Acts 6:8-10 “And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. (9) Then there arose some from what is called the Synagogue of the Freedmen (Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and those from Cilicia and Asia), disputing with Stephen. (10) And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke.”
In the above passage of scripture, the Holy Spirit describes Stephen as being full of faith. Stephen was the first new testament martyr, and although his walk with the Lord in this life was relatively brief, he nevertheless had grown spiritually to the point where his adversaries were not able to dispute with him regarding the scriptures. Stephen also grew strong in displaying the fruit of the spirit, for the scripture says that when he stood before his accusers just before they killed him, that they saw his face as the face of an angel (Acts 6:15). But we also see that Stephen grew strong in faith, for he was able to do great wonders and signs among the people. The example of Stephen’s walk with the Lord, also shows us that unlike natural growth, spiritual maturity can take place quite rapidly.
Acts 20:9-12 “And in a window sat a certain young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep. He was overcome by sleep; and as Paul continued speaking, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. (10) But Paul went down, fell on him, and embracing him said, "Do not trouble yourselves, for his life is in him." (11) Now when he had come up, had broken bread and eaten, and talked a long while, even till daybreak, he departed. (12) And they brought the young man in alive, and they were not a little comforted.”
The apostle Paul was another of the Lord’s saints that reached maturity in Christ. And as a result, he walked in strong faith. The above account shows us just how strong, Paul’s faith was. For when the young man fell to his death from the third floor, Paul stopped his message, went down to where they had laid the young man, fell on him, and brought him back to life. Paul then returned upstairs and continued with his message. In other words, because he was walking in strong faith, Paul was completely unfazed by the incident and dealt with the situation accordingly. You will recall that our Lord Jesus behaved in a similar manner, when He rebuked the wind and the sea and there was a great calm (Mark 4:39). Those who walk in strong faith, are always in complete control of their environment, whereas it is the other way around for those who are weak in faith.
Acts 28:3-6 “But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand. (4) So, when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, "No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not allow to live." (5) But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. (6) However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god.”
We have already identified that the apostle Paul, was another of the Lord’s saints that reached maturity in Christ, and so it would be good for us to look at another incident in Paul’s life, to see the level of faith that he walked in. The context of the above account is that Paul and his companions had been shipwrecked on the island of Malta, and Paul was collecting firewood. In the account, we see that a viper bit Paul and hung onto his hand. Paul walked over to the fire, shook off the snake into the fire, and continued as if nothing had happened. The reason Paul behaved in this manner, was because he was walking in strong faith and was completely unfazed by the incident. His onlookers however, because of his behaviour, decided that he must be a god. And so, we see that because mature believers walk in strong faith, that they control the circumstances that they are confronted with, and not the other way around.
1 Corinthians 11:1 “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.”
Philippians 3:17 “Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern.”
In the two passages of scripture quoted above, the apostle Paul plainly tells the church to imitate him. And so, we see that mature believers are quite confident to put themselves forward to the rest of the body of Christ, as examples to follow after and imitate. All scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit, and so it is in fact the Holy Spirit that has put forward those who are mature in Christ, for us to imitate. All believers should aspire to become mature in Christ. Think about the parable of the mustard seed becoming the large tree that our Lord Jesus spoke about, blessing the lives of all who come into contact with them, and that should be the goal of every saint.
Michael E.B. Maher
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