Thoughts On Christian Maturity

1 Corinthians 3:1 – 4; Ephesians 4:13 - 16.
 
It is lamentable that despite the privileged freedom we have, Sunday after Sunday, listening to the teaching and preaching of God’s faithful servants, we are nonetheless stuck in our ways and seemed unmoved by the impact of God’s Word. Perhaps not totally inattentive, but certainly incapable or unwilling to follow through sound instructions from God’s Word. This despair from a Bible teacher in a recent conversation, recalled the broad issue of Christian maturity as a disciple of Christ, or its flipside of immaturity (Heb 5:11-12). It provoked a few disparate thoughts, which I explore here.  
 
Spiritual maturity is no respecter of age, as was demonstrated by Paul’s unambiguous instruction to Timothy, that his youthfulness was not an impediment for him to model emotional and spiritual maturity among those whom he served at Ephesus (1 Tim 4:12-16). Predictably, in the absence of humility and devoid of a deepening relationship with God, a consistent witness validating the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ in the believer is practically impossible.
 
Having imbibed the familiar worldly culture around us for the better part of our lives, is it surprising that our values and motivations are by and large defined by this world’s standards, thereby negatively impacting our growth towards maturity in God, as we consciously or otherwise wallow in our self-righteousness and self-directedness. It is always a palpable struggle with the sanctifying need ‘to die to self,’ as is required, if the Holy Spirit is to have His way in moulding us in the image of Christ towards spiritual maturity (Col 3:3-17). 
 
Can we ever imagine ourselves living without sin in our hearts? The affliction of immaturity is unrelenting, as sin is, too. How then are we to rise above this debilitating blight? Thankfully, we are not called to perfection this side of heaven but are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12). The day of the prevailing church being morally and ethically spotless and without blemish is not yet, and the Lord calls us to stand together as His body, local and worldwide, in working through to maturity (Eph 4:13-16). So, godliness is to be developed and modeled in community, in full view of the church local. Invariably, before principalities and powers too.
 
It would be abnormal if our children stagnated physically, emotionally, and intellectually, as we envisage them to grow up, and likewise, within a spiritual framework, we are expected to mature in Christ over time (1 Peter 2:2). Irrefutably, only God knows our precise progress, as growth is always measurable (Eph 4:13). The journey toward Christian maturity begins with receiving Christ, and progresses to the point where one is conformed to the image of His Son – having reached his or her goal for which they were created by God (Rom 8:29-30); not unlike being in union with Christ (John 15:1-11), and certainly walking as He walked in obedience (Col 2:6-7; cf., Micah 6:8). When obedience is better than sacrifice, to be like Christ is to watch what His Father do and to faithfully follow through (1 Sam 15:22; c.f., John 5: 19-20). This is the crux of a relationship with our God through the indwelling Christ. 
 
Forsake your folly and live and proceed in the way of understanding. Give instruction to a wise man and he will be still wiser, teach a righteous man and he will increase his learning. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding (Proverbs 10:6,9,10).