Putting Away Childish Things

Meditations for Ragamuffins

April 26, 2024

Putting Away Childish Things

Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

Hebrews 11:1 

By faith, I believe God will fully transform my life to become like Christ. I am most certainly a work in progress, and there are days when my assurance wanes when I don’t see much evidence of my transformation. Jesus’ first followers often pestered him for signs and wonders to prove he was someone special sent by God. His followers today aren’t much more mature as we often want discernable, tangible signs that God is with us, and that God is working in our lives. We may not be so crass as to say it flatly, but we want proof from God before we entrust God fully with our lives and fortunes.

We’ve heard the proverb that we’ll never know God is all we need, until God is all we have. The problem is that we have so much, we don’t really need God, not in real-life, practical ways. With cell phones, AAA, credit cards, friends, and family very few of us ever face a trial or circumstance that is beyond our own means to handle. There is one glaring exception to this reality of life as we know it. No cell phone, no AAA or credit card, and no friends or family members can truly be healing balm for our damaged emotions.

The Apostle Paul began his closing thoughts to his essay on love with the statement, “But when I grew up, I put away childish things” (1 Corinthians 13:11b). There comes a time in the life of every follower of Jesus when we need to face up to all the games (Paul’s childish things) we have been playing to meet our needs to be loved, to be accepted and to justify our lives. Instead of trying to control the perceptions others have of us, instead of using manipulation, intimidation, performance, and persuasion to work out the meaning of our existence, instead of wanting (or demanding) signs that God is for us, we come to the time when we embrace God’s word to Paul, and to all of His followers: “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Because “it is impossible to please God without faith” (Hebrews 11:6), all of us seeking the life in Christ as our way of life will come to the place where it is more important to us to please God than to please ourselves; we will come to the place where the center of our faith shifts from ourselves to God.

My Takeaway: Seeking the life in Christ as our way of life is a road less traveled. Even so, “Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe. For our God is a devouring fire” (Hebrews 12:28-29). 

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2024 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.