How Tall Are You? - Pastor Brad DeLong

One of our core values here at APC that you're going to hear discussed hopefully see emulated today is the core value of spiritual growth. Where we're going to focus and where we're going to land this morning. For the last several months, including during our time of quarterly prayer and fasting, the Lord has been moving on us powerfully. We just can't come together without there being a move of the Holy Ghost. And that's the way it should be. He's been calling us away from some things as he did in his word regularly, some habits, some hang-ups, some sins, and he's been calling us towards some new things so we can be healthy and growing and full of love. Those three benchmarks are rooted in Ephesians 4. It's where we're going to turn today. It's written on our soundboard every Sunday when you walk in. This passage and hopefully it is becoming more and more etched on our hearts. Some of you ought to be able to quote this by now. Tells us that Jesus himself gave gift to the church. He gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers. Why did he give them? for the equipping of the saints, for the work of ministry, for the edifying, the building up of the body of Christ.

Why? Till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, that we should no longer be children tossed to and fro in this world and carried about with every Facebook post, every wind of doctrine. By the trickery of men, which is evident, we see it, the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting. But speaking the truth in love, we would grow up in all things in every way into him who is the head of Christ from whom the whole body joined and knit together by what every joint supplies according to the effective working by which every part does its share. This causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself and love. Before I convey my title today, I want to remind us that the Lord has been doing some cleaning, purging, some subtracting of late. He's been methodically and intentionally subtracting things from our hearts and lives that do not belong so he can help us as we fully attain to his stature. There's just some things that don't cause growth. They used to tell me drinking coffee would stunt my growth. It didn't work. Yeah. He's trying to remove some things that are stunting growth. But today, I feel like God wants to build on all that he's doing and that he'll add some things to our lives. He doesn't want to just take. He wants to give and to see us grow.

And with his fullness and stature in mind, one we're aspiring to grow towards. I want to teach and preach from this question and title today. And that is simply, how tall are you? How tall are you? If you want to be as tall as Jesus, would you put your Bibles down and lift your hands right now and invite the Lord to grow you before you leave this service today? Oh God, we have not already attained. We're not there yet. Lord, we we have not arrived. And today, we're asking for your help that you would help us to grow. That you would help us by the time we leave this service to be more and more like you. I am not content with where I currently stand. I'm not content with my current spiritual stature. And I've come today to connect with you and all that that entails, including the growth that you will inspire and call for in my life. if I need it and want it. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. Amen. You may be seated. How tall are you? If you are ready for your weekly fatherhood sermon analogy, I'll give that to you now. If you're not, I'm sorry. Here it comes. Okay. I've uh told the church in recent times and ever since I became a dad that I glean so much from my conversations with my kiddos and I promise I promise that I don't get all of my sermons from them. I really do study the word of God. I love the word of God. I'm inspired by the word of God.

But I just learn a lot from this awesome thing that is fatherhood. When I read this passage in Ephesians 4, one that compares growth and maturity and spirituality to childhood in adulthood, I I cannot help but see the parallels in my own life and in my interactions with Miss Mila and Mr. Wesley and Miss Selena. And in today's case, it struck me recently that I have an inordinate amount of conversations with my kids about how tall I am. I'm not sure how long this will last, but Mila and Wesley, they are fascinated with my height and the fact that I can reach almost anything without standing on my tippy toes in our house. And they take these little squishy toys and they throw them and they stick them to our ceiling. I don't know where they're getting those. If you're giving those to my kids, please stop. All right? Because constantly I am walking through and if you don't get to it in time, it leaves a stain on the ceiling and it's it's a mess. But they're just like, I think they throw it so they can see me get it. Like, oh man, so excited. They regularly ask me how tall I am, and they compare my height with other persons and animals and objects. I've been asked all kinds of questions about it. Uh, the most common one, "Dad, are you taller than a bear?" They do not like that there are bears that are taller than me. They just can't stand that.

Milo asked me, "Dad, are you taller than the camp pastor?" She's talking about brother Parky who is 6'7. She does not like that he is taller than I am. One of the common recurring questions and comments they have relates to how tall they will be when they grow up and and if they'll be as tall as I am. And I mentioned several years ago that uh Mila has used my height as her reference. She she's compared entire buildings and highrises to me like that building is big like that. And I don't know whether I should be offended or take it as a compliment. At least for now, my kids compare themselves and any number of random objects, people, and animals to the six foot and a couple inch stature of their dad. My height is their current reference point. It's their benchmark for all things great and small. And all things seem to pass through the dad comparison. How does this person, place, or thing compare to our dad and his stature? And I've also learned that they're using this standard and measurement in order to gauge their own growth. And whether it's practical or not, they're using my height and stature to measure their own and to see how far they need to go to reach adulthood and maturity. And of course, I make sure they have all the right understanding of genetics and height and expectations.

But but I also draw a deep lesson and parallel from these conversations, these observations. You're probably picking up on it already. The truth is whether we all realize it or not, we're all aspiring to some sort of standard, a benchmark, an ambition, a stature, a level of maturity. We have this innate drive and sense from the earliest onset that we want to measure up and we want to attain to to be more mature to be uh like someone or something ideal even if our version of ideal is misguided. This is part of the reason why I love this text in Ephesians 4 and Paul's words to the church so much because he clearly and plainly gives us exactly what that benchmark and what that measurement, that goal, that ambition, who that person that we aspire to be like. He gives us exactly who we should be. Mila and Wes have already been keying into this and they've been talking about how Jesus is bigger than everything. Jesus is bigger than the gateway arch. They love the gateway arch. They measure everything now. And I see this shift. They're measuring things by how big Jesus is. I can see their benchmark being shaped now by Jesus and his stature. Even though they they're probably going to break their box if I tell them that he was likely only about 5'6. That may have broke your box. All right.

Even still, they're setting their sights more and more on the true aim, true stature, the true level of who we're called to be. In a world full of influencers and attention grabbers and dynamic leaders with their subsequent followers and imitators, I cannot stress enough that there is still one aim and one goal and one benchmark and one God and father of all who we must desire to imitate and to follow and to be. The word gives us his name and and lists for us all of his eternal attributes. And Paul reminds us in Ephesians 4, Ephesians 5, Philippians 2 and 3, and a dozen other places that our chief pursuit, our chief goal, our chief aim, it has always been Jesus Christ and attaining to the measure of his stature. Paul tells us to fix our gaze on him first and foremost, to press towards him and the goal that is the measure in the stature of Christ. Paul says himself, "Brethren, I I don't count myself to have apprehended. I I don't I haven't arrived yet, but one thing I do, one thing, forgetting those things which are behind, like those things we laid at the altar last week when we were cleaning house, some things that you've laid behind in your past, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forward to those things that are ahead. I press. I pursue.

I I fix my eyes and my gaze and this is my goal and this is my I wonder if anyone feels that pressing right now in your spirit. The Holy Ghost is churning in you that I've got to be more like Jesus. I am not content. Anyone feel just a little bit restless here recently? Maybe you feel a little uncomfortable. And that's all right. Comfort is not the enemy or not the not always the the the friend of a Christian. Comfort can be the adversary of a Christian, but I feel a pressing of the Holy Ghost stirring the people of God that hey, you're doing great, but there's still more to grow and there's still more to do. I press on. He says, I want to attain. I want to I want to achieve that goal, the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. And he says this, therefore, let us as many as are mature have this mind. And if anything you think otherwise, I love this. God will show you. If you if you disagree, God will help you. Nevertheless, though, to the degree that we've already attained, let us walk by the same rule. Let us be of the same mind. What kind of mind is he talking about? I think he talks about it in Philippians chapter 2. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. That mind he talks about in Romans 12. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you wouldn't be conformed to a worldly standard, but to a different standard.

And to do that, to let your mind be renewed, until this eternal pursuit and stature and benchmark is achieved, the one spelled out in our text until we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the son of God to a perfect man to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, that we would speak the truth and love and we would grow up in all things and to him who is the head. Paul states clearly in plain ink of all the goals you have, of all the ambitions that you would procure, of all the people you'd want to know and emulate and follow, this one is chief among them all. It is Jesus Christ, the chief cornerstone, the only begotten of the father, full of grace and truth. This is why the ministry was given. This is what the body of Christ should look like. This should be our collective aim. Paul spells it out clearly right here in Ephesians 4 and elsewhere in our text that our goal as the church should be together to imitate Christ and be more and more like him. That being the case, I believe it's important that we actually know what that means. If we're going to press for something and we're going to pursue something, it's probably important to know exactly what that something is. So, if you just allow me, I want to preach for a moment or two. That's the combination of teach and preach. Treach. All right, everybody good? All right, settle in.

First of all, I need you to know this pursuit is one that involves the entire body. Ephesians 4 talks about the whole body. This is not a one-man show. All right? So, if you're doing this, you can't do it on your own. The whole body has to help the whole body become healthy and growing and full of love. If you're trying to make this on your own and be like Jesus on your own, it just doesn't happen outside of his body. We help each other. We spur one another on. Hebrews tells us that we look around for one another and we strengthen one another in this race that we're running. We've got to do it together. We're pressing together. We're in this race together, reaching this collective prize. And what is that prize according to Paul that we're all after together? He says, "The ministry was given to build up the body of Christ until we come to the unity of the faith, the knowledge of the son of God, to a perfect man or to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." Some would say that's just saying the same thing over and over again. It's nuanced, but he's trying to drive home the point. If you look back earlier in the chapter, you see Paul used the word one seven times at least. One body, one spirit, one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and father of all, who's above all and through all and in you all.

He likes the word one and we do too, right? We love the word one around here. And I love how one scholar ties us together. He looks at that and he looks back at verse 13 and in and our collective goal and he says we are aiming for oneness in Christian unity and living oneness of faith, oneness of knowledge of the son of God, oneness of aim or object seeking to become perfected men and women in Christ, full-grown adults who attain to the measure of his stature. That just sounds apostolic, doesn't it? One aim, one body with one faith and one goal. The one I'm talking about today, attaining to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. What does that mean? Well, I'm glad you asked because I think the word perfect man, that phrase throws us a little bit and we start to wonder and maybe we get a little discouraged by the fact that we may never fully attain to the measure of Christ this side of our eternal lives. Just speaking plainly and honestly today, I would say that measuring up to Jesus's fullness is difficult on my best day. Anybody else? That adjective perfect can cause some confusion at the very least. Maybe some discouragement and disillusion at worst.

But what Paul's getting at from what I can tell through study is he's getting at the maturity of Christ, the completeness of Christ, the adult stature of Christ, getting as close as we can with the help of the spirit of God to the fullness, the character, and the mind of Christ. Anyone thinking completely like Jesus yet? You have the same thoughts. All right. Me neither. That's what we're aiming for. And I know some and can uh some can and they they've argued that uh we we won't get to that measure this side of eternity in these earthn vessels. But but the pursuit though is no less worthy. The aim is still true and sure. Jesus himself told his disciples in Luke 6, he said a disciple is not above his teacher. Shouldn't even claim to be above his teacher. But I love he says everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher. I may never be as wonderful and perfect as Jesus, but I'm still aiming for something. I'm aiming for someone. One of the things I love to say, if you aim at nothing, you'll hit it every time. So, I'm still aiming for Jesus. I'm not aiming for anything lesser. I'm not aiming for anyone lower. We are pressing together for a collective and powerful goal. We want to attain to the measure of his stature, a stature that speaks of maturity, the measure of which is nothing less than the fullness of Christ.

the complete possession of the gifts and the grace of Christ that he wants to impart to humanity. If I could just again communicate what I feel like is the posture of the Lord today as he's been waiting for this service, it's that he wants to give you something. He wants to give you his strength and help and spirit. He wants to add to your life virtues that can only come by the power of the Holy Ghost if we'd be willing to receive it. One writer said that Jesus himself has the very fullness of God. But he also seeks that the Christian should be filled with all of his gifts that can be communicated. And he says whether the goal can be realized in this life or not is irrelevant. The point is that the Christian is to press forward with no lesser ambition than this. And I am not settling for anything less than Jesus. I'm not going to get to a point where I think, you know what, I probably can just slow down and stop. Paul Paul couldn't near the end of his life last letter said I fought the good fight. I finished the race. I kept the faith he pursued. He fought for every inch. In other words, whether I will ever fully attain it or not, I will press towards that mark. Which one? The one outlined plainly in scripture that I want to be like Jesus. I want to share in his holiness, his kindness, his characteristics. I want to grow up in every way to be like him who is the head Christ.

I may never fully make it to his height and his stature, but I'm going to press anyway and I'm going to fight anyway and I'm going to imitate anyway and I'm going to follow anyway that I would no longer be children tossed to and fro. But I would grow up in every way to him who is the head. Paul uses a quick comparison. He talks about children in verse 14. The opposite of this is a child who will follow just about anybody. I've did it when I was a kid. My kids will do it. They see a guy wearing blue pants and like that must be my dad. I'm going to go that way. That's not us. We need to aspire to maturity and adulthood. We're not We're not going to be thrown off by some misguided errant post. I'm not going to be thrown off because someone made a decision in Washington that messes with me. No, no, no. I'm still following the head of this thing. I'm not going to be tossed because someone tricked me or because someone was being untruthful. We're going to grow. We're going to continue to grow a little more and more like Jesus. A little taller, a little wiser, a little older day by day. We're going to grow in stability and spiritual maturity. And we're going to grow until every part of life is finding their center and object and goal in relation to Jesus and his word. I believe this is part of what Paul is saying and getting it.

As a church, as a body, as individuals, our lives, our minds, our hearts, our thoughts, our actions, our conversations find more and more of their center and their gravity in Christ, in his word. Let me tell you what this looks like. That we just start using more scripture and prayer to dictate our decisions. Some of you have had this experience recently where you ran into an obstacle. You ran into a dilemma and a scripture came to mind where before your own thought would have come to mind. And you, it was almost involuntary that you begin to think through, well, you know what? The word of God says this, so I probably should do that. That it looks like Jesus taken over more and more of your heart and your home and your thoughts and your life. Every day as time goes by, we we grow more and more like him. This has been and will be one of the most fundamental goals as a Christ follower. And I want to help someone right here and now when I say this is not pie in the sky. In other words, this is not some unattainable goal. Jesus would not have given us this benchmark if we couldn't press towards it. Now again, I may never fully be Jesus, but I'm aiming for nothing less. So don't get discouraged when you don't feel like you're measuring up. It's not p. It's not over our heads. It's scripture itself. This is the way Christ intended for us to be.

1 Peter chapter 2 21 it says for to this you were called because Christ also suffered for us leaving us an example that we should follow in his steps. Ephesians says therefore be imitators of God as dear children and walk in love as Christ also has loved us and given himself for us an offering and sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling aroma. Romans 8, brother Carden mentioned this morning, for whom he forneew us. He also predestined us to be conformed to the image of his son that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Galatians 3 says, "For you're all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus." If you have faith and you've acted in that faith, you are sons of God. For as many as you were baptized into Christ, you have put on Christ. There's neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free. There's neither male nor female, for you're all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ and you're Abraham's seed, and you're heirs according to the promise, 1 Peter 2, for your chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own special people, that you would proclaim the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Who once you were not a people, but now you're the people of God. who once you had not obtained mercy, but now you've obtained mercy.

Lastly, Colossians says, "But now you yourselves because you have that mercy." Put off all these anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Anyone notice that's like a daily thing we got to put off? Just me. You were thinking it. I know. He says, ' Don't lie to one another since you put off the old man with his deeds. This is what we've been doing recently. We've been trying to put off the old man. The Lord's been pressing in on us. Lay some things down. Get rid of some things. Declutter. Put off the old man. But then verse 10, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of him who created him, whether it's neither Jew nor Greek, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, schian, slave or free. But Christ is all in all. He has always been all and all. He's always been the benchmark, the cornerstone, the measurement of our faith and our maturity. We want to attain to the measure of his stature. I cannot stress this enough. And and one of the reasons why is because we often get so sidetracked by the supposed stature of others and the host of other icons and and aims and goals and personalities that v for our followership and our emulation.

I don't plan to hover here long, but I I need to hover long enough to say I'd be remiss if I didn't remind somebody today that there is no other person, example, leader, personality, social media, influencer, or idol that can usurp our aim to be like Jesus. No one else is worthy of your followership and your pursuit. Instead, Paul knew that there would be some in the church that struggle with this, especially in Corinth. And he tells them, it's not wise. It's off base to compare yourselves among yourselves. And even when he says follow me, he gives a caveat. Follow me as I follow Christ. So I say this to say Jesus has to be my first and primary ambition and benchmark. He is the chief cornerstone. And while I may be inspired by others, I want to be a scholar and a reader like brother Peter Wright. I may be inspired by Pastor Reaver. His correspondence, his emails are impeccable. He's got great wit. I'd like to be able to lift weights like Aaron Bachmann and Jeff Miller. I'm inspired by them. But the aim of all those men and the one I should have is always Jesus. It's not Pastor Brad who is imperfect and still trying to get to Jesus. Now, if I follow Jesus, sure, as I follow Jesus, sure, follow. It's not even our incredible bishop who's as Christlike a man as I've ever met. It's not our incredible local leaders and national leaders, all of which may have admirable qualities.

None of them have their name on this board, and none of them have their name in this book, is being all in all. I'm inspired by them, but my goal is always first and foremost, fundamentally, and chiefly Jesus Christ, his stature, his character. I'm just issuing a warning to someone. Maybe you've just gotten enthralled with a an an influencer. Maybe you're listening to that podcast and you find yourself at a crossroads while you're listening to it be between the word of God and the opinion of man. Can I just advocate don't you dare go that way. You keep following the word of God for in him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily and you are complete, perfected, filled to the full in him and in him alone. Nobody else has the answers he had. He's our aim. He's our goal. A couple years ago as a young man, not from this church, someone I was mentoring, working with, we were in a conversation. He just half-heartedly said something effective. Remember the Brad, when I grew up, I want to be like you. And he was joking and I was both sobered and thankful that he saw that. But I just remember feeling a check. And I it wasn't necessarily corrective, but I just said, "Hey, let me steer you in the direction of a man who made himself of no reputation, took on the form of a servant and came in the likeness of men, and being found appearance as a man.

This man humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross." Again, I'm so thankful for every leader and people that I have followed and people that have led me to Jesus. But that's why I'm thankful for them. that led me to Jesus. This is the premise, the whole message today. This is why pastors and teachers and evangelists and prophets and apostles are given that we should be more like Jesus. So that in mind today and our collective aim stated clearly, I want to circle back to the allimportant question we started with this morning. If we're called to attain to the measure of his stature, his character, how tall are you today? How tall are you? If the only true healthy comparison we have in this life is with Christ and his word, where are you at in relation to him? Are you looking more and more like him every day? Do do you talk more like him today than you did last month? Do you know his voice better on August 10th, 2025 than you did on August 10th, 2024? And by what metrics are you measuring your life and your days? Are they rooted in this book and the spiritual health and identity it provides? How tall are you today? As you consider and before I give you a couple metrics to gauge where you're at, I want to help you by saying if you're not here where Jesus is, welcome to the club.

Can I tell someone, encourage you, that I have prayed every day for years that I would be more like Jesus, and I'm just not there yet. So, as we discussed last week, please don't be weary and welloing. Pray and walk with him. Faint not. Don't get discouraged when you go back to the measuring read and and into the look into the mirror that is the word of God and you realize I'm just not there yet. We all had to start somewhere and we're all going to finish somewhere. My goal is to be as close to him when it's all said and done that I can be. And I use this imagery today on purpose thanks to our props department, brother Aaron Wright. Every image and analogy breaks down at some point, but I remember a measuring wall like this at our house. Anyone have one like that? Anybody you had a measuring wall? You'd stand up next to it and they'd mark you. Yeah. Tradition. I was the third kid in the family. So, I remember getting discouraged when I'd go to the wall and uh my brother and my sister's marks were well above mine. There were times when their marks would jump by like inches and mine go by millimeters. I'd go back the next day. Dad, measure me again. I just measured you, son. There's a lesson in there. I recall times though when that line would jump. I remember when I passed my sister's mark. She wasn't too happy about that. We're praying for her bitterness, you know.

I love you, Cole. I love you. But I would see the progress. I would see growth. Let me just say this. I see the growth. Families, moms, dads, individuals, I see the growth. If I see it, God sees it. Maybe you don't feel like you're here, but you taking some steps and God sees it and he honors it. Yes. Just celebrate that growth. We celebrate it. Other days I could see like some of you, sometimes we're just too hard on ourselves, but there's still a lot of growing to do. if I wanted to get to where my brother was or my dad was. And I our case, let me just remind you, this is the wall. This is it. This is the cannon, the measuring read. This is what we use to determine how tall we are. If it's been a while since you went to the wall, I encourage you, you ought to get to the wall every day. Every day. It can affirm you, correct you, inspire you, teach you. And men were praying for me today. And I heard brother Kenan Buouie praying 2 Timothy 3:16 that the word is profitable for doctrine, reprove, correction, instruction, and righteousness. You get to that wall. This is the most accurate measurement of your health that there is, your maturity, your height that there is. It it tells us plainly who and what we're aspiring to be. And I'm not going to exhaust all scripture today. You can do that on your own time, and you should.

But we've got to consult this measuring read as we seek to be like him. And I know when we study this daily that someone could look at the gap between us and Jesus and think, "Man, there's just no way." Brother Aaron Wright was following my instructions and I asked him to put me standing for all of us. All right, hope you're not offended, but uh about four feet up and he was like, "I just don't know if I can do that." And I said, "Yeah, I I get it. I'm the same way." He was being exercising humility. This is a reality. Again, every analogy breaks down. We had a hard time with it. Jesus is so wonderful and perfect, it's difficult to really compare ourselves with him on an actual scale or a board. But I want to encourage a new believer and someone who's been walking with the Lord already when I remind you what brother Carden preached this morning. He taught and preached that when you're baptized in Jesus name, you put on Christ. You immediately became a new creation after you repented and were baptized and filled with the spirit of God. Old things were passed away and all things became new. You gain the power of the spirit of God to overcome your past and your old habits and your old ways. And I don't know how far that gets you up the wall, so to speak, but but we know that there is such a miraculous transformation when you experience the plan of salvation.

If you've never been baptized today, you ought to get baptized and be like Jesus. And I'm telling you, when you are, you will be a new creation. You'll be on the map today. Paul describes it in Ephesians 4. He says, "But you've not so learned Christ if you've heard him and you've been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus that you put off concerning your former conduct, the old man, the one that grows uh corrupt according to the deceitful lust." That's what we've been doing here recently. and be renewed in the spirit of your mind. And that you put on the new man which was created according to God in true righteousness and holiness. When you were baptized, you didn't put on filthy rags, church. You didn't come out of that water with your own flesh and your own mistakes. You came out with Jesus's righteousness. You came out with his holiness on you. I I'm trying to help someone who may be discouraged right now and you feel like, "Yeah, I'm just stagnant. I've just stopped." When you were baptized in Jesus' name, you were a new creation and all things passed away and all things did become new and then you were called to walk, which is the crux of the matter today.

Paul says, "As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in him, rooted and built up in him, established in the faith as you've been taught." So, we get a head start in our growth at baptism, repentance, and when we receive the Holy Ghost, we get one of those supernatural growth spurts. But then the crux of the matter where we're leaning in today is we have to continue to grow, continue to add, continue to walk with him and mature. We've got to keep going back to the wall again and again. When I turned 5 years old, I was probably excited when dad marked on that wall. Yeah, had a growth spurt. But if I would have stopped there, something would have been wrong. Something would have been unnatural. I think the Apostle Peter who had the same pursuit in his life, one who stumbled along the way, summed it up best. This is what he says. Listen to how he describes the growth process. Says, "Simon Peter, a bond servant, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ. Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and the Savior and of Jesus Christ our Lord. As his divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. You have everything you need to be like Jesus. If you got God's word and spirit, his forgiveness, you have everything you need.

You're not stunted in your growth. You lack nothing. He says, "Through the knowledge of him who called us by glory and virtue, by which we've been given exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature." That just hits me. I can be a partaker of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that's in the world through lust. You went through some subtraction and you put on Christ, but now also for this very reason. Because you're a new creation, giving all diligence. Why are we talking about this week after week after week, pastor? We're doing what the word says. Give all diligence. Add to your faith virtue, virtue, knowledge, knowledge, self-control, self-control, perseverance, perseverance, godliness, godliness, brotherly kindness, brotherly kindness, love. For if these things are yours and abound, you'll neither be barren or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is one of the best summary statements on spiritual growth I could find. Now, do you put off some things, including what we did last week? Don't let up, church. Be diligent. Press on. Work hard and daily at adding Christlike characteristics. And I use the word add on purpose. Add. Let me ask you as the musicians come this morning, has anyone here ever grown a foot in a single day? Anybody? Jason D's not here, so I think we're safe.

Sister Tammy, we miss him. We love him. He's the exception to all these analogies. Yeah. More to the point, anyone here ever added faith, virtue, kindness, perseverance, brotherly love. Anyone ever added all these in a single day? None of us. Not even with the help of the spirit of God. Point is, it takes time, prayer, daily discipline, a continued work of the spirit to add these things to a life to to be like Jesus. And I know I've been taking the time to just dig this out and teach this principle of growth. But this really is the crux of the matter. This is where we live every single day. In fact, I told you every day I pray to be more like Jesus and to know him. The last few years I've prayed, Lord, pray the fruit of the spirit. I always want to have the gifts of the spirit, but I've prayed, "Lord, would you help me to have the fruit of the spirit? Love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control." You would think if I prayed that every day for years that I'd have all these mastered by now. I wish. Do not be weary and welloing, saint of God. In due season you'll reap if you faint not. And maybe I don't know who I'm talking to, but someone you feel like you're here. Do not sell yourself short. Just start adding every day. And do not let the enemy tell you that you're not even on the map. Again, I don't know.

It's just the Holy Ghost pressing in. I'm just trying to follow him today. Someone's been so discouraged by what seems to be your lack of spiritual growth, you want to give up. Don't you dare give up. Don't you give up. This is where Hebrews kicks in. And we look around and we see who's weakened right now. Who strengthen the feeble knees. He says, "Look around. No, no, no. Don't you give up. We're in this together. I'm not going to let you stop here. We're going to get to Jesus. We're going to get there together. We're going to add day by day. We're going to add every service. We're not letting up every single service. We're going to come before the throne of grace and we're going to get help. And God's going to strengthen us. And God's going to build his church one family at a time. I feel the vigilance of the Holy Ghost in this room right now encouraging somebody. Don't you give up in your pursuit of Jesus. you are growing. But maybe it's been a while since you went to the word and compared yourself to the wall. That's the case. I'm bringing the wall to you today. Say, we're going to do this. We're going to be healthy and growing and full of love. I can just feel that you're with me today. I'm going to invite you to stand right now and I'm going to give you a simple admonition as we pray.

Just make it real simple because sometimes we feel like we got to go from there to here in one altar call. When did you ever expect your child to go to the dinner table and eat and grow six feet? Here's what I'm going to ask you to do. by the time you leave today that you would walk through some addition. Not exponential growth necessarily, although God can do it. He can do anything. But if you're here, I'm going to ask that before you leave, you pray and seek the Lord and that you leave this place here. In fact, as I prepared this week, I just felt like the Lord has been dealing with someone about a virtue in your life that he wants to add to you. Maybe God wants to help you with your patience. Anybody? Yeah. Be careful praying for patience. All right. It's a fruit of the spirit. I need it. Maybe the Lord's been dealing with you about your longsuffering or your joy. Maybe he's been dealing with you about your love for others. I feel like the Lord's stirring some hearts right here and now. And I'm going to encourage you today to draw nigh unto him and he's going to help you. He's going to lift you up and strengthen you. If you want to add today and you want to take a step towards Jesus, that's the simple ask. Would you just begin to come right now and find a place to pray and seek the Lord? I want to open this altar for any person who wants to take a step of faith today.

Maybe you want to come and you want to repent and you want to declutter a little more. That's all right. That's a step towards God. And maybe you want to come and you say, "Lord, I just need your help in this area. I am struggling with my self-control, God. I need that fruit of the spirit. I'm asking that you would help me, Lord. Uh, I'm battling with this self-control thing that you would help me, oh God, to take a step forward today to gain some ground today to be more like you today. I pray, Jesus, that you would help us to do a process of addition this morning. that by the time I leave those doors, by the time I leave my brothers and sisters, that I would be more like Jesus. Maybe I won't fully arrive or be eclipsed, I won't fully attain, but I will press on in my prayer. I'm going to invite someone to give God a little more than a half-hearted prayer. If you just kind of felt like phoning it in today, would you press on? Would you follow Paul right now and take some steps? God, I need your help. Let the Holy Ghost move and work. Let the Holy Ghost lead and guide us. Let the Holy Ghost strengthen us. Change

me, dear Lord. Change me, Lord. Don't let me stay the same. I want to be more like you.

Take my life, make my life just what you want it to be. Oh Lord, please change me. Change me, dear Lord. Change me, Lord. Don't let me stay the same. I want to be more like you.

Take my life. Make my life just what you want it to be. Oh Lord, please change me. Change me, dear Lord. Change me, Lord. Don't let me say the same. I want to be more like you.

Take my life, make my life just what you want it to be. Oh Lord, please change me. Change me, dear Lord. Change me, Lord. Don't let me stay the same. I want to be more like you.

Take my life. Make my life just what you want it to be. Oh Lord, please change me. Change me, dear Lord. Change me, Lord. Don't let me stay the same. I want to be more like you.

Take my life. Make my life. Just what you wanted to be. Oh Lord, please change me. Change me, dear Lord. Take my life. Take my life. Just what you wanted to be. Oh Lord, please change me. Change me. Dear Lord, take my life, make my life just what you wanted to be. Oh Lord, please change me. Change me, dear Lord. Change me, Lord. Don't let me stay the same. I want to be more like you. Take my life, make my life just what you want it to be. Oh Lord, please be change me. Change me, dear Lord.

Spirit of God is at work in this room. He's been at work long before this day. And I just feel him pulling and drawing the people that he loves. I wonder if you'd just take another step and acknowledge that by one of the following responses. If you want to just take a moment and listen for the Lord to speak to you. Of course, he can speak to you through his word. We ought to know his voice. Maybe there's something he's wanting you to work on. If that's the case, again, welcome to the club. or just by acknowledging that he's drawn and committing that Lord, whatever steps I need to take to be more like you, I'm going to do it. Would you do that right now and lift your hands and lift your voices and respond to the presence and the spirit of God, Lord, we feel your spirit here so powerfully. You have been drawing all of us, Lord. We thank you that you're leading and you're guiding us into all truth. And really, you are the truth. So today, we follow you and we listen for your voice. We acknowledge and we commit that we're not going to let up. We're not going to stop pressing on, Lord. Uh but when we leave this place day to day, we're going to continue to press. We're going to continue to seek you. We're going to keep keep going back to the wall again and again. Not to be discouraged, Lord. Not to be disheartened, uh but to be determined and to be inspired.

We want to be more and more like you. Help us to attain to the measure of your stature together in Jesus name. Jesus name. Amen. Amen. We thank the Lord for his word and his goodness and presence today Jesus. We love you so much. Thank you Jesus. Thank you Lord. Amen. Amen.