A teacher is asking her students, what they want to be when they grow up.
Teacher: “How about you, Johnny… what do you want to be when you grow up”?
Johnny: “I wanna be the CEO of a multi-billion tech company… just like my father”.
Teacher: “Wow… that’s wonderful. I didn’t know your father was the CEO of a tech company”.
Johnny: “He’s not. But he also wants to be one”.
Just as a seed should grow when it is planted in nutritious soil and watered, followers of Christ should also grow spiritually. Jesus used this concept in the form of a parable.
Matthew 13:3-8 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. 7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. 8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
Matthew 13:23 But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
The Christian life is a relationship with God that develops over time. As the longer we walk with Jesus the more we should look like Him in our attitudes and actions.
1 John 2:6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
What is Spiritual Growth?
Spiritual growth is the journey of growing in faith and obedience to God and becoming the person He designed and desires you to be.
Peter, who was one of Jesus’ disciples and closest friends said it this way:
2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.
Paul, a leader in the early church and who wrote much of the New Testament described it this way:
Colossians 1:9-10 For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;
What does Scripture say about Spiritual Growth?
Here are some important verses from the Bible that can help you understand what it means to be spiritually mature.
Philippians 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;
Matthew 5:6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for [a]instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Psalm 1:1-3 Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the [a]ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; 2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he [b]meditates day and night. 3 He shall be like a tree Planted by the [c]rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.
Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 [a]gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
2 Peter 1:5-8 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control [a]perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither [b]barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 5:12-14 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the [a]oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are [b]of full age, that is, those who by reason of [c]use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
1 Peter 2:1-5 Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow [a]thereby, 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 4:15-16 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.
James 1:2-4 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces [a]patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be [b]perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
How do we Grow Spiritually?
There are three elements essential to growing to spiritual maturity: grace, truth, and time. Grace is seen when we realize that we make mistakes along the way and experience God’s patient forgiveness. Truth is found in God’s Word, which corrects, trains, and challenges us. Time is essential since maturity will not come overnight but is a process and a journey. Experiencing Christ with others can have important benefits. Relationships with other believers allow us to encourage and support one another.
If this blog post has grabbed your curiosity and you would like to know more, please pursue any/all of the below options:
1- Contact me at pastor@missionchurchlex.org
2- Check out our church website Misisonchurchlex.org
3- Visit us for Community Celebration and Worship every Sunday at 9am and 11am (Facebook livestreaming available at 9am) and Mission Groups each Wednesday at 630pm. We are located at 3288 Beaver Creek Drive Lexington KY 40515.
4- Follow us on Facebook www.facebook.com/missionchurch.lex
5- Continue to read this weekly blog- “Find your Why with Pastor D”