Get your Diploma

I remember when I graduated college how there were a handful of students who were still undergraduates, but who started college before me. At the time I joked that I had "lapped" them in the sense of having passed them up. I couldn't believe someone could be a full time student and not have enough credits to graduate after four or five years. Looking back, I should have minded my own business and just been thankful that I got out. However, the thought of someone being a student for such a long time and, seemingly, never advancing to the point they could graduate reminds me of some Christians. Recently, I had the opportunity to observe how Christians, when it comes to "praising" and "thanking" Jesus Christ for all He has done for us are rarely at a loss for words. Yet, when it comes down to the nuts and bolts of the faith few have a clue as to what the Gospel is or how to explain the basic principles of the faith. I can't help, but to think of the words of the author of Hebrews. "In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food (Hebrews 5:12)!"

One of the best comments I have ever heard made is that the "job of a pastor is to put himself out of business." I know that is blasphemy to some, but the point is that we all should be maturing in our faith to the point that we are teaching others and not in constant need of being taught the basics. Granted, as finite beings, we can never know everything. But, we definitely can know enough to grow and teach others. There is a misconception that because someone has been in the faith for a number of years that they are mature in their faith. The two don't necessarily go hand in hand. Early on in my walk I was encouraged by 1 Timothy 4:12. "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity." There is a belief that youth equals immaturity or lack of knowledge. In most cases this is true. The younger we are the less experience or wisdom we have developed. However, when it comes to matters of the faith, the Holy Spirit only wants an open heart and teachable spirit. There is not an age requirement associated with being available to the Holy Spirit.

I remember a fellow Christian challenging a group of Christians, including myself, to attend a church we have never visited before in an effort to do a test. The test was to go up to someone who has attended the church you are visiting for quite some time, namely an elder or an usher. Then ask them if they could explain to you what is the meaning of the Gospel message? The individual making this challenge said that on most occasions the person he encountered could not answer the question with any substance. On one occasion the person asked had been a member of the particular church for over a decade and couldn't answer a basic question about the faith. This is a perfect example of someone who is content with being a student, a baby in Christ, for the foreseeable future. They are an example of someone still needing milk and not ready for solid food. I cringe every time I see one of these "megachurches," filled with hundreds of people, being led down a primrose path to spiritual destruction because they have little to no discernment to identify the error being taught. This is a direct byproduct of still needing milk or perhaps not being saved in the first place.

One of my favorite passages in Scripture is Galatians 2:6. "As for those who seemed to be important—whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not judge by external appearance—those men added nothing to my message." I love how Paul doesn't put any stock in others simply because they have a following or are considered to be an authority on matters of the faith. Not to say Paul believed in, or is advocating, disrespecting or not listening to those who may have knowledge of a subject. But, he is saying that just because someone is a person in authority or believed to have knowledge doesn't mean that what they say is true. And the only way we can determine who is speaking the truth is by maturing in our faith. In other words, we can't be students our whole life. We will get passed up and never be intelligent enough to stand firm in our faith and teach others to do likewise. There is a time and place for learning and being discipled. However, there is also a time to teach and disciple others. One of these days we have to graduate and share what we know with others. God is with us and will guide us in our walk if we only allow Him to do so.