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“Seeking Maturity (ii)”
In Luke chapter 8, Jesus tells one of his most famous stories, the parable of the sower, or, as some suggest, the parable of the soils. The actual parable is told in verses 5-8, and then Jesus’ comments upon the parable are made in verses 9-15.
Recall that as the sower sowed his seed in broadcast fashion as he went along the way (vs. 5), some of it fell amongst thorns (vs. 7). The thorns of course grew up and choked out the good seed. Now when Jesus comments upon this in verse 14, he says “And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.”
There is our word – maturity. In versions other than the ESV, it is rendered typically with something like “perfection.” The word behind the word here in Greek is TELESPHOREO, which is a botanical term of sorts meaning “to produce mature fruit” or “to bring fruit to maturity.” It is a different word from the other 7 we will look at in this series, although it does share a common prefix – TELE.
But more important is what Jesus says about maturity through the illustration of this parable. Some hear the good news of Jesus and His kingdom, and even take some initial steps of faith, but never come to maturity because of “the cares and riches and pleasures of life.” Their faith journey is choked out by these thorns. As a result, the fruit which has begun in them never comes to maturity. Their potential in Christ is never realized.
Maturity, we learn from Jesus, is a spiritual process that takes time and leads to the bearing of spiritual fruit. If such fruit is never born, maturity is not achieved. So, a primary question for a disciple of the Lord is “Am I bearing spiritual fruit?”
