What Does It Mean to Be Spiritually Mature?

You can read your Bible every day. You can have powerful spiritual gifts. You can lead a ministry, sing loudly in worship and win every argument about theology. And you can still be a spiritual baby.

It’s exactly what happened in the church at Corinth. Paul told believers there they were “not lacking in any gift” (1 Corinthians 1:7). Yet in the same letter he wrote:

But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it.
1 Corinthians 3:1–2

So what does it mean to be spiritually mature? Many people think it means being busy at church, knowing lots of Bible facts or feeling close to God. The Bible gives a very different answer—and a much more hopeful one.

Let’s see what the Bible really means by “mature”—and how God grows His children up.

What Does “Mature” Mean in the Bible?

The New Testament word often translated “mature” is the Greek word teleios.

KEY WORD: TELEIOS

Basic meaning: full-grown, complete, having reached its goal. It comes from telos, which means “end” or “goal”.
Everyday use: a grown adult rather than a child, a fruit that’s fully ripe, a job that’s finished.
In English Bibles: sometimes “perfect” (Matthew 5:48; James 1:4) and sometimes “mature” (1 Corinthians 2:6; Philippians 3:15).

A thing is when it becomes what it was made to be. An acorn is mature when it becomes an oak. So what were Christians made to become?

The Bible answers clearly. God’s plan is for His people “to be conformed to the image of His Son” (Romans 8:29). Paul says the church must grow “to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).

So the measuring stick for maturity isn’t our church culture or our feelings. It’s Jesus Christ Himself.

A SIMPLE DEFINITION

Spiritual maturity is the Holy Spirit’s work of growing forgiven believers to become more and more like Jesus Christ—in what they believe, how they choose, how they love, how they see their own sin and how they stand firm in hard times.

What Spiritual Maturity Isn’t

Before we build, we need to clear the ground. Here are 6 popular ideas that sound right but don’t match Scripture.

6 Common Myths About Spiritual Maturity

THE MYTH	WHY IT FALLS SHORT	BIBLE CHECK
*“I’ve been a Christian for many years.”*	Time alone doesn’t make anyone grow. Some believers stay babes for years.	Hebrews 5:12
*“I know my Bible very well.”*	Knowledge without love makes people proud, not mature.	1 Corinthians 8:1
*“I have strong spiritual gifts.”*	Gifts are tools God gives. They’re not proof of growth.	1 Corinthians 1:7; 3:1
*“I’m busy serving at church.”*	Activity can hide a distracted heart. Sitting at Jesus’ feet comes first.	Luke 10:40–42
*“I have amazing spiritual experiences.”*	Feelings rise and fall. Maturity is steady character.	Ephesians 4:14
*“I no longer sin.”*	No believer is sinless in this life. Claiming it shows blindness, not growth.	1 John 1:8

8 Bible Truths About Spiritual Maturity

Now let’s build the case step by step. Each truth closes the door on a common error.

1. You Must Be Born Before You Can Grow

A baby cannot grow up before it’s born. Neither can we grow spiritually until God gives us new life. Jesus said, “unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Peter calls believers “newborn infants” who should “long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation” (1 Peter 2:2).

So maturity isn’t a way to earn God’s love. It happens after God has accepted us. 2 big words help here.

Justification and Sanctification: What’s the Difference?

QUESTION	JUSTIFICATION	SANCTIFICATION
What is it?	God declares a sinner “not guilty” because of Jesus’ perfect life and death	God changes a believer, step by step, to become like Jesus
When does it happen?	Once, at the moment we trust in Christ	Throughout the whole Christian life
Does it grow?	No. It is complete from day one	Yes. This is where maturity happens
Key verse	Romans 5:1	2 Corinthians 3:18

A mature Christian isn’t more forgiven than a new Christian. Both are fully justified. The difference lies in sanctification. The Westminster Shorter Catechism (1647) explains sanctification beautifully. It’s “the work of God’s free grace, whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image of God, and are enabled more and more to die unto sin, and live unto righteousness.” Notice the words “more and more”. That’s growth.

2. God Does the Growing—and We Really Work Too

Who makes us grow—God or us? The Bible says both, in the right order:

work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Philippians 2:12–13

We work because God is working in us. He’s the engine; we’re the wheels that truly turn.

This protects us from 2 errors. In the 1800s, some Christians taught holiness comes by simply “letting go and letting God”—becoming passive and waiting. Anglican bishop JC Ryle wrote his famous book Holiness (1877) partly to answer this. He described holiness as “the habit of being of one mind with God, according as we find His mind described in Scripture.” JI Packer later made the same case in Keep in Step with the Spirit.

The opposite error is growing by willpower alone, as if God only watches. God gives the power; we use it.

3. We Grow by Looking at Christ

How does God change us? Paul gives a surprising answer: by looking.

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
2 Corinthians 3:18

We become like what we look at. The more we see the beauty of Jesus in His Word, the more we become like Him. Scottish pastor Robert Murray M’Cheyne gave wise advice: “For every look at yourself, take 10 looks at Christ.” Immature believers stare at themselves. Mature believers have learnt to look to Jesus.

Bible teachers call this union with Christ. It means every believer is joined to Jesus by the Holy Spirit, like a branch joined to a vine (John 15:5). John Calvin taught that as long as Christ remains outside of us, all He did for us is of no use to us. He must live in us by His Spirit. A branch grows by staying connected, not by trying harder.

4. We Grow Together, Not Alone

Many see growth as a private project: me, my Bible and my quiet time. But notice the word “we”:

until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
Ephesians 4:13

God gave pastors and teachers “to equip the saints” (Ephesians 4:12) so that the whole body grows up together. You cannot become mature while staying away from God’s people.

God grows us through what older Christians called the means of grace. This simply means the ordinary tools God uses to build up our faith:

The Word: reading, hearing and obeying Scripture, especially as it is preached (Romans 10:17).
Prayer: speaking to God, alone and with others (Philippians 4:6).
Baptism and the Lord’s Supper: visible signs that strengthen our faith in God’s promises (1 Corinthians 10:16).
Fellowship: believers encouraging and correcting one another (Hebrews 10:24–25).
Trials: hard times that God uses to train us, even though they hurt (Hebrews 12:11).

Nothing here is flashy. God grows strong believers through ordinary things.

5. Growth Is Real, but Never Finished in This Life

Paul writes:

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
Philippians 3:12

Just 3 verses later, he says, “Let those of us who are mature think this way” (Philippians 3:15). In Greek, “perfect” and “mature” come from the same word family—teleios. Paul is saying, in effect, “I am not yet perfect, but I am mature”—and mature people know they haven’t arrived.

The Westminster Confession of Faith (1646) says sanctification is “imperfect in this life”, with “remnants of corruption in every part”. Martin Luther put it memorably: “This life therefore isn’t righteousness but growth in righteousness, not health but healing, not being but becoming, not rest but exercise.”

This truth rules out perfectionism—the teaching that Christians can reach a point where they no longer sin. BB Warfield showed in Perfectionism that this idea does not fit the Bible (1 John 1:8).

6. Maturity Is for Every Believer, Not a Special Few

Some teachers divide Christians into 2 classes: ordinary believers and “deeper life” believers. Others say a person can be a “carnal Christian” for life—saved, but never changing.

The Bible doesn’t allow this. Paul’s goal was to “present everyone mature in Christ” (Colossians 1:28). Everyone. When Paul called the Corinthians “infants in Christ”, he wasn’t placing them in a permanent group. He was rebuking them for staying babies too long. Growth is the normal life of every child of God.

7. Maturity Can Be Seen

Maturity begins in the heart, but it always shows on the outside. Jesus said, “you will recognise them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:20). Scripture points to clear signs:

Signs of Immaturity and Maturity, Side by Side

AREA OF LIFE	AN IMMATURE BELIEVER…	A MATURE BELIEVER…	BIBLE
Beliefs	Is shaken by every new teaching or online video	Stands firm on Bible truth	Ephesians 4:14
Choices	Needs to be told what is right again and again	Can tell good from evil through practice	Hebrews 5:14
Relationships	Is jealous, quarrelsome and takes sides	Works for peace and unity	1 Corinthians 3:3
Words	Speaks quickly and carelessly	Controls the tongue	James 3:2
Trials	Complains and doubts God	Grows steadier through suffering	James 1:2–4
Self	Is focused on own needs and rights	Looks to the interests of others	Philippians 2:3–4

Hebrews says the mature “have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice” (Hebrews 5:14). Discernment means telling true from false and wise from foolish. Like a muscle, it grows through use.

James gives a surprising test: “if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man” (James 3:2). The word “perfect” there is teleios again. Want to measure your maturity? Listen to your own tongue.

8. God Will Finish What He Started

Our growth is often slow. But the final result is not in doubt. Paul writes, “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). One day, John says, “we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). This hope keeps us going when progress feels small.

The Surprising Mark of a Truly Mature Christian

Here’s something that surprises many. As Christians grow, we usually feel sinful, not less. The closer we come to a bright light, the more dust we see on our clothes.

Timeline: How Paul Described Himself

About AD 55: “I am the least of the apostles” (1 Corinthians 15:9).
About AD 60–62: “I am the very least of all the saints” (Ephesians 3:8).
About AD 62–64: Christ came “to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost” (1 Timothy 1:15).

Paul didn’t get worse. He saw more clearly. As his view of Christ went up, his view of himself went down.

Jonathan Edwards, the great American preacher of the 1700s, saw the same pattern. In Religious Affections (1746), he taught that true grace makes a believer hungry for more grace. False spirituality, by contrast, is quickly satisfied with itself.

John Newton, the former slave trader who wrote “Amazing Grace”, summed up the mature Christian’s honest view of himself:

JOHN NEWTON ON GROWING IN GRACE

“I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am.”

Answering Common Objections

“Didn’t Jesus tell us to be like children?” Yes: “unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3). But Jesus meant childlike trust and humility, not childish thinking. Paul draws the line clearly: “Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature” (1 Corinthians 14:20).
“If God does the work, why should I try?” Because God works through our effort, not around it. Peter tells us to “make every effort” to grow in godly character (2 Peter 1:5). The Puritan John Owen warned, “be killing sin or it will be killing you.” He called this mortification—putting sin to death by the Spirit’s power (Romans 8:13). Grace does not make us lazy; it makes us able.
“I still struggle with sin. Does that mean I’m not growing?” Not at all. The struggle itself is a sign of life—dead people do not fight. Paul describes this battle in Galatians 5:17. What matters is direction: do you run to Christ when you fall?

QUESTIONS TO ASK OURSELVES

Paul says, “Examine yourselves” (2 Corinthians 13:5).

Am I looking more at Christ, or more at myself?
Am I growing in love for other believers—especially difficult ones?
Is my tongue more under control than it was a year ago?
Am I part of a local church, sitting under faithful Bible teaching?
When I sin, do I run to Christ or hide from Him?
Do I see my own sin more clearly than before—and love God’s grace more because of it?

Growing Up Into Christ

So, what does it mean to be spiritually mature? It doesn’t mean being busy, gifted, clever or sinless. It means being a forgiven sinner who’s becoming more like Jesus—slowly, truly and together with God’s people.

Mature Christians haven’t arrived. They keep pressing on, looking to Christ and trusting God to finish His work. If we belong to Christ, that growth isn’t only possible. It’s promised.

But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
2 Peter 3:18

Tough Questions, Honest Answers

How long does it take to become spiritually mature?

There is no fixed timetable, because growth is God’s work and He works differently in each life. The Bible pictures a whole lifetime of growth, not a course we finish in a few years. Still, Hebrews 5:12 shows that time should bring progress: “by this time you ought to be teachers.” So while there is no stopwatch, we should expect a believer to look more like Christ after five years than after five weeks. What matters most is steady direction, not speed. Even the oldest saint keeps growing until the day they see Christ.

Can a new Christian be more spiritually mature than someone saved for decades?

Yes, in some ways this can happen. Maturity is measured by likeness to Christ, not by years in church. A young believer who is humble, teachable and hungry for God’s Word may show more Christlike character than an older believer who has stopped growing. That is why Hebrews rebukes long-time believers who still need “milk” (Hebrews 5:12). At the same time, deep wisdom normally needs time and testing. That is why Scripture asks older believers who have walked faithfully to guide younger ones (Titus 2:2–5).

What’s the difference between emotional maturity and spiritual maturity?

Emotional maturity means handling feelings well—staying calm, managing conflict and understanding others. These are good gifts, and even unbelievers can have them. Spiritual maturity goes deeper. It is becoming like Christ by the Holy Spirit, rooted in faith in God and love for Him. The two often overlap, because the fruit of the Spirit includes patience and self-control (Galatians 5:22–23). But a calm person is not always a godly person. In a mature Christian, emotions are increasingly shaped by God’s truth rather than by moods or circumstances.

Can a Christian go backwards in spiritual maturity?

Yes, a true Christian can go through seasons of decline, often called “backsliding”. The church in Ephesus did many good works, yet Jesus said, “you have abandoned the love you had at first” (Revelation 2:4). King David’s sin with Bathsheba shows how far a real believer can fall. But a true child of God will not fall away completely, because God keeps His own (John 10:28–29). In love, God disciplines His wandering children to bring them back (Hebrews 12:6). The way back is the same as the way forward: repent, return to Christ and use the means of grace again.

Does the Bible describe stages of spiritual growth?

The Bible does speak of different stages. In 1 John 2:12–14, John writes to “little children”, “young men” and “fathers”—probably describing believers at different levels of growth rather than physical age. The children know their sins are forgiven, the young men are strong against the evil one, and the fathers know God deeply. John Newton described three similar stages using Jesus’ picture of a growing crop: “first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear” (Mark 4:28). In his view, the fully grown believer is marked less by excitement and more by quiet humility and trust. These are general patterns, not strict steps that everyone follows in the same way.

Why does the Bible say church leaders must not be new converts?

Paul says an elder “must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil” (1 Timothy 3:6). Leading God’s people needs tested character, not just talent or enthusiasm. New believers may have gifts and energy, but pride is a special danger when someone is lifted up too soon. Time allows a person’s faith to be proven in trials and their life to be seen by others. This protects both the leader and the church. It also reminds us to value proven godliness above charisma.

Is Christian spiritual maturity the same as “spiritual awakening” in other religions?

No. Many religions and spiritual movements speak of awakening, enlightenment or reaching a “higher self”. These usually depend on human effort, looking inward or finding a divine spark within. Christian maturity is completely different. It begins with God rescuing sinners by grace, and it is measured by one Person—Jesus Christ. We do not grow by discovering how good we are inside, but by being changed by the Holy Spirit to become like Christ. The goal is not a better version of ourselves, but a Christlike life lived for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).

Truths to die for

What Does It Mean to Be Spiritually Mature?

What Does “Mature” Mean in the Bible?

What Spiritual Maturity Isn’t