Mike Focht 2/14/2025
There is such a thing as an immature form of maturity. This adolescentish stage of our spiritual growth comes with unique challenges. We come to this particular stage when we first begin to recognize our own spiritual growth and maturity.
There are two immediate dangers to the realization of our spiritual growth.
First, our maturity proves it is still youthful by being quickly frustrated with the immaturity we see in others. Those growing in Christ often become irritated and Pharisaical with their family or friends who claim Christ but are not growing at a similar pace. It is very easy to forget that we were once like them and only God changed us. The temptation here is to become fed up with others, write them off as carnal or unsaved, and cease all interaction with them.
I am not referring to the people the Bible warns us to flee from. I am referring to other Christians who are still babes in Christ. The family of God. They have true life in Christ but are not mature in Him for one reason or another. Immature maturity looks for other mature Christians to the exclusion of immature brothers or sisters in Christ. These adolescentish Christians only want “deep” things and the fellowship of those perceived as “sold out”. They struggle to walk alongside a brother or sister in Christ that isn’t “on fire.”
A peeved attitude is a sure sign of the very opposite spirit that characterizes mature Christians. Believers in the early stages of growth have not yet matured enough to realize that greater Christ-like maturity comes with greater Christ-like love, patience, and humility. Everyone growing in Christ will need to learn how to react to babes in Christ in a godly manner. This mature yet patient attitude is latently displayed in nearly all the apostle Paul’s letters. He met with countless forms of personal slights, doctrinal issues, and carnal behavior with mature love, patience, and spirituality. He didn’t let immaturity slide. He didn’t write believers off.
The second form of immature maturity will not abandon immature brothers or sisters in Christ, but driven by innocent love for what is right, will instead try to drive babes in Christ beyond their present spiritual capacities. Out of a good but immature heart, they will push babes in Christ to take spiritual steps they are not developed enough to take. Only the Holy Spirit can lead in spiritual growth, and out of ignorance, we can make the mistake of assuming the Holy Spirit’s place in the lives of others. We do this by forcing them to leave specific actions, views, or habits before the Holy Spirit has prepared them. Our more mature stance on food, days, music, or books may be correct, but it isn’t organic in others and isn’t wisdom for mature saints to press immature saints ahead of the Spirit’s work.
People need space to grow independently, and it is wrong to take the bottle away from a baby when they are still getting spiritual milk from it. If God is still using that bottle in their life and we try to remove it, then we are working against God’s plan in maturing them. Immature maturity tries to force babies into acting like adults before the Holy Spirit makes them mature.
Greater maturity in Christ should also come with a purer love, wiser purpose, patient longsuffering, and greater humility. The mature pursuit of Christlikeness should make the traits of Christlikeness more evident in our lives, especially when it comes to less mature saints around us.
Immature maturity is when growing Christians don’t know how to react to the immaturity they see in the people around them. God is teaching them not to leave the weak babes behind or try to force them to eat meat and act like adults when they are only babes without teeth. True maturity uses its strength to augment the weakness in others and display what life in Christ looks like. Mature spiritual maturity responds to spiritual immaturity like a loving adult.