PSALM 71:13–14 – May my accusers be put to shame and consumed; with scorn and disgrace may they be covered who seek my hurt. But I will hope continually and will praise you yet more and more.

THEME OF THE DAY. MARKS OF SPIRITUAL GROWTH. Every Christian spiritually grows. It is logical, to be expected, and will occur. When Jesus told the religious leader, Nicodemus, “You must be born again”, He indicates that spiritual birth isn’t becoming religious, it is obtaining a new life (John 3:3). And where there is life, there will be growth. The Apostle Paul said, “If anyone be in Christ, he is a new creature. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17). The new life will mature. It will develop. The Apostle Peter would close out his second epistle with these words, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). As it is unnatural for a physical birth of a child to not go on to growth and maturity, it is the same in the spiritual realm. Spiritual birth is always followed by spiritual growth, but what would this growth look like in the day-to-day living out of the Christian life? Let’s consider two of the highest marks of spiritual growth.

First, a born-again person; an individual radically changed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ, will be maturing in the Fruit of God’s Spirit – “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). But we must be careful when we evaluate ourselves in the mirror of this Fruit. These are not human traits. These cannot be produced by our efforts or what we inherit through our ancestry. And it is easy to miss these vital truths. In the human realm, some of these traits do exist in people. For instance, we know people who have a natural bent toward kindness and gentleness. We also know people who seem to have a ton of patience and self-control. But these human traits are not the Fruit of the Spirit. And Christians must be able to distinguish the difference. And how would we do so? Two ways. First, know this Fruit is the character of Jesus. This growth is about Jesus, not us. Second, this Fruit, when present, always produces a self-denying, self-sacrificing individual who is more and more consumed with doing God’s will, serving people for God’s glory, and being burdened for people to be changed by God’s Gospel. And this is a natural part of spiritual maturity for the Fruit of the Spirit, the character of Jesus, is not for our comfort, but for our Christ-centered influence.

Another mark of spiritual maturity is in today’s scripture. It is a life of progressive praise. The Psalmist writes, “I will praise you yet more and more.” The Christian life is the worshipping life; the adoring of Christ life; the praising life. And notice that the Psalmist is doing so not in the calm seas of life. He is being threatened, persecuted, and verbally abused by his accusers. This is a powerful lesson on praise. Like the Fruit of the Spirit, true worship and praise cannot be engineered by human effort. Worship does not occur because of dimmed lights, elaborate environments, or any other man-generated scenes. Worship occurs in the context of God’s Presence and is always characterized by holiness, the fear of God, and deep humility in the worshipper. In true worship, there is even a greater sense of one’s sinfulness that meets God’s undeserving love and grace. And maturing Christians will grow more and more in this experience of holy praise despite circumstances and situations in life.

There are other marks in us affirming our growth in Christ, but the chief ones will be the increasing presence of the Fruit of the Spirit and of praise in and from our lives.

PRAYER: “Father, show me more and more of Yourself that I may praise You more and more.”

QUOTE: “An ever-increasing life of praise is a mark of spiritual maturity.”