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Peace is the presence of God with you. It is His blessed promise The Lord bless you out of Zion; And may you see the peace of Jerusalem All the days of your life. [Psalms 128:5,6] And the blessing of God transcends the material; It is having your sins forgiven, to walk in sweet fellowship with Him, in increasing intimacy. It is a godly maturity in you, that sees you being progressively, more and more conformed to the image of the Son of God, towards the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. It is a process, from one glory to another – Let those of us then who are mature be of the same mind and if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you. [Philippians 3:15] Paul narrates his personal experience to be When I was a child, I thought like a child, I spoke like a child, I reasoned like a child, when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. [1 Corinthians 13:11]
Maturity – the fullness of Christ:
Indeed, having been born again by the incorruptible seed of the word of God, having a craving for it as pure spiritual milk like new born babes, one ought to grow, display a godly maturity. For, true spirituality is not merely seniority, but a relationship with God, and is visibly seen in a change in the way you think and act, your attitude and behavior. For, when you reject the truth, you end up believing a lie. What matters in life is not who you are, but, whose you are! Maturity therefore ought to progress towards arriving at the perfection of fullness of Christ, as the apostle declares, Until we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. [Ephesians 4:13] And one can even now in the company of saints, learn from godly people, but, to become more and more like Christ, remains the primary purpose of every child of God. And for it to happen the word of God needs to be imprinted in the tablet of your heart to bring understanding of the truth.
Maturity – by speaking the truth in love :
Speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way, into Him who is the Head, into Christ.[Ephesians 4:15] It takes place by being obedient to the truth that you know, for, it is in living, loving and dealing in the truth, in obedience that you are inspired to grow; to move from a place of childishness that is sinful and self-centered to godly maturity. It is seen in the life of Samuel, the little child, in the scriptures, who grew in godly maturity to be a prophet of God, of whom it is said – As Samuel grew up the Lord was with him, and let none of his words fall to the ground. [1 Samuel 3:19] And even as Lord Jesus did as he grew up in Nazareth, God wants you and I to grow in every aspect of our lives, physical, social and spiritual, to develop maturity that brings about a character transformation that steadily begins to reflect more and more, the image of the Son of God.
Awareness of God’s presence:
And the key that unlocks it is the phrase, ‘the Lord was with him’. It is also true that God is always with you. It was His continued promise to the people of God in the Old Testament, that majestically ends with the Lord’s promise as He ascended to the heavens, that He would be with you and I until the very end, the end of the age. [Matthew 28:20] But whether you are living every day and every moment in the awareness of His presence with you, is what makes all the difference. It changes your perspective of your situation, however dire it may be, giving you the confidence and rest in your spirit, knowing that since He is at your right hand, you will never be shaken. In His time of deepest pain, as He approached the Cross, the Lord was able to find solace in the truth that though all may leave Him, He was not alone, for the Father was with Him. And today, as a christian, you are never, alone.
Your parental responsibility:
In the kingdom of God, you need to be a disciple of God, and also make disciples. It is what Eli was able to be in the life of Samuel, when he was a small boy, left in his care by a devout mother. And it remains the responsibility of us as parents and elders, to teach our children spiritual things, to depend on the Almighty God, in a personal relationship with Him, calling unto Him in prayer and supplication, for their needs to be met, in His way, and in His time, thus leading them to a christian maturity. Going to Him first, is what is going to sustain them all through their life, even in the rough patches of life, for He is the God who has said, ‘Call unto Me, and I will answer you..’. [Jeremiah 33:3] The all important lesson that Eli taught the boy Samuel, was to respond to the call of God, who knew him by name, saying, ‘Speak Lord, your servant is listening’, and it also involved obedience. And it was what saw the boy Samuel, to grow into maturity, to be a prophet of God, be sustained in it until the end of his life on earth, for God did not allow any of the word that He spoke to Samuel, to fail.
Obedience, the key:
It is how you can gauge whether you have heard the message of God and understood it, to be profitable in your life. It is when the word of God that you hear,is made complete. And it needs to be done immediately, and not delay or procrastinate. You need to respond when things are very sensitive in your heart, not allowing it to harden, and failing to respond immediately makes it so.Therefore, if you hear His voice today, you need to respond today. It is then that you can be blessed, to be changed, and move into maturity, instead of having regrets that come later, since you were not obedient to the word you heard, by becoming involuntarily deaf. But it need not be so, as you approach God’s throne of grace, to pray as Jeremiah prayed, asking the Lord Himself to change you, to redeem you and bring you to a place of rejoicing.[Jeremiah 31:18] For, God leaving us to our own devices, is the most dangerous place to be in. [Psalms 81:11-13]Commit your works to the Lord therefore, asking Him to change you, instead of leaning on your own ways in the stubbornness of your heart that causes hardness, so that you may be led into godly maturity.
‘Yet, not my will, but Yours be done’:
‘Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Yet, not my will, but let Yours be done’. [Luke 22:42] It was the prayer of Lord Jesus, as He bowed to His Father’s will, in the garden of Gethsemane. And it is what needs to be your heart’s cry, as you surrender to the Father’s will, to be changed, transformed by His grace that in hearing, understanding and obedience, leads you to a godly maturity that is being conformed to the image of Christ.Therefore, may we pray Father, We are weak, but You are strong, and You are our strength. And in Your strength, by Your grace that abounds more powerfully than sin, may our hearts remain sensitive. May we put an end to all regrets, but instead move forward in willing surrender to Your will, to the destiny that You have predestined for us. In the Name of Christ Jesus Amen.
