In this message I want to fellowship with you about how to grow in life.
In the last message we saw that the genuine building is the growth in life. In the language of the New Testament, to be built is to grow. Most Christians, however, consider growth as merely a matter of improvement. But it is possible to have a great deal of improvement without any growth. The growth in life is the addition of Christ as life into our being. Not only Christians but even unbelievers may improve as their natural life matures. For example, as a young person grows from a teen-ager to a man in his late twenties, he will improve. But this improvement is not the growth in life. Many Christians have been helped to improve themselves by listening to sermons. Although sermons may help people to improve, they do not help them to grow in life. According to the Bible, to grow is to have more of Christ wrought into our being. The growth in life is simply the increase of Christ in our being.
For the building of the church, the growth in life is urgently needed. If we do not have this growth, we cannot have any building. The growth in life is the real building. This building is not a matter of having someone above you, below you, or beside you. Take the example of Aquila and Priscilla, who were one with the other saints wherever they were. Aquila and Priscilla could be one with others because they had considerable growth in life.
The degree to which we can be one with the saints depends upon the growth in life we have. You may be one with certain saints that are close to you. But if you do not have the proper growth in life, you will not be able to be one with the saints in another locality if you move there. This inability to be one with saints in a new locality proves that you do not have the growth in life. If you have the genuine growth in life, you will be one with the saints wherever you may be.
The more we grow in life, the more we are built. If you have the real growth in life, you will be able to be built together with others whom you have not met before. When you come together with them, there will be no problems because you all have had the growth in life. To repeat, the real growth in life is the building, and the genuine building is a spiritual matter in life since the building of God’s house is absolutely not material, but spiritual. I must strongly emphasize the fact that the house of God, the church today, is not a physical entity, but a spiritual entity. How much we have been built into the church depends upon how much we have grown in life. Many have been Christians for years, but do not have any growth. Thus, there are problems whenever they come together.
In a family we have brothers and sisters, but no special friends. Likewise, in the church we have only brothers and sisters, not any friends. Nevertheless, some may still want to have friends among the brothers and sisters. In a sense, they are one with their friends because their friends suit their taste, choice, and preference. However, if they move to another place that does not match their taste, they will not be one with anyone. But if you have the growth in life, wherever you may go you will be one with the saints. This oneness is the building.
Some brothers always want their own preference. If they cannot get it in one place, they will move to another and to still another. I have seen saints who moved from one church to another trying to find their preference. With them there was no growth in life. Because there was no growth in life, wherever they went there was no oneness. They simply could not be one with others. But suppose you have the genuine growth in life. Even in a church where the situation is the most difficult, you will still be able to be one. If you cannot be one in the place where you are, do not think that by moving elsewhere you will be able to be one. If you should move to another place, you may find it worse than the place you left. This may cause you to go to even a third place. Nevertheless, the situation will be the same. Do not move to a certain place in order to have your choice. Instead, stay in the difficult place, the place where you can have the growth in life. Actually, it is not a matter of the place, but of the growth in life. I say again that if you have the growth in life, you will be able to be one with the saints. This is the building. By this we see that the genuine building is the growth in life.
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