按神的心意成长
以弗所书四章11至16节
11他所赐的有使徒，有先知，有传福音的，有牧师和教师。
12为要成全圣徒，各尽其职，建立基督的身体，
13直等到我们众人在真道上同归于一，认识神的儿子，得以长大成人，满有基督长成的身量，
14使我们不再作小孩子，中了人的诡计和欺骗的法术，被一切异教之风摇动，飘来飘去，就随从各样的异端。
15惟用爱心说诚实话，凡事长进，连于元首基督。
16全身都靠他联络得合式，百节各按各职，照着各体的功用彼此相助，便叫身体渐渐增长，在爱中建立自己。
信息分享
别人在你和我的生命中，究竟看见谁呢？是我们的自我，还是基督呢？圣灵在哪个人的生命中工作，那个人的生命就能反照基督的属性和基督的爱。
请看加拉太书四章19节的教导：基督已经在我们心中，但我们却要长成基督的品格和样式，让别人看见基督活在我们心里。只要我们每天体贴圣灵而行，圣灵就会帮助我们结出「圣灵的果子」，活出基督的样式。
我们可以用小鸡如何在鸡蛋中成长，作为一个类比的例子。它最初只是鸡蛋中的一个小点。可是，只要将鸡蛋放在适当的环境中，里面的小点就会不断成长，直至在蛋壳中长成一只小鸡。
在我们心中的圣灵，当然希望为我们提供适当的条件因素，让我们可以长成基督的品格。不过，唯有我们上到天堂，我们才能长成完全的品格。圣灵是否在我们心中工作的最真确证据，就是我们的生命能反照基督多少。圣灵是我们的一位「隐藏客人」，因为祂不会叫人注意自己，只会叫人一直注视基督。
圣灵的工作更不仅如此。我们现在只是指出圣灵如何帮助人认罪悔改，以及信主后如何改变更新而已。
我们是否容让圣灵在我们的生命中工作呢？
祷告：「主耶稣啊，我将自己呈献给你，祈求圣灵在我的生命中不断作工。」
BECOMING WHAT GOD WANTS
Ephesians 4: 11-16
11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,
15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—
16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
Message
What is being seen in your life and my life each day? Is it self or Christ? Where the Holy Spirit is allowed to do His work, Christ will be seen through the manifestation of His character and His love.
Look at Galatians 4:19. Christ is already in our hearts but it is His character and His likeness that must be formed and seen. As we allow the Holy Spirit to have his way in us each day, He will reproduce the “fruit of the Spirit” which really is the likeness of Christ.
A good analogy is to think of how a chicken is formed in an egg. At first it is only a tiny speck within the egg. However given the right conditions, that speck will grow, day by day until the shell is filled with a whole living chicken.
We could say that the Holy Spirit wants to maintain the conditions which will develop the character of Christ in us. This will only be completed when we get to Heaven. The true evidence of the presence and work of the Holy Spirit is how much of Christ can be seen in each life. The Holy Spirit is our “unseen guest”. He does not draw attention to Himself but keeps the spotlight on Jesus Christ.
This is not the only work of the Spirit but we are thinking about our growth in Christ and His part in this transformation both when we are converted and after our conversion.
Are we allowing Him to do His continuous work?
A morning prayer, “Lord Jesus, I give myself to you this day so that the Holy Spirit can have His way in me.”