Five Essential Steps to Spiritual Maturity: Moving Beyond Spiritual Infancy

Remember your school days? Each year brought new challenges, new lessons, and steady progression from kindergarten through graduation. The journey wasn't about staying comfortable in first grade forever—it was about growing, maturing, and developing into the person you were meant to become.

The same principle applies to our spiritual lives.

Many believers find themselves stuck in a pattern of spiritual infancy, content with where they are, never pushing forward into the deeper things God has prepared for them. But just as no parent wants their child to remain dependent and immature forever, God desires that we grow up spiritually, moving from milk to meat, from dependence to maturity.

The apostle Peter captured this beautifully when he wrote: "Like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation" (1 Peter 2:2). Notice the purpose—not to stay babies, but to grow.

So what does spiritual maturity look like? How do we move from being spiritual infants who need constant spoon-feeding to mature believers who can stand firm in faith? Let's explore five transformative steps that will revolutionize your spiritual journey.

The apostle Paul, one of the most spiritually mature believers in Scripture, made a startling confession: "Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet, but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:13-14).

Paul hadn't arrived. He was still pressing forward. And his secret? Forgetting the past.

This might be the most difficult step, but it's absolutely essential. You will never be a successful Christian unless your "forgetter" is in good working order. Many believers are imprisoned by their past—past failures, past sins, past mistakes. They remind God of things He's already thrown into the sea of forgetfulness.

But here's the liberating truth: when you confess your sins to God, that's not when He finds out about them. That's when you get rid of them.
God already knew what you did. First John 1:9 promises that "if we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Once you confess and repent, forget it. God does.

Interestingly, you also need to forget past blessings. If you try to live on yesterday's miracles, you're eating stale manna. God has something fresh for you today. Don't camp out at the mailbox waiting for Him to bless you the exact same way He did before. He's creative, and His mercies are new every morning.

As long as the enemy can keep you concentrating on past failures, he holds you in a position where you will not develop spiritually and your prayers and faith will not work. Break free from the past and press toward what lies ahead.

Closely connected to forgetting is forgiving. Paul wrote, "Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you" (Ephesians 4:32).

When Peter asked Jesus how many times he should forgive someone who sinned against him—suggesting seven times as a generous number—Jesus responded, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven" (Matthew 18:22). That's 490 times. The point? Forgiveness should be limitless.

It's difficult to hate someone who's full of forgiveness. When you refuse to be offended, when you choose to extend grace repeatedly, something powerful happens—not just in the other person, but in you.

Unforgiveness hardens the heart. It starts small, with one offense you refuse to release, but that hardness spreads until you find yourself offended by nearly everyone you encounter. Remember: offense must be taken. If you choose not to take it, you won't be offended.

Think about how much God has forgiven you. Every mistake, every failure, every sin—He's wiped the slate clean over and over again. How much more should we forgive those who wrong us?

Forgiveness is so critical that Jesus specifically said it would hinder your faith. In Mark 11, after teaching about faith that moves mountains, He added: "Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions" (Mark 11:25).

A successful prayer life must be built on the Word of God. Jesus made this clear: "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you" (John 15:7).

Notice the conditions: abide in Him and let His words abide in you. You can't claim the promise of answered prayer without meeting the requirements. Abiding means more than just being born again—it means walking in continual fellowship with Him.

You'll never have an effective prayer life if you don't know God's Word. When challenges arise, your first response should be, "What does the Word say?" Not calling a counselor, not immediately seeking human advice, but searching Scripture for God's perspective.

Jesus gave us clear instructions for New Testament prayer: "If you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you" (John 16:23). Pray to the Father in the name of Jesus, based on the promises in His Word.

Mark 11:24 instructs us: "Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted to you."

The foundation of belief is found in Hebrews 11:6: "Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him."

We often fail to receive what we've asked for because we walk by sight instead of by faith. We want to see before we believe. But Jesus said to Thomas, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed" (John 20:29).

Abraham demonstrated this kind of faith. He "considered not his own body, now as good as dead...or the deadness of Sarah's womb" (Romans 4:19). There comes a time when you must consider not the circumstances but what God has said about the circumstances.

Believing according to God's Word requires a conscious decision to live beyond our five senses. Faith is the sixth sense—believing God's Word in your heart, even when your head is filled with doubt.

If believers truly understood the power of worship, no one would stand with arms crossed during praise and worship. If we grasped how precious worship is to God, everyone would participate fully.

Worship isn't confined to church buildings. You can worship God anywhere, anytime. True worship is letting God know how valuable and precious He is to us.

God inhabits the praises of His people. When we enter genuine worship, we create an atmosphere where God speaks, where revelation flows, where transformation happens.

These five steps—learning to forget, forgive, pray, believe, and worship—form the pathway to spiritual maturity. God doesn't want you to remain a spiritual infant. He's prepared so much more for you.

The choice is yours. Will you stay comfortable where you are, or will you press forward, growing up spiritually, moving from glory to glory?

You are blessed. You are victorious. You are a child of the living God. All things are possible because you believe.

Now it's time to grow up and walk in the fullness of everything God has prepared for you.