Joshua 18:3 AV

And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the LORD God of your fathers hath given you?

Definition of Slack:

SLACK,

1. Not tense; not hard drawn; not firmly extended; as a slack rope;

2. Weak;

3. Negligent; backward; not using due diligence; not earnest or eager; as slack in duty or service; slack in business.

Spiritual Disciplines for every believer

1.   Praying – continuously

2.   Reading – daily

3.   Memorizing – often

4.   Walking – constantly (Galatians 5.25)

3 ways to avoid being a slacker

1.   Pay attention to detail

2.   Give your best effort

3.   Do it now

If you do not do what is necessary to avoid slackness, you will demonstrate the….

3 marks of the Christian slacker

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;

Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;

Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.

For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:

For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.

If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained.

1 Timothy 4:1–6 AV

1.Departing from the Faith

Practicing Spiritual Disciplines Keeps Us from Departing from the Faith

(v. 1-6)

The apostle Paul warned of those who would depart from the faith. Those in the church who were not in the Word of God and prayer would give way to deceptive teachings, demonic influences, and dead consciences.

Constant engagement with the Scriptures through personal study and pastoral preaching nourishes our faith and helps us become more like Jesus Christ.

Demas departed

He was a fellow labourer, he helped the Apostle Paul, he was one of Paul’s right hand men at one time. He was involved in the ministry, we all know Christians who used to be involved in the ministry, they used to be excited about church services, and any time that the doors were open, you could count on them to be there. This is how Demas started out..

Marcus, Aristarchus, Demas, Lucas, my fellowlabourers.

Philemon 24 AV

Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you.

Colossians 4:14 AV

But Demas fell in love with the wrong things, and this happens all the time to Christians who refuse to exercise themselves in these Spiritual Disciplines.

For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.

2 Timothy 4:10 AV

Biblical preaching initially gets you out of the world, Biblical teaching gradually gets the world out of you, and practicing spiritual disciplines keeps us from departing from the faith.

2.Declining in the Faith

And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;

And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;

And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

2 Peter 1:5–9 AV

Adding to your faith will keep you from declining in the faith

Practicing Spiritual Disciplines Helps Us Develop in the Faith

But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness.

For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.

This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation.

1 Timothy 4:7–9 AV

“exercise yourself in godliness.”

Athletes don’t get better through trying, they get better through training.

Christians cannot be spiritually transformed without spiritual training

To “train yourself in godliness” means to practice the spiritual disciplines that facilitate growth

When we pray, read the Bible, memorize Scripture, fellowship with believers, and get involved with the work of the Great Commission, we position ourselves for God to mature us.

bodily training only benefits in this life

spiritual training benefits you for this life and the life to come.

Growth is not automatic. We must practice spiritual disciplines to experience spiritual development.

3.Decreased desire to share the faith

Practicing Spiritual Disciplines Equips Us for Disciple-Making

For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

1 Timothy 4:10 AV

We are to become agents of change

So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia.

For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.

For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God;

And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

1 Thessalonians 1:7–10 AV

1.   We are to have a great commitment to the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20).

2.  We are to grow-up in Christ

3.   We are to help others grow up in Christ (2 Tim. 1:5-8)

In Joshua 18:3 the children of Israel were procrastinating in taking the land that they were promised

Have you been procrastinating in taking your spiritual territory seriously?

Our hope at Irvington Bible Baptist Church is that this podcast provided some encouragement and has helped you to develop a closer relationship with the LORD Jesus Christ.