Spiritual Maturity
The world’s way is to choose the strongest and smartest individuals to accomplish tasks. In contrast, the Lord often selects the weakest, who have nothing to offer except total reliance upon Him. This dependency on God is what characterizes the mature in faith.
Such maturity isn’t automatic. Our Father patiently meets people where they are but lovingly refuses to let His children stagnate. Instead, He helps us to grow more and more like His Son (2 Corinthians 3:18). As followers of Christ, we must let go of old ways, ideas, and motivations. The Holy Spirit illuminates our understanding and lets us see from God’s perspective. Then, the Lord can build in us a dependence on Himself and a submission to His Spirit. Transformation is often gradual, but God sometimes will allow difficulty and pain to develop our reliance upon Him.
Consider biblical models of faith. Sarah and Abraham dealt with infertility for many years prior to receiving the promised child (Gen. 21:1-2). Joseph was sold into slavery and wrongly imprisoned before he spared his nation from the effects of famine (Gen. 45:5). To take on God’s assignment of raising the baby Jesus, Mary risked accusations of immorality (Matt. 1:18-19), and her husband Joseph followed God’s inconvenient command to flee areas of danger (Matt. 2:13, Matt. 2:22). These people all faced hardships and brokenness, which allowed them to recognize both their own inability and God’s ability.
What’s standing in your way of full submission to the Lord? His desire for you is to learn to depend on Him so that in your weakness, He will be strong.