Not of This World

Although spiritual growth follows a certain pattern and can be divided into several stages, in each individual case this growth remains something special and unique. A growing person may be at several stages of growth at the same time and understand very well what is taking place around him and within his heart.

Knowledge about spiritual growth helps me properly examine my heart and understand where I am now and what kind of relationship I have with Christ. Becoming stuck at an early stage brings no special blessings, although it may bring a measure of success and popularity in ministry.

People in the early stages of faith and spiritual growth very often orient themselves toward the expectations of the church and of other people. For them, praise, likes on social media, and applause are very important indicators of their significance in the spiritual world. New subscribers to their channels give them confidence that they are doing everything correctly and are on the right path. And the more people there are who evaluate your work, the more you want to serve those people.

But the Lord has His own program for my spiritual growth. What matters to Him is not my popularity, but my personal relationship with Him and the cleansing of my heart from all selfishness.

The journey within myself—the “dark forest” through which I must pass—gives God authority to cleanse my heart of every kind of rubbish in my understanding of spiritual values. Self-examination helps uncover and remove every root of selfishness from the heart. Disappointment in myself and freedom from the pressure of other people’s opinions and expectations lead me into a closer relationship with Christ. He cleanses my soul of the debris whose presence caused me to burn out emotionally.

When I have come to terms with myself, I greatly desire to take up my ministry in the church again, but now with a new understanding of what is happening. I am no longer concerned about how people or the church evaluate my ministry. I perform it for God and with God in my heart. Christ’s evaluation is very important to me, for He shows me what to do and how to do it better.

Applause, praise, other people’s assessments, and the number of likes or new subscribers become unimportant to me. Outwardly, however, I do not demonstrate my indifference, because I understand that many people do these things sincerely as a way of expressing their appreciation. Yet all this appreciation is not an incentive for me in my ministry. I serve for God, and it gives me great joy to help other people for Jesus’ sake.

At this stage of growth, I choose the ministry that corresponds to my understanding and my spiritual longing. Even if I hold a leadership position, I can relinquish it with simplicity of heart and choose some small ministry, thereby surprising my friends and fellow believers.

During the journey outward, I greatly desire to share my new experiences and discoveries with everyone. I willingly tell others about my new spiritual experience and about the inner trials I have endured. I am more interested in depth than merely in some event or experience. I begin to notice new revelations in the Bible that I did not see before. Christ’s Sermon on the Mount suddenly opens before me in a new light. I marvel at the depth of what was said and see this depth at work in my heart because of the crises through which the Lord has led me.

Do you think anything could have frightened the three young men in the third chapter of the book of Daniel after they emerged from the fiery furnace? I believe that no threats or intimidation could have troubled them any longer. Something similar is experienced by those who pass through a crisis of faith and reach the level of spiritual growth at which God’s agape love becomes a desired possession and a natural fruit of the Holy Spirit.

All the later crises and “dark nights” that continue to occur in the life of a growing Christian are no longer so dark and incomprehensible. I understand that all this must be endured for my benefit. Therefore, I take Jesus with me into the next trial and allow Him to cleanse me in this new fire.

Even what you are reading now will not be understandable to you if you are at an early stage of spiritual growth.

To every thing there is a season. Yet such information is useful so that the coming crises of faith will not frighten you inwardly when they begin and while you pass through them.

Christ’s approval and His plan for my life are the chief criteria by which I evaluate my ministry and my choice of one path or another.

I begin to understand more clearly that I greatly need God’s love, in which all my motives and actions will have the right nature. I do not want to serve God merely from duty or play at love without having it in my heart. I do not want to reflect on a love that I do not possess within myself. But I am deeply interested in seeing how God’s love works through me and what success it has in my heart when I ask for it and choose it.

As I move into the new stage of spiritual growth called love, I experience another darkness in my life. It is no longer so dangerous, but it saddens me because I become incomprehensible to other people, while they interpret my true motives as their exact opposite.

I am honest before God and rejoice that I hear His revelations, that I have a relationship with Him, and that I am led by His Holy Spirit.

As I study the life of Jesus at this stage, I begin to understand His experiences more fully and the loneliness He endured while among His disciples and among those who considered themselves teachers of Israel. The book of Psalms describes in detail the feelings experienced by the Savior. When I pass through something similar, I rejoice that the Lord has already walked this path and understands perfectly what is happening within me.

The stage of love is no better than the other stages, but it differs in that I must remain in it. While becoming stuck at any of the other stages of faith may prove fatal to me, abiding in the stage of love helps me grow in this love and receive new knowledge and experience of God working through it.

I become much more serious about spiritual matters and greatly value all the new revelations the Lord gives me. God does not leave me ignorant of where I am or what is happening to me. He shows me the power of His love and the importance of this Heavenly blessing. I understand that without this love all my works lose their meaning and every ministry is permeated by an entirely different spirit.

I have many questions about this, but few people can give me a definite answer. Therefore, I take all my questions to Christ, Who understands perfectly what is happening to me and why I am asking. And He answers.

Such discoveries lead my mind into another darkness, where once again I reassess what is happening and realize that very few people understand me. Therefore, I have to discuss all my discoveries and attainments more with God than with other people.

I can now communicate with people at any stage of growth in language they understand, while discussing all my deep revelations with Jesus. This world does not attract me, but I understand that I must still live in it for a while and do something more for God’s glory.

1. Please read John 15:19; Galatians 2:20; Philippians 1:21; 3:8; 1 John 2:15–16; Colossians 3:2–3; 2 Corinthians 4:17; 13:5; Hebrews 13:14.

2. What other Bible verses came to your mind?

3. What did you understand?

4. What does the expression “not of this world” mean?

5. Whom am I truly living for: God or the opinions of people?

6. Has my ministry become an attempt to prove my significance to others?

7. Am I ready to serve God without applause or gratitude?

8. Why did God permit the fiery furnace in Daniel 3? Does something similar await His children?

9. Why are those who have grown in Christ not always fully understood by those who do not wish to grow?

10. Have I become too attached to my own understanding of truth?

11. Am I ready to acknowledge my mistakes and spiritual immaturity?

12. Why are spiritual darkness and personal crisis necessary for growth?

13. How can the love of Christ be seen in a person’s life?

14. Does the fact that the Lord desires to make you not of this world trouble you?