Growth

An analogy from the Journey of Israel

The mandate for the believer in Christ is to go into the world and make disciples of all nations, teaching them to observe and obey all that the Lord Jesus taught.

We generally tend to do well with the very first step in those encounters, i.e. preaching the gospel to the end that men believe in Jesus unto salvation.

Subsequently, however, for most people, the post-conversion life is uncertain. They know they are to grow in grace and in the knowledge of God, they see models around them of mature believers, and they imagine and sometimes wish that one day, they will get there.

But how?

Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by stages from the wilderness of Sin, according to the command of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink.

Exodus 17:1 (KJV)

This journey was that of Israelites from Egypt to the land of Canaan. And they journeyed by stages according to the command of the Lord.

Therein lie three points for our learning:

First; The Lord not only wants us to be saved but also to come to the knowledge of truth. To grow in grace. To grow into the fullness of the stature of Christ. He doesn’t just want it, He commands it.

Second; The journey is in stages. We do not become everything we are supposed to be experientially in one swoop. It does not happen all at once. Our growth will be in stages according to the word of the Lord. We will be led in stages according to the wisdom of the Lord – by His spirit.

But he said to him, “My lord knows that the children are frail and that the flocks and herds which are nursing are a care to me. And if they are driven hard one day, all the flocks will die.

Genesis 33:13 (KJV)

Third; In the New Testament economy, our walk with God is not a mass production. Our path with God is individualized, but only within the context of Christ. This means that we do not have to copy others to be like them. It also means that if we follow the path set before us, we will arrive into the fullness of all that God has worked into us, and we will progressively become like Christ in our experience.