What is spiritual maturity? How can a believer attain spiritual maturity?

WHAT IS SPIRITUAL MATURITY? HOW CAN A BELIEVER GROW INTO SPIRITUAL MATURITY?

By Ezekiel Kimosop

There is no express biblical definition for spiritual maturity but a number of scripture passages do convey this idea with clarity.

It is instructive that spiritual maturity is a process rather than an event. No believer ever graduates from the school of spiritual growth but there are signs that manifestly affirm that the believer is mature and stable in their faith.

How do we know that someone is spiritually mature?

Let us examine some relevant passages.

In 2 Timothy 3:15-17 Paul reveals that traditional Jewish religious training had a profound effect on the life of young Timothy and that Scripture is the principal instrument of spiritual instruction.

In Ephesians 4, Paul lists down church ministry offices and declares that their purpose was to prepare and equip the saints “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: (Ephesians 4:13).

This is the ideal position contemplated by Scripture which conveys three dimensions of spiritual maturity.

The first level is associated with the station in spiritual development where the believer is brought into the unity of the faith. This is the spiritual consciousness that every child of God experiences in that they belong to the fellowship of believers within the context of the local and universal church.

The second dimension is the growth of the believer's  knowledge and intimacy with Christ. The believer rightly discerns the person and divinity of Jesus Christ and the purpose of His finished works of the cross. This is what biblical scholars refer to as sound christological development.

This can only come from the discipline of study of the word of God and our daily devotion to Christ by the leading of the Holy Spirit (John 16:13-15).

Spiritual maturity is the work in progress of an effective discipleship process in the hands of mature believers. Apollos was a beneficiary of this process through the hands Priscilla and Aquila (Acts 18:24-28).

Sadly, poor discipleship and weak spiritual nourishment of Christian congregations accounts for some of the heretical teachings that are are popularly embraced today.

A heretic is a teacher who teaches error and rejects biblical correction where it is legitimate. Faithful teachers are those who handle biblical truth with godly fear and who are careful to raise other leaders of their kind.

The third dimension can be wrapped up through a description of the end process. The mature believer grows to a measure of stature that manifests his fruitfulness in Christ (Galatians 5:22), as well as his firmness and confidence in knowing and handling the word of God such that he is no longer tossed about by all manner of doctrines and teachings that contradict Scripture (Ephesians 4:14).

One of the signs of spiritual immaturity in a believer is the “nomadic” culture where they go about seeking a “new experience or new revelation” rather than faithfully sticking with a Bible believing church.

Some eventually fall into congregations that teach heresy.

2 Timothy 2:15, Paul exhorts, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

While some have identified this verse with formal biblical training, this scripture does not exclusively render this context even though seminary training does carry some lifelong benefit and enhances ministry capacity.

The exhortation is meant for every believer because we must wrestle with the word of God such that we continually discover the mystery of God’s revelation in the written Scriptures.

Spiritual maturity does not merely arise from the study of the word. A believer must embrace all the spiritual disciplines that the Bible defines for us. These include obedience to the Great Commission in witnessing for Christ (Matthew 28:19-20) Prayer (Matthew 6:9-15; I Thessalonians 5:17), Christian fellowship (Hebrews 10:25); availing ourselves as vessels of honor that the Master can use in His service (2 Timothy 2:20-21), Worship (Psalm 100); enduring suffering and rejecting worldliness and all its allures.

Spiritual maturity is therefore a process that ultimately draws us closer to Christ and increases our capacity to discern the will of God for our lives. It builds us in the most holy faith as we look forward to the soon return of our Lord Jesus Christ (Jude 1:20).