Growing Up in Christ

Everyone grows older automatically, but growing up is completely different. Time can add years to your life without adding maturity to your character. You see this everywhere. People who look like adults on the outside but still behave like children on the inside. The same thing happens spiritually. Some believers have been saved for twenty years but have repeated the same year of spiritual maturity again and again. Others grow deep roots and bear real fruit because they intentionally “make every effort” to grow into the likeness of Christ. That’s exactly the message Peter gives in 2 Peter 1. Writing near the end of his life, knowing his execution under Nero is approaching, Peter pleads with the church to grow. In a world filled with pressure, confusion, and false teachers promising an easier Christianity, he tells believers: God has given you everything you need. Now grow up in Christ!

Peter begins with God’s provision. He doesn’t start by telling us what to do but by reminding us what God has already done. “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness.” In the first century, many believers were influenced by Greco-Roman philosophies and early Gnostic teachings that claimed spiritual maturity came through secret or mystical knowledge. Peter counters this completely. You don’t need hidden wisdom or special revelation. You already have everything necessary through Christ. As Douglas Moo writes, “Christian growth begins not with human effort but divine empowerment.” Thomas Schreiner adds, “God’s power is the foundation of all Christian living.” God gives the power, the same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead. He gives the knowledge, the abiding, relational knowledge of Christ that produces fruit. And He gives the promises, promises of forgiveness, transformation, the Spirit’s help, and final glory. Through these gifts, Peter says, we “become partakers of the divine nature,” sharing in God’s moral character.

This truth frees us from trying to grow through willpower alone. Jesus said, “Apart from Me you can do nothing.” But it also strengthens us, reminding us that God finishes what He starts. When discouragement hits and growth feels slow, we stand on His promise that He will complete the good work He began in us. Christian maturity is God-powered before it is anything else.

Still, God’s power doesn’t make effort unnecessary, it makes effort possible. That’s why Peter writes, “For this very reason, make every effort.” Grace isn’t opposed to effort; it’s opposed to earning. Because God has supplied everything for our growth, we now cultivate what He has supplied. Peter describes this cultivation through a beautiful progression of virtues: faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. This list isn’t a self-help checklist. It’s the shape of a life being conformed to Christ. And these virtues don’t appear accidentally. They grow through intentionality, through daily choices, spiritual habits, and steady obedience.

So we each have to ask: where is the Holy Spirit prompting growth in my life? Which fruit of the Spirit needs to deepen? Growth is intentional and specific. Paul tells us to “train yourself for godliness,” which means developing habits: scripture reading, prayer, worship, repentance, community. These shape us into the image of Christ. And above all, our growth must lead us to love, because love is the clearest mark of maturity.

As we pursue this kind of Spirit-empowered diligence, Peter tells us what we can expect: fruitfulness, effectiveness, and confidence. He writes that if these qualities are “yours and increasing,” they keep you from being “ineffective and unfruitful.” Growth produces a life that actually matters for the kingdom of God. It strengthens our assurance and stabilizes our walk. But when we stop growing, Peter warns that we become “nearsighted and blind,” losing sight of the gospel and drifting spiritually. D.A. Carson captures this perfectly: “Assurance is strengthened not by introspection but by transformation.” R.C. Sproul echoed the same truth: “Virtue is the evidence of calling, not the cause.” Growth doesn’t earn salvation, but it reveals it.

A true story from Southeast China illustrates this beautifully. A missionary once described an elderly believer known in his village for his remarkable Christlike character. When a young Christian asked how he became so spiritually mature, the man told him about growing bamboo. Certain bamboo doesn’t show any visible growth for four years. Year after year, nothing appears above ground. Then, in the fifth year, it suddenly shoots up forty to sixty feet in a matter of weeks. “When did the bamboo grow?” the old man asked. The young believer answered, “In the fifth year?” The man shook his head. “No. It grew every day—you just didn’t see it.” The first four years were spent developing deep, unseen roots strong enough to support rapid growth later. “The Christian life is like the bamboo,” he said. “Most growth happens underground—inside your heart. God uses daily faithfulness, prayer, Scripture, and obedience to build roots no one sees. And then one day, the fruit becomes visible.”

That is Peter’s message. God provides the power. We supply the effort. And over time, God produces the fruit. Growing up in Christ is not optional; it’s the natural result of belonging to Him. God is not finished with you. He is shaping you, strengthening your roots, and preparing you for a rich entrance into His kingdom. So today, lean into His power, make every effort, and keep growing for His glory.