Full Restoration

2 Corinthians 13:11 NIV: Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace.

Have you ever been reading when a particular word or phrase stopped you in your tracks? Sometimes it’s the phrasing the author uses, or the image that comes to mind; other times, a word jumps off the page, demanding attention.  That’s how it was when I read the words “full restoration” in this verse. 

What, I wondered, is “full restoration”? It sounds so beautiful. I looked into the Greek word Paul uses here: katartizō. The Greek verb katartizō means “to restore, repair, mend, equip, or make complete.” One of the earliest places this verb appears in the New Testament is in Matthew and Mark, where Jesus invites James and John to follow him. Both accounts mention that the brothers were “mending” their fishing nets. 

That image became the inspiration for this artwork.

There are so many ways life leaves us worn, weathered, frayed, torn, and broken. Situations, relationships, disappointments, and even our own choices wound us, scar us, weaken us, and leave us unable to function as we were designed.

A fishing net full of gaping holes can still catch fish, though less effectively and with more effort. We can limp through life with unraveling twine, barely able to bear the weight, but imagine living fully restored.

Peter uses the very same Greek word when he promises, “And the God of all grace, … after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” (1 Peter 5:10)

Notice whose job it is to mend. The net cannot repair itself, and neither can we. God, the Great Healer, is the One who restores us to the way we were created to be. Yet how often do we hand our brokenness to things never meant to heal us? Imagine handing a tattered and torn fishing net to a carpenter, a baker, or a merchant. They might try to tie a few knots or wrap some thread around the tear, but the repair would never restore the net to its intended strength. We, too, look to success, comfort, approval, possessions, or distraction, hoping they will mend what only God can restore.

God, however, has a transforming and everlasting solution to mend our brokenness. That doesn’t mean it’s a one-and-done restoration. We live in a dysfunctional world that keeps wreaking havoc on our nets. Even today, fishermen inspect and repair their nets after each day. I, too, need to practice daily surrender to the Great Fisherman and allow him to fully restore me.  

I think that’s what Paul meant when he urged believers to “strive for full restoration.” The work for us is not in the mending but in the surrender.