "You know what? God is calling you to serve the Lord more" and I said, "You have taken the discipleship?"; He told me: "Ah, Pastor, if you only knew! I have drunk and that changed my life. That has made a difference in my life." And then I: "Oh, of course! Now I understand."

Because when the word of God begins to enter your life there are changes. So God wants you to train yourself, to perfect yourself for the ministry. God will use you to the extent that you train and perfect yourself.

And I want that when we say: "Brothers, this is where the church has to go," that we unite as an army and flow in that direction, in unity. That is what God is calling the Church to, that apostolic authority that when God's leaders say: "This is where the people of God have to go" the people flow in that direction and receive blessing and be strengthened and be perfected because you are eating directly from the food that comes from the mouth of God.

People of God, God calls you to maturity, God calls you to commitment, God calls you to consecration, God calls you to stop playing the game of 'today yes, tomorrow no and then the next day'.

God wants dedicated people, militant people, committed people, disciplined people to the Lord, people who can worship when the adoration party is on but who also listen to the word of the Lord and receive it because they have an appetite and know how to discern and enjoy the Lord's word.

Don't say: "Well, I already adored. Well, I'm going home now." No, no, that they are there to receive and prepare because they know that they need that food to be able to serve the Lord as they need to. That is God's call for this church at this time.

Let's stand up. We are going to make acts of consecration in our lives, give ourselves more to the Lord, give more to God. May the Lord wish that each day we become more and more a radical people, a committed people, a militant people towards God. We are going to give the Lord without hesitation, without limitations, everything He has for us.

Thank you Lord, thank you God, thank you. Thank you Lord, thank you. So that 'we are no longer fluctuating children -says the word- carried around by every wind of doctrine, but following the truth in love, we grow in everything, in him who is the head. This is Christ.' Let's grow, God wants a growing people, an evolving people, a people that lives for God and that rejoices only in giving Him glory. A consecrated people, a holy people, a separated people, a people radically delivered to the Lord.

God willing that this spirit fills your life on this day.

We thank you, Lord. We consecrate ourselves to you once again and ask that it be your spirit, Lord, taking possession of the earth and filling us totally. Lord, consecrating ourselves, we ask you for a consecrated church, a committed church, a church completely delivered to you, Lord. We adore you and we bless you, God.