Most cultures measure growing up by noticeable milestones: a driver’s license, a graduation, a first full-time job, or living under one’s own roof. These transitions are meaningful, yet they only touch the surface of what it means to mature. A person can reach advanced years, carry heavy adult responsibilities, and still remain morally or spiritually underdeveloped.
Scripture offers a far richer and more challenging picture of growth. In the biblical view, growing up is not merely an automatic process driven by time. It is an intentional, graceful shaping of the human heart and mind. God calls His children to step away from passivity and self-centeredness, moving toward spiritual discernment, steady character, and christlike love.
Putting Away Childish Ways
Early childhood is characterized by immediate desires, limited perspective, and dependence. There is a natural innocence in youth, but prolonged spiritual or emotional childhood keeps a person captive to impulse and self-interest. Growing up requires a deliberate decision to leave behind early patterns in favor of enduring wisdom.
The Apostle Paul highlighted this intentional transition when describing the nature of spiritual development:
“When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.” – 1 Corinthians 13:11
Notice that Paul describes an active choice: he “gave up” childish ways. Growing up in faith does not happen by accident; it requires relinquishing old ways of thinking and reacting. Childish speech often blurts out without care; mature speech is guarded with kindness. Childish reasoning focuses entirely on immediate personal comfort; mature reasoning considers the long-term good of others and seeks the glory of God.
Giving up childish ways means accepting responsibility for our reactions, our relationships, and our walk with God. It means recognizing that our feelings are real, but they do not deserve to rule our choices.
The Pattern of Christ’s Growth
If we want to understand what balanced maturity looks like, we look to Jesus. Scripture gives us a brief but profound glimpse into His youth in Nazareth, outlining how He developed across every sphere of human existence.
“And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” – Luke 2:52
This single verse outlines four key dimensions of biblical growth:
- Intellectual and Moral Growth: Increasing in wisdom by learning God’s truth and applying it to daily life.
- Physical Growth: Increasing in stature, caring honorably for the physical life God bestows.
- Spiritual Growth: Growing in favor with God through steady trust, obedience, and communion with the Father.
- Relational Growth: Growing in favor with people by learning how to live graciously, honorably, and peacefully within a community.
True spiritual maturity is holistic. It does not isolate faith into a private Sunday box while leaving our relationships, habits, or minds neglected. To grow up as Jesus grew up means letting God reshape how we speak to our families, how we conduct ourselves in public, and how we handle hardship when no one else is watching.
Moving from Milk to Solid Food
In the physical realm, an infant requires milk because their body cannot digest solid food. As the body grows, its nutritional needs change. Scripture uses this vivid image to describe our spiritual digestion of truth.
“For everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” – Hebrews 5:13-14
Spiritual infancy relies heavily on basic concepts and constant reassurance from others. While foundational truths are precious and necessary, believers are not meant to remain spiritual babies indefinitely. Solid food requires teeth—it demands effort to chew, digest, and apply.
The writer of Hebrews explains how maturity is reached: through “powers of discernment trained by constant practice.” Spiritual growth is a muscle developed over time. As we repeatedly bring our decisions, thoughts, and habits under the light of God’s Word, our capacity to discern truth from falsehood increases. We stop asking merely, “Is this allowed?” and begin asking, “Is this wise? Does this bring glory to God? Does this build up those around me?”
Anchored Against the Winds of Immaturity
One mark of childhood is vulnerability to influence. Children are easily misled by persuasive words, sudden trends, or subtle deception. A major goal of Christian maturation is developing spiritual roots deep enough to withstand the storms and shifting opinions of human culture.
Writing to the church in Ephesus, Paul described the goal of community teaching and discipleship:
“…so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ…” – Ephesians 4:14-15
Immaturity leaves a person unstable, blown about by every new idea or emotional impulse. Maturity brings stability. When our faith is rooted in the truth of Scripture, we are not easily shaken by hardship or misled by trendy ideologies.
Furthermore, Paul notes that true growth expresses itself through “speaking the truth in love.” Unkind harshness is not maturity; neither is quiet cowardice that refuses to stand for truth. Biblical maturity holds truth and love in perfect harmony, reflecting the character of Jesus.
A Lifelong Calling to Grace
Unlike physical growth, which levels off once we reach adulthood, spiritual maturation has no age limit. In God’s kingdom, growing up is a lifelong journey. An eighty-year-old believer is called to grow just as surely as an eighteen-year-old.
“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” – 2 Peter 3:18
Notice the two elements Peter commands us to grow in: grace and knowledge. Growing in knowledge alone can make a person proud and argumentative. Growing in grace without truth can leave a person without conviction. But when we grow in both grace and knowledge together, our lives radiate the warmth, wisdom, and strength of Christ.
Wherever you find yourself today—whether you are entering adulthood, navigating midlife, or reflecting in your later years—God’s call remains gentle and clear. Keep listening to His Word. Keep putting off selfish impulses. Keep training your senses to choose what is good. As you yield your heart to Him day by day, God will faithfully carry out the work of growing you into the fullness of who you were created to be.
