Sermon Central
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What Is Spirituality? (4 Of 7)
Contributed by Dr. Odell Belger on Apr 1, 2022 (message contributor)
Summary: A man was watching a wood carver carve a six foot bear out of a large chunk of wood. The man was fascinated as he watched him and he finally asked him, “HOW DO YOU DO THAT?”
The wood carver said, “It really isn’t as hard as it looks. What I do is get a huge piece of wood, and I carve out everything that does not look like a bear!”
This is what God is trying to do with our lives. He wants to cut everything that does not look like Christ out of our lives.
Peter shows that to be the SPIRITUAL INDIVIDUAL that God wants us to become, we have to ADD THINGS to our faith. We accept the Lord by faith, but just because we accepted the Lord, does not make us spiritual. (Christ-like)
We have already seen that he told us to ADD to our faith VIRTUE! Virtue is our core value from within. Whatever is in a Christian’s heart is going to motivate him to ACTION. Now let us look at some things that Peter tells us to ADD to our faith if we want to become the SPIRITUAL INDIVIDUAL God wants us to be.
To THE QUALITY OF VIRTUE we need to add-
II. THE QUALITY OF KNOWLEDGE
Peter recognized that if we are going to be the SPIRITUAL INDIVIDUALS we are supposed to be, we must have spiritual understanding
Look at 2 Peter 1:5b, we read, “And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue KNOWLEDGE.”
Today, the knowledge that mankind has acquired is astounding.
Illus: Many of us enjoy going to the airport. No matter how many times we go, we are amazed at how those big airplanes that weigh so much can fly.
Illus: In the early 1930's, a farmer and his wife went to a fair. He was fascinated by the open cockpit airplanes and asked a pilot how much a ride would cost for him and his wife.
• "$10 for 30 minutes," replied the pilot.
• "That's too much," said the farmer.
• The pilot thought for a second and then said, "I'll make you a deal. If you and your wife ride for 30 minutes without uttering a sound, the ride will be free. But if you make a sound, you'll have to pay $10. “
The farmer and his wife agreed and went for a wild ride in the open cockpit airplane.
The pilot got in, the farmer got in and his wife got in behind him.
The pilot took off, and he was determined to get that ten dollars. He turned that airplane all kinds of ways. He did:
- Belly rolls
- Nose dives
- Inclines
At one time he actually flew upside down, but the farmer never opened his mouth.
• After they landed, the pilot said to the farmer, "I want to congratulate you for not making a sound. You are a brave man."
• "Maybe so," said the farmer, "But I gotta tell ya, I almost screamed one time.” The Pilot said, “When was that?” The farmer replied, “When you did that first belly roll and my wife fell out, I almost screamed! But then I thought about that ten dollars I would have to pay if I OPENED MY MOUTH!
The amount of knowledge that man has been able to acquire in the area of aviation is amazing.
Illus: The 747 is simply amazing in size.
• The 747, depending on the configuration, can seat between 450-630 passengers
• This airplane’s fuselage size provides a cabin 20 ft. 1 1/2 in. wide and 185 ft. long
• The 747-200B is powered by four 50,000-lb. thrust Pratt & Whitney turbofans giving the airplane a maximum speed of 602 mph at 30,000 feet
• It has a cruising ceiling of 45,000 feet, and a range of 5,980 miles
Only God could give man the knowledge to make the 747 fly.
Daniel, in the Old Testament, tells us such an age would come into existence. Daniel 12:4, speaking of the end days, says; “Many will run to and fro and knowledge shall be increased.”
As we look around us, we see that knowledge has increased and men are running to and fro.
But while knowledge has increased for some, it has not for others. That is, when it comes to knowledge it seems like God overlooked some, even in our age.
We recognize we live in an advanced society where knowledge certainly has increased.
Illus: We are told that a student, needing some education, can go to the pharmacy and ask for some knowledge pills. One student walked in and asked what kind of knowledge pills were available.
• The pharmacist said "Here's a pill for English literature." The student took the pill and swallowed it and has new knowledge about English literature!
• "What else do you have?" asks the student.
• "Well, I have pills for art, history, biology, and world history," replies the pharmacist.
