Babes In Christ
“And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.” I Corinthians 3:1-2
What a sad state for a believer, who has vast resources, mature Christians as friends, and the promise of eternal life, to still be “dragging their feet” in growing and maturing in Christ. No matter what subject matter one studies, there is usually the hope of gaining knowledge so that what is learned can be used in one’s occupation, endeavors, or advancement to a higher level in the selected subject. To study any subject is not for study’s sake, but to put into practice what one has learned and mastered. It is no different for the born-again believer. Jesus will save us just as we are, but He won’t leave us that way, thus, it is incumbent upon believers to strive for excellence in their walk with Christ. He will give us direction, but we have to follow those directions to be successful.
Why were these Corinthian believers still lacking in maturity in the faith? We don’t know the exact time between the founding of the church in Corinth and the date of Paul’s letter to them, but from Acts 18:11, we find that Paul “continued (in Corinth) a year and six months” and after being brought before Gallio, a judge, who refused to hear the case against Paul, he stayed “yet a good while” in Corinth (Acts 18:12-18). When he left Corinth, he went to Ephesus for two years, and it is believed that he wrote this letter from Ephesus. Using those facts, it appears that it was likely two to four years that the Corinthian believers would have had to grow in their faith. That is not a lot of time, but enough time in which they should have made some noticeable progress in Christian growth, but apparently some had not. So, what was the problem?
Paul didn’t seem surprised to hear of their lack of maturity in righteousness, patience, and selflessness. He admitted that he couldn’t teach them deep, spiritual truths because they were still “babes in Christ”. They had received enough knowledge about how to be saved, and they repented and believed in Jesus as their Savior, but they were guilty of not making Him Lord over their lives. They were saved, but their minds had not been transformed to match their hearts. Their lifestyles and their thought patterns were still remaining in the carnal world. For some reason, they had not given diligent efforts to seeking to live as those who had been cleansed and made righteous before God. There was a vast amount of evil and idolatry surrounding them, but the Holy Spirit had been given to them to guard against those bad influences.
A new Christian, especially one who did not grow up in a Christian family, who had never been around believers, had not attended church nor read scripture, is very unfamiliar with how a believer is to act and speak and doesn’t understand the responsibilities that a believer has to live out a godly life before the world. Christians never work to earn salvation, but they should be so grateful that Jesus saved them and gave them a new life that they would desire to live for Him. Discipleship must begin with the basics of Christian belief and lifestyle, but as the new believer grows in faith and knowledge, the more in-depth subjects of doctrine and prophecy can be added to Christian teaching. A baby starts out with milk, then can eat foods that are mashed, and then can eat meat and other foods which require chewing.
Growth, like everything else, doesn’t come from wishing it so. A baby grows physically by nature, but his or her mind must be taught to think critically and to learn to judge right from wrong. A believer receives that same type of spiritual teaching from the Holy Spirit. To ignore the leading of the Holy Spirit will also hinder a believer’s spiritual growth and cause his or her life and witness to diminish before others. Thus, it is not just the immature believer who suffers from lack of study and prayer, but all those with whom he or she comes in contact who could have been touched spiritually. Sometimes an immature believer can do more damage than one who doesn’t claim to know Christ. We might be the only Jesus that folks see. What a great responsibility and privilege to represent the Lord and Savior to a lost world.
Next time: The Hindrances to Christian Maturity