Spiritual Growth – 18

Imagine you saw an usher in your church laying hands on a paralysed man, and suddenly the man leaped to his feet and started walking, what would be your reaction?

“Hey! That usher is a great man of God!”… “He has really gone far”. “…He should not be an usher in the first place”. “…Oh God! When will I grow to that point?” These are examples of what I hear Christians say when they see a miraculous work performed by other believers. They are quick to conclude that such works are a result of spiritual growth and advancement. But the bible says “These are some of the signs that will accompany believers: They will throw out demons in my name, they will speak in new tongues … they will lay hands on the sick and make them well.” Mark 16:17-18

Demon-casting, tongue-speaking and sick-healing are not signs of spiritual growth but are tendencies of every believer. If you are a believer and you have not been experiencing these things, you are like a fish that sees swimming as a strange thing or a sign of maturity. The same thing applies to our perception of the gifts of the spirit. I Cor 12:7-11 says “The manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge …; To another faith …; to another the gifts of healing …; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; … But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

The underpinning principle here is that the Spirit distributes his gifts as he wills and not based on a believer’s spiritual growth. The manifestation of spirit is given to “every man” and not only to “every growing man”. Remember immediately after the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2), they started speaking in tongues and healing the sick, though they were babes in Christ at that time. So we need to adjust our thinking and stop seeing the manifestation of the gifts of the spirit as a sign of spiritual growth. That will save us much trouble in the church because we will no longer see these gifts as a fast track to the office of a pastor or a basis for feeling that we are more advanced Christians.

On the other hand, the manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit in the life of a believer is a proof of spiritual growth. It is the tendency in our lives that surfaces when we yield to the workings of the Holy Spirit. It is similar to apple trees. You do not see their fruits immediately after the apple seeds were sown but after the apple trees have grown. Gal 5:22-23 says “the fruit of the Spirit is: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control”.

Imagine a life where the fruit of the spirit is always displayed, then success will be a lifestyle. For example, nearly every marriage counsellor you meet will tell you that you need two things to succeed in marriage – love and patience. I do not hesitate to remind myself that these virtues are fruit of the spirit. They are not what you get from outside but what you experience when you subject yourself to the influence of the Spirit on your inside. You can now see how spiritual growth is tied to nearly every success in a Christian’s life. Beloved, please always give priority to your spiritual growth.

– tope aladenusi