THE STRUGGLE FOR
CHRISTIAN MATURITY
Paul says, “I want
you to know how hard I am struggling for you…” (2:1). He was continuing the
thought at the end of chapter one where he explains his ministry purposes. “To this end I labor, struggling with all
his energy…” (1:29).
Before
we look at the purpose of Paul’s struggle, I want to focus on that word
“struggle” itself. Your translation may have “contending” or “struggling,” but
the Greek word is “agona” from which we get the English word “agony.” The
Greeks tended to see everything as a fight between two opposing sides.
Memorizing your lines for a school play is an agon, a fight between you and the
play. Getting up in the morning when you are still tired is a battle between
your mind and your body. The conflict between eating a cheeseburger and a salad
is an agon, a fight. Even a courtship is an agon where one person tries to win
the other’s heart.
One of
my greatest agonies involves stepping onto the treadmill. I really don’t enjoy
being forced to walk at 4 miles an hour for fifteen minutes (after which I
switch to the stationary bike), but I know that my cholesterol and blood
pressure demand it. My agony intensifies when I look down at the timer to
discover that only three minutes have gone by when it feels like ten.
Agony
does not feel good but to agonize or to make an effort produces good results.
We will not win or succeed unless we strive to win. In the same way, Paul
agonized over the Colossian believers to present them as mature in Christ. He
agonized in prayer: “We have not stopped asking God to fill you…” (1:9); he
agonized in suffering: “…I rejoice in what was suffered for you…” (1:24); and
he agonized in teaching (1:28-29).
Like
Paul, we must agonize, make an effort, to be what God has called us to be:
Mature in Christ. Salvation is not the end but the beginning of our spiritual
journey. Maturity is our goal. So let us consider the maturity that Paul seeks
in us.
1. Mature Christians are encouraged in heart
Paul states his ministry goals clearly: “My purpose is that they may be encouraged
in heart…” (2:2a). We know that a heretical group, some false teachers, had
discouraged the church and caused them to doubt. These teachers had tried to
convince the believers that they lacked knowledge of the holy things. Paul
revealed the sufficiency and supremacy of Christ to them to encourage them:
“You are on the right path.”
The word
“encourage” comes from the Greek term “to call alongside.” This is a similar
term that Jesus uses to describe the Holy Spirit. With the Holy Spirit coming
alongside them, they can know the joy of knowing Jesus.
An
encouraged heart knows the joy of the Lord and joy is a protection against
discouragement (Phil. 3:1; 4:4). Discouragement leads to a spirit of defeatism.
When we feel defeated in our Christian life we find we can’t serve, we have no
energy to fight the good fight. Defeatism can cause us to turn to other sources
than Jesus, other comforts or vices.
We all
have an Achilles heel, a secret button (known to some) that causes us to
crumble into discouragement. Paul’s preventative defense is joy. Rejoice in all
situations. “Consider it pure joy when you face trials of many kinds (Js. 1:2).
2. Mature Christians are united in love
One aspect the false teachers emphasized in their pursuit
of the great mystery of the universe was knowledge. They sought knowledge as
the be-all-end-all of life, like it was the key to spiritual enlightenment.
Knowledge is good, but without love, the church is just an institution of
higher learning. Paul’s goal included love: “My
purpose is that they may be…united in love” (2:2b).
God is
love. To know God is to know love. When people come to know God’s love, they
find they can love each other. Some of your translations say it better: “My
purpose is that they may be…knit together in love.” I like that. God’s people
will be like knitting, intertwined and joined together when they allow love to
draw them together. “Knowledge puffs up,
but love builds up” (1 Cor. 8:1b). Love characterizes the people of God.
Only as Christians are “rooted and established in love, can they comprehend or
grasp the fullness of God’s love” (Eph. 3:17-18).
One
preacher addressed his congregation with his understanding of what love looks
like in the church. He said that this love is magnetic or attractive when it is
lived out. True love in the body of Christ means:
-
We treasure each other
-
We spotlight gifts and abilities; not faults and
failures
-
We celebrate others’ gifts without resentment
-
We rally around each other in times of loss
-
We allow each other to have “bad days”
-
We are quick to forgive
-
We act in kindness to one another
-
We defend each other
-
We are willing to give in to other ways of doing
things
-
And we listen to a list like this and wonder how
we could love better rather than grieving that we are not better loved.
Mature Christians allow their love for a brother or
sister to rule over “feelings” that are contrary to godliness.
3. Mature Christians have a full understanding of Christ
Knowledge without love is cold. Love without knowledge,
or a proper understanding of the truth, can be very dangerous. These false
teachers at Colossae targeted the deity of Christ, the sufficiency of Christ,
and the effectiveness of the gospel. Without a sufficient knowledge of Christ
and the gospel, we will be led astray by any and all new teachings (Eph. 4:14).
This is
why Paul agonized over these believers “in
order that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, in whom are hidden
all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (2:2c-3).
While
the teachers were saying “Christ is not enough,” Paul countered saying “Christ
is everything you need to know.” Personally knowing Jesus is the only way you
will know the depth of divine wisdom. You need a personal relationship with Jesus
to truly understand life.
We can
know Jesus primarily through studying the Bible. Only through a knowledge of
the Scriptures can we grow in maturity. Here are a few reasons why:
Knowledge
of the Bible gives substance to faith. When you do not know the truth, you are
forced to rely on emotions or feelings or someone’s opinion.
Knowledge
of the Bible gives stability in times of testing. When you know God’s promises
we have something to hold on to in the midst of the struggle.
Knowledge
of the Bible equips us to handle the Bible correctly. The more we know the
Bible, the better we are able to understand it. Then it forms our values,
rather than using the Bible to validate our opinions.
Knowledge
of the Bible equips us to detect error and confront it.
Knowledge
of the Bible equips us to walk with God. The better we know the Lord, the
better we understand what He requires of us and how we can please Him.
Knowledge
of the Bible filters out our fears and superstitions. God’s Word silences the
voices that distract us.[i]
Paul
calls Christ the mystery of God – not that the mystery is found in Christ – the
mystery is Christ. And in Christ we find the mystery of what it means to
be godly – He is the way to godliness, as it says in the ancient hymn (1 Tim. 3:16).
4. Mature Christians can stand firm against opposition
Just as the Colossian believers faced heretics who did
not believe in the supremacy of Christ, we face similar groups today. False
religions today still refute the divinity of Christ: Jehovah’s Witnesses, the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and the Church of Scientology for
example. And more and more within the church in North America, we find that
Christians disagree on the person and role of Christ in the life of the
believer.
Paul,
however, delighted “to see how orderly
and disciplined you are and how firm your faith in Christ is” (2:5). With
their love of Christ and each other established by their knowledge of Christ,
the church was standing firm against the onslaught of heresy and unbelief.
Paul
used two military words in this verse “orderly” and “firm.” The greatest enemy
of the church is Satan, and he uses external and internal means to dismantle
what Christ is doing in us. He will use “truths” that sound like truth, that is
so close to truth, some can’t tell the difference. We are in a battle and so
military language is appropriate. To be “orderly” means that like an army, we
must stand in formation. Everyone in a formation has a specific role (form
square). If one member does not hold formation, Satan gets a foothold. When one
of us is disgruntled and refuses to submit to the will of God, or refuses to
use their gift, a door is opened to the enemy. But when each person holds the
line of faith and life, the formation is dynamic and unbeatable.
To be
“firm” means standing together no matter what comes out the door. That’s what
Maximus told his fellow gladiators when they faced an unknown enemy in the
arena. Stand firm no matter what comes. Put on the full armor of God so that
when the day of evil comes you may be able to stand your ground (Eph 6:13).
5. Mature Christians continue to walk in Christ
It is said that the next two verses summarize the whole
letter to the Colossians. Indeed, they summarize what we have been hearing Paul
say this morning about maturity in Christ. “So
then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him,
rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and
overflowing with thankfulness” (2:6-7).
Salvation
is just the beginning. By faith in Jesus who died on the cross as an offering
for our sins, we are forgiven and reconciled to God. Now, with that same
dependency on Christ, we walk with Him.
To walk
with Christ is to grow more to be like Him. I imagine that walk to be something
like a small intimate group crowded around Jesus, hearing Him talk, listening
to His stories and thoughts about life, seeing Him interact with people along
the way, and even getting to ask Him questions. As this group walks with Jesus,
each of us takes turns coming up beside Him and having a moment to ask that
probing question that sits heavily in our thoughts. While we walk with Jesus,
we grow. This is the journey of life. The crowd is the church. We don’t walk
alone with Jesus; we walk together, enjoying His person as a community of
disciples.
Paul
seems to mix his metaphors in these two verses. But one thing characterizes all
of them: growth. These two verses challenge us to…
Grow downward, sinking deep roots into the life of Jesus.
Grow upward, being built up in character to be like Him.
Grow inward, strengthened in the faith, the beliefs and
doctrines of Christ, who He is and what He came to do.
Grow outward, overflowing with thankfulness, like a river
overflowing its banks, unable to be contained because we recognize the work of
God in our lives.
The
mature Christian grows and keeps growing until the Lord Jesus calls us home.
How can we tell if we are mature Christians?
In life
we mark maturity in several ways. We feel “grown up” when we receive our
driver’s license at 16 years of age. We graduate from high school and maybe
College or University a few years later. I remember one friend of mine saying
that she felt invisible in our Winnipeg church until she got married – all of
sudden people noticed her. Are these the marks of a maturing life?
Throughout
the years, in moments of immaturity, people have told us to “grow up” and “act
your age.” Implied was their opinion that you weren’t acting maturely. If
maturity means sitting quietly with a sour expression on our faces, then I
don’t want to grow up.
At my
age I would have thought that I would feel mature, or at least more mature. But
in fact I feel as though I still have some growing up to do.
How can
you tell if you are a mature Christian?
Rick Warren wrote, “There are no short cuts to maturity.
It takes years for us to grow to adulthood, and it takes
a full season for fruit to mature and ripen. The same is true for the fruit of
the Spirit. The development of Christlike character cannot be rushed. Spiritual
growth, like physical growth, takes time.
When you
try to ripen fruit quickly, it loses its flavor. In America, tomatoes are
usually picked unripened so they won’t bruise during shipping to the stores.
Then, before they are sold, these green tomatoes are sprayed with CO2 gas to
turn them red instantly. Gassed tomatoes are edible, but they are no match to
the flavor of a vine-ripened tomato that is allowed to mature slowly.”[ii]
That’s
why life in Christ is pictured as a walk and not a ride in a Shelby Mustang. It
takes a lifetime to walk with Jesus and grow in maturity. Paul agonized, he
made every effort, to help the Colossians grow. In the same way, I present to
you these words of Paul’s so that we all might grow in maturity together.
AMEN
No comments:
Post a Comment