Growth
It can be a great joy watching a child grow. Growth is something we have all experienced. In our mother’s womb God caused us to grow dramatically. And from infancy on we have grown up and learned many things. Still today, we are constantly growing as we learn new things and have the experiences we do. Growth can be exciting. If you have been blessed with children you may recall times when you marveled over their growth. Maybe you notice it all the more in your grandchildren. I have found joy in seeing how my grandson has grown thus far. He is able to sit up now and soon will become more mobile. Experiencing growth and watching growth can be exciting.
However, growth can also be challenging. I can recall numerous moments when I encountered various challenges in the growth process. There are various growing pains we all seem to have to face. Such pains and difficulties exist because we live in a broken and sinful world.
Even though growth may be difficult, God still desires us to grow. Consider what God teaches us in 2 Peter 3:18: “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” Peter is inspired to write these words in the context of writing about the final Day when our Lord will return and judge the world and make all things new. As we await the return of our Lord it is important for each and every one of us to be involved in a life long process of growth in our Christian walk.
God’s desire is that such growth is not just physical growth as we mature from infancy to adulthood, but it is that we “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Certainly, we understand the basics of our faith how Jesus, the eternal Son of God came into this world as a human baby. He grew in years and in size. He did it without any sin or wrong doing on His part. Then He went to the cross for us so that we may receive the grace of His forgiveness and the promise of eternal life through faith in Him. As Jesus has risen from the dead we have the promise that one day we too will rise from the dead and spend eternity with Him. God desires that not only we have a basic knowledge of these eternal truths, but that we continue to grow in our understating and our faith in the mystery of God and His grace He has shown to us.
How then does God cause such growth to come about in our lives? He works through the Word. In 1 Corinthians 3:6 Paul wrote: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.” As we hear Scripture read and preached, as we read it ourselves and study it ourselves and meditate upon it, our Lord is at work brining growth in our experience with the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus. Secondly, God also causes growth through the sacraments. Each time someone is baptized God works the miracle of faith in their life. Every time we are led to the communion rail by our Lord, He is at work bringing us growth in the grace and knowledge of Jesus as His words of forgiveness are given to us. Thirdly, we also grow by meeting together with our fellow believers. Perhaps this is more important than ever as we live in the broken world we do and await the return of our Lord. We need one another. We need to be encouraged in our Christian faith and understanding as we live in a world that often seeks to teach us the exact opposite and works to prevent such growth. We need to be of an encouragement to others also by our presence and our words and prayers and actions of encouragement. Fourthly, we also grow by our service to Jesus and His people. There are many service opportunities in the church as we serve one another and others in the world in which we live. These works of service may be challenging at times, but through them God works growth in our lives and the lives of others. So also, God brings about growth as we witness Jesus to others. When we speak with someone about Jesus and the hope we have things may not always go perfectly, but through them God brings about growth both for the other person and for us as well.
There are many ways that God brings growth about in our lives. What is one specific area where you desire or need growth? Write it down. Pray about it. Talk with a fellow believer about it asking for their encouragement and prayers. For God desires us to not remain as infants (1 Corinthians 3:2-3) but to: “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
Such growth is the second point of our mission focus here at Rose of Sharon, “Gather, Grow, and Go.” We have grown together over the years and I look forward to continue to grow together as a body of Christ and individually as members of it. May God bless you with an abundant growth in your life in the weeks, months, and years ahead.
Pastor Schoenfeld
Something Everyone Needs to Know
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23
Ever since Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit (Genesis 3) every human being has come into this world as a sinful being. Our sin separates us from God. Left to ourselves we would perish for eternity in hell (John 3:36 & Hebrews 10:26-27).
“For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16
God loves you so much that He came into this world as a human being (Luke 2:1-20). Jesus, the Son of God, lived a perfect life for you (Hebrews 4:14-16), suffered and died upon a cross for you (John 19), and rose from the dead for you (Luke 24). Now our risen Lord will forgive your sin (1 John 1:8-9) and grant eternal salvation to you if you believe in Him.
“Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved…” Acts 16:31
When God blesses you with a living faith in Jesus you will have a place in heaven. Such salvation comes not by our works but by grace through faith in Jesus (Romans 3:28; Ephesians 2:8-10).
“And He died for all, that those who live, should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again.” 2 Corinthians 5:15
Now as those who have been given the gift of heaven we live no longer just for ourselves but to serve God and our fellow human beings. (Ephesians 2:10)
Pastor Schoenfeld