Greg introduces a new series on discipleship by explaining why spiritual disciplines are so crucial to our relationship and walk with God. Then he introduces us to the discipline of being honest with ourselves and with God about our lives. 
This is the first sermon in a six-week series on spiritual disciplines, which is entitled Wholehearted. The point of the disciplines is to align our whole heart with Christ, to become singularly devoted to him, and to the kingdom. We are doing this series during the Lenten season, which began on March 5. Lent is 40 days of intensified discipleship leading up to Easter. It is based on Jesus’ 40 days of fasting in the wilderness, a time of introspection and confession where one takes an honest look at their life.
This first sermon sets the stage by talking about the importance of spiritual disciplines and then discusses the first spiritual discipline of getting honest with ourselves and God.
Greg employs three passages to demonstrate why disciplines are so crucial. The first is the focus scripture quoted above. Paul uses the analogy of athletics to emphasize an athlete’s intensity and suffering which is part of their experience. Followers of Jesus should push and challenge ourselves to prepare for the eternal kingdom. Athletes do it for a trophy that passes away, but we do it for a trophy that will never fade.
The second passage is Philippians 2:12-13:
Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
We don’t “work out” our salvation to get saved. We work out our salvation because we already are saved. We are getting our day-to-day lives in congruity with the God who saved us. We must choose to work it out because God won’t do this for us. At the same time, we can’t do it without God. It is God who is at work in us to empower us to do his will and work for his good pleasure.
In 1 Corinthians 3:12-15, Paul speaks of the judgment of believers by using a building analogy:
Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— the work of each builder will become visible, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each has done. If the work that someone has built on the foundation survives, the builder will receive a reward. If the work is burned up, the builder will suffer loss; the builder will be saved, but only as through fire.
The work Jesus accomplished on the cross is our foundation. On the judgment day, we will be faced with the question of what we built on this foundation. The degree to which what we build with our life is gold, silver, and precious stones is the degree to which our lives are compatible with the fire of God’s love. To the degree that our life is not compatible with the fire of God’s love is the degree to which we suffer loss. It will be burned away because nothing can enter the eternal kingdom that is not compatible with God’s other-oriented love.
In the last part of this sermon, Greg introduces the discipline of being honest. From the book Soul Shaping by Douglas Rumford, he shared signposts that are symptoms that our soul is not being well cared for. They are:
- Spiritual Depression
- Loss of Control Over Life’s Routine
- Vulnerability to Temptation
- Diminished Joy and Gratitude
- Relational Strain
- Purpose Ambiguity
It is important to be aware of what we are experiencing because symptoms like these point to places in our lives that are out of alignment with God. They identity aspects of our lives that need to be changed if we are going to walk in God’s love and wholeness.
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