Linked Growth
If you are a Christian, your growth is linked to that of other Christians, either because you are sharing what you already have discovered in Jesus Christ, or you are benefiting from what others have discovered in Jesus Christ. This sharing of knowledge of Christ is essence of Christians meeting to fellowship together (Romans 15:14). The internet makes possible same fellowship without attendant inconvenience of requirement of transportation from one point to another.
Consider the following Scripture verses: Ephesians 3:17–19, 1Corinthians 12:27, and Colossians 2:18–19 (NIV):
“…And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
Let no one disqualify you, insisting on self abasement and worship of angels, taking his stand on visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.
In the first set of verses from Book of Ephesians, power to know the love of Christ is expected to encompass all believers in the name of Jesus Christ. Remember, we believe not only in Jesus Christ but also in His name (John 1:12; 1Corinthians 6:11).
In Book of First Corinthians, every believer can be likened to a part of the body of Jesus Christ. Figuratively, Christian A can be left arm of Jesus Christ while Christian B is right arm.
In Book of Colossians, speaking figuratively, since the growth of an arm must sync with the growth of the other arm, and sync with growth of legs and torso etc., if Christian A is a left arm, while Christian B is a right arm in Christ, Jesus attempts to sync Christian A’s growth with Christian B’s growth. In this sense, all of the growth we experience from the Father ultimately is from Him not us. If Christian B rejects growth advanced by Jesus Christ, he or she is cast off (John 15:6) and replaced with some other Christian likely to accept knowledge of Jesus Christ.
The importance of the three sets of verses outlined?
Christians are not expected to hide spiritual knowledge attained to in Jesus Christ from one another.
Christians compete not against each other but against a common adversary, the devil (1Peter 5:8). It does not matter how faithful I am to our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father will not reallocate what He has prepared for another faithful Christian to me. So long as I remain faithful to our Lord Jesus Christ, He also will not reallocate to another whatever He already has allocated to me. My path to God is set, yours is set, my success is your success, yours is mine. The more we grow together, the more we advance against the wiles and devices of our common adversary, the devil. Given God entrusts to us only what we have prepared ourselves for (2Timothy 2:19–21), the setting of our paths is not predestination, rather it is preparedness meeting opportunity. The point is, once an opportunity is allocated, no amount of perfection on the path of another Christian can induce reallocation of what God already has allocated. Only unfaithfulness on the part of a Christian induces loss of any opportunity already allocated by our Lord Jesus Christ.
Consider Moses who initially had a wrong conception of how to deliver his people from Pharoah. Moses had to leave Egypt for 40 years, yet the Father honored his righteous desire for deliverance of his people by maintaining his designation as source of freedom for his people.
Truly, the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable (Romans 11:29).
In the Christian race, all who remain faithful win. The size of the crown? A function of faithfulness not the path set for any Christian. Peter was as faithful in his path as Paul and John were to their paths, yet all of their paths were different.
As we commence 2018, remember every Christian who is faithful to Jesus Christ deserves to know truths you have discovered in Jesus Christ. In the sharing of what you know, you increase all of our capacity to overcome the devil and the lusts of this world (1John 5:5).
It is my prayer that we all prosper together in knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ in this year 2018 and beyond in Jesus Name. Amen.
