Stand 6: Made to Grow

Message from September 5: Robin Stelzer

Every now and again teachers in a school emerge a little surprised at some knowledge that their students lack. Your scribe recalls the time that a class confused Elton John with Bob Dylan (it was a question about that song from the Lion King).  It is easy to be surprised by what people don’t know but when we accept that we are all born with no knowledge and that life is partly about the accumulation of knowledge and the ‘getting of wisdom’ then it makes sense that young people don’t know much. That is, after all, why they are at school.

But learning and growing ought not finish when the final school bell rings and in this message Pastor Robin made the case that we are ‘made to grow’. Using a series of plant references, Robin made the case that growth is natural and good and that lack of growth is therefore unnatural and unhealthy.

Reflection

• Try to think of something you have learned this week (your scribe learned about the Latin derivation of humility and humiliate (humilus – to make small)
• Can you think of a really significant learning/growing experience in your life? For example, for some it is the ability to ‘delay gratification’. For another it might be that email is a poor way to communicate anything of significance.
• Can you identify something that you would like to learn or an aspect of growth you would like to achieve?

Exploring the Reading: Ephesians 4

The letter to the Ephesians is a much studied one. This is because of its usefulness as the guide book for Christian living and for church membership. The Good News Bible offers the following introduction:

In the first part of Ephesians, the writer develops the theme of unity by speaking of the way in which God the Father has chosen his people, how they are forgiven and set free from their sins through Jesus Christ the Son and how God’s great promise is guaranteed by the Holy Spirit.  In the second part, he appeals to the readers to live in such a way that their oneness in Christ may become real in their life together.

As you read the book, the logic of Paul’s writing is impressive. In Chapter 1, Paul sets out the manifesto for growth

⁷I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit^[f] of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. ¹⁸I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, ¹⁹and his incomparably great power for us who believe.

• To what extent do you see the above passage as an exhortation for growth?  How meaningful is it to you?

 

Activity: Read chapter 4 and consider:

• Paul makes a distinction between new (holy and righteous) and old selves (corrupted by deceitful desires). Can you make that distinction in your own life; can you see specific examples of this? You might choose to share some of these with your group or with another person. It is fine not to share.
  • There are some specific aspects that Paul lists as evidence of change and growth. Consider what they are and how much of an issue they are for our culture, community and for you personally?

o   put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbour

o   do not let the sun go down while you are still angry

o   steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands

o   do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs

o   Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.

o   Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

• You might like to consider the extent to which a Christian community is recognizably free from the negative aspects described. In particular, consider whether Christian communities are different in degree or in kind from ‘secular’ organisations?

To move forward in growth

As you reflect on the issues that emerge from the reading, try to identify three areas where you would like to personally grow and where you would like to see growth in your community. Commit those things to prayer each day until you meet again in your group and report back. Think about how you could practically make a difference as an agent/actor in this community growth.