A surprising number of experienced Christians don’t really know how to live a Christian life. They seem to think that it’s a matter of following a long list of rules, and it’s not: Jesus made it clear that the only way to produce fruit that God respects is to “abide in him” as a grape branch abides in the main vine: “I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John 15.5. Therefore the first priority in any Christian life is to make sure that our hearts and minds are attuned to God and the guidance of his Holy Spirit.
It’s a timeless concept that appears in the Old Testament as well as the New. Here’s how it’s put in the book of Micah: “He has shown you o man what is good, and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6.8)
- Do justly (works)
- Love mercy (attitude)
- Walk humbly with your God (relationship with God)
Of course works matter, but anybody can memorize a list and follow it. You don’t need God to do that. Jesus didn’t die so that we can perform what’s on a list: He died so that we can approach God with confidence that our sins no longer stand in the way. As we mature in our Christian lives, we become more skillful in that relationship and all the right attitude and good works that flow out of it.
How to become spiritually mature
If we’re serious, God will mature us with his means and on his time-table. Jesus addresses that in John 15: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.” (John 15.1,2). That said, spend time reading and studying the Bible, always asking God to reveal himself in it as you read. Memorize and meditate on passages that he illuminates to you. Also spend time with other faithful and growing Christians.