What Is Maturity In Christ Jesus?

[dhchristian]

The Question has popped up several times, and I Believe that Jesus And John Gave us the Path to maturity. John in His first Epistle Wrote of the Three stages of our Christian walk, as Children, Young men/women, and Fathers or elders of the faith. but he did not fully define these levels, Jesus on the other hand showed us the way in the sermon on the mount. Some scriptures first.

I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake. I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father. I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one. (1 John 2:12-14)

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  I Posted an article on this, But this is the very first thing we do when we come to saving that is to admit our need and see ourselves as poor and destitute in God's eyes. this is the conviction of the Holy Ghost when we see the Holiness of God and our helpless state. Read link here. 

Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. The very first fruit of the Spirit is the fruit of repentance. Repentance is the daily mourning for our sinful condition and changes us from the inside out as we turn away from sin. Many post modern churches no longer preach repentance thus they are keeping the members of the church in a suckling state. Some may indeed reach repentance But they are few and far between, and the main reason for this is the lack of preaching on repentance. It is quite possible that Many of the church leaders have never themselves grown past this stage. 

Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. The First two beatitudes are self-centered, Meekness is where we begin to intercede for others. Being meek is not weakness, and neither is it Humility, But rather It is the resolve to allow the Lord to do his will through you, to reach others for Christ Jesus. This is the Early zeal that a new believer has to serve the LORD, which in most church settings is allowed to wane and fade away because they label them as busy bodies. I Know anyone who has been  in a church setting is familiar with this, hindering of the move of the Holy Ghost in the life of the believer, by telling them not to rock the Boat. A Believer who reaches this stage is now becomes a "young man". Many in the churches never graduate past this stage.

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. This then marks the Young man/Woman phase of our walk. As per the Passage from 1 John, these people now have discernment. They are able to see the World not as Good and evil, but as righteous and Wicked. There is a huge difference between these two concepts, which hearkens back to the Garden of Eden as well as Malachi 3:18 Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not. A Person can do good things externally such as not murdering anyone, But their hearts are still wicked and full of Hate. To Hunger for righteousness is to desire to see the heart changed, both in ourselves and in society as a whole, for then we finally are able to discern who serves God and who does not. As the Old saying Goes, "the road to Hell is paved with good intentions", and much of what passes for church is good intentions and moralism done by the will of man. Once a Christian reaches this level of Maturity are they able to eat the meat of the Word of God.

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Once we learn to discern righteousness and Wickedness we learn to extend Mercy to those who are unable to see and those who are lost. We learn to Love even our enemies, and bless those who persecute us, because of the mercy he has shown and extended to us. Like a cup running over, the Love of God for us begins to flow to those who do not even deserve that Love, Just he loved us who did not deserve his Love.

Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. This, then is the final phase of our being Young men, for we have now overcome Satan, and the Word of God abideth in us. Purity of Heart is when our motives become Pure. Our Flesh still being corrupt, can still lead us to sin, But we do not desire the sin in our inner being. This is what marks Overcomers in the letters to the churches in revelation, for through all of the above stages in our walk we overcome the Wicked one, and his schemes, but we cannot do that till we have discernment. Those who are Pure in heart, now become Fathers or Elders in the faith.

Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. The first thing an elder of the faith and it grieves them is the lack of Unity in the church. their desire is to Unify all in the Spirit of Truth. Peacemaking is not about tolerance of false doctrines and heresies, but a desire to bring people to a greater understanding of the Truth of the Word of God. They are the leaders in the churches (Or should be) who keep the bond of Peace in the speaking the Truth in Love.

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  The natural outworking of being a leader and an elder is to face persecution. the persecution can come from within the church as the tares that are within try to bring schism, and or heresy in, Or the from without, as the face of the church, from the principalities and powers of this world who want to destroy the church and prevent it from reaching Maturity as a whole. 

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. The Final call of a an elder in Christ Jesus is to be falsely accused, and physically and mentally persecuted for Speaking the Truth to Powers. It is ironic, that John Writes of the Fathers "for you have known him who is from the beginning." There is no Doubt, there I no wavering from the Truth for the fathers, for they know God who is our creator, and Author, and finisher of our faith... he was and is and is to come. They now have the faith to move mountains and will stand in the end times opposing the Powers that be with their lives at Stake. 

God Bless.

[Debp]

I also think a mature Christian exhibits the fruits of the Spirit.... Galatians 5:22-23.   Anyone can have alot of head knowledge, but the Holy Spirit manifesting the fruits of the Spirit in an individual's life is evidence of maturity.

 

 

[dhchristian]

1 hour ago, Debp said:

I also think a mature Christian exhibits the fruits of the Spirit.... Galatians 5:22-23.   Anyone can have alot of head knowledge, but the Holy Spirit manifesting the fruits of the Spirit in an individual's life is evidence of maturity.

The first fruit a believer will bear is repentance, So even a child of the faith will bear the fruit of the Spirit Seeing as these fruit are produced by the Holy Ghost in them. Obviously a mature branch that is in the vine will bear more fruit, once it has been pruned. See John 15:2.

[Neighbor]

Maturity eh?

Okay; a fullest  maturity never happens until sanctification is complete unto glorification.

“As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified”

 

[johnthebaptist]

18 hours ago, dhchristian said:

The Question has popped up several times, and I Believe that Jesus And John Gave us the Path to maturity. John in His first Epistle Wrote of the Three stages of our Christian walk, as Children, Young men/women, and Fathers or elders of the faith. but he did not fully define these levels, Jesus on the other hand showed us the way in the sermon on the mount. Some scriptures first.

I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake. I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father. I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one. (1 John 2:12-14)

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  I Posted an article on this, But this is the very first thing we do when we come to saving that is to admit our need and see ourselves as poor and destitute in God's eyes. this is the conviction of the Holy Ghost when we see the Holiness of God and our helpless state. Read link here. 

Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. The very first fruit of the Spirit is the fruit of repentance. Repentance is the daily mourning for our sinful condition and changes us from the inside out as we turn away from sin. Many post modern churches no longer preach repentance thus they are keeping the members of the church in a suckling state. Some may indeed reach repentance But they are few and far between, and the main reason for this is the lack of preaching on repentance. It is quite possible that Many of the church leaders have never themselves grown past this stage. 

Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. The First two beatitudes are self-centered, Meekness is where we begin to intercede for others. Being meek is not weakness, and neither is it Humility, But rather It is the resolve to allow the Lord to do his will through you, to reach others for Christ Jesus. This is the Early zeal that a new believer has to serve the LORD, which in most church settings is allowed to wane and fade away because they label them as busy bodies. I Know anyone who has been  in a church setting is familiar with this, hindering of the move of the Holy Ghost in the life of the believer, by telling them not to rock the Boat. A Believer who reaches this stage is now becomes a "young man". Many in the churches never graduate past this stage.

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. This then marks the Young man/Woman phase of our walk. As per the Passage from 1 John, these people now have discernment. They are able to see the World not as Good and evil, but as righteous and Wicked. There is a huge difference between these two concepts, which hearkens back to the Garden of Eden as well as Malachi 3:18 Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not. A Person can do good things externally such as not murdering anyone, But their hearts are still wicked and full of Hate. To Hunger for righteousness is to desire to see the heart changed, both in ourselves and in society as a whole, for then we finally are able to discern who serves God and who does not. As the Old saying Goes, "the road to Hell is paved with good intentions", and much of what passes for church is good intentions and moralism done by the will of man. Once a Christian reaches this level of Maturity are they able to eat the meat of the Word of God.

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Once we learn to discern righteousness and Wickedness we learn to extend Mercy to those who are unable to see and those who are lost. We learn to Love even our enemies, and bless those who persecute us, because of the mercy he has shown and extended to us. Like a cup running over, the Love of God for us begins to flow to those who do not even deserve that Love, Just he loved us who did not deserve his Love.

Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. This, then is the final phase of our being Young men, for we have now overcome Satan, and the Word of God abideth in us. Purity of Heart is when our motives become Pure. Our Flesh still being corrupt, can still lead us to sin, But we do not desire the sin in our inner being. This is what marks Overcomers in the letters to the churches in revelation, for through all of the above stages in our walk we overcome the Wicked one, and his schemes, but we cannot do that till we have discernment. Those who are Pure in heart, now become Fathers or Elders in the faith.

Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. The first thing an elder of the faith and it grieves them is the lack of Unity in the church. their desire is to Unify all in the Spirit of Truth. Peacemaking is not about tolerance of false doctrines and heresies, but a desire to bring people to a greater understanding of the Truth of the Word of God. They are the leaders in the churches (Or should be) who keep the bond of Peace in the speaking the Truth in Love.

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  The natural outworking of being a leader and an elder is to face persecution. the persecution can come from within the church as the tares that are within try to bring schism, and or heresy in, Or the from without, as the face of the church, from the principalities and powers of this world who want to destroy the church and prevent it from reaching Maturity as a whole. 

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. The Final call of a an elder in Christ Jesus is to be falsely accused, and physically and mentally persecuted for Speaking the Truth to Powers. It is ironic, that John Writes of the Fathers "for you have known him who is from the beginning." There is no Doubt, there I no wavering from the Truth for the fathers, for they know God who is our creator, and Author, and finisher of our faith... he was and is and is to come. They now have the faith to move mountains and will stand in the end times opposing the Powers that be with their lives at Stake. 

God Bless.

Maturity in Christ might be when someone regularly practices what the Lord taught.

[dhchristian]

9 hours ago, Neighbor said:

Maturity eh?

Okay; a fullest  maturity never happens until sanctification is complete unto glorification.

“As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified”

 

1 hour ago, johnthebaptist said:

Maturity in Christ might be when someone regularly practices what the Lord taught.

If You will Notice, the beatitudes resemble the Life Of Christ. But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. (Eph. 4:15-16)

[DAVID5]

ADMITTING YOUR A SINNER,AND AT FAULT...FOR SOME EVENTS NOT ALL..ASKING FOR HIS LOVE TO SURROUND YOU,,(JESUS' LOVE NO ONE ELSES')

[Blood Bought 1953]

 A Mature Believer will do what His Lord commanded him to do. Obey! How do we do that? On this side of the Cross , we must do two things: “Believe and Love”

 “ My Commands are not burdensome”  Indeed, they are not....especially if you have the Holy Spirit in you.If you do not have that Spirit , you are “ none of His” anyway. Don’t waste your time trying to do something which for you is a Fool’s Errand......Concentrate on Believing the Gospel: Jesus Plus Nothing .

 

[missmuffet]

1. Receive the truth of God's word.

2. Put Christ in control of your life.

3. Leaving the world behind.

4. Building trust and faith in Jesus Christ.

5. Obeying God

6. Showing that you possess the fruit of the Holy Spirit.