A Pause to Ponder God's Word
"Becoming Mature"

The one-time cult recruiter told the gatheringof pastors, that he was trained to recognize fringe Christians, becausethey were the easiest to recruit. He went on to report how may people hehad recruited. The number was staggering. He confessed that it was easy,because there were so many immature Christians around.

There are a variety of reasons why there are so many immature Christians, but one substantial reason is "do it yourself Christianity." The westerner's independence and individualism has pervaded today's Christians thought, bringing about a belief that a Christian can grow and mature independently of the church. This is anything but biblical.

Ephesians 4:11-14 speaks directly to this: "It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers to prepare God's people for works of service, so that body of Christ may be built up, until we all reach unity in the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, and become mature attaining the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming."

Christian maturity is a key factor in anchoring us in Christ and keeping us from being tossed by waves and blown by winds. The level of our maturity is directly related to our level of our participation in the Body of Christ. As crucial as personal devotions, individual biblical study, and private prayer are, we can only become "mature attaining the whole measure of the fullness of Christ" as we actively and consistently participate in the church. Careful, do not to misunderstand participation. It is far more than merely attending a church service. It involves hearing the Word of God preached, taught, studied, and discussed. It is being active in corporate worship. It is also clear from this passage that participation includes using ones gifts in ministry.

God graciously gives every Christian gifts for "works of service." Every Christian is to be actively ministering according to the gifts given him. You do not wait until you are mature. We mature as we minister. This is not to suggest that a new Christian should immediately become a Sunday School teacher or should immediately pastor a church. It does mean that every Christian is gifted to be ministering in some manner and through ministering we mature in Christ.

Attempting to live independent from the Christian community of the saints is spiritual suicide. Erratic shallow participation in the body of Christ stunts one's growth and makes one a prime target for deceptive erroneous teachings. Full participation in the body of Christ builds us up in Christ so we will "we all reach unity in the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, and become mature attaining the whole measure of the fullness of Christ."

Beloved, its time to grow up in Christ, so let's fully participate in The Body!

Keep Close To Jesus
Pastor Gerry


A Pause To Ponder God's Word is written and distributed by Gerald Whetstone, Ordained Elder and teacher in the Church of the Nazarene. These devotionals may be transmitted, duplicated, used in part or in entirety without permission for nonprofit purposes only. Responses welcome. To Subscribe Click Here.
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