He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. (Ephesians 4:10-14 ESV, BOLD MINE)
The scriptures are so important, full of truth… truth that I think we take for granted. We seem to be so interested in our Bible Reading Plan, that we end up not understanding anything the Bible says. Let me toss in a free tip… they don’t teach this in hermeneutics… the most basic key to understanding the Bible (before when, where and to whom) is to slow down. If you will read the scriptures slow enough… they will tell you everything you need to know. The Bible will literally interpret itself.
That is not what we’re talking about today…
I want to talk to you about maturity… specifically spiritual maturity.
We use the word mature a great deal in church. We want to see people become fully mature Christ followers. We always equate maturity with particular behaviors and practices. Behaviors and practices, to be honest, can be wonderful testimonies of peoples faith… and they can also amount to diddly. Some of our church’s most faithful encouragers and supporters are people who are faithful to always be at church. In addition, some of our biggest thorn bushes are also there all time. Obviously the practice of coming to church regularly doesn’t hinder spiritual maturity, but it certainly doesn’t equate to it either.
Instead of behaviors and practices, this passage of scripture shows us that maturity is something that keeps us from being “tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine.” That would mean maturity is simply correct believing and strong beliefs at that.
Correct believing is echoed in Ephesians 6:16. It is the only piece of the armor of God that Paul tells us to take up “in all circumstances”. Faith is the word used here for believing, but it is believing none the less.
Correct believing has the power to extinguish the flaming darts of the evil one. The enemy’s tactics are easy to spot in scripture… The serpent simply rearranged words to Eve and she bought in. (Gen 3:1) Jesus told Peter that the enemy desired to sift him. (Luke 22:31)
Staying firmly grounded in the gospel is what matures us.
Be encouraged with this, I heard it today…
“We don’t grow beyond the gospel. We grow deeper in it.”
Focus on the finished work of Christ and learn every hidden truth of it you can find.