For a Christian, how to grow spiritually in Christ would mean becoming more like Christ in character, thoughts, and deeds. As believers of Christ we are called to accept Jesus as our Savior and follow and live His teachings in our lives, growing in faith every day and building a personal relationship with Him.
Growing Spiritually In Christ
Growing Spiritually in Christ is not being just a Christian following Church rituals and worships, it is an inner cleansing process whereby overcoming and purifying of all the vices and sins that is keeping the presence of Jesus afar.
It is choosing to have a personal relationship with Christ. It is also a journey with the Lord that becomes spiritual in essence and a feel of blissfulness traverses now, all because of the presence of Christ in our lives.
We as Christians can have the awareness and understanding of our faith but growing spiritually in Christ is much higher then all our human wisdoms and our being theologians and experts of the faith.
It is good to have immense knowledge and being scholars of the Christian faith, but still it lacks behind or is weak when in compare to a person of mystic, growing spiritually in Christ.
Even an ounce of Jesus’s presence in spirit is much more worthy and massive as compared to the weight in tons of knowledge of the faith and religious beliefs.
The living water that Jesus promised to the Samaritan woman at the well is still outpoured by the Lord even today. It’s the vessel of faith in spirit that we need to bring before the Lord to receive it.
How to grow spiritually in Christ is to know Jesus.
Knowing Jesus, it’s a lifelong search.
We will never know Him all, but again an ounce of knowing Jesus spiritually as mentioned earlier is enough to tread us in this walk of life.
No one, even the highest saints or even heavenly angels can claim to have known Christ and His divinity completely.
Thus just an ounce of knowing Jesus is enough.
When we know Jesus then this life when we walk, we walk not alone, the Lord accompanies us.
This makes the journey more blessed, as you grow spiritually in Christ, more and more is revealed each time that makes you seek and know more of the Lord.
Thus contemplating and desiring to know more of Jesus and His teachings is what would mean how to grow spiritually in Christ.
Building to Grow Spiritually in Jesus
The basics of how to grow spiritually in Christ begins with inner transformation, obedience to the will of God and pure love for God.
The ways to reach Christ are many and the attainments are spiritual blissfulness and bearing fruit of the spirit of the divinity in Christ.
How to grow spiritually in Christ would mean making ourselves find His presence,
- Rooted in God’s Word
The foundation of spiritual growth is the Word of God,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers.
(Psalm 1:2-3)
Find Jesus in the scriptures, He is all dissolved in the Words of the Bible.
Regular Bible study and meditation help us grow in wisdom, faith, and obedience. It also reveals to us when we read the Bible, the will of God for our lives.
2. A Life of Prayers
Prayer is talking to Jesus one-on-one. When in prayer, the divine King of Kings, the Creator of the Universe, Jesus is in communion spiritually to one His conception, a mere human sinner in me.
Praying is growing spiritually in Christ and engaging in a loving fellowship, so as to be spiritually in oneness with the Creator in Christ.
Jesus by example to us, often withdrew to pray, showing us the importance of maintaining a close relationship with the father.
But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
(Luke 5:16)
3. Living the Faith
Foremost is the faith, faith in Christ and His teachings
The teachings of Christ is not confined as holy for the Christian as a religion and for the Bible alone, it is a way of life that the Lord advocates us to follow and live every day in our lives.
How to grow spiritually in Christ, is to live like Christ and to exercise His teachings of love, forgiveness and service towards our fellow beings as we live our lives with others.
Our relationship with our fellow beings as willed by Jesus for us, truly defines our being Christian in spirit.
37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
38 This is the great and first commandment.
39 And ha second is like it: iYou shall love your neighbor as yourself.
(Matthew 22:37-39)
How to Grow Spiritually in Christ: Learning from Persons of Faith
Reading of Saints and persons of faith in Jesus can be inspiring in our journey of knowing just how to grow spiritually in Christ.
They can be role models for us and also our guiding light of faith and hope in our moments of darkness and spiritual downfall.
Jesus Christ calls all people to draw near to Him, and these individuals serve as extraordinary examples of what it means to live in close communion with Him. Through their faith, love, and sacrifice, they inspire us to seek a deeper relationship with Christ in our own lives.
Whether through prayer, acts of charity, or humble service, each person has the opportunity to grow in holiness and walk more closely with Jesus every day.
Persons and Saints Spiritually Close to Jesus
The Blessed Virgin Mary
The foremost person spiritual close to Jesus is His mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Mary was chosen by God to bear the Savior, Jesus Christ.
Mary, being the mother of Jesus had a deep and intimate relationship with her son, Jesus. From the time of Annunciation to His Crucifixion, she remained steadfast in faith, surrendering to God’s will with perfect faith and humility.
Her Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55) expresses her deep spiritual joy and trust in God.
Catholics honor Mary as the ‘Queen of Heaven’ and the ‘Mother of God’ and a powerful intercessor, believing that her maternal care extends to all believers.
The Apostles in Peter and Paul
The apostles Peter and Paul stand as two towering figures in the history of Christianity, each playing a crucial role in spreading the Gospel.
Though they had different backgrounds and callings, their spiritual closeness to Jesus shaped their lives, ministries, and ultimate sacrifices. Their devotion to Christ, despite challenges and failures, has remained an inspiration to believers that lived after they were martyred and they remain even today for Christians growing spiritually in Christ.
St. John the Beloved Disciple
St. Mary Magdalene
Among the apostles, St. John held a special place in Jesus’s heart. Referred to as the “disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23)
John’s writings, particularly his emphasis on love and truth, show how intimately he knew Jesus. He was entrusted with caring for Mary, further signifying his closeness to Christ.
St. Mary Magdalene is another remarkable figure of whom we can be inspired for growing spiritually in Christ.
Mary was one of the few who remained near Jesus till the end during His Crucifixion.
Her life is exemplar for us, as her transformation from a life of sin to one of devoted discipleship exemplifies Christ’s mercy and the transformative power of His love.
As Mary Magdalene’s life was transformed, we too can hope and trust the same to happen for us.
St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis life emphasized humility, love, and care for creation. His devotion to Christ crucified was so profound that he received the stigmata—the wounds of Christ—on his own body. St. Francis’ simple yet profound faith continues to inspire Christians to live with joy and total dependence on God and live their life growing spiritually in Christ.
St. Teresa of Avila
A great mystic and Doctor of the Church, St. Teresa of Avila experienced deep union with Christ through prayer. She reformed the Carmelite order and wrote extensively on the spiritual life, describing the soul’s journey toward divine intimacy. Her famous work, The Interior Castle, guides believers in deepening their relationship with Christ through prayer and contemplation. Her life demonstrates that spiritual closeness to Jesus is cultivated through an interior life of love and surrender.
The Journey of Growing Spiritually in Christ
Growing spiritually in Christ is not a destination, it’s a journey, a lifelong journey of faith in Christ and of transformation as a Christian.
Embracing a personal relationship with Jesus, finding God’s will in the Word of God, personal prayers to the Lord and living a life inspired by the teachings of Christ of love, forgiveness and service towards others is walking this journey.
This journey then will have us experience the profound joy and peace that comes when walking and growing spiritually in Christ.
Its then that our faith in Christ is what breathes within us to live and the Lord is hailed as the center of our lives.
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.
(2 Peter 3:18)
As Christians we’re called to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus.
The seed of life that we live will sprout in spirit and flourish when we spiritually grow in Christ. Knowing more and more about Jesus will make us more like Him.
For a Christian, a life to live is to live a life to honor God.
How to grow spiritually in Christ is a marathon, not a sprint. There will be times of progress and times of struggle, just hold on to the presence of Christ in one’s life and let Jesus alone be the guiding light in our moments of darkness and spiritual dryness.
As Danish theologian and philosopher Soren Kierkegaard says,
“The function of prayer is not to influence God, but rather to change the nature of the one who prays.”
Thus growing spiritually in Christ is growing in faith, in oneness with Christ. It profits the seeker more.
The person now builds in endurance, hope and a belief that the presence of Christ is enough to surpass or outlive any difficulties or problems that life throws when living.
And as each day grows in your book of life, growing spiritually in Christ be your will and wish of life.
Verses from Bible for growing spiritually in Christ…
- Ephesians 4:15: Encourages believers to grow in Christ-likeness as part of the body of Christ
- Isaiah 40:31: Promises that those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength and soar on wings like eagles
- John 3:16: Explains that God sent his Son to save the world and that those who believe in him will have eternal life
- 2 Peter 3: Calls for believers to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ
- Colossians 2:6-7: Encourages believers to live their lives in Christ, rooted and built up in him
- Romans 5:20-21: Explains that where sin increased, grace increased all the more
- James 1:2-18: Encourages believers to persevere in following God’s plan through life’s trials and challenges
- Ephesians 5:18; Romans 6:11-14: Encourages believers to learn to be aware of and listen to God’s Spirit
