All the instructions for increasing our Christian growth are found in God’s Holy Word, the Bible. The Christian’s guidelines for spiritual growth are detailed in 2 Peter 1:3-8: “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
In order for spiritual growth to occur, we must first accept Jesus as your personal Savior and put our complete faith in him. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.” The old nature which had been dominated by sin is replaced by a new nature dominated by God’s spirit. See Romans Chapters 6-7.
Learning to grow spiritually is a continuous journey, which occurs as you apply God’s word to your life. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 teaches us, “All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
In order for spiritual growth to occur, the Christian must be taught, rebuked, corrected and trained by God’s Word. Then he will be thoroughly equipped for every good work. This is the essence of the Christian’s spiritual growth.
Another key to Christian growth is walking in the spirit.
Galatians 5:16-18, 24-26 explains, “So I say, live by the spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the spirit, and the spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the spirit, you are not under law…Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the spirit, let us keep in step with the spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.”
Walking in the Spirit of God is a conscious choice and a life-long process of ridding oneself of the acts of the sinful flesh (Galatians 5:19-21), while growing more and more in the fruit of the spirit.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23)
God works with different people in different ways. Some people grow rapidly, while others grow slowly but steadily. Therefore, it is important that we not compare ourselves with others. Rather, as we grow as Christians, we should look for God’s providential overruling in our lives and completely trust Him, knowing that each experience – no matter how trying – is tailor-made by God with love for our spiritual development.
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
Additional Resource: Christian Questions Podcast Special 5-part Series: “Do I Walk in the Spirit or in the Lusts of Human Nature?” Be sure to follow along with the CQ Rewind Show Notes available for each episode available by the audio player.
