ME VS. WE

We live in an “idolize me” society.  The “me mentality” has been accepted into the spiritual thinking of many.  In terms of spiritual maturity it has become about “our selves.”  It’s about “my” spiritual gifts, “my” spiritual growth, “my” spiritual life, “my” calling, “my” place of service, “my” word from God to you.   I’m not saying those things don’t exist, but there’s a danger.  The danger is that we tend to revolve the spiritual around ourselves and our preferences and our feelings and our way of wanting to do something.  Even in our spiritual lives we can be self-absorbed.  We should never underestimate the power of self-centeredness.  The “globe head” lives.  In our spirituality we tend to revolve everything around ourselves.

The truth about spiritual maturity is this:  Spiritual maturity is not about me; it’s about “we”.

There are three kinds of people:

The “spiritual Christian” who is spiritually alive by the Holy Spirit with Christ in his life,

The “non-Christian” who is spiritually dead without the Holy Spirit and faith in Christ, and

The “me Christian” who is connected with God, but he’s living like someone who is without Christ.  Though he is spiritually alive he’s living as though he’s spiritually dead.

The “me Christian” is:

·         Infantile

… you were infants in the Christian life. 1 Cor. 3:1 (NLT)

·         Weak

I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren’t ready for anything stronger. 1 Cor. 3:2 (NLT)

·         Conflicted

You are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. 1 Cor. 3:3 (NLT)

·         Divisive

When one of you says, “I am a follower of Paul,” and another says, “I follow Apollos … 1 Cor. 3:4 (NLT)

On the other hand the “we Christian”:

·         Serves with others so that people come to believe in Jesus.

What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul?  Only servants, through whom you came to believe…, 1 Cor. 3:5

·         Sees God grow the church.

… God, who makes things grow. 1 Cor. 3:7

When we’re serving together according to God’s purpose, He causes growth.

·         Realizes building a church takes more than one person; it includes “us”.

By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. 1 Cor. 3:10

If you’re a believer in Christ God has given you a spiritual gift, an ability for serving in the church in a particular way.  And it’s connected to your life purpose, your calling, your assignment which God has given you.  Therefore you’re responsible to carry out His assignment, being faithful with His grace in His church.  You are included in the building of the church.  You’re needed.  You are a necessity to the building of God’s family.