Christian Growth

by J. Raymond Pecoraro, Wooddale Church of Christ 

When a child of God matures in his or her walk with the Father in heaven, he or she sees themselves becoming smaller & smaller as they progress. 

Self is soon overtaken by the magnitude of the Lord. 

All else soon becomes insignificant because God is in control of their lives. 

The best way to know whether or not a person is a true follower of the Lord is by observation. They will talk less about themselves & more about Jesus. 

A good example of this is John the Baptist in Mark 1:4-5, “John came baptizing in the wilderness & preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Then all the land of Judea, & those from Jerusalem, went out to him & were baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins." 

John’s ministry was exceptionally a success! 

Why? 

The answer is that John the Baptist understood that his ministry wasn’t designed to bring attention to himself. 

In verse 7 of Mark, chapter 1, he said, “And he preached saying, ‘There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down & loose.”

It matters not what your status is in this world. 

It is not the world that we are trying to please! 

Christians must endeavor to seek & strive to please the Saviour! 

Therefore, we give way to the Lord because He paid the sin debt for us! 

God doesn’t look for those with earthly accomplishments, but for those who have humble hearts & bow before the authority of His Word. It is only when we forget about one’s self do we draw closer to the Lord for that intimate relationship that all Christians should long for!

We mustn’t concern ourselves with the opinions of the world. 

We should hunger & thirst after the Lord for the wonderful things He has accomplished in our lives! 

This includes the glorious preparations made in our stead for all eternity! 

We are all made in God’s wonderful image (Genesis 1:26, 27), & we also have the freedom of choice when it comes to whom we want to serve. (Joshua 24:19-28). 

While it is true we have the freedom of choice because we are not robots, we cannot choose the consequences of our choice. The consequences are already set by our Father in heaven. And He has made known what the consequences for choosing disobedience are & that is eternal condemnation. 

The rewards are also made known by a good & loving God. 

Faithful obedience brings eternal rewards in heaven. 

It appears that the right decision is clear. 

Faithful service to the Lord not only benefits everyone in this life, but also beyond when this life ceases. 

It is our earnest prayer that the right choice be made today! 

God loves each & every one of His creations who are made after His likeness. 

Are you willing to bring your broken life to the Great Physician for true healing?