The Maturity of the Christian, Part Three

So far in this series, I have been emphasizing the need for continued learning as part of the overall growth and maturation of the Christian.  In the last post, I also emphasized that even the most immature Christian is still in Christ, and thus, is in a state of salvation.  Further growth in maturity is not completely necessary (in terms of salvation and being a child of God) but is something that we do see as highly desirable.

Today, though, I want to move into a different arena of learning.  I would say that it still involves learning, but it is a different type of learning than that of mere knowledge.  This learning is the learning by experience.  In some respects, this is seen as the best kind of learning (a direction that I tend to lean in).  We humans really do seem to learn best when we try something.  As an example, you can read a book about how to ride a bicycle.  You can understand the dynamics of it all, the importance of balance, the need for pushing the petals forward, the use of the brakes, and all the other related parts.  However, we best learn how to ride a bike by getting up on it and trying it out.

There are challenges with this kind of learning.  Perhaps the largest one is that, when we actually try something the first time, we (more often than not) fail at it.  We get on the bike, start pushing the petals forward, and since we haven't mastered the balance and the coordination that goes with it, we end up falling over.  Hopefully we aren't too injured (body or pride), and we take what we have learned for the next time we get up there on the seat again.

Now, I am going to admit that there are two different ways that this applies to Christian maturation, and it doesn't really fit one very well.  This falls in the area of belief.  Believing something is not a thing that you can simply practice.  I can't practice believing that grass is green, or that the sky is blue.  Neither can I practice believing that God cares for me, that Jesus died on the cross for me, and that His sacrifice makes me right with God.  In some ways, I either believe that (through the gift of God) or I don't.  No amount of practice, or even learning, will further mature me in that.

However, there are ways that I can mature in the practice of my faith by actually practicing the things of the faith.  I can practice forgiving another, and then reminding myself often that I should not hold their past action against them when I interact with them.  I can practice giving of myself sacrificially for the good of another, and seeing how God works through that to bear fruit.  I can practice loving my spouse and placing her needs above my own, and thus, growing in that God-created and God-given relationship.  In areas like this, I can practice and (hopefully) see maturation and growth.

It isn't always easy, though.  I may not succeed the first time I try something.  I may try something that I consider loving toward my spouse, and it just may not resonate with her.  I may try to tell another about what I believe about God, and why I believe in what Jesus did for me, and I may come across as a bumbling idiot who can't speak well.  However, I learn from such experiences.  Failure in this regard is both forgiven by God and is a learning tool for further maturation.  Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.  Maturation, though, often comes through practice, and quite often, through failure.

The Maturity of the Christian, Part 2

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I have a great interest in the formation of faith within God's people.  This naturally leads me to be interested in the field of education, where we learn.  While education is only one part of faith formation, and thus of maturity, it is an important part.  Not to mention that it seems that God created me with a teaching instinct.  I find it more natural to teach than many other things, something that likely comes across in many different ways in my life.

Maturity finds its root in learning.  As a child begins to learn words, he or she learns that those words are not merely sounds that daddy and mommy and others make, but they carry meaning with them.  They learn that the word mommy means this person who cares for me, and that daddy is another person who cares for me, but who is different from mommy.  The child matures not only in learning the words, but inn learning that there is meaning in the words, and then, in applying the words.  If the words are misapplied (calling mommy "daddy", for example), then further maturity is still needed.

This means that teaching is the first step of maturity.  We must learn what something is, and we must learn the meaning of that something, whatever it may be.  A further step is to learn the purpose of that something (here is where the "why" question comes in, one that children are so fond of), and the application of that something in one's life.  This reflects a deepening maturity as the different stages are reached.

So part of maturity in the Christian is to learn about our God.  This is where the role of hearing the Word regularly enters in, in reading the Word, in studying the Word.  We keep learning what the something at the center of our faith is, that is, we keep learning about our God.  We learn that He is such things as Creator, that He has characteristics as merciful, loving, compassionate, and the like.  We learn that He has an intent with His creation, and that He saw something go horribly wrong with His creation.  We learn that He has the solution to the problems of His creation, and that He intends for something to happen for the good of His creation.

In that way, we start to learn the facts about our God.  We learn the words that describe God.  We learn the stories which show examples of His characteristics (and no, not all of them are pleasant for us to learn and to reflect upon).  We learn that He has something in mind for us.  In this way, as from the example above, we learn that He is "daddy", a person who cares for me, and who is different from others.  We learn the words about Him, and we learn of the relationship He has established with us.

Yet, that is in no way a full maturity.  Sure, such learning may grow our maturity in other areas.  We may grow in learning how to set aside time for the study and hearing of the Word, and while that is important, there are also many other areas of maturity beyond that.  In a way, the teaching of God's Word, the study and hearing of God's Word, bring us to that same place where the child is very early on.  We know this One is "daddy", and we know He is different from others, but there is so much more depth to that, depth which calls for a greater maturity.

I want to end this on a very positive note, though.  The great thing about God is that even if our level of maturity is only at the point of recognizing Him as "daddy", and we know what He has done for us in Jesus, He still works His great gift of salvation and grace to us.  From that standpoint, a deeper maturity isn't required.  In fact, I would dare say that a vast majority of Christians over the ages have reached that point of maturity, and praise be to God, that proves sufficient for the receiving of eternal life in Jesus.  Knowing He is our "daddy", and that He has grown that relationship in Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, includes us in the promise of everlasting life.  Thanks be to God for that!

The Maturity of the Christian, Part 1

Yes, you noticed a part 1 in the heading of this post, as I intend that it will cover several posts.  So keep tuned in, just in case I don't think through something today that you may be thinking.  It's likely that it will come up in a future post on this topic.

The topic of Christian maturity is one that I pay great attention to.  In fact, it often dominates my reading, as some of the recent titles of books that I have read include "Intergenerational Christian Formation", "Reframing Spiritual Formation", and "Intergenerational Religious Education."  Each of these deal with the growth of the Christian in their faith, the lives, and their faith lives in particular.

As one who is tasked to proclaim Christ Jesus and see faith in Him growing within those who hear, I have a great deal of interest in such growth.  Another way that the Scriptures paint it is of a growing maturity.  In other words, it isn't merely head knowledge.  We can "know" lots of things about the Bible, about God, and about Jesus, but knowledge alone doesn't ensure maturity.  We have all known people that could win practically any trivia contest, but are woefully inadequate in dealing with the circumstances life throws our way.  And yet, the primary models of faith formation we have focus primarily on knowledge acquisition.  

So part of what we are going to have to figure out is what maturity actually looks like.  Yes, there is going to be an important component of knowledge in that.  You have to know in order to grow into something.  It also includes a willingness to actually do and practice the things you learn.  For example, we can know that Jesus forgives us through the cross, and yet, we can be very immature when it comes to forgiving others in our lives.  A willingness to forgive indicates a deeper maturity.  And then, as we see Jesus forgiving even those who ultimately reject His gift of forgiveness, we see an even deeper maturity when we practice forgiveness toward those who will reject our gift, and will, in fact, continue to live defiantly contrary to what we might hope and expect.

Maturity also includes a willingness to sacrifice.  Again, an example may help best illustrate this.  We can know that our God says that we are to love our neighbors as ourselves.  Paul even goes so far as to say that we should consider others as better than ourselves, and seek to serve their needs ahead of our own.  Jesus Himself would say that He didn't come to be served, but to serve.  We may intellectually agree with this, but growing in maturity means that we start to look to the good of others, even if it involves sacrifice for ourselves.  And then, even greater maturity means that we look to the good of others, even if they do not look favorably upon us, and in fact, actually work against what we believe and stand for.  Jesus Himself would say that it really isn't all that much if we only sacrifice for those who we get along with.  Even the sinners and tax collectors do that.  To have a willingness to sacrifice, even for those who may hold such sacrifice against us, is a sign of a greater maturity.

One other thing, and then I will wrap up for today.  Maturity is not a straight-forward process.  There are steps forward, and there are moments where we backslide.  In that same way, just because we get older doesn't mean we get more mature.  I have known very mature young people, and I have known immature older people, when it comes to faith matters.  In addition, we may be very mature in some areas, and woefully immature in other areas. 

Paul would write that he could not give his readers solid food, but instead focused on giving them milk, because they weren't ready for the solid food of some deeper teachings and practices.  Over the next few posts, we will further examine what that might mean, and eventually, start looking at what growth in maturity may look like for us as Christians.

Where is your focus?

Over the past few months, I have seen a thought crop up from time to time in the various social media resources that I use.  It says something along these lines.  If you are leaving a church because you have been hurt by the people there, you have been putting your focus on the wrong thing.  Now, I will say that I agree with the overall idea of such a statement, though I also think such a statement does not fully grasp what it means to be drawn to Jesus through the message of Good News.

So let's tackle the first part first.  If you leave because you have been hurt by the people, you have been focusing on the wrong thing.  There is a way in which this is true.  We gather as God's people because of what God has done for us in Jesus, the Christ.  We are gathered as fallen, sinful people, whom God has redeemed through sending His one and only Son, who gathers people to Himself through His death and resurrection.  Our hope is not found in being a part of the Church, but instead, in being washed, redeemed, cleansed, etc., by Jesus.  We don't become part of the Church for the Church's sake, per se.  We become part of the Church because we are rescued from sin, death, and the devil by Jesus.

That means that, when we gather with the Church, we are gathered with people who are just the same as us.  Sure, their sins and temptations and weaknesses and flaws may be somewhat different in presentation and scope from ours, but really, we are all the same.  We all stand condemned because of our sin, and we all stand with the eager expectation of forgiveness and life because of Jesus.  Not a one of us should look upon another with pride, as though we are doing better in our walk with Jesus than another. 

Our reality in the Church is that, as gathered sinners, we WILL hurt each other.  We are not suddenly immune to sinning against our fellow members of the Church.  Our human sinfulness and weakness will inevitably reveal itself in those relationships.  Now, our hope is that we handle those occasions with humility, confessing our sin, asking for and granting forgiveness readily.  Yet, we will not always do so.  But our hope is not in how "right" we are with other people.  Our hope is found in how God has made us right through Jesus.

So yes, we can fix our focus on the wrong thing, on people instead of the Savior.  And even though we should remember that we are gathered because of Jesus, we also remember that we are gathered together with other sinful people in the Church.  We cannot escape that reality.  Jesus calls us to Himself within the Body of Christ, which means that we are in connection with others.  We have brothers and sisters in Jesus, and the expectation is that we will live our lives in fellowship and connection with them.

That means that we cannot simply dismiss our relationships with others, as though it is just "Jesus and me."  Our reality is that Jesus redeems us, and as redeemed people, we live out that redemption with other redeemed people.  Now, part of being redeemed means that we strive to love our neighbor as ourselves.  We put the needs of others as more important than our own.  We practice humility, as though others were of greater concern than us.

That means we remember, when we hurt another through our sinfulness, that we are called to reconcile with each other.  We don't pretend nothing happened.  We don't let anger fester and build.  Instead, as Jesus says, we leave our gift at the altar, and first go and be reconciled to our brother or sister.  Jesus Himself suggests that our act of reconciliation is more important than our act of worship.  And so, when we realize that we have hurt another, or that another has hurt us, that reconciliation with that person takes precedent, even over our worship of God.

While the "ideal" church (notice the small "c" this time) does not exist in this world, we are gathered into God's Church to practice the same reconciliation that has been given to us in Jesus.  If we leave the church (small "c" again), perhaps it is that we have lost focus on what is of most importance.  It's on God's redemption in Jesus, and in living as reonciled people together.

The Disease, or the Symptoms?

"Preach on.  Speak to issues of fundamental importance--like world view.  Younger Christians more acutely feel the tension between the confession of Scripture and the mindset of the twenty-first century.  Preaching on the underlying causes for this tension [e.g., world view] rather than railing against the symptoms [homosexuality, gender issues, cohabitation, etc.] would, I think, ring true and be very appealing for those who think the Church is there simply to say 'no' all the time."  Quotation from an article I recently read from Concordia Technology Solutions.

It comes up in discussion when I visit with people.  I hear it on Sundays following worship.  Recently, when I requested input for stories from the Bible that people wanted to hear more about, I not only received the stories, but specific things that people were looking for from the stories.  I've had discussions about the importance of preaching on 'the issues of the day', with a good number of people having an honest question and desire to hear what God has to say about many of the things we face in our daily lives. 

Now, I could make far more out of this than I should.  However, the quotation above from a "Millenial" shows us something of vital importance when it comes to the Christian faith and our proclamation of it.  In essence, what this young person points out is that our Christian focus truly impacts our lives when we focus on the "underying cause" rather than the "symptoms."

Okay, so what does that mean?  Let me use an example.  A little over a year ago, our nation was rocked when the Supreme Court "legalized" marriage between people of like gender.  Like many, I heard a fervent plea to preach on what the Scripture says about marriage.  A good request, to be sure.  However, given the context, such a reaction is addressing the symptom rather than the underlying cause.  The symptom (homosexual marriage and all its accompanying issues) took on a priority over the underlying cause (a world fallen in sin and in need of redemption) in the eyes and minds of many.

Preaching on the symptom rarely drives us to the cure.  Usually, what happens instead is that those who do not condone or practice the symptom feel better about their lack of sin in that area, and they develop a tendency to look down on those who either practice it or condone it.  In other words, preaching on the symptom can often lead us to be more secure in our own righteousness and seeing others as less "deserving" of God's grace in Christ Jesus.

Preaching to the disease, though, gets to the heart of the problem of the entire human race.  Once we realize that the issue isn't the symptom, but rather, the underlying cause, now we find ourselves standing at the same place with those who condone or practice the sin.  We stand at the foot of the cross with them, as people who do not perfectly reflect God's desire for our lives, and who would be at His judgment if not for the mercy God shows in Jesus and His carrying our sin in His own body on the cross.  Rather than looking down on them, we are then more likely to stand with them, looking up to the One who redeems them and us, and wanting them to receive the same gifts that we have received. 

I find it utterly fascinating that so many young people in our day and age are looking much more fervently at the heart of what our problem as humans is, and are not content to merely look at the symptoms.  When we look at that underlying cause and disease, that great gift of God in Jesus becomes so much more precious to us, and something of far greater value for us to share.