Good morning!
I’ve shared before that I follow Bible Gateway’s Verse of the Day, and use it to start my day (and sometimes towards an even-deeper study).
Today’s verse is Colossians 1:28:
He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. —Colossians 1:28 (NIV)
The phrase “fully mature” stood out to me. I started asking myself:
- What does “fully mature” mean?
- Am I fully mature in Christ?
- And, honestly, am I leading anyone else toward that?
I needed to dig deeper so I went back to the verse and opened the NIV Study Bible in Bible Gateway Plus, and found this explanation:
1:28 fully mature. Employed by the mystery religions and the Gnostics to describe those who had become possessors of the secrets or knowledge boasted of by the particular religion (see Introduction to 1 John: Gnosticism). But Christian growth is about becoming “fully mature” in Christ by becoming more like him (Ro 8:29).
So how do I become more like Christ? How do I lead like Christ?
That reminded me of an article I read recently by Kevin Harney on how to lead a Bible study through the Gospel of John. It was written for group leaders, but I found myself taking notes for my own personal study.
At one point in the article, Kevin says, “Good Bible study should never stop at information or merely reading the text. Life transformation is the goal.”
Becoming “fully mature in Christ” feels like “life transformation.” Not only that, it brings a bigger purpose to Bible study, to ministry, to life.
I may not have time to pursue a seminary degree, but I do have time to learn and transform, one Bible verse at a time. Maybe in sharing this, I can also help you find courage to keep digging deeper as well!
Blessings,
Jody
Bible Gateway
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