Growing
in Christ
By Stephen
Terry
Commentary
for the November 3, 2012 Sabbath School Lesson
“He
also said, ‘This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the
ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and
grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first
the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head.’” Mark 4:26-28, NIV
Jesus had much to say about sowing grain. He spoke about
sowing it on different soils and the hazards associated with those soils that
might prevent a successful crop from growing. (Matthew 13:1-23) These hazards
included hard ground, stones and thorns as opposed to good soil. He also spoke
of weeds sown in a good crop. While there is good counsel that can be readily
understood in all of these stories about grain, there is one aspect of growing
grain that is still a mystery to farmers today, just as it was two thousand
years ago. What makes the grain grow?
The farmer puts a dried up seed in the ground and with water
and warmth, the seed usually sprouts. Why? We don’t know. Somehow the seed has
the spark of life in it. We cannot put it there. If a seed fails to sprout, we
cannot endow it with the life it needs to do so. Each time a farmer plants a
crop, it is an act of faith. The seed germinates or it doesn’t, and the future
of the farm depends on it doing what it needs to do. You may not find many
farmers that are atheists. They know that some things that we do not understand
simply work if you have faith in them. Perhaps somewhere in the organic chemicals
composing the amino acids of the DNA strands there is that spark of life. If we
could isolate it, maybe we could reconstruct it from those chemicals and then
have the power of creating life. However, it has so far eluded our understanding.
As we peer deeper and deeper into the mystery we speculate that maybe it exists
at the sub-atomic level, but when we attempt to understand particle physics we
discover that things are often not very predictable. Sometimes chaotic behavior
becomes the new norm as we descend into the quantum universe. If anything, the
mysteries seem to multiply, defying attempts at resolution into some coherency
that will provide answers. While we may know volumes about the composition of
the seed and its DNA, we are no closer to answering how it does what it does
today.
Jesus used these stories about farming to illustrate
vital principles associated with the Kingdom of God. Perhaps He meant us to
understand that just as we cannot discern how the seed grows in the ground, so
we cannot discover how the Kingdom of God grows in our hearts. It is a kingdom
of the Spirit. Just as Jesus is able to give life (John 11:38-43) because as
God, He possesses life underived (John 10:17-18), so the Spirit also possesses
life underived. (Romans 8:10) Jesus spoke to Nicodemus one night about how
difficult it is to perceive the workings of the Spirit. He said “The wind blows
wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes
from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” John 3:8,
NIV But why is this important to understand about growing in Christ?
Perhaps growth in Christ is every bit as hidden from our
understanding as the germination and growth of the seed is. True, we can see evidence
of growth as the passage in Mark 4 tells us. We see the stalk, the leaves, and
the seed head so we know that growth is taking place, but we cannot say exactly
how it happens. So it would seem to be with the Christian. We see outward
evidence of growth in Christ, but we cannot discover exactly what the Spirit is
doing from moment to moment. Perhaps the Spirit is working on a pernicious tobacco
smoking problem, or maybe He is working on a swearing habit. We simply don’t
know what the Spirit is addressing in the Christian’s life at any given point. Often
the Christian does not know either. Maybe like Abram leaving Ur, we are to simply go
forward trusting God that He has a plan and is in control and that everything will work out
according to that plan as long as we don’t interfere with its unfolding.
One of the biggest mistakes we can make is to try to
push God’s plan forward. It would be like the farmer going out into his field each
day and giving each seedling a tug to try to help it grow. Eventually this
would pull the roots from the ground, and the plant would die. Yet, too
many do just that with their lives and with those of fellow Christians. They
perceive that their brother or sister is not progressing in their Christian
walk as should be happening, so they go over and give a tug in what
they feel is the right direction. Sometimes this is about dress, diet or music.
Recently some have felt the need to do this about Halloween, and soon some will
begin to do this about Christmas. They may protest that they do this out of
love for their brother or sister. However, no matter how loving the farmer is
about it, tugging on the seedlings to help them grow is not the right thing to
do.
This tugging will surely proceed to uproot the plant if
continued, but even that is not the worst thing that can be done. Some, citing Isaiah
58:1, proclaim themselves to be doing the work of the prophets and hurl bombs
of scripture and Spirit of Prophecy quotations at their brothers and sisters. Never
mind what the Spirit might already be doing in the hearts of these individuals,
it is not happening fast enough for these self-avowed discerners of all that is
right and wrong. For these the slight tug is not enough, they would happily
grab on with both hands and heave to get their fellow believers to where they
want them.
Sadly, whether they are tuggers or heavers, all demonstrate
the same thing. They do not believe the Spirit is able to do a complete work in
the lives of the saints. Perhaps it is precisely because they cannot discern
what the Spirit is doing at any given moment that they feel they must do
something. It may be like when a good conversation reaches a silent resting
place and some feel that they must say something to break the silence. They
fail to appreciate the good advice of Exodus 14:14, “The Lord will fight for
you; you need only to be still.” NIV
We can be sure that the Holy Spirit is working in the
life of every saint according to their need and God’s grace and compassion. Peter
told us that everyone receives the Holy Spirit if they repent and are baptized. (Acts 2:38)
No one has a monopoly on this gift so that they need to present the wishes of
the Holy Spirit to the other saints. The Spirit will move each heart as they
are ready. Some will need to heal a great deal before they are ready to take a step
that others might easily handle. Our attempts to remove the evil from someone
else’s life with our limited skills might result in a double amputation (Mark
9:43,45), whereas the Great Surgeon might have been able to save every limb.
Most doctors work hard to make sure their patients
experience the best possible outcome. Healing is an art that requires building
up the health of the individual with patience, compassion and supportive
therapies. Jesus pointed out the need for compassion to Peter when he told him
he should forgive his brother “unto seventy times seven.” (Matthew 18:22) Mysteriously, some
find it far easier to forgive some great wrong than to forgive the singing of a
Christmas carol or the eating of a hamburger. Others may claim to forgive
someone while making sure everyone knows exactly what sin they forgave the
other person for. They do not realize that these behaviors also are tugging the
shoots out of the ground.
While I have used the word “they” and written this from
a third person perspective, I feel it is important that we realize that “they”
is “us.” We all tend to indulge in these behaviors because we are all sinners,
saved by grace, and struggling to surrender to the moving of the Holy Spirit in
our hearts and lives. We are sometimes just as unsatisfied with the problems in
our own lives as we are with those we see in others. We have the unique ability
to pull ourselves out of the kingdom in the same way we tug others out. When we
do not see the immediate working of the Holy Spirit in our lives in some area,
we do not need to hurry the work along. We need only remember to step out of
the way, and God will work continuously in all of us, both willing and doing. (Philippians
2:13)
This Commentary is a Service of Still
Waters Ministry
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