Growing Up Into Christ, Part I

"I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." (1)

"The change of heart by which we become children of God is in the Bible spoken of as birth. It is compared to the germination of the good seed sown by the husbandman. In like manner those who are just converted to Christ are, 'as newborn babes,' (2) to 'grow up' to the stature of men and women in Christ Jesus. (3) Or like the good seed sown in the field, they are to grow up and bring forth fruit. Isaiah says that they shall 'be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.' (4) So from natural life, illustrations are drawn, to help us better to understand the mysterious truths of spiritual life.

"Not all the wisdom and skill of man can produce life in the smallest object in nature. It is only through the life which God Himself has imparted, that either plant or animal can live. So it is only through the life from God that spiritual life is begotten in the hearts of men. Unless a man is 'born again,' (5) he cannot become a partaker of the life which Christ came to give.

"As with life, so it is with growth. It is God who brings the bud to bloom and the flower to fruit. It is by His power that the seed develops, 'first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.' (6) Jesus bids us 'Consider the lilies how they grow; they neither toil nor spin.' (7) The plants and flowers grow not by their own care or anxiety or effort, but by receiving that which God has furnished to minister to their life. The child cannot, by any anxiety or power of its own, add to its stature. No more can you, by anxiety or effort of yourself, secure spiritual growth. The plant, the child, grows by receiving from its surroundings that which ministers to its life - air, sunshine, and food. What these gifts of nature are to animal and plant, such is Christ to those who trust in Him. He is their 'everlasting light,' (8) 'a sun and shield.' (9) 'He shall be as 'the dew to Israel.' (10) 'He shall come down like rain upon the grass.' (11) He is 'the bread of God - who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.' (12)

"In the matchless gift of His Son, God has encircled the whole world with an atmosphere of grace as real as the air which circulates around the globe. All who choose to breathe this life-giving atmosphere will live and grow up to the stature of men and women in Christ Jesus.

"As the flower turns to the sun, that the bright beams may aid in perfecting its beauty and symmetry, so should we turn to the Sun of Righteousness, that heaven's light may shine upon us, that our character may be developed into the likeness of Christ.

"Jesus teaches the same thing when He says, 'Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine; neither can you, unless you abide in me… Without Me you can do nothing.' (13) You are just as dependent on Christ, in order to live a holy life, as is the branch upon the parent stock for growth and fruitfulness, Apart from Him you have no life. You have no power to resist temptation or to grow in grace and holiness. Abiding in Him, you may flourish. Drawing your life from Him, you will not wither nor be fruitless. You will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water." (14) To be continued.

1. John 15:5.
2. 1 Peter 2:2.
3. Ephesians 4:15.
4. Isaiah 61:3.
5. John 3:3.
6. Mark 4:28.
7. Luke 12:27.
8. Isaiah 60:19.
9. Psalm 84:11.
10. Hosea 14:5.
11. Psalm 72:6.
12. John 6:33.
13. John 15:4, 5.
14. Steps to Christ, pp. 45, 46.