Essay: The pursuit of spiritual growth and Christian maturity

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Growth is an important principle in the natural world and in one's spiritual life.

The mustard seed is a small seed that grows into a beautiful tree.

"Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you." - Jesus Christ

Spiritual hunger and spiritual growth



"As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and behold the face of God?" - Psalm 42:1-2



Spiritual hunger and spiritual growth

Articles on spiritual hunger and spiritual growth:

The Keys to spiritual growth and Christian maturity

See also: Christianity

"The Resurrection" by Carl Heinrich Bloch.

Christianity.com on the importance of spiritual maturity:

“ Spiritual maturity is something that should be a priority for every Christian. It’s important in our lives for how we serve God, interact with other people, and take care of our families.

Many people claim to be Christians, but there is a difference between being a fan of Jesus and a follower of Jesus.

Our spiritual maturity can define what side of the fence we are on. To be a follower of Jesus is to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow him. “Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me’” (Mark 8:34).[1]

”

Importance of spiritual maturity and the keys to spiritual maturity

Articles on spiritual growth

Prayer and spiritual growth

Bible verses relating to spiritual growth and Christian maturity

The Bible is the best-selling book of all time.[2]

Between 5 to 7 billion Bibles have been published.

"His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and excellence Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust and may become participants of the divine nature. For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with excellence, and excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love. For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For anyone who lacks these things is blind, suffering from eye disease, forgetful of the cleansing of past sins. Therefore, brothers and sisters, be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you will never stumble. For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you." - 1 Peter 1:3-11 (NRSV)

"Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish, and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation. So also our beloved brother Paul wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, speaking of this as he does in all his letters. There are some things in them hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other scriptures. You therefore, beloved, since you are forewarned, beware that you are not carried away with the error of the lawless and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen." - 2 Peter 3: 14-18 (NRSV)

"Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God — what is good and acceptable and perfect. For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the encourager, in encouragement; the giver, in sincerity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness." - Romans 12: 4-8, NRSV

Lists of Bible verses on spiritual growth and Christian maturity

Sanctification

John Wesley was the founder of Methodism.

The Holiness Movement is a Christian movement that emerged chiefly within 19th-century Methodism.

See also: Sanctification

Sanctification is a Christian theological concept that refers to the process of becoming holy or sacred, or being set apart for a special purpose for God. It is a gift from God that involves becoming more pure, blameless, and separated from sin.

Importance of the doctrine of sanctification

The doctrine of sanctification stresses the importance of the ongoing process of being made holy by God. Through this process believer are progressively transformed to live a life more in accordance with God's will, separating themselves from sin and allowing them to become more like Jesus Christ throughout their life. This process results in a closer relationship with God and the promise of eternal life in heaven. It's a key component of Christian growth and living a holy and righteous life.[3][4][5]

Articles on the importance of the doctrine of sanctification

Process of sanctification

Mike Mazzalongo articles on the process of sanctification:

Bible verses on sanctification

Key Bible verses on sanctification

"But we must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth." - 2 Thessalonians 2:13 (NRSV)

"And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." - 1 Corinthians 6:11 (ESV)

"For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified." - Hebrews 10:14 (ESV)

"Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth." - John 17:17 (ESV)

Pietism and sanctification

See also: Pietism

Pietism has roots in late 17th century German Lutheranism following the Protestant Reformation. Pietism is a Protestant reform movement that emphasizes sanctification (living a holy life),as a result of conversion and spiritual rebirth. Pietists believed that the Holy Spirit transforms people through conversion and that this transformation leads to sanctification. The ongoing theological disputes that were dividing Christianity into competing factions prompted some Christians to emphasize the need for a heart-felt, less intellectually oriented (less "scholastic") faith. In this atmosphere, Pietism was born. In The Oxford Companion to Christian Thought, Trond Enger offers a very favorable view of Pietism and describes it as "the most intense and profound attempt in the history of the church to realize the power of early Christianity."[6]

Benefits of sanctification

Jesus Christ and his apostles taught a gospel of love.[7] For example, the New Testament teaches that a husband is to love his wife as Christ loved the church (Ephesians 5:25).

1. Access to inheritance: Born-again children of God have an inheritance in Christ, and sanctification secures access to it (Hebrews 12:14; James 2:14-26; Matthew 25:31-40; 1 Timothy 18-20).

2. Improved prayer answers: Confessing shortcomings before God can help answers to prayers from being hindered (1 Peter 3: 7).

3. Character improvement and avoiding sin (1 Thessalonians 4:3-8). One of the fruits of the Holy Spirit is self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). See also: Virtue

4. Divine health: Living a holy life, where godliness is a lifestyle, often leads to sounder health and vitality. For example, avoidance of gluttony and Sloth is good for the body.

5. Christlike love and forgiveness: Sanctification manifests itself in Christlike love and forgiveness (1 John 4:7-21). See: Agape

6. Stability and empowerment: Sanctification can make people more stable and less prone to failure (Psalm 1:3; Proverbs 12:24).

7. Empowerment engaging in service: Sanctification empowers people for service such as the Great Commission and good works.

8. Avoidance of God's discipline: God disciplines disobedient children, and may even end their lives on earth if their sin is serious enough (Hebrews 5:6; Acts 5:1-11; 1 Corinthians 11:29-30).

Article:

Emphasis of pietists

The Pietists emphasize:

  • The importance of right living, characterized by more than just thinking the right things about God by living in ways that demonstrate one's commitment to God.
  • A truly reformed church, characterized by small group Bible studies and increased lay participation in various aspects of ministry
  • Individual devotional lives revolving around Bible study and prayer
  • The importance of a "heart-felt" faith, sometimes called the "new birth."

Incorporating the various strengths of the various branches of Christendom to be spiritually stronger

Recently, a Catholic friend of mine who is fairly ecumenical concerning other Christians, strongly encouraged me to attend church services on Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday and I was really impressed by Catholic/Lutheran churches services that I attended during Holy Week. This experience showed me that if one wants to be the spiritually strongest that he can be, one should take the strongest aspects of the various branches of Christianity. For example, American Protestants read their Bible much more often than American Catholics (In 2018, the Religion News Service reported that "Only 17 percent of Catholics read the Bible every day as compared to 38 percent of Protestants."[8]). On the other hand, the Catholics celebrate the eucharist every Sunday like the early church did. In addition, high church Christians such as the Catholics, Lutherans, Anglicans and Eastern Orthodox more frequently have magnificent churches that give you a sense of reverence and awe when you are in them.

As far as my own church membership, I am a member of a Lutheran church and member of a Catholic church. There are Catholic churches in my area that have Saturday masses so it makes it easy to be a member of a Catholic church, yet still be a member of a Lutheran church.

In 2025, God willing, I will visit an Eastern Orthodox Church. In 2024, I saw the movie Man of God about the Greek Orthodox Christian Saint Nektarios of Aegina plus I heard that the Eastern Orthodox Church is growing in the USA. In addition, I attended a Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church event in 2024 (Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church music is very beautiful music). These matters sparked my interest in the Eastern Orthodoxy.

Lastly, John Wesley led an exemplary life and there are a lot of admirable things about conservative Methodism.

Strengths of Protestantism

The Harvard University historian Niall Ferguson declared: "Through a mixture of hard work and thrift the Protestant societies of the North and West Atlantic achieved the most rapid economic growth in history."[9]

See also: Protestantism and Protestant cultural legacies and Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism

Strength of Protestantism

Various forms of high church Protestantism regularly practice giving the sacraments. In addition, they have many beautiful churches.

As far as Lutheranism, "while some Lutheran denominations, particularly in Scandinavia, might acknowledge a form of apostolic succession through historical ties, most Lutheran churches do not consider it essential for valid ministry. Lutheranism does not explicitly claim a direct lineage of bishops tracing back to the apostles (a concept known as "apostolic succession") like some denominations, it does consider itself connected to the Apostolic Church through its commitment to the teachings of the Bible and the early Christian creeds, which are considered to be based on the teachings of the apostles..."[10]

The article "The Surprising Discovery About Those Colonialist, Proselytizing Missionaries" published in Christianity Today notes:

“ In his fifth year of graduate school, Woodberry created a statistical model that could test the connection between missionary work and the health of nations. He and a few research assistants spent two years coding data and refining their methods. They hoped to compute the lasting effect of missionaries, on average, worldwide...

One morning, in a windowless, dusty computer lab lit by fluorescent bulbs, Woodberry ran the first big test. After he finished prepping the statistical program on his computer, he clicked "Enter" and then leaned forward to read the results.

"I was shocked," says Woodberry. "It was like an atomic bomb. The impact of missions on global democracy was huge. I kept adding variables to the model—factors that people had been studying and writing about for the past 40 years—and they all got wiped out. It was amazing. I knew, then, I was on to something really important."

Woodberry already had historical proof that missionaries had educated women and the poor, promoted widespread printing, led nationalist movements that empowered ordinary citizens, and fueled other key elements of democracy. Now the statistics were backing it up: Missionaries weren't just part of the picture. They were central to it...

Areas where Protestant missionaries had a significant presence in the past are on average more economically developed today, with comparatively better health, lower infant mortality, lower corruption, greater literacy, higher educational attainment (especially for women), and more robust membership in nongovernmental associations.

In short: Want a blossoming democracy today? The solution is simple—if you have a time machine: Send a 19th-century missionary."

...at a conference presentation in 2002, Woodberry got a break. In the room sat Charles Harper Jr., then a vice president at the John Templeton Foundation, which was actively funding research on religion and social change. (Its grant recipients have included Christianity Today.) Three years later, Woodberry received half a million dollars from the foundation's Spiritual Capital Project, hired almost 50 research assistants, and set up a huge database project at the University of Texas, where he had taken a position in the sociology department. The team spent years amassing more statistical data and doing more historical analyses, further confirming his theory.

...Woodberry's historical and statistical work has finally captured glowing attention. A summation of his 14 years of research—published in 2012 in the American Political Science Review, the discipline's top journal—has won four major awards, including the prestigious Luebbert Article Award for best article in comparative politics. Its startling title: "The Missionary Roots of Liberal Democracy."

...over a dozen studies have confirmed Woodberry's findings. The growing body of research is beginning to change the way scholars, aid workers, and economists think about democracy and development.[11]

”
John Wesley

David Beidel wrote in his article The Bloodless Revolution: What We Need to Learn from John Wesley and the Great Awakening

“ In the 18th Century, most of Europe was on fire. Bloody civil wars and revolutions were decimating nation after nation. Unrestrained injustice, government and Church corruption, slave trade and the oppression of the poor created a powder keg for violence. Miraculously, Great Britain escaped the horrors of civil war and the brutal savagery that revolutionary anarchy engenders.

Few ancient monarchies are still in place today. The mystery of the UK’s capacity to honor the old guard, while raising up a more democratic system without a revolution, is a sociological wonder. Many credit the Great Awakening, in particular the Methodist movement, launched by John Wesley, for this extraordinary and peaceful transition.

Methodism unleashed an army of “little Christ’s” all over Europe. They cared for the poor, took in unwanted and abused children, fought unjust laws and labor conditions, visited prisoners, and battled against slavery; They joined hands with the Apostles and “turned the world upside down.” Eventually compassion became fashionable...

America is in desperate need of a Christ-infused revolution of compassion. We are a land of churches, who are well positioned to hear and answer the cries of our struggling communities. If a critical mass of congregations committed themselves to radically sharing the Gospel and passionately serving under-resourced/at-risk communities, we will see peace powerfully rise in these times of trouble. This will also enable, as in the days of John Wesley, wise reformation to take place because the true Christian Church is theologically hardwired to bring about peaceful, meaningful change that benefits all. I have written much about this in my book, Samaria, The Great Omission, and treasure every opportunity to strategize with churches who have a heart to minister in this way.

Let us stand in the gap as cultural/community peacemakers and healers in this season of sorrow and division. May our magnificent obsession be Jesus, the everlasting, ever loving, rescuer of the oppressed and Father of all.[12]

”

Strengths of Catholicism

Catholicism has many strengths, including its virtues (For example the virtues of faith, hope, love and fortitude), sacraments, and its social teachings.[13] The Catholic Church also indicates that it has ties to the apostolic church. There are many beautiful Catholic churches.

Strengths of the Eastern Orthodox churches

The Eastern Orthodox faith has many strengths, including a focus on personal relationship with Jesus Christ, prayer, sacraments, community service, and virtues like love, humility and sacrifice. It also indicates that it has ties to the apostolic church.[14][15] There are many beautiful Eastern Orthodox churches.



The Lutheran Ascension Church at Augusta Victoria Foundation, Jerusalem
Cologne cathedral in Germany at dusk.
St. Thomas Cathedral Basilica, Chennai, India
Christ Church in Shimla, India is the second oldest church in North India.

The pipe organ in the church is largest organ in India.
Reknown blue domes of the Church dedicated to St. Spirou in Firostefani, Santorini island (Thira), Greece. See also: Greek Orthodox Church
St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery, Ukraine
St. Sophia's Cathedral in Kiev, Ukraine.
Saint Volodymyr's Cathedral in Ukraine.

Books

  • The Complete Book of Discipleship: On Being and Making Followers of Christ by Bill Hull. ‎NavPress; Annotated edition (November 6, 2006)
  • The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges. NavPress; Enlarged edition (November 3, 2016)
  • The Practice of Godliness by Jerry Bridges. NavPress (June 1, 2016)

See also

References

  1. ↑ Is Spiritual Maturity Important?, Christianity.com
  2. ↑ The Bible is the best selling book of all time, Guinness Book of Word Record
  3. ↑ The Doctrine of Sanctification, Gospel Coalition website
  4. ↑ The Primary Importance of Sanctification, Grace to You Ministries
  5. ↑ Students About Sanctification
  6. ↑ The Lessons of Pietism -- Dr. Lowell Zuck, The University of Chicago Divinity School]
  7. ↑ The Triumph of the Gospel of Love by Monk Themistocles (Adamopoulo)
  8. ↑ Listening to God’s word between Christmas and Lent, Religion News Service, 2018
  9. ↑ The Protestant Work Ethic: Alive & Well…In China By Hugh Whelchel on September 24, 2012
  10. ↑ Lutheranism ties to the apostolic church, Google search
  11. ↑ Christianity Today, "The surprising discovery about those colonialist, proselytizing missionaries", January 8, 2014
  12. ↑ The Bloodless Revolution: What We Need to Learn from John Wesley and the Great Awakening by David Beidel
  13. ↑ Strengths of Catholicism, Google search]
  14. ↑ Strengths of Eastern Orthodox Church, Google search
  15. ↑ Strengths of Orthodox Christianity, Google search
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