The idea of spiritual maturity and the question of how one goes about pursuing Christ whole-heartedly in their life are two concepts that God has placed upon my heart for some time now. Paul starts off in this chapter by pointing out to the church in Corinth their immaturity as Christians. He is up front with them, pointing out that they are still controlled by their sinful desires and the outward appearance of their actions makes them indistinguishable from those of unbelievers. Now imagine that you are a part of the church, and Paul is directing these words towards you. I imagine my response would go something like this: Initially I would feel hurt by Paul's words and even a little angry at him, I mean, How dare he tell me that I am doing the whole "Christian" thing wrong when it was through him that all my knowledge of being a Christian has come into existence. But after some thought I think I would realize that Paul's words truly are spoken in love, and I would find myself stirred to make a close examination of the way I was living my life to discover the areas where I am not submitting to Christ's authority. In order to do this, it becomes important to know the heart and character of Christ which is revealed to us through God's word. With this knowledge we are better able to discern where in our lives we fall out of alignment with Christ. Sometimes, however, it is impossible for us to see for ourselves, the areas of our lives that need to be refined, and we require the wisdom of other Christians to reveal them to us, just like Paul. Immersing ourselves in God's word daily and seeking a stronger relationship with Him through regular prayer and meditation represent a good starting point from which God can begin to transform us into more spiritually mature Christians. The whole purpose for God sending His son to die for our sins was to make a way for us to have intimate fellowship with Him, and as believers we should take advantage of this great opportunity.
Paul makes an effort to point out that although he, as a servant of God, planted the seed of the good news of Jesus Christ in the hearts of the people, it was of no importance because it is God who makes the seed grow. Here it becomes clear that God is the significant contributor towards our growth as Christians, but I do not believe that this excuses us from any effort on our part. I think Paul would also agree as he then goes on to compare his work of proclaiming the gospel to that of laying a firm foundation as an expert builder. A foundation rooted in Jesus Christ, that others will build upon.
Paul cautions that much care should be taken when building upon this foundation and is right in saying so because the workmanship of the builder is of great importance. For once this foundation is set in your heart, the path you choose when living out your life will determine the quality of the structure being built. I think it is here where many Christians hit a fork in the road that leads down two paths (a watershed if you will), one of which they will follow, whether they actively choose it or not. One path leads to spiritual maturity and a greater knowledge of God's character and purpose for their life while the other path leads to a spiritual stagnation where hearts become more captivated by the ways of the world than by the awesome opportunity to deeply know the creator of the universe and play an active role in His plan.
I myself have found my feet treading down the path of passiveness, and know how easy it is to be apathetic towards living out my faith. Growing up in a Christian home, I have known of God's amazing love through the sacrifice of his son for as long as I can remember. However, my life has not always reflected a healthy passion to serve and pursue Christ with all of my heart. My early years of college were a prime example, for me, of living an undercover belief where the knowledge of Christ resided within me and influenced the moral decisions I would make, yet I never truly embraced the opportunity to intimately know Christ and made a very minimal effort to strengthen my relationship with Him.
It was through God seeking me out and drawing myself towards Him that my life began to change direction from a passive Christian to the person He is still shaping me into today. My busy college schedule had been a major factor that was inhibiting my growth in Christ. I was so consumed with cramming in extra classes and enjoying athletic pursuits that there was no time left over for building my relationship with God. My life on the outside was not easily identifiable as that of a Christian, though I most certainly knew I was one. This continued for the first few years of my college experience until God made it clear to me that things needed to change. While I continued taking a crazy amount of classes with much success, my life as a college athlete was becoming frustratingly unbearable until I was so miserable that I gave thanks to God when he presented me with an opportunity to honorably give up my position on the team. This would free up much of my time for the last two years of college where God would bring me to be heavily involved with our main campus ministry, Intervarsity Christian Fellowship. Looking back over the past few years, it is amazing to me to see how God has continually brought me into opportunities where I can better know and serve Him. Being involved in ministries like Watershed and with a local church, I can see how God is sharpening me to live a life of worshiping Him. Even in my daily tasks, I find myself looking for ways to bring glory to God, whether it means sacrificing my own desires or simply trusting in Him. I have found myself with a longing to do what is right before the eyes of the Lord and be pleasing to Him. I think that this is merely a glimpse of what it means to be a mature Christian and that there is still much work to be done in my life, but one thing I know to be certain is that I have an excitement for what God has in store for me as I come to know Him better and become conformed to Christ's likeness.
My challenge to all of you tonight, is to examine how you are building upon the foundation that has been set within you through the understanding of God's redemptive plan, fulfilled by the sacrifice of Jesus. Are you passively strolling through your Christian walk, living a life that appears no different than that of an unbeliever? Or is your life as a Christian characterized by a longing for spiritual maturity with a deep heart-felt desire to be conformed and exhibit Christ-likeness?
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