GROW UP

Have you ever heard your parents say: “would you grow up!”? Or something similar? Well, any good parent want’s their children to “grow up.” Growing up is not just growing physically. Any normal child will grow physically but not necessarily mentally and emotionally. The Word of God also tells us, as children of God to GROW UP. Really, it does. Open your Bible to 2 Peter 3:18 also Ephesians 4:11-15. See, I told you the Bible says to grow up. Just as in the natural your parents want you to grow, so also our Heavenly Father wants us to “grow up in all things into Christ.”

What does it really mean to grow up? The American Heritage Dictionary give the following definition: grow 1. To increase in size by a natural process. 2. To expand 3. To develop and reach maturity. 4. To be capable of growth. The natural process of all human beings is to grow. Some times babies are born with some kind of abnormality and they do not grow physically or emotionally or mentally. But the NATURAL and NORMAL thing is for a baby to grow, physically, emotionally and mentally. It is the same with your spiritual life. You were born again when you accepted Christ as your Savior. You are now a child of God and God, as your Heavenly Father desires for you to GROW. The normal process for every child of God is for them to grow. Are you growing spiritually? Is the life of Christ increasing in size? Is your spiritual life expanding? Are you developing in your spiritual life, striving for maturity? Are you capable of growth? That is, are you allowing God to work in your life? Or are you like some teenagers who think they know all the answers? If you think you know best then you are unteachable. You are NOT capable of growth!

The Apostle Paul says, “When I was a Child, I talked like a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I GREW UP, I put away childish things.” Are there things you need to “leave behind”? As we grow in the natural we do leave things behind; a girl might stop playing with dolls and boy might not want to play cowboy and Indians. So also in the spiritual.

One of the things about a child in the natural is: a child only thinks of the moment. I asked a 10 year if he would like to have $10 in one month or $1 right now. He actually chose the $1. It seems that most of God’s children never GROW UP in this area. They only see the present. Our Heavenly Father allows circumstances in our lives with ETERNITY in view. We only see the moment and we get angry or sad or scared. Our parents in the natural understand that we need to go to college, get an education, etc.; and with that in mind they save and push us to get good grades. But we, being children and immature do not see that far ahead, so also our Heavenly Father. He sees eternity and would prepare us to be mature children of God. Please read Galatians 4:1. Our Heavenly Father has many wonderful things in store for us but if we do not GROW UP he can not give them to us any more than your parent would give a 5 year old the keys to the family car.

There is much more to consider in this mater but for now I would like to tell you that your loving Heavenly Father wants you to GROW UP. Please, leave behind childish things and GROW IN THE GRACE AND KNOWLEDGE OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST.

RC