Ask yourself, “Am I the kind of leader God wants me to be? Or, is it time for me to mature as a leader?”
Some days I close out the day and I think, “Yep, I did a decent job being the kind of leader God wants me to be.” However, some days I say to myself, “I failed today. I wasn’t the kind of leader God wants me to be!”
Sometimes I demonstrate spiritual maturity, and there are those times when I do not. This inconsistency concerns me a great deal. So… I guess it’s time for me to mature as a leader!
Spiritual Milk or Spiritual Meat?
The apostle Paul brought up this very issue of spiritual immaturity with the Corinthians. He told them he could not talk to them in spiritual terms because they were still worldly, jealous, arguing, and quarreling with one another. Therefore, he said, he could only give them spiritual milk, not solid food (1 Corinthians 3:1-4).
The author of Hebrews, in his letter to the Christian Jews, made much the same point about spiritual maturity. He said he would like to give them solid spiritual food, but they were too immature. They could only handle spiritual milk. Solid food, says the author, is for those who can distinguish between good and evil (Hebrews 5:11-14).
The spiritual milk that Paul and the author of Hebrews refer to is an understanding of the Scripture; of what God expects of us as believers. In contrast, spiritual food is not simply a deeper understanding of the scripture. Rather, spiritual food is learning how to put that knowledge into practice!
It’s the difference between knowing and doing!
The Mark of Spiritual Maturity
In his letter to Christians in Asia, the apostle Peter also brought up the issue of spiritual maturity. Specifically, Peter said those who were spiritually mature would escape the corruption of the world caused by evil desire (2 Peter 1:4).
Peter gave us some advice, a pathway if you will, to spiritual maturity.
“…make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love” 2 Peter 1:5-7.
Peter begins by saying we must make every effort to become spiritually mature. We begin with faith, but along with our faith, we must have a passion for growth. It takes effort. Spiritual maturity is not a passive adventure. It takes concerted, disciplined effort!
So, while our faith is the foundation, the spiritually mature believer seeks to grow in goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, Godliness, brotherly kindness, and love.
Let’s look at each of these for a moment to see how they impact the life of a believer.
Goodness
Growth in our faith will bring about goodness. The idea of goodness is a person who exhibits virtue or moral excellence. In Peter’s day, a man or woman of virtue was characterized by their strength, valor, courage, and excellence.
Knowledge
The growth in knowledge that Peter refers to is not worldly knowledge. Peter is saying the spiritually mature believer grows in spiritual knowledge.
Self-Control
Growth in self-control means our passions, thoughts, and actions are under control.
Perseverance
To grow in perseverance means we do not quit in the face of persecution or trials. We remain steadfast in our faith and persevere until the end.
Godliness
To grow in Godliness means exactly what it sounds like. As Godly men and women, we desire to grow and become more like God in our character.
Brotherly Kindness
Brotherly kindness implies a special relationship between believers. There should exist within the community of believers a special bond forged by our shared belief in Jesus and His finished work on the cross on our behalf.
Love
Love for our Christian brothers leads to love for all of God’s children and all the things of God. Jesus summed up this love in the Great Commandment when He said we should love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and we should love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-39).
I also think that it is worth noting that this pathway to spiritual maturity begins with faith and ends with love. The first five attributes (goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, and Godliness) involve our inner life and relationship to God, while the last two (kindness, love) involve our relationship with others.
As we grow on this pathway from spiritual immaturity to spiritual maturity, we become more like Christ.
As leaders, when we are spiritually mature, we become the powerful, inspired leaders God intends us to be!
More Articles on Vision
I’ve written a few other articles on self-discipline. If you want to read them you can type “self-discipline” in the search bar, or click on one of the links below.
- #097: Is It Important to Align Our Life to God’s Vision For Us?
- #203: Terrifying Boyhood Adventure Results in Valuable Life Lessons
- #342: Are Vision Statements a Complete Waste of Time?
Join the Conversation
As always, questions and comments are welcome. Where are you on the journey to becoming spiritually mature as a leader? Are you still taking in spiritual milk, or are you ready for spiritual food?
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Category: Personal Development | Vision
