Who would you say is responsible for my growth toward maturity in Christ? That’s a no-brainer, right? It says right in God’s word:
Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed – not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence – continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose (Philippians 2:12-13).
God wills and acts to fulfill his purpose, but it’s also my job to work out (not for!) my salvation. Well then, who is responsible for your growth toward maturity in Christ? Again, a no-brainer. I can teach, encourage, rebuke, and build you up in love, but I can’t grow for you. Nor can you grow for me. Some things just can’t be outsourced.
So, at the risk of stepping on some toes, why do we try? I ask because we definitely do try. If I ignore the Scriptures for six days a week and then expect my pastor to “feed” me on Sunday, I’m outsourcing. If I only worship God when there’s a band and a worship leader to direct me, I’m outsourcing. And if the only way that I’m serving others is by writing a check every now and again, I’m outsourcing that, too. The hard reality is that if I’m mostly outsourcing my walk with Christ, I’m not going to be getting any closer to him. I might be going further away.
My goal in writing this is not to make anybody feel guilty, but to challenge all of us to live at a higher level. Not to settle, but to see for yourself just how far you can go. And to be encouraged; Paul wrote this to tell faithful followers of Jesus to keep growing in the things they were already doing. In other words, start with the good things you’re doing, and allow the Holy Spirit to build them into something stronger.
Let me tell you a secret; when I started to faithfully spend a few minutes every morning reading the Scriptures, I soon found that I wanted to read more. Enough that I ended up rearranging my schedule so that I could. The same thing happened when I started praying every morning. The amount of time I spent praying gradually began to increase, especially the time I spent praying and meditating on what I was reading in the Scriptures. It didn’t happen because I made a big commitment of time; it happened because I started with a very small commitment, and stuck to it. And I made up my mind that whatever time I am able to spend in God’s word is for listening to whatever my Father wants to say, not for pursuing my own agenda. Likewise, in my prayer time, whatever requests I have come after I’ve listened and meditated over what I just read.
And there’s something else that’s likely to happen as you start to do less outsourcing. Instead of going to church just to have your needs met, you’ll start discovering that you have something to contribute to others. That is, after all, what meeting together is supposed to be about; not what I can get out of it, but how each one of us can be a blessing to the others:
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching (Hebrews 10:24-25).
So without any guilt or any pressure, I encourage you to ask yourself, and ask the Holy Spirit, how you can outsource just a little less of your growth. Start with something small, and then lean into it. See just how far you can go.