Presenting Every Man Perfect In Christ
A. Col. 1:28. In predicting that Peter would deny Him three times
on the night of His betrayal, Jesus said Peter would come through
the ordeal with a strengthened faith. Then He instructed Peter:
in Lk. 22:32, and when you have returned to Me, strengthen
your brethren. Peter was to receive strength that he might
impart strength to his fellow Christians. In the same way, all
Christians have the responsibility not only of bringing others
to Christ, but also of helping them achieve their full usefulness
in Christ.
1. Paul said that his work involved, warning every man and
teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man
perfect in Christ Jesus. Col. 1:28. Perfect does not mean
perfection in the sense of flawless. It means, having attained
the end, or purpose, complete, fully developed. Jas. 1:4, describes
it as, Being mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Col. 4:12, uses the word this way, ...stand firm in all
the will of God, mature and fully assured. Because the members
of a local congregation are members of one another,
Paul says in Rom. 12:5. We individually have the responsibility
and privilege of helping each other come to full development and
spiritual maturity.
a. Growing in spiritual maturity is an important concept. We all
begin our Christian lives as babes
in Christ. 1 Pet. 2:2, Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual
milk, so that by it you may grow
up in your salvation. To be normal you grow into healthy
adulthood. To not do so is to remain
abnormal and unhealthy. That means you will never fully be what
you were meant to be and you
will never grow to spiritual maturity, Heb. 5:13. Anyone
who lives on milk, being still an infant, is
not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. You
cannot remain an immature, undeveloped child all your life. That
is abnormal.
(A) If you remain a childish, immature Christian all your life
you will never grow spiritually and
always be living in sin and personal failure, Heb. 5:14, Solid
food is for the mature, who by
constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from
evil. You will never learn to
please God living only on spiritual milk and pablum. 2 Pet. 3:17?18,
Be on your guard so
that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and
fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. No
child or immature infant is capable of that. Spiritual infants,
like physical infants have only
one concern---Having their own immediate needs met. It is impossible
for them to serve
the needs of others, much less their own needs.
(1) As individual members of the body grow, the body itself grows.
A member who does
not grow is a hinderance to themselves and to other members of
the congregation.
Paul describes them in Col. 2:18?19, As those whos Unspiritual
mind puffs him up
with idle notions. He has lost connection with the Head, from
whom the whole body,
supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows
as God causes it to
grow. They have become disconnected from the Head (Jesus)
and become a
hindrance to the Body. Those are the kind of people who tear up
and split
congregations and cause bitterness and division among Christians.
Theres a
scripture that teaches you can fall from grace. When youve
lost connection with the
Head, youre no longer a part of the body.
(2) Thats why the work of an elder is so vital, important.
Their charge is not to make decisions in business meetings about
how we will fix and maintain the building, parking lot, how to
do benevolent work. Thats the work of deacons. Elders are
charged with the spiritual growth of each member of the flock
and making sure that false doctrine and division does not rear
its ugly head in the body. Listen to the charge Paul gave
the elders at Ephesus, Acts 20:28?31, Take heed therefore
unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy
Spirit has made you shepherds, to feed the church of God, which
he has purchased with his own blood. The work of a shepherd
is to feed the flock. The shepherd is also charged with protecting
the church from spiritual wolves who teach false doctrine, divide,
scatter
the flock. Thats why Paul says the bishop, shepherd, the
elder (All the same
person) must be skilled in teaching Gods Word. 1 Tim. 3:2,
The bishop therefore
must be without reproach....apt to teach. APT
means skilled and faithful in
teaching the Word, Doctrine of Christ. Why? He is charged with
feeding, teaching,
nurturing, growing the flock spiritually and with that Word to
correct and refute
those who teach false doctrine. Titus 1:9?11, He must hold
fast the faithful word as
he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both
to exhort and
convict those who contradict. For there are many insubordinate,
both idle talkers
and deceivers, whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole
households,
teaching things which they ought not...
(B) Its important that each member of the body grows. There
is need for mutual edification. You dont want your physical
body to grow to be uneven. One great big eye and one small eye,
arm, leg, foot. Well rounded growth. Edify means to build up,
strengthen, benefit. Rom. 15:1?2, Now we that are strong
ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
Let each one of us please his neighbor for that which is good,
unto edifying. Heb 10:24?25, And let us consider how
we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. We
are obligated to edify not only ourselves, but others as well.
Rom. 14:19, says, We are to make every effort to do what
leads to peace and to mutual
edification. Rom. 15:1-2, You and I who are strong
and mature are to bear the failings of
those who are week and not always seek to please our own selves.
Each of us should
please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. That
kind of love and concern for one
another is what makes congregations strong and successful.
(1) Being a part of the body you cannot be anything less than
loving, sympathetic, caring and concerned about every member of
the body. We are to love one another as Jesus commanded in Jno.
13:34-35, Jesus gave you and me a direct command, "A
new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you,
so you must love
one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples,
if you love one
another." Thats not a suggestion, not an option. A
direct command. Whats the
reason for loving each other? Love edifies ? 1 Cor
13:4?8, says, Love is patient,
love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not
self?seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of
wrongs. Love does not
delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects,
always trusts, always
hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
(2) If you love me you wont let me do things that endanger
my soul. And thats why each member is actively and personally
involved in the discipline of the congregation, both instructive
1 Thess. 5:14, and corrective 2 Thess. 3:14-15. A
true friend will not
coddle our weaknesses, but encourage our strengths. The best friend
you have is
one who brings out the best in you. But, unfortunately its
as Norman Vincent Peale
said, The trouble with most of us is that we would rather
be ruined by praise than
saved by criticism. We need the help others can give us
thats why the Lord
established the Church as our Body of salvation. We need each
other. The
self?made man is usually an example of unskilled labor!
(3) Acts 20:32
Spur - 10/12/03 am
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