Stages of Spiritual Maturity - Uncompromising Faith

Stages of Spiritual Maturity

? Homer Les and Wanda Ring

uncompromisingfaith.ca

Stages of Spiritual Maturity

The purpose of this set of documents is to properly lay out the stages of spiritual maturity that will occur in an individual s life if they are willing to grow in relationship with God the Holy Spirit, God the Son and God the Father.

In reading the whole of God s Word it is clear that God has laid out a very distinct and distinguishable pattern for growth into spiritual maturity. As we see a plant in the natural world go from a seed to a baby plant to a mature plant and a person grows from baby to child to adult so too we can see that pattern in spiritual growth. The main difference between natural growth and spiritual growth is that in order to grow spiritually you have to decide to grow. Your will has to actively decide and then act on any decision to grow. Growth in spiritual maturity, unlike natural growth, is not automatic or guaranteed. This document does not assume that growth will occur but only lays out the scriptural path that God has shown believers for spiritual growth to occur.

A word of caution before proceeding. In Jeremiah 17:9 we read The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly perverse and corrupt and severely, mortally sick! Who can know it [perceive, understand, be acquainted with his own heart and mind]? When reading these documents it is very easy to assume that your progress is much further along than it actually is. As humans we have great capacity for self deception because of our inherited self nature (anti-spirit). Before judging your own position in the stages of spiritual maturity it would be best to ask the Holy Spirit to give you proper insight into your own spiritual condition first and then to ask those that are spiritually mature if they agree.

All references taken from The Amplified Bible?

To be freely distributed - uncompromisingfaith.ca

Stages of Spiritual Maturity

Stage 1 (Plowing)

Stage 2 (Sowing)

Stage 3 (Reaping)

Sweat (wool) ? Genesis 3:19

Mixture (wool and linen) ? Ezek. 44:17-18

Rest (linen) ? Hebrews 4:9-10, Revelation 19:7-8

The action of Self-led Doing

Mixture - Self-led Doing & Spirit-Led Being

The state of Spirit-led Being

Income ? Proverbs 3:9; Ecclesiastes 2:11; Haggai 1:6

Manna ? Psalm 78:24; John 6:31

Inheritance ? Galatians 4:1; Revelation 21:7

Servant responsibility ? Galatians 4:1-3

Servant surrender ? Phil. 2:5-7; Hebrews 12:1-3

Prodigal leaving ? Luke 15:11-13

C

Prodigal loss ? Luke 15:14-19

Jews ? Romans 2:28-29

O

Priests ? 1 Peter 2:5

Obedience ? Hebrews 5:8; 1 Peter 1:14

S

Crucifixion & death ? Galatians 2:20; Heb. 6:12

Old nature of lying ? Ge. 3:7; Num 23:19; Rom. 3:4

T

Exposing duplicity ? Gen. 32:27-28; Matt. 26:74-75

Adult sonship ? Galatians 4:4-5; Ephesians 4:13

Prodigal returning ? Luke 15:20-24 High priest ? Hebrews 5:10; 1 Peter 2:9 Resurrection & reigning ? Eph. 2:6; Phil. 3:10-11 New nature of truth ? John 1:47; Revelation 14:5

Slaves ? Exodus 13:17-18; John 8:35; Galatians 4:1

Fighting force ? Exodus 17:8-13; Ps. 18:34, 144:1

Kings ? Psalm 89:27; Romans 5:17; Revelation 19:7-8

Believers ? Matthew 4:25; Acts 5:14

Disciples ? Mt. 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23-24,14:33

Called-out ones ? Hos. 4:12; Eph. 5:24; Heb 12:23

Engagement ? Jeremiah 2:2; Ezekiel 16:4-7

Preparation ? Esther 2:8-9, 12; Hosea 2:14-16

Marriage ? Song 8:8; John 14:23; Revelation 19:7-8

Virgins ? 2 Corinthians 11:2

Wise virgins ? Psalm 45:14b; Matthew 25:1-13

Bride ? Psalm 45:9-14a; Revelation 19:7-8

My beloved is mine and I am his ? Song of

Songs 2:16

Faith ? Matthew 17:19-20; 1 Corinthians 13:13 Conception ? 1 John 3:9 Holy Spirit ? John 16:13-15 Green pastures ? Psalm 23:1-3 Paradise ? Revelation 2:7 Outer Court ? 1 Kings 8:64; 2 Chronicles 7:7

I am my beloved s and my beloved is mine ?

B

Song of Songs 6:3

E

Hope ? Romans 5:3-5; 1 Corinthians 13:13

N

Circumcision ? Colossians 2:11

E

Jesus the Son ? Song of Songs 8:5

F

Valley of death ? Psalm 23:4-5a

I

Holy City ? Hebrews 11:8-10

T

Holy Place ? Ex. 26:33; Lev. 6:12-13; Hebrews 9:2

I am my beloved s and his desire is for me ?

B

Song of Songs 7:10

E

Love ? John 13:34-35; 1 Cor. 13:13; 1 John 4:17-18

N

Adoption ? Romans 8:13-15

E

Heavenly Father ? Matthew 5:48

F

God s Presence ? Psalm 23:5b-6

I

Throne Room ? Revelation 4:2-11

T

Most Holy Place ? Exodus 26:34; Hebrews 9:3-8

Sunlight ? Isa. 42:16, 19; 2 Peter 1:9; Rev. 3:17-18

Lamp light ? Ps. 119:105; 1 Cor. 13:12; Prov. 31:18

Shining splendor ? Isa. 50:10; Mal. 4:2; Rev. 22:4-5

30 fold ? Matthew 3:8, 13:8, 23

60 fold ? Matthew 13:8, 23; John 15:2

100 fold ? Matt. 13:8, 23; John 15:5, 8; Gal. 5:22-23

Seed & tree ? Psalm 52:8; Matthew 13:3; Luke 8:11

Pruning ? Luke 13:6-9; John 15:2; Ephesians 3:17

Much fruit ? Psalm 92:12-15; Song of Songs 7:7

Joseph as slave ? Genesis 39:1-19 Ruth as prototype ? Book of Ruth Children ? Hebrews 5:13; 1 Pet. 2:2; 1 John 2:13-14 Esther at Susa ? Esther 1:2 Passover ? Exodus 13:3; 23:15 Egypt ? Exodus 3:7-10; Revelation 18:4

Joseph as prisoner ? Genesis 39:20-40:23

M Job as prototype ? Book of Job

O

Young men ? 1 John 2:13-14

D

Esther at the Palace ? Esther 2:8-12

E

Pentecost ? Ex. 23:16a; Lev. 23:10; Jeremiah 2:3

L

Wilderness ? Hosea 2:14-15; Mark 1:12-13

Joseph as ruler ? Genesis 41:1-46

M Melchizedek as prototype ? Genesis 14:18

O

Fathers ? Hebrews 5:14; 1 John 2:13-14

D Esther crowned Queen ? Esther 2:17

E

Tabernacles ? Exodus 23:16b; Hosea 12:9

L

Promised Land ? Deut. 34:1-3; Ps. 81:13-16

Elementary school ? Lamentations 3:39

High school ? Hebrews 6:1

University ? Genesis 17:1-2

Bronze ? Exodus 25:1-3, 35:5; Jeremiah 15:19-20

Silver ? Exodus 25:1-3, 35:5; Zech. 13:9; Haggai 2:8

Gold ? Exodus 25:1-3; 35:5; Zech. 13:9; Haggai 2:8

Caterpillar (worm) ? Psalm 22:6; Isaiah 41:14

Cocoon ? Psalm 4:1; Isaiah 61:1

Butterfly ? Psalm 55:6; Isaiah 40:31

All references taken from The Amplified Bible?

To be freely distributed - uncompromisingfaith.ca

Stages of Spiritual Maturity

Stage 1 (Plowing)

Sl aves

Ex odus 13 :17 -18 - Wh en P hara oh l et the pe opl e go, God led t hem not b y wa y o f the la nd o f the Ph il i st in es, al th ough th at wa s nea re r; fo r Go d sai d, Le st the peop le ch ange the ir p urpose wh en th ey see wa r an d return t o Egypt. Bu t Go d le d th e p eop le aro und by way of t he wild erness to ward th e Red Sea. An d th e Israelites wen t up marsha le d [in ran ks ] ou t of th e land of Egypt .

John 8:35 - Now a slave doe s no t re main in a ho use hol d perma nent ly (fo re ve r); th e s on [of th e ho use] do es remain forever.

Galati ans 4:1 - Now what I mean is that as long as th e i nheri tor (he ir) is a ch ild a nd un der ag e, he do es no t d if fer from a slave, alth ough he is th e ma st er of al l the estat e;

Stage 2 (Sowing)

Fi ghti ng force

Ex odus 17 :9-11 - An d Mo se s s ai d t o J os hua, Cho ose u s ou t men an d go out , figh t wit h Am al ek. Tomo rro w I wil l sta nd on t he to p of th e hill wit h t he ro d of God in my han d.

So Joshu a d id a s Mo ses sa id a nd fou ght with Am alek; an d Mo ses, Aa ron, an d Hur went up t o th e hillt op. Wh en M oses held u p his ha nd, Israel prev ai l ed; an d whe n h e l owe re d h is h and , Am al ek prevailed.

Ps alm 18:34 - He t eaches my ha nds to war , so th at m y arms can b end a b ow of bron ze .

Ps alm 14 4:1 - Blessed be th e Lord, my Rock and my keen a nd f irm Stren gth , Wh o te aches my hands to war and my fingers to fight

Stage 3 (Reaping)

Ki ngs

Ps alm 89:27 - Al s o I wi l l ma ke h im the f irs tbo rn , th e hi gh es t of th e k i ngs of the ea rt h.

Romans 5:17 - For if b ecause of on e man s trespa ss (lapse, of fense) de ath reigned th rough th at one , muc h mo re s urel y wi l l th os e who receive [God s] overflowing grace (un merited fa vor ) an d th e f ree g if t o f right eousne ss [pu tting th em into rig ht sta nding with Himse lf ] reign as kin gs in life th rough t he on e Man Jesus Christ (th e Me ssiah, th e A nointe d One).

Rev elati on 22 :5 - An d th ere s ha ll be no more nigh t; th ey h ave no nee d for lamp light or sunlight, fo r the Lo rd God will illuminat e t hem an d be the ir lig ht, an d they shall reign [as king s] fo re ve r and ev er (th ro ugh the ete rni ti es of the et erni ti es).

Servant responsibil ity

Galati ans 4:1-3 - Now what I mean is that as long as the in heritor (he ir) is a ch ild and u nder ag e, he d oes not diff er from a slave, alth ough h e is the ma st er of all t he estate; bu t h e is un der gu ardi ans a nd a dmi ni s trato rs or tru ste es un ti l the da te fixe d b y his f athe r. So we [Jewish Chri sti ans] also, whe n we were minors, were ke pt l ik e s la ve s un der [th e ru le s of t he Heb re w ri tu al an d subject to] th e eleme ntary te achin gs of a syste m of extern al observati on s and regul at io ns.

Servant surrender

Phi lippians 2:5-7 - Le t th is same at titude and pu rp os e and [hu mbl e] mi nd be i n y ou whi ch wa s in Christ Jesus: [Let Him be your example in hu mility:] who, alth ough being essent ia lly one with God and in the form of God [po ssessing the fu ll ness of t he at tri bute s wh ich ma ke Go d Go d ], did not [th in k this e quality with God was a t hing to b e eage rly gras ped o r ret ai ned , bu t st ri pp ed Himself [of all privilege s and rig htf ul dignity ], so as t o assume the gu ise o f a serva nt (sla ve), in th at He b ecame like men and was b orn a h uman be in g.

Hebr ews 12:1 - There fore t hen, sin ce we are surroun ded by so gre at a clo ud of wit nesse s [who ha ve born e t estimony to the Truth ], let us strip of f and t hrow asid e every e ncu mbran ce (un nec es sa ry wei ght ) an d that s i n whi ch s o read ily (de ftly a nd cle ve rly) cling s to and en tang le s us, an d let us run wit h pa tient en durance a nd stead y a nd active persiste nce the ap pointe d cou rse of t he race that is set b efore us,

Adult sonshi p

Galati ans 4:4-5 - Bu t when th e prope r time h ad fu ll y c ome , God se nt His S on , bo rn of a woma n, bo rn s ubj ec t to [th e reg ul ati on s of ] th e L aw, to pu rc ha se t he freed om of (to ran so m, to red eem, to aton e fo r) th ose who we re subject to the L aw , th at we m ig ht be ado pted an d have son sh ip c onfe rred up on u s [an d be re co gni z ed a s G od s sons].

Ephes ians 4:13 - [That it mig ht develop] un til we all at tain onen ess in the fa it h a nd in the compre hension o f t he [fu ll an d accurate ] knowledg e of the Son of God, th at [we m ig ht arri ve ] at re al ly mat ure ma nhoo d (th e complet eness of pe rson alit y wh ich is n othing less than the stand ard h eight of Christ s own pe rf ec ti on), th e mea sure of th e s tatu re of t he fu ll nes s of th e Ch ri s t a nd the co mpl ete nes s fo und in Him.

All references taken from The Amplified Bible?

To be freely distributed - uncompromisingfaith.ca

Stages of Spiritual Maturity

Stage 1 (Plowing)

Income

Proverbs 3:9 - Hon or t he Lord with you r capita l an d suff iciency [from righte ous labo rs] an d with th e fi rs tfrui ts o f a ll y our in com e;

Ec cle sias tes 2:11 - Then I looked on all t hat my ha nds had d one a nd th e la bor I ha d spent in do in g it, an d b ehold, all was va nity and a striving af ter the win d and a f eed ing on i t, an d there w as no prof it und er th e sun.

Haggai 1:6 - Yo u have sown much, bu t yo u ha ve reap ed little; you ea t, bu t yo u do not h ave en ough; you drin k, bu t you do n ot have you r fill ; you cloth e yourselve s, bu t no one is warm ; an d he who earns wages has earned them to put them in a bag with holes in it.;

Stage 2 (Sowing)

Manna

Ps alm 78:24 - An d He raine d down upon the m man na to e at and gave t hem hea ven s grain.

John 6:31 - Our f orefa the rs ate t he man na in t he wild erness; as t he Scrip ture sa ys, He gave them bread out of heaven to eat.

Stage 3 (Reaping)

I n h er it a n c e

Galati ans 4:1 - Now wh at I mea n is t hat as lon g as the in heritor (he ir) is a child an d und er age , he doe s not di ff er f ro m a s la ve , al th ough he i s th e ma st er of all the estat e;

Rev elati on 21 :7 - He who i s vi c tori ous sh al l i nhe ri t al l the se thi ng s, an d I wi ll b e God to h im and he shall be My son..

O be d ie n c e

Hebrews 5:8 - Alth oug h H e w as a Son, He learned [active, special] obedience through what He su ffere d

1 Pe ter 1:14 - [Live] as ch ildren o f obed ie nce [to God]; do n ot confo rm yo urse lves to th e evil de si res [th at govern ed you] in yo ur forme r i gno ra nc e [whe n y ou d id not k now t he requ ire ment s of t he Gospe l].

Cruci fixion & death

Hosea 6:1-2 - Com e and le t us retu rn to t he Lo rd , fo r He h as t orn so t hat He m ay h eal us ; He ha s st ri c k en s o tha t He ma y bi nd us up . Af ter two da ys He will revive us (qu icken u s, give us life); on the th ird day He will raise u s up t hat we m ay live befo re Him.

Galati ans 2:20 - I ha ve been crucified with Christ [in Him I h ave sh ared His crucif ixion ]; it is no long er I who live , bu t Ch rist (th e M essiah) lives in me ; an d t he life I no w live in the bod y I live by fa it h in (by a dhere nce to an d reliance on an d comp le te trust in ) th e S on of God, Wh o l oved me and gave Him se lf up for m e.

Resurrection & reigni ng

Ephes ians 2:6 - An d He raised u s up to get her with Him an d made us sit do wn tog ethe r [givin g us jo in t se ating with Him] in the h eavenly sph ere [by virt ue of our be in g] in Christ Jesu s (th e Messiah, the Anointed One).

Phi lippians 3:10-11 - [For m y det ermined pu rp os e i s] th at I may k no w Hi m [th at I may prog ressively become more de eply an d intima tely ac qua in ted wi th Hi m, pe rc ei v in g a nd rec ogni z in g an d un ders tan din g t he wo nders o f Hi s Pe rs on more strongly and more clearly], and that I may in that same way come to know the power ou tflowing fro m His resurrection [which it e xe rts over believe rs], an d t hat I may so share His suff erin gs a s to be con tinually tra nsf ormed [in spirit into His liken ess even] to His dea th, [in t he ho pe] That if p ossible I ma y at tain to the [spirit ual and mo ral] resurrection [th at lif ts m e] ou t from a mong the d ead [even wh ile in th e bo dy].

All references taken from The Amplified Bible?

To be freely distributed - uncompromisingfaith.ca

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