Parents say many humorous things. One of the most common
is to refer to having their young child “help” them do something. “Mary helped
me bake today,” a young mom will post on Facebook. But we all know better. Small
children can be cute, they can be nice, they can be fun to be around, but they
do not really “help.” They try hard, they mean well, and it is good for them to
be involved, but whatever they are “helping” with could be done more efficiently
without them. We “let them help” because we love them and we want them to learn
and be happy.
The same thing is true in the church. All of us are “born again”
when we become Christians, we begin as “new creatures in Christ.” We have
learned one thing (“Jesus saves”) and that is all that a young Christian (in
years of experience as a Christian) really knows. A young Christian really
cannot do much in the way of “helping” the church with its mission. We sometimes
ignore this to our peril, sending very young Christians out to “witness to
their new faith.” This is a mistake. Rather, we ought to teach young Christians
so they grow, so they learn, so they mature in Christ. Let them learn while they
“help” us. They will benefit and we will benefit. And Christ will be
glorified.
“Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with
all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.” Col.
1:28.