Stages of Spiritual Growth

 

My hubby is gifted as a leader. He likes the view from the top of a mountain. I would rather look at it from the base, maybe because I’m afraid of heights. While this view from wherever you are on the mountain is often used to illustrate spiritual growth, I’m thinking this might not be the best illustration.

Today’s devotional says that what I see and what my hubby sees from these two standpoints shows that where a person at in their spiritual  maturity will determine how they view the same landscape. This conveys the idea is that the closer one is to the top equals maturity and the climb illustrates a progressive learning of God’s truth. However, I’ve met new Christians who have a better grasp of some aspects of God’s nature than older and supposedly mature believers do of that same truth.

Of course I googled this topic and found a host of opinions on the various stages of spiritual growth. Some were short, like “babies, youth, adults” while others had 8 or 9 stages with varying names. Some examples:

• Curiosity and Wonder, Commitment-Initiation, Questioning-Doubt, Enlightenment, Separation, Identification, and Transformation-Manifestation.
• Seeker, Believer, Learner, Server, Leader.
• Purgative stage, the illuminative stage, and the unitive stage.
• Honeymoon, Experiential, Discovery, Purpose/Identity, Unison

Some say Jesus experienced growth using this verse: “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” (Luke 2:52)

Others look at terms like babies, young, elder, mature, but whatever method or ideas we have about spiritual growth, I’m wondering if doing this reflects a human effort to put the work of God in a box? For example, compare the life and attitudes of a new Christian when they are filled with the Holy Spirit and bearing spiritual fruit — to the life and attitudes of a church elder when he or she is walking in the flesh and griping about a problem rather than praying. Who is the mature person in that situation?

Maybe maturity is about consistency? I know Christians who have never doubted God’s acceptance of them, regardless of their ‘good’ deeds and others who struggle most of the time to be ‘good enough’ — begging the same question: who is the mature one?

The NT indicates stages in human terms regarding physical age…

I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name’s sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. (1 John 2:12–14)

Yet here, all of these know God’s forgiveness. The “children” and everyone else know the Father. All ages overcome the evil one because they are in the Word of God and it sticks with them. Perhaps this is the better measuring stick — the ability to fend off Satan because his tactics are recognized due to being immersed in Scripture, knowing about spiritual warfare, and learning that beating the enemy requires knowing and doing the will of God.

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7)

One more thing seems plain; whatever we need to grow, God supplies it:

I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained. (Philippians 3:14–16)

And He also expects us to hang on to what He tells us so we will not fall backwards and tumble down that mountain!

PRAY: Jesus, I am always grateful that You are the Savior for that road to maturity means learning and relearning that I cannot save myself and must trust You, not only for eternal life, forgiveness, and new life, but in every area of life. It is humbling to remember that I’ll only be genuinely mature when I see You face to face in glory!