Growth Spurts
Scripture Reading — 2 Peter 1:1-11
Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.
Researchers say parents in America spend an average of sixty dollars per month on baby clothing. That is a lot of money. If your child is going through a growth spurt, it can seem like the money is going down the drain fast. On the other hand, would you rather have your child stop growing?
It can be hard, especially for parents, to watch a child struggling to grow and develop properly. It’s even more difficult, however, for our heavenly Father to watch us faltering spiritually. Paul grieved that the Corinthian believers weren’t maturing spiritually: “I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready” (1 Corinthians 3:2). Some of the signs of spiritual immaturity are jealousy and quarreling (1 Corinthians 3:3), being tossed around by false teaching (Ephesians 4:14), and failing to distinguish good from evil (Hebrews 5:14).
Committing your life to Christ may take just a moment, but spiritual growth is a lifelong process that takes place in cycles. As Peter puts it, we need faith, and then we grow in goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, mutual affection, and love. As time goes on, believers grow toward maturity in each of these qualities.
Do you have that desire to grow?
Father, help us to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. To God be the glory, now and forever. In Jesus, Amen.
About the author — Jimmy Tai-On Lin
Rev. Jimmy Lin is the Chinese ministry leader of The Back to God Hour. With his staff in Palos Heights and Hong Kong, Rev. Lin has ministered to over 1.3 billion Chinese-speaking people around the world for 16 years through radio, literature, CD/DVD, Internet, and text message. His wife, Doris, is one of the translators of Today into the Chinese language, which now has a circulation of more than 45,000 copies.
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