In Part 1 of chapter 3\u2019s devotion, we will look at spiritual growth.\u00a0 Believe it or not, spiritual growth doesn\u2019t just happen.\u00a0 It is something that we must be intentional about in our life.\u00a0 Paul says that he desires to have spoken to them as \u201cspiritual\u201d but that he can\u2019t.\u00a0 Paul invested 18 months in the church at Corinth, and now time has passed and he has expected them to grow more in their faith.\u00a0 However, we see in the end of verse 1 that they are still \u201cbabes in Christ.\u201d\u00a0 Paul uses a physical illustration to teach a spiritual truth.<\/p>\n
I am the proud father of four beautiful children, and so this illustration makes sense.\u00a0 When a child is first born, why do we give him or her milk?\u00a0 We give it to them because their stomachs cannot handle solid food.\u00a0 They are still growing and expanding, and the body is learning how to digest and process foods.\u00a0 However, long about the six month mark you begin to give some baby food.\u00a0 You continue to give them a little more \u201ctable\u201d food until around their first birthday they are primarily eating solid food.\u00a0 They are relying on \u201ctable\u201d food for the nutrition more and the milk less.\u00a0 This is a sign of natural growth.\u00a0 The same is true in the beginning for a Christian.\u00a0 They are not able to handle, understand, or process some of the deeper truths and theological discussions.\u00a0 They are not unintelligent or anything, they simply aren\u2019t able to handle it at this time.\u00a0 However, as they grow in their faith through obedience to the Bible, they are able to handle more and deeper teaching.\u00a0 The church at Corinth wasn\u2019t able to handle it because they were still fighting among each other.\u00a0 There was jealousy, fighting, and divisions in the church.\u00a0 Paul uses those things to tell them that they are living like they are not saved.\u00a0\u00a0 A mature Christian is not going to get into the senseless debates of secondary doctrines that often cause division in a church.\u00a0 A mature Christian is going to understand that fighting with my brother or sister is not helpful to the cause of Christ.\u00a0 A mature Christian will understand that they are not to compare themselves to other Christians, but rather they are to compare themselves to Christ\u2019s example.\u00a0 However, Paul says that they can\u2019t do that because they aren\u2019t growing in their faith.\u00a0 I wonder how many people Paul would say this to in our churches today?\u00a0 The truth is many people accept Christ, but they never grow out of their spiritual infancy.\u00a0 This has had a crippling affect on the effectiveness of the church today.\u00a0 In today\u2019s culture there are many who want to debate the merits of Christianity and the teachings of the Bible.\u00a0 Yet, there are not many Christians who can sufficiently defend their faith.\u00a0 The result is more and more people are walking about from Christianity.\u00a0 I know that we are to walk by faith and not by sight, but God did not call us to check our mind at the church door on Sunday and Wednesday.\u00a0 Christianity is a logical belief system that can be understood and defended if we give ourselves to careful study of the Scriptures.<\/p>\n
How does one become able to eat spiritual \u201csteak\u201d instead of spiritual \u201ccarnation instant breakfast?\u201d\u00a0 The answer to that is found in John 15 where Jesus says that we are to \u201cabide in Him.\u201d\u00a0 That means we are to remain in Him, depend on Him, and follow Him.\u00a0 To do that is going to take a high level of intentionality.\u00a0 I am going to have to discipline myself to read the Bible, and ask for God\u2019s help to live it out.\u00a0 Not only is spiritual growth not automatic, it is not easy.\u00a0 If you are going to grow in your faith you are going to have to know that it will be difficult.\u00a0 The Bible will confront you with sinful actions and attitudes that you must allow God to change.\u00a0 You are going to have to set out a regular time to read the Bible and to pray asking for wisdom to live it out. It may not be easy, but I assure you it is worth it.<\/p>\n
By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In Part 1 of chapter 3\u2019s devotion, we will look at spiritual growth.\u00a0 Believe it or not, spiritual growth doesn\u2019t just happen.\u00a0 It is something that we must be intentional about in our life.\u00a0 Paul says that he desires to … Read More