2024-12-03 A Meditation on Maturity

“4 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.” 9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Eph 4:1-16 ESV)

Range increases. Scope increases. Dynamism increases. When we go deep in the Spirit, maturity sets in, takes to seed, takes root. By and large most will not see us any differently, but to us it will begin to be less about ourselves, and more like a parent with a baby in arms: people are people, and we—operating from a new Perch—see others as bundles of oddball or erratic or at times copiously blessed, outlays.

Most will not see us any differently. Isn’t it strange, the invisible perimeters and nested invisible circles of high oxygen, high altitude, preparation to meet the King: Jesus was not able to do any miracles in the hometown of his, because they lacked Faith. Faith is that we go in Eager, we go in Honorific, we go in Complicit. All life—this is Maturity speaking—ceases to have any fairness or rhyme or reason, and be a odd sandlot scrap of an Encounter with other souls: this especially in that no-man’s land called church. Who, they ask, is rising, and who descending? Who has done the homework, and who is a different breed of lazing about? Who—let’s be honest, Scripture says that good deeds will be met with disdain—is a torrent of Love and Affection for all comers?

The fun, then, of Church life, is the fun of Life on Edge. We dare to go on raids, to insert some good deed here or there, and then to duck out in perfect form. Only our form is not perfect, it is hurting and doubted, it is disdained and resented. Our macabre sense of horrific woundedness, plays out. Yet the fun: to recognize those scenes in which we are Aware—at some inoffensive distance—of a collaborator, rather, of a culprit or antagonist: and do we? Do we go Prophetic and Deep, making the sandlot with this Alternate Soul or Team, here and now? Do we pretend we both found ourselves up against a tyrant called Capitalistic Society, Greedy Society, ambiguously situated Society? Nothing wrong with rewarding hard work, like the capitalists, but only this: that Church is a final destination, not a paycheck nor a lauded career one day to retire from. Church is a bit more pan. A bit more sober. And do we dare to take the archbishopric, the ultimate heads of state, to a handshake and urgent reckoning?

We are those in love with the Fun, in passionate ecstasy around the Joviality, the Good Vibes flowing freely because Today is the day. Today we celebrate. Today we count on good natured intentions to license our Present Boldness. We are Licensed to Thrive and Share, because we know our firm hooded Finality: this one Loves; this one Expects Success; this one Knows the Terrain. We are confident—for the most part (see the chapter on War)—that we can be friends with one another, provided some sandlot or city barroom shared Presence together.

Therefore some maturity also spells some sense that the sky is the limit. We shall always be learning and adapting and growing. And if that depresses the individual, understand that what we did as Children was just as effective and inspired, just as much secretly honoring—in unintended, or subconscious fashion—a Prayer Life, a Together Witnessing, a Utility unto the Master’s Workshop. Workshop becomes Worship becomes the Womb of our soon Advent. We are soon to live Joyously in the Moment, because it is where Jesus was, attending to His Will and Last Testament from the Cross: today, if you hear His voice, have the long vision to see tomorrow’s War already here Today. Have the ecstasy to drop pretenses and simply Love on each other. Decide whom exactly—rather, let the dice decide—you are carving out room to Love Today. Decide to Love whomsoever the dice and Spirit gives you. And in this Confidence lies non-reckless Passion, like His as He went on towards the Cross.

We have this Treasure because in some manner we were Invested in. Something saw first principles sharp or cogent, and saw seedlings, venture capital raised, a grownup’s Vision for what a youth can bring about. We listened: the those Children who were carving out their own path forward. Because of a New Way in the world. Because of present Challenges and city street gregarious Encounters with each other, with the inheriting Generation: some were cautious and holed up with ma and pa, and others were Learning the ropes in some other fashion. But the workload shall not decrease this side of Heaven: as we seek Maturity, we immediately are called to Serve, to help the one suddenly crying out (Jesus appeared and suddenly there was a demon (Mk 9:20; Mk 1:23)). We have no end of tasks, because we landed—by God’s Choice of us—on the good side. We landed on the side of Spacious capital and Prospects. In some spiritual mystery of a safety we cannot explain: God’s people walk on water. God’s people carry about with them a Deep Secret and Mystery, yet are not therefore assaulted or kidnapped, but are living in invisible perimeter after perimeter after perimeter, a halo being the protection as they sojourn in a foreign land. Such is the artist’s vision. Such is our patience as we reckon today as good a day as any to Die, or to meet the King.

We shall live on. We shall make do with whatsoever levels of maturity have equipped us to Serve. Like children, infants at the breast, the reassurance is we have a patronizing—rightly so—Father and Mother in Heaven. Above and curious, eager now to know how we are (1 Sam 9:5; Isaiah 49:14-26), it is plenteously Capable for God to wish better things for His children, to overlook and to Encourage, to utilize and to delight in. We have so much to learn still, from those who have shepherded us thus far, but also we are Already Called and put into Holy Service, as those tickling the ideas of Maturity, of Further Maturing, because Already the Spirit is with us. And we—eager to do it ourselves—also allow God to be our dance partner, to lead, to do all this in some Holy Reverence for His Creation, for the male and female and etc.