Going Deeper | 1.25.23 | Wednesday | On Fire Christian Church
Going Deeper
Matt 14:22-32. Peter walks on water
Peter sees Jesus doing the supernatural and wants to join Him
Jesus did not rebuke him for his desire to walk on water he encouraged it
Peter responds to the invitation but when he gets out into the water he gets distracted and fails
The Lord rebukes his doubt
Peter wanted to move in another deeper dimension
Our walk with God is progressive
Progressive-moving forward, proceeding in steps, continuing steadily by increments
I was saved, being saved and will be saved. I was delivered, I al being delivered and I will be delivered.
“But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.” II Peter
This is not saying we are adding these things. God adds them as we give all diligence to. God works the work but only if we are diligent
Add to; or, minister unto; or it may be a metaphor taken from the ancient way of dancing, in which they joined hands one with another, thereby helping and holding up one another.
Faith is here set forth as the first grace, and which (as it were) leads up, the rest following it, and attending upon it, yet all in conjunction one with another. Faith is set in the first place as the prime grace of a Christian, the foundation and root of all other, as being that without which nothing else can be pleasing to God, Hebrews 11:6.
But we do grow into a more mature believer knowing how to discern
“but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. II Peter
“Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, Hebrews
“Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity. But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.” Luke
“For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;”Colossians
Our progression should be moving forward, going deeper
Ezekiel 47
There was no spring in the literal temple in Jerusalem.
Although at the outer gate only “trickling” (Eze 47:2), the water gets every 500 m a lot deeper. So much that Ezekiel would need to swim because he could not stand anymore (Eze 47:5)
The trees this water would nourish produce fruit every month (Eze 47:12)
God’s people rebelled and God says
They have left even me [Jehovah], the source of living water, in order to hew out for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns, that cannot contain the water.’ – Jer 2:13
Jesus says ours lives depend on his water that flows from the throne
“Everyone drinking from this water will get thirsty again. Whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty at all, but the water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water bubbling up to impart everlasting life” – Joh 4:13, 14
everything will live wherever the stream goes – Eze 47:9
And it must come to the sea [Dead Sea]. It being brought forth into the sea itself, [its] water is also actually healed. Swarms of living creatures will be able to live wherever the waters flow. There will be an abundance of fish, because this water will flow there. The seawater will be healed, and everything will live wherever the stream goes. – Eze 47:8, 9
As we learn to go deeper with God His life giving water will heal every area in our life and joy unexplainable will manifest in the believer.