MATURING IN GOD

07/20/2024

“So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified." (Acts 20:32, NKJV)

In today's scripture, we are commended first to God and then to the word of His grace. Immediately, we understand the situation and context of the commendation. The Apostle Paul is bidding the Church farewell, using the words "God" and "the word of His grace." These two are designated to build us up and give us an inheritance among the saints.

In other words, these two are like appointed guardians who train a prince or princess until he or she is able to take the throne. Galatians 4:1-2 gives us a clearer understanding: "Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father."

The "God" and the "word of His grace" referred to here ought to guide us until we are mature enough to take our inheritance. But what is this maturity? And when do we become mature? Romans 8:29 says, "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren." In other words, maturity happens when you are fully conformed to the image of Jesus, and only the Father can determine when this happens.

The "God" referred to in today's text is none other than the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come" (John 16:13, NKJV). We are commended to listen and follow the guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit. When the Bible referred to Jesus as the "Son of the Highest" in Luke 1:32, this was the relationship Jesus had with the Holy Ghost.

Next, we are commended to the word of His grace—not the word of His judgment or the word of His conditional promises but the word of His divine ability, for that is what grace is. When we receive the word of His grace, it comes with the inherent ability to execute or become what it talks about. This is why it is imperative to meditate on the New Testament portions of the Bible. And when I say the New Testament portions of the Bible, I don't necessarily mean the entire New Testament. I mean every scripture that communicates God's provisions, mandates, and plans for you in Christ, most of which you can find between Paul's Letter to the Romans and the Book of Revelation. We also get an indication of God's desire for us to embody the epistles in 2 Corinthians 3:2-3: "You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men; clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."

Recognize that the Father's desire for you is to attain maturity and walk in the authority that is in Christ Jesus. However, He has placed you under the guardianship of the Holy Spirit and specific Scriptures that you ought to habituate until a time He will determine. So keep learning and submitting to the Holy Ghost.

God bless you.

Faith-Filled Confession

I receive and apply myself to the guardianship of the Holy Spirit and the word of God's grace. In Jesus' name. Amen.

One-Year Bible Reading Plan: Psalm 31-33; Acts 21:15-40