Knowing Him, Growing in Him

Is it possible to know a lot about Jesus and actually know Jesus? Last week, we covered Ephesians 4 and learned that we’re being built up toward something specific. We are growing into maturity with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness. That’s the target. You can’t get there alone. Growth in the body happens together — not solo. But what actually feeds that growth?

1. Knowledge of the Son of God is the Target — Not the Starting Line

   1. Ephesians 4:13: until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son, growing into maturity with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness.

      1. This is deep, personal, relationship, and experiential knowledge.

   2. Jesus Himself draws the line.

      1. John 17:3 This is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and the one you have sent—Jesus Christ.

   3. This is not just for new Christians.

      1. Ephesians 4:13: Paul says until we all reach it …

2. The Root System — Rooted, Built Up, Established

   1. Colossians 2:6: So then, just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in him,

      1. How did you receive him? By faith. By trust. By surrender.

      2. That’s still how you move. Same mode. Same attitude.

   2. Galatians 3:2-3: I only want to learn this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by the Spirit, are you now finishing by the flesh?

      1. There is no second-stage Christianity where you outgrow your need for Jesus.

      2. The root keeps feeding the branch. Always.

   3. Colossians 2:7: Three images.

      1. Colossians 2:7: being rooted and built up in him and established in the faith,

         1. Rooted. Everything the plant becomes, it draws from what the root reaches.

         2. Built up. This isn’t just stability, it’s development.

         3. Established in the faith. Structural. Load-bearing. Firm.

      2. Three images. One reality.

3. Overflow is the Diagnostic

   1. Colossians 2:7: and overflowing with gratitude.

      1. Gratitude is the natural, almost involuntary response of a soul that is actually, genuinely resting in Christ.

      2. 2 Corinthians 9:15: Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

   2. So, how’s your gratitude level? Gratitude is a gauge.

   3. Three things that tend to kill overflow: Striving, Drift, and Familiarity.

4. As We Close…

   1. Paul’s vision is of a growing church.

   2. You can’t get there without this: a deepening, personal, relational, experiential knowledge of Jesus himself.

      1. Not a knowledge about him. A knowledge of him.

   3. Paul says we’re pressing toward the knowledge of the Son of God until we all reach it.

      1. Your growth in Christ doesn’t just affect you. It feeds this body. It makes the whole thing stronger.

      2. A body where people are genuinely knowing Jesus and genuinely overflowing is hard to ignore.