“Toddler Wins Boston Marathon…” | Spiritual Maturity
By Josh and Bridget Kiser
“Toddler Wins Boston Marathon, Credits Mom’s Reading of ‘Marathon Mouse’”
There’s a headline you’ll NEVER see. Not only that, but it’s a headline that no one would ever EXPECT to see. Why? Well, because we understand that there is a natural process in which a human grows. There is an order of events and patterns of learning that must be completed before we expect a human to be capable of accomplishing certain things. A baby must learn to walk before running, to eat baby food before solids – you get the picture. Every one of us went through this process. Sure, we all progressed at different paces, but the process was pretty much the same. And no one expected any different.
A baby is born into this world with the capability of eventually doing things that humans were designed to do, and with a parent as a guide to help them along through the process. Similarly, a new believer is “reborn” into faith in Jesus with the capability of fully becoming who they were designed to be, for the glory of God, and with the Holy Spirit to guide them along the way. But maturity doesn’t just instantly happen.
Having a knowledge of who God is, what Christ has done for you, and understanding that you have the Holy Spirit in you from the time of salvation does not mean that your journey is over. It should just be the beginning (1Peter 2:2)! Just as we don’t expect a baby to win the Boston Marathon, we also don’t expect a new believer to preach on Sunday while the lead pastor is on vacation or speak to a room of Christian leaders at a national conference. Of course, we want to hear their story, but’s that’s called a testimony. We don’t expect to hear deep theological wisdom in a sermon from someone in spiritual infancy (Hebrews 5:13-14).
Our salvation (eternal life spent with God in the place He has prepared for us) is not earned. It’s given by Grace, through faith in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross. With that also comes the ability to be free – the deposit of His Holy Spirit to lead and guide us to true freedom. However, having the ability to be free and actually being free are two very different things (Ephesians 4:13-14).
Going back to our marathon analogy, the ability to run and running a marathon are many hours, days, and even months of training apart from one another. Freedom REQUIRES something from us. It comes only when we resolve to partner with the Holy Spirit, allowing Him to work in tandem with our spirit. This partnership means we are trusting him through the process of discovering, dealing with, and healing from the wounds of our past that have shaped our present perceptions, which are indeed the filters through which we view life.
This process is not an easy one… much like the process of becoming a marathon runner. But we were not created to be infants forever – physically or spiritually. My prayer is that we all can rise to the challenge to no longer remain where we are in the process, to desire for more, and to embrace the journey ahead. God designed us for purpose. Let us run the race marked out for us (Hebrews 12:1), and not just run, but finish it well, completing the task given to us (Acts 20:24).
Additional Reading – 2 Peter 1:5-8