Passing on What We Received

It is not enough to talk about what Jesus has done for us. While our personal testimony is one of the ways the Lord can speak to the heart of others who don't know him, it is not the primary that that mature Christians speak about. Beyond our testimony, we are to share with others what we know to be true about Jesus. We are to pass on to others, the truth of Christ that has been passed on to us. We come to know about Christ as we hear about him. But knowing about Jesus is not the end, it is only the beginning. Learning about Jesus is meant to lead us to learn from him and to believe him. Truly believing in him brings life transformation. Our testimony comes from our being transformed into a new creation. But our ability to pass on what Jesus taught comes from our spending time with him and receiving the gospel and what it means to be in Christ that has been passed down from generation to generation since the days of his life, death and resurrection. As mature Christians, we are not content with people knowing about Jesus, we desire that they actually know Jesus and that leads us to talk about him. Why do we talk about Jesus? We talk about him because our own life has been transformed by the truth of what he taught and the power that is in his name. But even more, we talk about Jesus because we love him. Our faith is securely rooted in him. In spending out time with Jesus and pledging our loyalty to him, we cannot help but talk about him. Besides all that, we realize that it is the will of God the Father that the Lord Jesus Christ be proclaimed. In speaking of Jesus, we are giving glory to the Father. What a joy it is to make Christ known by sharing with others what has been shared with us by those who are Jesus? disciples both now and through the generations.

Growth towards Christian maturity

I Pass on What Interests Me

Weather, sports, entertainment, politics, money, fashions, our jobs, our hobbies, and even our families are the things we talk about. These are the things that interest us. These are the things we seek to pass on to others whether intentionally or unintentionally. We talk about the things we spend our time doing or observing. We talk about these things because they matter to us and we think they might matter to others. Most of us are probably not very intentional about what we pass on to others. It isn't often that we consider the needs of another person and seek to choose wisely what we say to them. Instead, we offer our thoughts and even our advice, which comes either from our own ideas or from the latest supposed insight from a celebrity we see as having credibility. What we don't know is that this is ultimately a waste of our breath. We have nothing of real value to pass on. We are not drawing from the source of ultimate truth. Instead, we are pulling from the popular ideas and opinions of our day. There is nothing in what we say that is based on what Jesus Christ taught. In fact, we have no idea what he taught. Thus what we talk about is not based on what is really true. It is not guided by the ultimate reality that Jesus points us to and calls us to.

Influential Teachings

For us to be maturing in Christ, we eventually started to learn what Jesus taught. Exposure to Jesus and his teachings comes to us through the Scriptures written 2000 years ago. It comes to us through the words of Christ shared in the context of church worship services and classes. We learn some things about him through the music we listen to and sing. Most significantly, we learn about Jesus and his teaching through his disciples who enter our life. The more time we spend learning about Christ and listening to him, the more influential his teachings become to us. At first we struggle to grasp what he says. Sometimes we may even feel that what he taught is utterly ridiculous. Yet, there is something about him that draws us. We are spending more and more time with Jesus through reading the Bible, praying, and spending time with other disciples. As we do, we draw closer to him and begin to see true wisdom in the things he says that we are able to understand. In following him and growing in him, we discover that Jesus? teachings are not about information. His teachings are meant to bring about life transformation. His intent is that we be transformed by what he teaches so that we may live as he lived. Thus, the challenge is not only simply hearing what he taught, but learning how to live out the life he calls us to. Slowly we discover that what makes Jesus such a great teacher is that he is teaching the truth about this life we have received and are enabled to live by the Holy Spirit. Not only are we learning what Jesus said, but we are learning to live it out.

Applying Some Teachings

Confronted by Teachings

Embodying Teachings

Sharing What Jesus Taught

The more time we spend with Jesus and his disciples, both those we encounter in the Bible and those we know and love in our day, the more we are transformed by what Jesus taught. We realize that what he taught is radically different from what we hear from this world and the supposedly great minds of our age. Being convinced that no one apart from Christ is able to speak the truth about life and what is to come, we begin to speak to others about the things Jesus taught. While we don't fully grasp all that Jesus said and did, and we may not be able to tell others of its significance, nevertheless we are becoming intentional about seeking to share with others the things we have been learning from Jesus. We know that there is no one else who speaks of eternal life, for that is given only by Christ. As we speak to people about him, we are also making choices regarding the way we live. Our choices are not driven by a set of rules we feel we are to live by, but by knowledge of God's word and a love for God that is leading to our doing what is consistent with what He has said and what honors him. Thus, our words and our life are beginning to align. Sure, people probably see inconsistencies in our life and there are times when we are well aware of that. Even so, we keep putting our focus on Christ and asking for the transforming truth of his teachings to be evident in our life. Our desire is to continue to grow in Christ so that our life and words are not a hindrance to people becoming Jesus? disciples.

Teachings Lived Out

While maturity is not what we are striving for, it is becoming more and more evident in our life. Our aim is to live like Christ as we live for him who gave his life for us. With our words and our life we are proclaiming that Jesus is Lord. One evidence that we are living for Christ and living like him is that we are passing on to others what Jesus has taught us. We are calling people to follow him and to ask him to transform their lives. We are point people to Christ and modeling what he taught in our own life. It is not sufficient for us to simply call Jesus Lord, for he says that those who call him Lord are to do what he says. Thus, when we speak to people about Jesus, we are not content with leading them to say they believe in Jesus. Our desire is to be faithful to his commission to us to lead them into becoming disciples. Disciples are not only to hear what Jesus taught, but we are to do what he says and so this is our expectation as we speak to others. We want to pass on that which has been passed on to us. Like his disciples whom we encounter in the Bible, we want the gospel of Jesus Christ to be made know through all that we say and do.