After Salvation: The Keys For Spiritual Growth

Feature 2 – April 2025 – Grace & Truth Magazine

After Salvation, The Keys For Spiritual Growth

What a great moment it is when a lost sinner repents and becomes saved by the grace of God through trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is joy in heaven and in the presence of the angels of God over one such sinner who has put his or her trust wholly in Christ and His finished work of redemption on the cross (Lk. 15:7,10). Only Christ can save (Acts 4:12), and once that has taken place in the heart and soul of a sinner, it is a wonderful moment for that person.

What would God have for such people once they are saved from the judgment of hell and on their way to heaven? How can true believers progress in their life of faith from that point onward? Are they left to live any way they choose, or does God want believers to grow spiritually and live for Christ?

The answer is rather simple! It is God’s intent to save us for all eternity and to have us display more and more the characteristics of His Son as we continue on through life. The apostle Paul, in Romans 8:29 (NKJV), expressed it this way: “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brethren.” Paul also wrote: “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:12-14).

Let us look together at some of the positive things that will help each of us to progress spiritually in the Christian life. We want to consider these areas of our lives so we can identify what we may already be doing well and what we need to consider changing where we lack. May the Lord bless each of us as we think on these things.

Commitment And Submission
At the very outset of our Christian life we must acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord and that He is Lord of our lives. If we have been Christians for many years but have not lived for Him, there is still time to repent and acknowledge His lordship. With this understanding we recognize that we are not our own, but we have been “bought at a price” and therefore we are to “glorify God” in our bodies (1 Cor. 6:20). The Lord is the One to give us direction and guide us through life. This is very different than when we were unbelievers. In the past we made all our own choices and decisions without any consideration or accountability to God. Now that we are the Lord’s, He should be the One to direct us. Our commitment to live for Him should be our focus and daily devotion. When we stray from His pathway for us, we need to return to Him and admit our unfaithfulness in order to restore the lost fellowship and continue forward in a life pleasing to Him.

As we go through our daily experiences we must acknowledge His lordship, and our choices and decisions should be with an understanding that we have to give account to Him one day for how we have lived (see Rom. 14:10). This submission to His lordship is what we will have to answer for in a coming day, when we appear before Christ and give an account of our lives as Christians. It is not a matter of whether or not we are going to heaven. Rather, as those who are going to heaven, we are examined for what we will be rewarded and for what we will suffer loss (1 Cor. 3:12-15). May the Lord help us to be committed to Christ and to submit to His lordship! This is the most basic step in order to make spiritual progress in the Christian life.

Holiness
Spiritual growth requires holy living. We are called upon to be holy. First Peter 1:14-16 says, “As obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy.’” We are also instructed to “lay aside” the things that hinder our progress, including any sin which so easily besets us (Heb. 12:1).

How sad when we see true believers living like unbelievers. One wonders if they even know they are to be different from those who are lost and do not know the Lord. In order for us to shine forth as followers of Christ, we must show that we no longer live like the world. We should become more sensitive to sin and turn from it when we are tempted to do what is wrong. Sin in the lives of believers will lead to shipwreck and will hinder us in making any spiritual progress. We must remove the things in our lives that cause us to sin (Col. 3:5-11). This may include good things that become idols for us and consume our time.

Perhaps we struggle with a particular sin in our lives. We need to call upon the Lord when tempted and then trust for His “way of escape” (1 Cor. 10:13). The Lord would not have us in bondage to anything. We are His possession now. He desires for us to be delivered from sin and to show we are His children by the way we live. Holy living pleases the Lord, and we should desire to live for Him in this way.

Good Relationships
As believers we have become part of the family of God. Being members of His family, we should develop good relationships with other true believers. We should experience new friendships with those who know Christ as their Savior. This will bring joy into our lives (1 Jn. 1:3-4). Also, we should find weekly fellowship with a group of believers and gather unto the name of the Lord Jesus (see Mt. 18:20) in order to benefit from their example of faith.

Our newfound faith should change how we relate to unbelievers going forward, not following the unsaved crowd in whatever they do. We have left that broad road leading to hell and destruction; we are now traveling on the narrow road that leads to heaven! We should be sharing our faith with unbelievers so they can become saved as we have. If we hide our faith from unbelievers and do not change how we relate to them, then what we are warned about in 1 Corinthians 15:33 – “Do not be deceived, evil company corrupts good habits” – may become true in our lives. We can no longer live around unbelievers as if we are no different than they. Sooner or later the sinful influences of unbelievers will cause us to stumble and keep us from growing spiritually. Instead, we should be examples of how a person should truly live to honor Christ in what we do and say.

Consider one other word of warning on this subject of relationships. Enjoying time with true believers may not necessarily be helpful in our spiritual growth. Perhaps we have met believers who are not living for the Lord. Some Christians can talk about certain subjects, like sports or hobbies, but speak little of the things of Christ. We should ask ourselves if the fellowship we enjoy with such Christians has any spiritual benefit. Even true Christians can occupy themselves with the world and all it has to offer, rather than focusing on eternal things and growing in the Lord. We should be aware that the fellowship we enjoy should have a positive impact on our spiritual growth.

Bad and unhealthy relationships are a major hindrance to spiritual growth. We are warned: “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers” (2 Cor. 6:14). This includes situations when, unfortunately, single believers may enter into romantic relationships with unbelievers. This would be disobedient to the revealed will of God as expressed in 2 Corinthians 6. In such situations it is not a matter of praying but of obeying what God has already revealed in His Word. If a believer obeys this warning, there can be wonderful spiritual growth. However, if one disobeys, there will be sorrow and loss for the believer, even if the unbeliever eventually becomes saved. Believer, be warned!

Humility
The Lord Jesus left us the supreme example of humility. In Philippians 2 we learn that He humbled Himself even to the death of the cross. His coming to earth was not to condemn us but to give us life, and that “more abundantly” (Jn. 10:10). He walked here as a humble servant. In fact, the correct expression is “bond-servant,” which implies that He willingly lived in such a way as to serve rather than to be served.

Likewise, we are to live as humble servants. Humility is necessary for us in order to make spiritual progress. The apostle Paul wrote: “For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith” (Rom. 12:3). The chapter goes on to show us how we should behave and think about each believer as part of a bigger group: the body of Christ. Every member has a unique and important role.

We should never look upon a brother or sister in Christ with jealousy. We also should not compete with them in the things of God or anything else in our lives. This would be like the world, from which the believer has been delivered. May it never be said of us, “Those believers compete with one another.” Instead, we should complete one another by helping each other. Remember, the younger generation of believers is watching older believers, and they need to be shown a good example of humility. Humility is what is needed throughout our lives.

God is interested in keeping us humble, even if no one else is or we ourselves are not interested. Paul provided an example of how God humbled him by giving him a thorn in the flesh, further described as “a messenger of Satan to buffet” him (2 Cor. 12:7). He went on to reveal that although he prayed three times for deliverance, God would not remove the thorn. Instead, God provided the needed grace to get through the trial. Paul understood that this was God’s way of keeping him humble.

Pride is a big hindrance to spiritual growth. It is what causes us to think less of others and unrealistically about ourselves. Pride leads to disrespecting others, including those who are in positions of authority, whether among God’s people or in the world. God intends to use those in authority over us to maintain our humility. In our families, God uses parents to keep us humble (Eph. 6:1-3). In the world He uses government (Rom. 13:1-7). In other aspects of life He uses older, more experienced leaders (Heb. 13:17). We should humble ourselves under the various authorities God has placed in our lives that it may go well for us, being unhindered in our spiritual progress.

Reading And Meditating
The need for reading and meditating on the Word of God cannot be emphasized enough. Without the Word of God, we are unable to fully know the will of God. The Spirit of God uses the Word of God to reveal all we need to live for Christ, and to expose those areas of our lives that need to change (1 Tim. 4:12-13). The apostle Paul instructed Timothy, a younger believer, to give “attention to reading” (v.13). It is important to have your own Bible and to read it! This can even be done online through websites or by downloading an app on a cell phone. Without reading God’s Word, the Christian life would be like driving a car without a steering wheel. Soon the car would crash because it had no way of being directed. Paul wrote later to Timothy, telling him that he should be “rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15). How important it is to know the context of what is written and correctly apply the instructions given.

Some people may say that because they cannot read or obtain a Bible this cannot be done. That might be true for many. But today the Word of God can be heard too. There are audio books, and the entire Bible has been read and is available for non-readers in many languages. Also, the Bible has become available in written form to over 3,200 languages in over 160 countries. In addition, we can listen to the preaching of God’s Word by older, faithful preachers. By these means we can constantly learn more of God’s will and ways, and we can make progress. A growing disciple is one who reads or hears! May it be true of us! Spiritual progress will follow, which will be noticed by others (1 Tim. 4:15).

It is important to not only read and hear the Word of God but also to meditate upon it. In Psalm 1:2 we read of delighting in the law of the Lord, and meditating on it day and night. This teaches us that as we read the Word we are to think about what is written. We consider how to understand what was said and how to apply it to our lives, or even to see something new about the Lord Himself. We then must put into practice the things we have learned (Jas. 1:22-25). How wonderful!

Lastly, we want to avoid teachings which may appear to be good but reduce the impact of the Word of God or even change its meaning. Living by man’s word or man’s rules are examples of this danger. We know that there may be some wisdom that can be learned from people, but we must compare whatever it is with the holy Word of God. If it does not match, then we should not follow man’s instruction nor live by it (Isa. 8:20). Man’s rules that are not based upon the Holy Scriptures are another hindrance to spiritual growth. A legal attitude which holds a very narrow view of what is right, or an attitude that says nothing can be considered wrong, are two extremes that need to be avoided. May the Lord help us to know what is correct by knowing God’s Word.

Prayer
Prayer is another important aspect of our lives and is necessary to make spiritual progress. How is our prayer life? Do we depend on the Lord for our needs and decisions? Some believers seek to answer their own prayers, and as a result they do not experience what the Lord would have provided, which would be far better. May we be dependent on the Lord and show that dependency by praying regularly. Depending upon our natural wisdom and strength will hinder growth. Paul confessed that when he was “weak,” then he was “strong” (2 Cor. 12:10). Let us be weak in our own strength so that the strength of the Lord can be experienced in our lives.

Final Thoughts
There are many other things to help us move forward with spiritual growth. For the purpose of this article we would just mention a few more of these in passing:

• We need to avoid a judgmental attitude.
• One must be willing to change and have faith to do so.
• Fear and fear of change are hindrances for spiritual growth.
• We must not allow ourselves to be too busy on the one hand, or to have too little to do on the other. Both are not good. We should live in moderation and do what we can do and have time to do. We need to avoid spreading ourselves too thin.
• We should have something to do for the Lord – some kind of service for Him that we do routinely.

May we persevere in our spiritual growth. Much in this world can distract us from keeping on with our spiritual growth, but there is a promise of reward to those who do not give up being faithful and growing. We hear in Revelation 22:12 the Lord speaking, “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to everyone according to his work.” May the Lord help us all to live for Him and not for ourselves, and to press on for Him. Amen!

By Bill Kulkens