June 4thPractice Resurrection (6)
Text: Ephesians 4.17-5.2 (Claire)
Listen to what Eugene Peterson has to say about Christian maturity.
“Building maturity in Christ is too often relegated to footnote status in the text of our lives. In Practice Resurrection Peterson brings the voice of Scripture — especially Paul’s letter to the Ephesians — and the voice of the contemporary Christian congregation together in understanding what is involved in the practice of becoming mature — growing up to the “stature of Christ.”
“There are no shortcuts in growing up. The path to maturity is long and arduous. Hurry is no virtue. There is no secret formula squirreled away that will make it easier or quicker. But stories help.”
“Church is the textured context in which we grow up in Christ to maturity. But church is difficult. Sooner or later, though, if we are serious about growing up in Christ, we have to deal with church. I say sooner.”
“Christian maturity is not a matter of doing more for God; it is God doing more in
and through us.”
Please consider:
- What do I need my church to do for me? How does this help me mature as a Christian?
- How am I prepared to live so that the people in my church community receive what they need to mature?
- What does God have to do with the life of the church? How do I experience what “God (is) doing in and through (me)”?