Establishing a Spiritual Foundation Part 1 - Spiritual Growth

Spiritual growth is not an option.

Life demands growth. We do not grow up spiritually by acting spiritual or doing “spiritual” things. We grow up by attaching to God, receiving life from him, and seeing reality through the eyes of heaven, including whom God really is and whom He has made us to be. Our spiritual development mirrors what identity development looks like for a child with ideal parents, including attachment, receiving love, help with experiential learning, and so on.

Some children experience developmental issues, which causes a stunted development in relation to becoming a mature responsible adult. At times, adolescents (teenagers) will rebel in such a way as to cause slow grow or even completely stopped growth. They have chosen to walk a different path and never become the responsible adults they were meant to become. Sometimes parents are either ill prepared or do not want to properly raise their children to become responsible adults.

Regardless of the circumstances in a person’s life, growth will occur. Proper growth will bring about mature responsible adults. Improper growth will bring about immature, irresponsible adults

Whether the growth is physical, mental, or spiritual, growth is a necessary element.

Unfortunately, too many Christians want to continue receiving pabulum for their spiritual food and therefore they are never able to teach anything stronger than pabulum. Pabulum defined:

·        Food; especially: a suspension or solution of nutrients in a state suitable for absorption

·        Intellectual sustenance, but never getting into more difficult or meaty study, reading, or discussions.

·        Something (as writing or speech) that is insipid, simplistic, or bland

From the time of conception, an unborn child continues to grow until it eventually demands to be freed from the mother’s womb so the child can continue to grow physically. A newborn baby does not have much knowledge. However, it has enough knowledge to know that it is hungry and it is able to make its needs abundantly clear by crying so its parents will supply the essential nourishment needed to continue its growth.

Jesus said, “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:6 KJV).

·        Blessed = happy

·        Hunger = to seek with eager desire

·        Thirst (figuratively) = those who are said to thirst who painfully feel their want of, and eagerly long for, those things by which the soul is refreshed, supported, strengthened

·        Righteousness = Acceptable by God

o  The following areas define righteousness:

    i.           Integrity: doing the right thing even when by yourself.

    ii.           Virtue: behavior that exhibits high moral standards.

    iii.           Purity of life: having a lifestyle that upholds biblical values.

    iv.           Rightness: Correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting according to God’s Word.

Jesus was not talking about physical hunger or thirst, but the analogy of a baby crying for food is the same. When we ask Jesus for spiritual food, he will fill our needs so we can continue to grow.

What are some items we need to bring Spiritual Growth?

           Three things we need to bring about spiritual growth are: Vision, Objective, and Vehicle. Vision can be defined as things we need to know about living in the Kingdom. We can understand Objective as choices we need to make and values we need to hold. Vehicle is described as things we can do to make a space for God to work. Let us take a closer look at Vision, Objective, and Vehicle.

Vision

God’s intention is to develop a relationship with us and help us become a mature community of God. That is the reason for creation. That does not mean that we will all become spiritual elders. It means that we will all have a relationship with God as part of a larger family, no matter where we are in our human maturity or spiritual development.

Romans 5:1-11 describes what happens to us when we are justified by God’s grace through faith. God gives us a new nature that we did not have before. That does not mean the work is all over. That new nature needs to grow and mature. Babies need to grow into adults. Because we do not know our true God-given nature, we need to be transformed from the inside out.

Objective

To grow up spiritually, we need to make purposeful space in our lives for God. Our connection with God will atrophy and become unhealthy if not nurtured. Just as the body needs food on a regular basis, our spirits need to feed on the Spirit of God to grow and mature. For those at infancy or early child-level maturity, the spiritual family is especially important here, because those in early development may have difficulty understanding or identifying the kinds of choices that need to be made.

Vehicle: How to purposefully engage with God to aid our spiritual growth

Various vehicles for engaging God. 1) Talking to God in prayer. Spending regular time alone with just you and God. 2) Reading the Bible. 3) Reading material written about the Bible. 4) Fasting. We can fast many things and we do not necessarily have to fast food. It is the idea of learning to deny ourselves to bring us into a closer relationship with God. 5) Helping others. This is an area that is wide open that will also help us to grow spiritually. 6) Corporate worship. Hebrews 10:25a states, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together.” It is vital that God’s people come together in corporate worship to encourage and strengthen each other. 7) Counseling with your pastor or church leader. Most pastors will happily work with you to give guidance about how to grow spiritually. As a pastor of the years, I can easily say that I wish more church members had come to my office seeking help with their spiritual growth. It would have helped them to avoid pitfalls that came along their path.

When we ask Jesus for forgiveness of our sins, we begin a spiritual journey.

We start as spiritual babies and normally have a desire to learn more about Jesus along with what the Bible says about living as a believer. There is an initial hungering for knowledge about the things of God and He graciously fills our desire. People initially gain some basic foundational knowledge that increases their spiritual growth.

Unfortunately, people may soon become content with their spiritual condition and begin to lose their desire for more of God.

This is a trap of the enemy to cause believers to pull away from Jesus. Satan desires for believers to be weak in their faith and to allow sin in their lives. We do not have to fall into Satan’s trap.

The apostle Peter wrote and said that God “hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3).

The term “life” in this passage is a reference to our spiritual lives. God has not left us abandoned and unable to be spiritually fed. He has already made a way for His people to be fed and established spiritually, but we must seek the nourishment.

The term “given” in 2 Peter 1:3 is written in the perfect tense.

The perfect tense means that “an action has been completed in the past once and for all and does not need to be repeated” (Strong’s G1433). Jesus has already paid the price for our sins and has made a way for us to live Victorious Christian Lives. Just as babies cry for food when they are hungry, we need to cry out to God and He will fill our needs. This is the first step to establishing a strong spiritual foundation.

Are you hungry for the things of God?

Were you hungry for the things of God at one point in your life and now that desire for God has slipped away? Just go to God in prayer and tell Him that you want a closer relationship with Him. He will fill your needs. Remember, Jesus has made a way for us to live Victorious Christian lives.  Remember what we are told in 1 John 5:4-5, “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?”

If you are struggling in the areas of developing a strong spiritual foundation or if you desire a greater hunger and thirst for Jesus, please contact me and we will work together to help you overcome these obstacles.

Pastor Ron Barker

(www.victoriouslifeministries.net/)