Taking Charge of Your Spiritual Health
Nancy Walton Castilleja

Mental knowledge of God, and His Word, are not necessarily indicators of spiritual growth. You can know much about God without knowing Him. Mental knowledge indicates mental growth -- not spiritual growth. 1st Corinthians 8:1b “Knowledge gives pride, but love gives true strength.” (end point of spiritual growth is love. God is love.)

Defining spiritual growth:
Attempting to define or measure spiritual growth? How do you quantify something like that? A groundbreaking passage of scripture for me in this regard was 2ndPeter 1:4-9, “Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.”
This passage lays out a kind of layering approach to spiritual growth, and even uses the uncommon terms "ineffective" and "unproductive" to describe it. The text implies that a person could know whether or not he or she has added goodness to their faith, or knowledge, or self-control, etc. (or, in Great Commandment terms, loving God with your heart [faith], mind [knowledge], strength [self-control]) This text, like so many similar ones in the New Testament, ends with love as the pinnacle of the growth process, or perhaps the word that encompasses all the rest. This passage started with faith. Faith comes first and how does this come to us, but by Romans 10:17 , “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.”
So, spiritual growth includes: (1) increasing in your knowledge and understanding of God's Word, (2) decreasing in your frequency and severity of sin, (3) increasing in your practice of Christ-like qualities, and (4) increasing in your faith and trust in God. Perhaps the best summary of spiritual growth is becoming more like Jesus Christ. In 1 Corinthians 11:1, Paul says, "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." Jesus Christ is the ultimate example of what it truly means to be spiritual.
Paul definitely promoted an intentional and focused approach to spiritual growth. He compared it to sports training in 1st Corinthians 9:25-26, “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air.”
So much of our spiritual growth activity can be described as aimless: striving for an unknown result and either (1) being frustrated that we don't get a result, or (2) becoming self-satisfied that we merely engaged in a spiritual activity. Jesus calls us to more. As different as this may sound, Jesus is results-oriented (read John 15). We are called to increase in our love for God and for our neighbor, to be intentional about it, and not be satisfied by merely engaging in aimless religious practices.

Spiritual Growth - How is it done?
In order for spiritual growth to occur, you first need to make sure you possess a true spiritual life through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. 1stJohn 5:11-12"And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life". When you believe in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit lives inside of you (John 14:16-17) and you are a new creation in Christ! 2nd Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" Your old nature, which is dominated by sin, is replaced with a new nature that is under the influence of God's Spirit (Romans 6-7). Spiritual growth can only occur in a person who knows the Lord Jesus Christ as his or her Savior. Learning how to grow spiritually is a life-long journey which occurs as you read and apply God's Word to your life. 2nd Timothy 3:16-17 teaches us, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." In order for spiritual growth to occur, we must be taught, rebuked, corrected, and trained by God's Word. Then we will be thoroughly equipped for every good work. This is the essence of spiritual growth. Another key to Christian growth is walking in the Spirit. Galatians 5:16-18, 24-26 explains, "So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law…Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other." Walking in the Spirit is allowing Him to fill you (Ephesians 5:18), control you, and guide you. This is brought about by consciously choosing by faith to rely on the Holy Spirit to guide you in thought, word, and deed (Romans 6:11-14). Failure to rely on the Holy Spirit's guidance will result in a believer not living up to the calling and standing that salvation provides. Ephesians 4:1 says, "…I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received." As new believers begin to overcome their earthly vices, there is always a change of their heart, which allows them to increasingly enjoy the benefits of spiritual health that comes from being empowered by the Holy Ghost, and bearing fruit of the Spirit.

Spiritual Growth - What are the results? Spiritual growth is a life-long process of manifesting the acts of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21) less and less and producing the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) more and more. Notice that it is the Holy Spirit who produces the fruit in us. Yes, we must submit ourselves to the Spirit's leading, but it is the Spirit who produces the fruit of spiritual growth in our lives. What does spiritual growth look like? Galatians 5:22-23 has the answer, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
Fruit of the Spirit—Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Are they deepening in a person’s life as time goes on? We should be able to note this. A real conversion will “take” but a phony one will not. Growing Christians progressively exhibit the fruit of the Spirit. If you are becoming more loving, more joyful, more kind, more self-controlled, etc., then you can rest assured that spiritual growth is genuinely occurring in your life. God works in different people in different ways. Some people grow rapidly, while others grow slowly, but steadily. Our focus should not be on comparing ourselves with others, but on comparing ourselves with God's Word. The Scriptures are the mirror to show us what we are like spiritually and to shine light on the areas that need to experience and learn spiritual growth. James 1:23-25 declares, "Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it - he will be blessed in what he does."
Fake fruit: Real spiritual fruit is not dependent on other people and their actions, but is produced as the result of God's life within. A quick glance at the "fruit" in someone's life can be deceptive. Fake spiritual fruit reveals itself when under pressure in the heat of trials. Real fruit tastes even better after extreme heat is applied. Fake fruit melts and disappears. Only as life flows through the branches, does fruit grow. Fruit does not ripen overnight, and cannot be manufactured. How can we know we are growing spiritually? We know by the presence of the fruit of the spirit, control of the tongue, being led by the Spirit of God, and becoming like Christ.
Growing Christians grow to resemble Jesus, their Lord.

Assessing your own growth:
A. You will hunger to know God and His truth on an intimate level. Psalms 119:9-18 “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. 10 I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands.
11 I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. 12 Praise be to you, O LORD; teach me your decrees. 13 With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth. 14 I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches.
15 I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. 16 I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word. 17 Do good to your servant, and I will live; I will obey your word. 18 Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.”

B. You will view spiritual battles, trials, temptations, and failures as avenues of growth instead of obstacles. James 1:2-4, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

How would you best describe your relationship with God?

Self assessment:

1. 1. Have you accepted Christ as savior of your life?
   2. How much time do you spend reading your Bible?
   3. How much time do you spend praying?
   4. Are you aware of your faults, failures, and sins?
   5. Do you come before the church with that and ask for help?
   6. Are you allowing the Lord to prune the vine?
   7. Are you continually striving toward being like Christ? After all He is the one we have to measure ourselves too.