Growing Up

“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11-13).

Yay! You showed up! You’re here! Well done!!!

The way some people go to Sunday worship, they act like they are doing God a favor by showing up. Hey, look at me. I’m here. You ought to praise me for being here. Didn’t I do a good thing by just showing up?

In what relational setting would that work?

• Marriage – “Hey honey. I’m home. Praise me for being here. Acknowledge how awesome it is that I showed up at the house.”
• Friendship – “Hey, I’m here. Look at me. I showed up. Aren’t you glad I’m here!”

Yeah. That wouldn’t fly.

It’s not enough for Christians to show up in worship. Showing up is expected. That’s what Christians do. Christians worship. There’s nothing special about that. That is the bare minimum.

Our text tells us the goal of Christian spirituality:“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ“

• “to equip us for works of service”
• “to build up the body of Christ”
• “to reach unity in the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God”
• “to become mature”
• “to attain to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ”

The purpose of Christian spirituality is to grow up. The church is in absolute trouble if she has a hard time getting people to show up. If the church is praising people for showing up????….oh my! Of course you show up for your family. Of course you show up for your marriage. Of course you show up for your friendship. These are expected!

Grow up. Grow up. Grow up.

I thank God for you Little Church and Lakewoodgrace. You are fantastic about showing up so that God can build up his church. Way to go!!!