How long since you tried to ride a bicycle? With things the way they are, perhaps it won’t be long before many of us taste the delights of 2-wheel rather than 4-wheel travel. The price of petrol these days is almost as high as the price of gold!
Have you ever watched a child trying to learn to ride a bike? There is a very uncertain wobbly stage as the machine gets under way, but as soon as there is a comfortable forward motion, the bike begins to steer straight.
I cannot help thinking that learning to ride a bike is a bit like being a Christian. It is not easy to start; you need a lot of support; you begin to think you will never make it, and perhaps have a few tumbles even, before any progress is made.
It is impossible to stand still on a bike, isn’t it? You must move forward in order to stay upright. The cyclist who tries to remain static will end up falling off. The Christian who makes no progress, who does not move ahead in Jesus, will inevitably fall.
I believe that this is the reason why many Christians never anywhere in in Jesus. They have begun with Him but have not moved ahead. There is so little growth in maturity, in love, in knowledge of God’s Word and in vital experience of the work of the Holy Spirit. Such Christians are like cyclists who come to a standstill, who fall off because there is no forward movement.
It is obvious that many Christians are living at a much lower level spiritually than God intends. He longs of His people to grow, to make progress, to trust Him for great things, to demonstrate the dynamic power of the Holy Spirit in everyday life. The other day I picked up a book and glanced through it: the book was written by a Chinese Christian, and my eyes were drawn to this quotation – “When God wants us to perform a small miracle He us something difficult to do. When He wants to perform a mighty miracle, He gives us something impossible to do.”
I believe that God longs to do the impossible through us here at the Old Meeting House. Even if you don’t currently come to the Old Meeting House, God still has great plans for your life.
So how about it? Are you His completely? Going on with Him? Growing in Him? Are you making progress in Jesus? Perhaps you have fallen off way back. If this is so, He longs to pick you up, and set you off again.
John
