Growing Up

Growing Up

by Wayne Dailey
Senior Pastor, Bethel Revival Center
43 Norwood St.
Everett, MA 02149

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Tender Plants

Deuteronomy 32:1-4
Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: because I will publish the name of the LORD: ascribe ye greatness unto our God. He is the Rock, His work is perfect: for all His ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He.

This portion of Scripture is often referred to as Moses' song. In this song Moses tells the whole earth to open their hearts and their ears to listen to what he had to say.

If we're going to get anywhere with God, this is just what we must do.

We must have ears to hear. And if we don't have good spiritual ears, all we have to do is ask God to help us: "Help me, Lord! I have a hard time hearing Your Word. The sound comes into my ears, but it never seems to reach into my heart. I have a hard time applying it to my life."

Every babe in Christ is considered a tender plant in the sight of the Lord, and this Scripture says that the Word will drop as the small rain upon the tender herb.

The tender herb: When you're working with a tender plant, you have to be careful how you handle it. If you touch it too firmly, it will uproot itself, because the roots have barely started to grow. And if you put too much water on it, you'll wash away the little bit of soil that's covering the roots.

It's like this with spiritual plantings. We start out as newborn babes, only able to swallow the milk of God's Word. Each day we grow stronger and stronger until we are able to go on to solids.

When we come to maturity in the Lord, we need to feed on the strong meat. We might like some milk on the side, but that's no longer enough to sustain us. We have to have something more solid to help us grow.

Now, as we grow in the Lord, we need to have something that's going to take us into a search of God's Word. We need to get down into the depths of the Scriptures. We need to get into the Spirit, letting the Spirit search out the deep things of God as we read. It's when we are filled with God's Spirit that we are enabled to search these hidden things out. The Spirit within us makes these truths real — enabling us to let the things of God sink down inside our heart and soul.

We're living in a time when we need the Holy Ghost to discern to us those deeper things of God which pertain to us in these last days.

The church of Jesus Christ is going to have to wake up and realize that we are living in a critical time. Yes, we're at a crucial period in the history of this world. We're at a time when the load and the responsibility weighs on the church greater than at any other time in history.

The night is fast coming when no man can work.

The world is talking about population explosion — but who is going to reach all those souls with the gospel?

We're living in the age when men's hearts will fail them because of fear, as they look at those things which are coming upon the face of this earth.

Believers need to be rooted and grounded with strong, sound doctrine. They need to do some serious digging into the Scriptures. They need to open their hearts and broaden their understanding, by praying and digging into the Word of God.

And then, there are those tender plants who need to be carefully trained up. Too strong a message could choke them, causing them to worry and be fearful. We need to be careful that these tender plants are nourished up to the place of becoming strong enough to stand against the storm.

A tender plant has to take root. It must take root downward in order to grow up strong enough to stand. And those who are tender plants in the Lord, those who are babes in Christ, have to get rooted and grounded in the Word of God, growing in grace and knowledge, that they might grow strong enough to stand.

Now, God is able to keep us. I really believe in His keeping power. I believe that when He sows a seed and waters it, causing it to begin to produce and bring forth, He is able to keep that seed growing.

The Seed of the Word of God

Yet, we have a lot of warnings in the Word about this, such as where God talks about the sower who went out to sow. In this parable, we find that as the seed fell on the earth, it fell on various types of ground:

Mark 4:3-8
Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: and it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: but when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.

Seed Falling by the Wayside

. . . and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. Satan snatched the Word right out of their hearts before it ever had a chance to grow. One of the reasons this happened is because they didn't understand it when they received it.

Sometimes we complicate the Word when we witness. We need to take time to make it plain and simple, making sure that it is clearly understood. Often we try to tell a person so much that, by the time they leave, they have more than they can handle, and the devil comes along to take it right out of their mind before they have a chance to figure it out.

When we are sowing the seed of God's love, we have to take time to give a simple message. We should give a light that illuminates Jesus as Saviour and the need to be born again. Shed a clear light so the one you are witnessing to will clearly see their need. They should understand they need to repent and turn to the Lord for cleansing and assurance of eternal life. Then the seed has a chance of being watered, nurtured and germinated in the soil of their heart.

Seed Falling among Thorns

Mark 4:18,19
And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, and the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.

The Word is sown into the heart and starts to take root. It begins to grow. But the thorns also grow and eventually choke it out. Even though they had started out with the Lord, they let other things enter in to choke the Word.

What an awful state to be in! Imagine beginning this walk only to become unfruitful! But this does happen in many a heart.

For your own protection, you must guard yourself against these thorns.

In I John 2:15,16 we are told not to love the world, nor the things of the world. Why? because those thorns can choke the spiritual life right out of us.

Some people get carried away with the pleasures of this world, carried away by the cares of the world.

Materialism chokes many hearts. The Word gets choked out and they lose their desire for church. They no longer have a hunger to pray or read the Word.

Seed Falling on Stony Ground

Mark 4:16,17
And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended.

Now, if you're going to plant a garden, there is no use your just laying the seeds on the rocks. They won't produce without soil! And if it doesn't get any depth in the soil, it will perish when the sun comes up for lack of moisture. So it is if the Word doesn't get any deep roots down in your heart.

If the doctrine of Christ doesn't take root and lodging, if it doesn't have its way in your life, in a little while you'll find you have been scorched by the sun.

You see this happen time and time again. Somebody gets saved and begins to walk with the Lord. Then temptation comes along, or persecution may come their way. Pretty soon, they turn and walk away. You don't see them any more in the house of God.

How is the soil in your heart? Would you consider your heart to be in the category of being good soil, or are there thorns or rocks in your heart?

We need to break up the fallow ground and get the plow out to dig it up.

If we have things that are preventing spiritual growth in our heart, we need to dig those things out and get them out of the way.

You know the things that keep you away from the house of God. You know what presses you to go in another direction. Right there is where you have to stop and do something. If you expect to make it through, you must prepare your heart to draw closer to the Lord.

A Heart after God

It is wonderful to have a heart after God. It is wonderful to have a mind that desires to serve the Lord. When you do, nobody has to persuade you to live wholeheartedly for the Lord. When you've got a mind like that, then you have a great blessing.

Realize that not everybody feels that way. Not everybody is minded to serve the Lord. Not everybody who says they are saved wants to go all the way with the Lord.

Now, you're going to be led about by what is down in your heart. If you try to serve the Lord while the world is still in your heart, the world will soon win first place.

I thank God that Jesus comes into our heart when we get saved. He gets down in the inner man and goes to work. The Scripture says that He removes our hard, stony heart, and gives us a new heart of flesh (see Ezekiel 36:26).

Our new heart is soft. It is not stiff-necked. It is not stubborn or rebellious. No, it is pliable to the dealings of the Lord.

If you still have some old ways in your heart, you need to root them out. You know if you are like that. You know if you resist God when He strives to turn you about. You know if you resist when He is trying to bring you into new depths.

Deuteronomy 32:4
He is the Rock, His work is perfect: for all His ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He.

Moses saw that God was perfect. He couldn't find a flaw in the Lord, and he realized that God's ways are the ways of judgment — that He always looks at a matter with judgment.

His judgment isn't being mean, or showing wrath and anger. His judgment is looking at a matter and seeing what is just and right. He looks down on us. He looks on our daily activities and He judges how we spend our time.

God knows you by your very works. He knows your heart. He can see your motives. He knows when you are motivated by a love for Him, and He knows when you murmur and complain within.

God Has No Pets

Now, Moses saw no flaw in the Lord. But that may be a far cry from the way you see the Lord. I've had people tell me they were born again of the Spirit yet they had such bad attitudes towards God: "I don't know why God doesn't answer me! He blesses so and so, but He seems to have forgotten me."

The blame doesn't lie with God. It lies with you. Your attitude is at fault.

The Scriptures say that God is just — and a just God won't pick on anyone. A just God won't try to aggravate you. He won't see how far He can push you.

If you're not receiving what you feel you should be receiving, it's not because God isn't being just.

The sooner you admit the problem lies in you, the sooner the channel of blessing will be cleared.

God said you would find Him when you search for Him with all of your heart (see Jeremiah 29:13). If others are receiving more, it may be because they are more diligent in their approach to God. If you don't put all of your heart into it, you won't receive as much as they do.

God has promised that He would respond to faith — anyone's faith. He hears and answers the prayer of our hearts, when we pray with faith believing.

This avenue of faith is open to you just as much as it's open to anyone else. You have access to go and find grace in the time of trouble (see Hebrews 4:14-16). If you're not finding it, it's not because you can't have it, but you are not coming in faith believing.

God is no respecter of persons (see Acts 10:34): He doesn't favor one above the other. It may look that way at times because someone is doing what God says to do, and another one isn't.

God wants us to realize that the windows in heaven are never shut. He will pour out His rich blessing on us if we will let Him. If the windows of heaven seem to be shut to you, it's because you're being hindered somewhere.

When heaven seems like brass to you, you're not under the blessing — you are getting under the curse. You are in the position where you're not following after God wholeheartedly but are following after something else. Heaven is just as open as it's always been, but it just seems as though it has been tightly shut to us when we don't keep in tune with the Lord.

Wouldn't it be awful if you had to wait to come to maturity in faith in order to receive something from God? Thank God that a babe in the Lord can come to the throne of grace just as readily as someone who has been saved for twenty years or more.

Deuteronomy 32:15
But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness; then he forsook God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.

I've seen many brought out of dire circumstances when they turned their lives over to the Lord, and I've seen many of these same people turn from the Lord when they began to find things going their way. All of a sudden they lose sight of God. Oh, they wanted Him when they felt they needed Him, but when they got what they wanted, they no longer wanted to serve Him.

Deuteronomy 32:16
They provoked Him to jealousy with strange gods, with abominations provoked they Him to anger.

God Is a Jealous God.

Jealousy is when you fear losing to another what belongs to you. When a husband is jealous of his wife, it means he is afraid someone else will come along and win her love and affection.

God is jealous of His people. He isn't going to just give them freely over to anybody or anything. He isn't going to turn His back when someone comes along to win their love and draw them away from Him.

Now, if you realize that God is jealous, why should you provoke Him?

If you had a jealous husband, would it be right for you to provoke that jealousy by winking at every man that passed by? That wouldn't be wise. It would only enrage his jealousy that much more. But this is what many do with the Lord. They claim they love Him with their whole heart yet go about flirting with the world.

Deuteronomy 32:17
They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not.

If we are able to give God all of our love and devotion, then how much is left to give to a stone god, or a wooden god, or a painted god? I mean, how much can we give ourselves to an imitation god while still retaining the state of loving the Lord with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength?

Deuteronomy 32:18
Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee.

Those who are unmindful of the Lord don't take the time to have a prayer life. They could care less whether or not they go to church. I wonder how some maintain even a profession of being a Christian when they are so unmindful of the Lord in their daily lives.

God's Purpose for Your Life

Do you know why God formed you out of the dust of the ground and brought you into this world? Why? that you might live unto His honor and glory. Yes, you are here because God has a purpose to fulfil in your life.

He formed you, brought you into this world, provided you salvation to fulfil that purpose. He wants you to understand that!

Instead of seeking out your purposes, seek out God's purpose. Your purpose in life should be to seek His will for you and to do it. Your will should be submitted fully to His.

Deuteronomy 32:19
And when the LORD saw it, He abhorred them, because of the provoking of His sons, and of His daughters.

What would cause God to abhor that which He loved so much? Because He looks and sees that they aren't loyal to Him. They no longer seem to love Him as they once did. They have backslid, slipped away.

Deuteronomy 32:20a
And He said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their end shall be

Some find it difficult to touch God when they haven't been doing what is right. And God says, "I'm going to stand back here in the shadows for a season. I'm going to be quiet, and just watch you for a season."

Did you ever observe a backslider try to make a go of it without the Lord? They go along seeking out their own interests, and everything seems to be going just fine for a season. But then something goes wrong, and they cry out with bitter tears: "Oh, God! I need you! I haven't needed you for months, but I need you — right now!"

When this happens, God doesn't always jump into action. Often, He stands back to see what their end will be.

Deuteronomy 32:20b
for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith.

The children of Israel were a generation that had no faith. They failed to mix faith with the promises of God.

And this is true with many today. What profit is there in knowing God's promises if you don't mix them with faith?

Deuteronomy 32:29
O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end!

Realize that those who are wise take the Word to heart and live by it.

Every day you waste, every day you play around, every day you're not serious — every day you have like that is knocking a day from your fruitful life. Souls may be lost just because you didn't get down to business today.

Are you wise enough to heed the whole counsel of God? Are you wise enough to keep yourself unspotted from this wicked world?