UNTIL CHRIST BE FORMED IN YOU

"And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.  And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women."  (Luke 1:26-28)

"And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.  And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS."  (Luke 1:30, 31)

"My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you."  (Galatians 4:19) 

In the first chapter of St. Luke we find the announcement by the angel Gabriel to Mary that she would bear the Son of God.  From the start, the angel hailed her as "highly favoured" and "blessed among women," and so she was!  Never in human history had a virgin conceived a child without ever knowing a man.  This child in Mary’s womb was indeed conceived by the Holy Spirit and destined to be the Son of God.  This baby would be born “...not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:13).  From beginning to end, this was the work of God Almighty – creating life where there was none. 

After Mary gave birth to Jesus, He grew up normally into manhood.  He experienced all of the things that you and I experienced growing up.  He nursed and was weaned; He crawled and then learned to walk; He fell down and He bled; He questioned and was taught; and He learned a trade.  There is very little that we know about Jesus’ early years because they were not much different than our own.  The only remarkable incident from Jesus’ childhood is recorded by the beloved physician, Luke.  In the second chapter of his gospel, Luke gives us a glimpse into the inward life of our Lord before He began His earthly ministry.  In verse 40 we are told that “...the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.” Though Jesus was outwardly growing and maturing normally like other children, inwardly, there was a spirituality about Him that was extraordinary.  In the story that Luke proceeds to tell us in verses 41-51 we learn the secret of Jesus’ spirituality.  As we read the story, we discover that Jesus’ parents had lost track of Him in the hubbub of the festival.  When they finally found Him, He was in the temple listening to the scholars of the law as they were teaching, and, in turn, asking them questions about the law and the prophets.  Luke tells us that all that heard Jesus speak were astonished at His understanding and answers especially since He was only twelve years old at the time.  When Jesus’ parents asked Him why He had tarried behind without them, He said, “Wist ye not [didn’t you know] that I must be about My Father’s business?”  It would be another eighteen years before Jesus would begin His earthly ministry by calling disciples to follow Him and turning the water into wine at the wedding feast at Cana.  In the mean time, our Lord was about His “Father’s business.”

As I consider these things, I see a correlation between this time of growth in Jesus’ early life and our spiritual growth after we are born again.  In the first century, the Apostle John wrote a general letter to the church saying, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not.  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is.  And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.” (1 John 3:1-3).  We become sons of God at the very moment that we are born again of the Spirit.  It isn’t apparent right away just what we will be once we mature, but that process begins immediately and continues throughout the rest of our lives.  Just as the world had to wait for thirty years after Jesus’ birth to see Him in His fullness and His manhood, it takes years of growth for us to become mature in Christ.  The rate of our growth is proportionate to the time that we are spending about our Father’s business.  We humans are so consumed with our own business that the Father’s business often is neglected.  It is vital that we find time to concentrate on the things that God is concerned with in this world.  Yes, we must hold jobs in order to provide for ourselves and our families.  We must be good stewards of those things that God has seen fit to entrust to us: our homes and property.  However, we must constantly remind ourselves to keep all those things in the proper perspective.  Jesus has said, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33). 

Our goal as Christians should be focused on one thing: becoming more like Jesus.  The Apostle Paul addressed the believers in Galatia by saying, "My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you."  Paul’s desire was to see the life of Christ manifest in their lives and in their mortal bodies.  We too must seek, not just an imitation of Christ, but the very life of Christ indwelling us through His Holy Spirit.  There are many believers who try hard to act like they think Jesus might have acted, but sooner or later their mask slips off.  Instead, they must learn to yield their own will to God and be transformed by the renewing of their minds.  This is a work of the Holy Spirit that God has put in them and it cannot be imitated.  It is a process.  We must not be content only to be born of the Spirit.  We must “...grow up into Him in all things, which is the Head, even Christ.” (Ephesians 4:15).  It is evident that God’s will for us is spiritual maturity for Paul writes, “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:13).

In Jesus, all of the ministries, all of the gifts of the Spirit, and all of the fullness of the Godhead were manifest.  He was the Apostle of our profession (Hebrews 3:1), a Prophet (Acts 3:22), a Teacher (John 3:2), a Pastor/Shepherd (John 10:14; 1 Peter 5:4), and an Evangelist (Mark 1:14, 15).  He exhibited the gifts of healing and of miracles, the word of wisdom and of knowledge, the discerning of spirits, the spirit of council and of might, the spirit of understanding, and so much more.  “For He Whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto Him.”  (John 3:34). 

Unlike our Lord, we have received grace by measure.  “But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:7).  I believe the reason for this is because God has placed us in a body.  We are only really complete when we can love one another and minister to each other the gifts God has given us.  This is Paul’s intent behind Ephesians chapter 4.  It illustrates the functioning of the various ministries within the Body as they edify one another in love, and mature together into the likeness of Christ.  Contrary to what many believe, there are those who will be perfected in this life.  Look at Ephesians 4:13 again and notice the words Paul uses: “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, UNTO A PERFECT MAN, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”  The perfect man/woman is not one who is never tempted and never tried.  He/she is not the one who never feels weakness or who always has the answers.  Scripture tells us that even Jesus learned obedience through the things that He suffered, and that He was tempted in every way that we are tempted (Hebrews 5:8; 2:18; 4:15).  The perfect man/woman is the one who has learned to trust in the Lord in every situation.  He/she does not lean on their own understanding, but in all their ways acknowledge the Lord’s hand in their daily life.  The perfect man/woman has learned that God’s grace is sufficient for them and that His strength is made perfect in their weakness.  They have learned to walk in all of the light that God has shed on their pathway.  They have learned to sit at Jesus’ feet and feed from the Bread of Life.  Above all they have learned to be led by the Spirit of God.  “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”  (Romans 8:14). 

The book of Revelations gives us a picture of a very important event that I think ties into our subject.  In chapter 12, verse one, we read, “And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars.”  There are those who teach that this woman represents the Virgin Mary, but this is not the case.  For one thing, this account falls in the chronology of end time events and not at the beginning of the Kingdom age when Jesus was born.  No, this woman represents the true Church of Jesus Christ, His body on earth.  She is not some denominational organization or man-made entity that exists now or will exist in the future.  She represents all believers worldwide as a whole.  She is clothed with the sun indicating the Light of the glory of the Son of God our Savior.  The moon is under her feet indicating that she has put under her everything that merely reflects the True Light, but does not possess it.  She has a crown of twelve stars indicating the foundation of truth laid down by the twelve Apostles of our Lord. 

This woman, the Church, is with child and ready to give birth when we find her in Revelations.  She is, “...travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.” (verse 2).  In the next two verses we find a description of a great red dragon that stands before the woman ready to devour her child the moment it is born.  We know that this dragon is none other than Satan, our adversary.  He is the enemy of the Church and of all who are righteous, but he is especially concerned and focused on this child that is to be born.  Just as he worked through Herod to try to destroy the babe Jesus by slaying the children of Bethlehem, Satan’s great rage and cruelty will attempt to destroy this child. 

Just who is this man child who is born to the Church?  The Bible describes him in this way: “And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.” (verse 5).  This is not just one person the Church brings forth, but a company of people.  This is the Overcomers and the 144,000.  “These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.  And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.” (Revelations 14:4).  Out of the Church will come a company of men and women - a remnant - who have not defiled themselves with the doctrines and institutions of man’s creation.  They have learned to follow the Lamb wherever He leads them and not rely on man’s doctrine.  There is no guile in their lips – they are transparent before God and man.  They are without fault before God and therefore have been chosen to be the firstfruits of God and the Lamb.  Notice, this is the firstfruits, not the entire harvest.  They are caught up to the throne of God and are destined to rule the nations in the Heavenly Kingdom with a rod of iron, for this has been appointed to them.  “And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.” (Revelations 5:10).  “If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him: if we deny Him, He also will deny us.” (2 Timothy 2:12).  This is why Satan is so enraged.  They are appointed to receive the dominion that God took from Lucifer in the beginning and intended for Adam and Eve.  The first couple lost that dominion through Satan’s subtlety and deception, though.  In the end, that dominion will be restored to man.

This is the great work of the Church: to equip and bring to maturity sons and daughters who have come into their maturity in Christ.  Whether the 144,000 is a literal number or just figurative is for God to know.  What is important is for us to be everything God has called us to be in Christ.  Anyone can be an Overcomer, in fact, God wants us all to become Overcomers.  We all have an opportunity to be the Bride of Christ, but there are many virgins who have not provided themselves oil in their lamps.  If we allow the oil of God’s Spirit to fill us and lead us, our lamps will always be burning brightly.  Heavenly rewards and eternal judgments are to be given depending on our faithfulness and fidelity, or our disobedience and neglect. 

It is time for the Church to awaken out of sleep and put on the armor of righteousness, for we are in a war against the forces of spiritual wickedness.  We are seeing it today more than we have for many years.  Our enemy is Satan, and he will do anything to delay and discourage the growth of God’s people.  We cannot afford to wait around pretending to be our own gods and not following where the Lord leads us.  Our salvation is much nearer than when we first believed!  We cannot remain as children forever.  We must step up and take the responsibility that goes along with maturity.  We also have been given a job as the Church (and that includes every one of us who say we believe) to exhort, encourage, challenge, love, nurture, and minister to one another.  We are blessed and highly favored by God!  Let us rise up as a Church and embrace the promises that God has given to us. 

“But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.” (2 Peter 3:18). 

"My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you." (Galatians 4:19).