Reflect The Glory Of God

Please take your Bibles and open them up this morning to the book of 2 Corinthians.

2 Corinthians.

And as we look forward to officially constituting as a church family,

we are walking through our mission and vision for the church.

And so two weeks ago we sought to understand our mission as a church,

which is we exist to magnify the glory of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And the vision, the how, how do we plan to go about that great mission is threefold.

So we saw last week from Psalm 34, 3, the first way we plan to magnify the glory of God is to enjoy Him together.

Lord willing, next week we'll gather and we'll hear the third part, which is that we plan to evangelize the lost.

And this morning from 2 Corinthians, we'll see that we plan to magnify the glory of God by equipping the saints,

by equipping the saints to reflect God's glory together.

So if you would, your Bibles open to 2 Corinthians chapter 3.

2 Corinthians 3 · chapter mention

We're going to be just in verse 18 this morning.

2 Corinthians 3 verse 18.

2 Corinthians 3:18

Bible's open if you just follow along with me as I read.

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord,

are being transformed into the same image, from one degree of glory to another.

For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Amen. This is the word of the Lord.

Would you please pray with me?

Father, we thank you for this word.

We thank you for your power of transformation at work in those who believe.

We pray even now as we open up this word that you would do that in us.

We pray this in Christ's name.

Amen.

Amen.

Well, it has come to my attention that I have failed you in a very important area.

Of your discipleship.

During the past week, we had a couple from the church over for dinner.

I won't tell you who.

And they mentioned that they were in their 23rd year of marriage.

To which I responded, was their Jordan year.

And I thought that this was an obvious reference.

But my reference was met with a confused look.

And so I had to explain.

I was, of course, referring to Michael Jordan.

The undisputable greatest basketball player of all time.

Who wore number 23 in his tenure with the Chicago Bulls.

And then later with the Washington Wizards.

Although we don't need to talk as much about those years.

You all, I'm sure, are at least somewhat familiar with the legend of Michael Jordan.

When I say that name, I know that you know at least who I'm talking about.

14-time All-Star.

5-time MVP.

Defensive Player of the Year.

And, of course, 6 for 6 in the NBA Finals.

6 championship rings.

But, in my opinion, one of Michael Jordan's greatest accomplishments is that he is listed at 6 feet 6 inches tall.

You may not know this.

You can fact check me later.

Nobody in his immediate family was taller than 6 feet tall.

Michael Jordan's father, James Jordan, was 5 foot 9.

Dolores, his mother, was only 5 foot 5.

Even his brother, Larry, who Michael himself said could have been a better basketball player than him,

only grew to be 5 foot 8.

But, Michael Jordan, 6 foot 6.

He was determined to grow.

So, legend has it that he would come home every day after school,

hang up his arms from the monkey bars every day,

just try to let gravity do its work to stretch him out and grow as much as he possibly could.

His mother, Dolores, would tell him to pour salt in his shoes every single night

and say a prayer over them that he might grow.

And so he did, every night, pour salt in his shoes.

And I can't say exactly what made it happen,

but sure enough, inch by inch,

Michael began to grow.

By his sophomore year of high school,

he had grown to 5 foot 11.

By the next summer, he had grown 4 more inches to 6 foot 3,

and then ultimately growing 3 more inches to an NBA-worthy height of 6 foot 6 inches tall.

This morning, we are considering again

how we plan to magnify the glory of God together.

And what Paul tells us here in 2 Corinthians is that

we magnify his glory by growing up into him

so that we might reflect his glory.

And this is the type of growth that we're aiming for together as a church.

Of course, we want to grow numerically.

We want more people gathering here to worship alongside us,

but that's not our primary target.

Our primary target is growth in maturity.

It is growth in Christ-likeness.

It's growth that each of us individually and all of us corporately

would grow to reflect the glory of God.

And this is, I believe, the charge that Paul gives to pastors

in Ephesians chapter 4.

Ephesians 4 · chapter mention

This, I hope, is a familiar passage to you by now,

but Paul says,

He, Christ, gave the shepherds and teachers, that is the pastors,

to equip the saints, that's you, for the work of ministry.

What's that?

For building up the body of Christ

until we all attain to the unity of the faith

and of the knowledge of the Son of God

to mature manhood

to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

That's the target.

That's what we're aiming for.

And so the question that I want to ask this morning is,

how do we get there?

How do we grow up together to reflect the glory of God?

So here in our passage, 2 Corinthians 3, verse 18,

2 Corinthians 3:18

this morning,

Paul gives us three essential truths for spiritual growth.

Three essential truths for spiritual growth.

If you're a note taker,

this is our outline this morning.

It'll help you to follow along

three essential truths for spiritual growth.

First, is that spiritual growth requires spiritual sight.

Spiritual growth requires spiritual sight.

This is the prerequisite for spiritual growth.

Look here to our verse again.

Paul says in verse 18,

he says,

We all with unveiled face,

beholding the glory of the Lord,

are being transformed.

So not we all, period.

Everyone, everywhere.

Not we all who regularly attend church

and come and sit in the same place

and sing the same songs.

Not we all who look the same

and act the same

and think the same

and vote the same.

What does he say?

We all with unveiled face.

The prerequisite for you to grow spiritually,

to be transformed,

to reflect the glory of God,

is that you have had the veil removed

from over your face

so that you can see the glory of God

in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Look there to verse 13.

Verse 13.

To better understand what he's saying here,

we need to understand the context of this passage.

So Paul says here in verse 13,

he says,

Moses would put a veil over his face

so that the Israelites might not gaze

at the outcome of what was being brought to an end.

But their minds were hardened.

For to this day,

when they read the old covenant,

that same veil remains unlifted

because only through Christ is it taken away.

Yes, to this day,

whenever Moses is read,

a veil lies over their hearts.

Paul is referring to the passage

that was read here earlier this morning

from Exodus chapter 34.

Exodus 34 · chapter mention

And this was a passage

that would have been familiar

from the Old Testament

to anyone who was familiar,

had a working knowledge of the scriptures

there in Corinth.

Moses went up to the top of the mountain

on Mount Sinai

to meet with the Lord.

He received the words of the Old Covenant,

the Ten Commandments on the tablet.

And when he came out of the presence of the Lord,

you remember what happened to his face?

It shone.

It glowed.

He had been in the presence of the glory of God.

And his face radiated,

so much so that he had to put a veil

over his face

so that the people could look at him

and hear and receive and listen

to the words of the covenant.

He had to veil it

because it was too much for them to behold.

But here in 2 Corinthians,

Paul gives another reason

why Moses wore that veil.

Look there again.

So verse 13,

he says,

Moses put a veil over his face

so that the Israelites

might not gaze at the outcome

of what was being brought to an end.

In other words,

that shining, radiant face of Moses,

it didn't stay that way forever.

It was going away.

It faded with time.

It had momentary glory,

but then it was normal again.

Paul's primary point here

is to say that this is the outcome

of the old covenant.

It had a type of glory for a time.

It had a type of purpose.

It served its purpose,

but it was fading.

It was going away.

Its purpose was coming to an end.

And so Paul says there in verse 11,

if what was being brought to an end

came with glory,

much more will what is permanent

have glory,

namely the new covenant,

the work of God

and the gospel of Jesus Christ.

But there's a problem.

There's a problem.

This new covenant is far greater,

far more glorious,

far better,

but the problem here for the Jews

was they can't see it.

Verse 14,

he says,

their minds were hardened

for to this day

in Paul's day,

hundreds and hundreds of years later,

to this day,

when they read the old covenant,

that same veil

remains unlifted.

They cannot see

the glory of God

in the gospel of Christ.

They can't behold it.

Their minds are hardened

and their hearts are veiled.

See, this veil,

we need to see,

is a metaphor

for spiritual blindness.

This veil is a metaphor

for spiritual blindness.

But that's not just a problem

for the Jews, is it?

This should sober us,

church,

that the Jews

who were so close

to the presence

of God,

so familiar

with His acts

in history,

so culturally

and traditionally

and very intimately

rooted in Him

and in His Word,

were blind

to the glory

of God.

How can this be?

We would be wise

to note

here this morning

that spiritual sight

is not an issue

of familiarity.

Spiritual sight

is not an issue

of familiarity.

Who is more familiar

with the Word of God

than the people

of God?

Yet a veil

lay over their hearts

to keep them

from seeing.

And you

may know the Scriptures

inside and out,

frontwards and back,

may have studied it

time and time again,

sat under a million sermons

and yet are blind.

Do not mistake

familiarity

with the Scriptures,

with faith

in Christ.

We would be wise

to note that

spiritual sight

is not an issue

of heritage

or of physical lineage.

The Jews believed

that because

they were physical

descendants

of Abraham,

they were in the line

of Abraham,

that they were right

with God.

They belonged to Him.

They were in the covenant.

But Paul says

that covenant

has been fulfilled,

swallowed up

by a greater covenant,

a new covenant,

but they can't see it.

They were blind.

Maybe it is that

you have a believing

mother,

believing father,

grandmother,

grandfather,

who raised you

in the word,

shared the gospel

with you,

brought you to church,

loved you,

was a man or woman

of the faith.

If that's you,

then praise God,

but take note,

spiritual sight

cannot be inherited

by blood.

Do not mistake

physical lineage

for spiritual life.

You must be born again

of the Spirit.

We would be wise

to note

that spiritual sight

is not an issue

of proximity

to the truth.

Do you ever wonder

what it was like

for the Jews

to be there

at the foot

of the mountain

and to know

that right up there

at the top

was the presence

of the glory of God?

And to know

that if I so much

as come near

the foot of that mountain

and touch it

with the point

of my finger,

I would be

just obliterated.

They were so near

to the presence

of God,

but yet they were

blind to His glory

for all of their

practices,

all of their

obedience,

all of their

religious culture.

Sadly,

so many of them

did not know

the Lord,

and so it is,

I fear,

with many

self-professed

Christians.

Christians.

It's good

for us

to go to church.

It's good

for us

to be

in a community

of believers.

It's good

for us

to surround

ourselves

with Christian

influence,

surround ourselves

with the truth,

to be around

the faith,

but do not

mistake

spiritual

proximity

to spiritual

perception.

in order

for us

to grow

in the

Lord,

we must

behold

the Lord,

and in order

for us

to behold

Him,

the veil

must

come

off.

Those of us

who know

the Lord

know exactly

what I'm talking

about,

don't you?

You know

exactly what

I'm talking

about.

I've heard

so many

of your

testimonies

over the

past few

weeks

and months,

and for

many of you

there was

this clear

moment

when,

for lack

of a better

phrase,

you just,

you got it.

The lights

just came on.

Somebody shared

the gospel

with you,

you read

your Bible,

you heard

a message,

maybe you

were familiar

with the truth

for a long

time,

maybe you

had gone

to church

for your

whole life,

but something

different

happened

inside of

you,

and you

saw the

worth of

Christ.

All of a

sudden,

you saw

the goodness

of God,

you saw

your need

for salvation,

you saw

the sufficiency

of Christ

to save

you from

your sin.

What happened

was God

took off

the veil.

He removed

the veil

to allow

you to

see the

glory of

God in

the gospel

of Jesus

Christ.

As Paul

says later,

God who

said,

let light

shine out

of darkness,

has shown

in our

hearts to

give the

light of

the

knowledge

of the

glory

of God

in the

face

of

Jesus

Christ.

He opened

your eyes

to see,

and with

your eyes

now open,

you began

to grow.

You know,

the most

important

question you

can ask

yourself

this morning

is,

do you

see the

glory of

God

in the

gospel?

do you

see it?

Can you

see the

worth

of Christ?

Not

physically,

with your

physical

eyes,

of course

not,

but spiritually,

truly,

do you

behold the

glory of

God and

love Him

and see

Him as

worthy of

your time,

worthy of

your worship,

worthy of

your life,

worthy of

your devotion?

We have

to start

here.

Can you

see it?

that's the

beginning of

spiritual

growth,

but what's

the end

of spiritual

growth?

What are we

growing towards?

What's the

end goal

here?

This is the

second essential

truth for

spiritual growth,

and it's that

second,

spiritual

growth

restores

the image

of God.

Spiritual

growth

restores

the image

of God.

Look there

to verse

18 again.

Paul says,

we all

with unveiled

face,

beholding the

glory of

the Lord,

are being

transformed

into

the same

image,

from one

degree of

glory

to another.

This

tells us

the goal,

the end

goal of

spiritual

growth,

doesn't it?

What is it?

It's to be

transformed

into the

same

image,

that is,

the image

of the

Lord.

Every

man,

every

woman,

every boy,

every girl,

every child,

from the

moment of

conception,

bears the

image of

God.

This is how we

were made.

This is what we

see in the

account of our

creation in

Genesis chapter

Genesis 1 · chapter mention

1.

God said,

let us make

man in

our own

image,

after our

likeness,

meaning we

were created

to mirror

or to

reflect the

glory of

God.

And so they

were instructed,

we were instructed

to fill the

earth and

subdue it,

to be fruitful

and multiply,

to fill the

earth with

little image

bearers,

which again

is on the

sanctity of

human life

Sunday is the

primary reason

that we

denounce the

horrors of

abortion.

We were made

to reflect

and to show

the world

what God

is like

in His

character,

in His

goodness,

in His

holiness,

in His

creativity,

in His reign

and His rule

over all

things.

We were made

to be like

God,

which is what

makes the

devil's

temptation

to Adam

and Eve

that much

more absurd.

doesn't it?

You remember

what He

said?

Eat this

fruit and

your eyes

will be

opened and

you will be

made like

God.

What

happened?

They ate

and their

eyes were

veiled.

And the

image of

God,

which they

already had,

though it

remained,

was now

marred and

broken and

tarnished

by sin.

All of us

come into

the world

with this

messed up,

sin-stained

image.

But here's the

thing,

when you are

reborn from

the Spirit,

reborn by the

grace of God,

the veil has

been removed,

the Spirit

gets to work

in you,

restoring the

image of

God.

God.

I want to

try to

reframe how

you think

about spiritual

growth.

If I can

try to do

that in our

time together

this morning,

I want you to

listen here.

Because some

of you,

when you hear

spiritual growth,

your mind

automatically goes

towards self-improvement.

Just being a

better version

of you.

It goes to

growing step

by step,

being improved,

being the better

version of

yourself.

You hear that

we want to

equip you to

do the work

of ministry,

and you hear

that we want

you just to

be your most

productive self.

If you go to

any bookstore,

just about any

bookstore,

go to the

Christian section,

which I strongly

advise you not

to do,

and you look

for a section

on spiritual

growth,

you'll probably

find a lot of

this same sort

of talk.

That's not

what we're

aiming for

here.

That's not

what this is.

I hope that

we see here,

Paul is showing

us there's

something much,

much bigger

at play

than merely

bettering

yourself,

than merely

self-improvement,

than merely

just working

on your flaws

and fixing

your mistakes.

Spiritual

growth

is transformation

into the

image of God.

spiritual growth

is transformation

into the

image of God.

It is the

work of God

in you

by His

Spirit to

restore the

image of God

that was dragged

through the mud

in the fall.

And this is the

plan of God

for all of us,

we all with

unveiled face,

all of us who

are in Christ.

Romans 8,

29 says,

for those whom

He foreknew,

He also

predestined to

be conformed

to the

image

of His

Son in order

that He might

be the firstborn

among many

brothers.

This is the

hope of all

of us who are

in Christ.

1 Corinthians

15,

49 says,

just as we

have borne

the image

of the man

of dust,

that's Adam,

we shall

also bear

the image

of the man

of heaven.

That's our

hope.

See,

doesn't that

reset the

standard,

doesn't it?

It resets

the paradigm.

We aren't just

trying to be

the best version

of ourselves,

we are aiming

to reflect

the glory

of God.

What does

He say?

Be holy

for what?

Help me.

For I am

holy.

What did

Jesus say

to His

followers?

You must

be perfect

as my

heavenly

Father is

perfect.

That's a

high standard

Christian.

But take

heart because

believer,

the power

for this

transformation

does not

come from

us.

It can't.

We can't

do it.

Paul says

this comes

from the

Lord

who is

the

Spirit.

You know,

there's a

word for

this,

big theological

word called

sanctification.

Sanctification.

Our statement

of faith

concerning

sanctification

says,

we believe

that sanctification

is the

process

by which

according to

the will

of God

and through

the power

of the

indwelling

Holy Spirit,

we are made

partakers

of His

holiness.

It is a

progressive

transformation

into the

image of

Christ

that has

begun in

regeneration

and is

carried on

in the

hearts of

believers

by the

work of

the Holy

Spirit

and the

continual

use of

spiritual

disciplines

including

especially

reading and

hearing the

word of

God,

the communion

of the

saints,

self-examination

and self-denial,

watchfulness,

and prayer.

Now,

did you hear

the same

key words

that I

heard when

I read

that?

Did you

hear those

same key

words?

Sanctification

is a

process.

It is a

progressive

transformation

into the

word,

into the

image of

Christ.

It is

begun in

regeneration

and is

carried on.

You hear

that language,

don't you?

In other

words,

it does

not happen

all at

once.

I'll tell

you what,

one of the

most frustrating

things about

the Christian

life,

some of the

most discouraging

at times

moments of

this spiritual

transformation

is that it

is not

instantaneous.

It's a

process.

We are,

as Paul

says,

being

transformed

from one

degree of

glory to

another.

I remember

growing up

we had

heating and

air conditioning,

I promise,

but you

might not

ever know

it.

My parents

were so

tight with

the thermostat.

We weren't

poor,

I promise

you,

but they

would say

that they

were just

being frugal,

and I just

knew that I

was cold.

Clark

Howard made

some recommendation

about the

ideal thermostat

reading,

and it became

law in my

house.

If I had

an opportunity

just to

sneak over

to the

thermostat and

adjust the

temperature,

even by just

a couple of

degrees,

I would take

it.

Maybe an

hour would

go by,

and I'd

sneak back

again if

the plan was

working,

and bump it

up another

degree,

maybe another

two degrees,

and eventually,

without them

noticing from

one degree of

temperature to

another,

the temperature

in the room

would change.

It had to be

degree by

degree,

otherwise,

if there's

just a sudden

fluctuation of

temperature,

the whole plan

would go out

the window,

and we'd be

right back

where we

started.

See,

if you are

in Christ,

if you have

had that veil

removed from

over your

heart,

then you can

be certain,

this is what

Paul tells us,

that the

Lord is at

work in

you.

You may not

notice a sudden

swing in

temperature,

but as you

look back

over your

life,

you should

notice the

work of

God,

that from

one degree

to another,

from one

degree of

glory to

another,

you have

grown more

and more

and more

to reflect

the image

of the

glory of

God.

God.

Some of

you,

though,

I know,

are in the

middle of

a season

of just

noticeable

growth.

Maybe you've

come to

faith recently

over the

past several

months,

several years,

and you just

feel like you're

growing leaps

and bounds,

and you see

his work

everywhere,

you have

passion for

the Lord,

you desire

to grow,

you want to

know him

more.

I just want

to encourage

you to hold

on to that

as long as

you can.

Press as

deep into

that as

you possibly

can,

but know

this also,

that our

journey to

glory is

not a

sprint,

it is a

marathon.

There will

be seasons

of noticeable

growth,

tremendous

growth,

seasons of

hunger for

the Lord,

seasons of

noticing his

hand in

everything,

and there

will be

seasons where

it feels

like you're

running through

the mud.

You barely

notice his

work at

all.

Take heart,

believer.

Through it

all, the

Lord is at

work from

one degree

of glory to

another in

all who

belong to

him.

He who

began a

good work

in you,

I'm sure

of it,

Paul says,

will bring

it to

completion at

the day of

Jesus Christ.

You are

being transformed

from one

degree of

glory to

another.

But how

does that

transformation

happen?

Practically,

how does this

transformation

take place?

This is the

third and

final essential

truth for

spiritual growth.

It answers the

question for us,

how do we

get there?

Third,

spiritual growth

comes from

regarding and

relishing the

gospel.

Spiritual growth

comes from

regarding and

relishing the

gospel.

You get a

twofer here.

You get a

bonus.

Regarding and

relishing.

You might have

heard John

Piper call this

seeing and

savoring.

It's the same

thing.

You get the

point here.

You will

grow into

the image

of God.

You will

grow to

reflect his

glory as

you regard

and relish,

as you see

and you savor,

as you look

to and you

love the

glory of

God in

the gospel

of Jesus

Christ.

Look there

one more time

to verse

18.

He says,

we all with

unveiled face

beholding the

glory of the

Lord are

being transformed

into the same

image from one

degree of glory

to another.

For this comes

from the Lord

who is the

Spirit.

So how are we

being transformed?

It's by

beholding.

Beholding the

glory of the

Lord.

See there's a

principle here

that we need to

know.

The English

poet William

Blake I think

said this first.

He got this

right.

He said,

you become

what you

behold.

You become

what you

behold.

This is true

of our

idols,

church.

Psalm 115

says,

those who

make them

become like

them.

So do all

who trust

them.

So when you

behold your

idols,

you give them

your attention,

you give them

your heart's

desire,

your heart's

devotion,

whether that's

money or

approval or

comfort.

sex or

pleasure or

entertainment,

you will become

whatever it is

that you

behold.

If you fill

your mind with

political talk

radio week in

and week out,

guess what is

going to come

out of your

heart eventually,

out of your

mind?

It'll be

anger,

discontent,

anxiety,

frustration about

the world around

you.

See we become

what we behold.

when I grew

up watching as

many Chicago

Bulls games as

I possibly

could,

putting Michael

Jordan's posters

up on my

wall and then

went out in my

driveway with my

tongue out.

I know I

looked exactly

like Michael

Jordan.

Can't tell me

otherwise.

Maybe not.

Church, if

you're hearing

this and you

wonder why your

growth spiritually

has stagnated,

why it feels

like you're not

growing at all,

you may need to

take a step back

and ask yourself,

what are you

beholding?

What is it that

you're giving most

of your heart's

attention to?

If it's not the

glory of God in

the gospel of

Jesus Christ,

turn your eyes

upon Jesus.

What does the

old hymn say?

Look full in

his wonderful

face.

The things of

earth will grow

strangely dim in

the light of his

glory and grace.

We become what

we behold.

It's true of our

idols, but church,

what a promise we

have here from

Paul in 2nd

Corinthians that

this is also true

of God.

When we behold

him, we become

like him.

John says,

we are God's

children now and

what we will be

has not yet

appeared, but we

know that when

he appears, we

shall be like

him because we

shall see him

as he is.

See, there's a

connection here

between sight and

sanctification.

salvation.

But right now, we

can't see him

perfectly as we

one day will.

So where do we

look?

We look to the

glory of God in

the gospel of

Jesus Christ.

God's glory is

displayed for us

to see and to

savor, to

regard and to

relish in the

sending of his

son to live and

to die and to

rise, to rescue

sinners like me

and you from the

depths of our sin,

and then to

transform us that

we might reflect the

image of the glory

of God.

Do you need to

have the veil

removed from over

your heart?

Look to Christ.

Only through

Christ is it

taken away, but

when one turns to

the Lord, the veil

is removed.

Do you want to

grow into the

image of God?

I hope you do.

Look to Christ,

who is himself

the very image

of God.

Do you want to

look more like

God in the way

that you think,

in the way that

you act, in the

way that you

speak, in just

the way that you

are?

Look to Christ.

Behold the

glory of God

in the gospel

of Jesus Christ.

And Christ

promises you

from one degree

to another,

you will be

changed.

So,

very practically

for us here

as we close,

God

and

I just want to

end this

morning by

sharing with

you some of

the opportunities

that we have

here as we've

thought and

prayed for how

we might equip

you to reflect

the glory of

God.

It doesn't have

to be limited

to this, of

course, but

this is

frameworks for

how we aim

to equip you.

I want you to

think of these

as just

opportunities for

us as a

church to

behold him

together.

This is not

everything.

I just want to

draw your

attention to

a few ways

here as we

close.

One,

Sunday evening

prayer.

Sunday evening

prayer.

We plan this

year to gather

Sunday evenings

on the first

and the third

Sunday of

every month

for a time

of worship

and corporate

prayer.

We had our

first one last

Sunday evening

and I just

want to

encourage you

make this a

priority.

Make this

time a

priority.

If you feel

a need to

grow in your

love for the

Lord, to

grow in your

devotion to

him through

prayer, I

got good news

for you.

We're going

to do it

twice a

month right

here Sunday

evening, so

come.

Another

opportunity is

Sunday school.

I like to

call these

grow classes.

You know

why?

Bet you

can't figure

it out.

Because that's

our goal for

that time

together.

It's that we

might be

growing to

reflect the

image of

the glory

of God.

I'll just

say this, if

you want to

know if that

is worth your

time, if you

haven't been

going, just

talk to anybody

that's been

going there.

Ask them if

it's worth

their time.

Ask them if

they've grown

at all over

the past few

months in

their time

there in

those grow

classes.

The children

are learning

so much in

their time

during that

hour as

well in

that grow

class time.

One of the

best ways that

you can grow

to delight in

the glory of

God is to

serve.

Miss Regina,

Miss Becky,

Amanda, serve

back there

faithfully.

I'll just say

this, you don't

understand anything

until you can

explain it to a

child.

Okay?

And you don't

know patience

until you can

spend time

explaining the

gospel week in

and week out

to children.

And what an

opportunity that

is to shape

and to mold

this next

generation to

delight in the

glory of God.

God.

So I invite

you to

serve.

The men

and the

women are

now gathering

weekly.

Men on

Wednesdays,

women on

Thursdays.

They're gathering

in community

that we pray.

They're studying

resources that we

pray will help

them, enable

them to grow

in delighting

in the Lord.

If you are a

man or if you

are a woman

in this room,

which is

everybody here,

you're invited.

You're invited

to come.

Take part in

these opportunities.

And if those

times don't

work for you,

let us know

what works

better so we

can start

another group

where you

can grow.

Church,

here's the

point.

If you hear

this and you

just hear a

list of events

on a calendar

to keep you

busy, you

have missed

it.

And these

are not just

things to do

because we

had nothing

else to do

and we want

to just put

something on

the calendar.

This is,

we want to

equip you.

to magnify

the glory

of God

by growing

up into

him and

reflecting his

glory together.

So church,

let's look

to Christ.

Let's behold

the man upon

the cross.

Behold the

Lamb of God

who takes

away the

sins of

the world.

Would you

behold our

God?

regard and

relish the

glory of

God and

the gospel

of Jesus

Christ and

I promise

you this

year will

grow.

Will grow.

Would you

pray with

me?

Lord,

what we

are aiming

to do is

impossible apart

from you.

I can't

do it.

Treg can't

do it.

Nobody,

nobody can

produce this

growth only

through the

Lord who

is the

spirit.

And so

we pray

as we

devote

ourselves

to these

means of

grace for

our

sanctification,

as we

devote ourselves

to your