WHY SOME FAIL TO GROW Post 5

STUNTED GROWTH

Should we assume, however, that spiritual growth just "happens" in the Christian life? Is our part merely to wait long enough for growth to occur? Or do we have a greater responsibility? Those who received the letter to the Hebrews had been Christians long enough for the writer to expect them to have grown to a level of spiritual maturity. Instead, they had remained spiritual infants. The reason for this was because they had been "slow to learn" (Hebrews 5: 11). The Greek ad­jective translated "slow" in this verse is a term that was commonly used in the New Testament era to speak of sluggishness or neglect. They had grown sluggish in their understanding of God's truth and had become slothful in applying it to their lives.
As a result, they had stalled in their spiritual development. That had not always been the case. Hebrews 10:32-34 indicates that these same believers had begun their Christian experiences with considerable enthusiasm, even to the point where they had been willing to joyfully accept the confiscation of their property because of their personal com­mitment to Jesus Christ.
The apostle Paul expressed a complaint similar to that of the au­thor of Hebrews in 1 Corinthians 3. "Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly-mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready" (v. 1-2). The tone of this statement is one of surprise. Paul had expected the Corinthians to be "spiritual." Instead, he found that they were "worldly," or as the Greek text literally says, "fleshly."
To understand the implications of this statement, it is helpful to compare it with similar language used by Paul earlier in the letter. In 1 Corinthians 2, Paul contrasted the "natural" man with the "spiritual" man (vv. 14-15 NASB) and said: "The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned" (v. 14 NIV). Although Paul spoke of an inability to accept spiritual truth in both cases, there is an important but sub­tle difference between them. The person described in 1 Corinthians 2: 14 is one who is devoid of the Holy Spirit. In the Greek text he is characterized as a "soulish" man. The "soulish" man cannot accept the things that come from God's Spirit (i.e., the truths Paul was teaching) because they are "spiritually discerned." He lacks the spiritual capaci­ty to see their value and is unresponsive to God's truth. Because he is spiritually dead, he is incapable of opening his heart to it.
The same cannot be said of the "spiritual infant" described in 1 Co­rinthians 3: 1. This person is "spiritual" in the sense that he possesses the Holy Spirit. But he is not spiritually mature. He is "worldly." In 1 Co­rinthians 2: 14-15 Paul explained that the natural or "soulish" man cannot do what the "spiritual" man can do. But in 1 Corinthians 3: 1 he wrote that he could not address the Corinthians as "spiritual." This was a stinging rebuke. In effect, Paul was telling this church, one which prided itself in its great teaching and its wisdom, that its spiritual ca­pacity was on a par with an unbeliever. This condition forced Paul to adjust his teaching to suit the Corinthians' spiritual state. He treated them like spiritual babies and gave them "milk" instead of "solid food" (1 Corinthians 3:2).
It is sobering to consider that the Corinthians probably did not see themselves as Paul did. They saw themselves as spiritual and ma­ture; when in reality they were fleshly and immature. The proof of their immaturity was seen in the presence of jealousy and quarreling with­in the church. "You are still worldly," Paul wrote. "For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men?" (1 Corinthians 3:3).
We tend to think of spiritual maturity in terms of what a person knows. If someone discusses difficult doctrines, reads complex theologi­cal works, or listens to the most capable Bible teachers, then we say that he or she is mature. Paul's rebuke indicates that God uses a different stan­dard to measure spiritual maturity. The mark of spiritual maturity is not merely the possession of knowledge. True maturity is characterized by applied knowledge. Jesus Himself emphasized this when He said: "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples" John 8:31).
Am I spiritually mature? That depends. It does not depend only on what I know, but also upon how I respond to what I know. The believer whose life is dominated by the things that the Bible characterizes as the works of the flesh is spiritually immature, no matter how much con­tent he or she may have mastered.