Do We Have Spiritual Children?

I know this question for some people seems foreign, but the idea of spiritual children is not a new concept for the body of Christ. It is an old concept but many in the church have never heard what it means to have people look to them as a spiritual parent. Although God is the one that enables a person to be “Born Again,” others in the body of Christ should take on the responsibility and care to raise individuals in their walk with God.

John 3:6-7

“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

1 Timothy 1:2

To Timothy, a true son in the faith:

The application of this biblical truth, which produces mature saints, happens through relationship just as natural children develop best in families. The natural always is a reflection of what should be going on in the spirit. Christians throughout the ages have lost and then regained their awareness of the biblical idea of relationship as  the cornerstone of the Christian community as well as a critical key for individuals who are learning to apply the values of discipleship.

The idea of having spiritual parents seems to be a foreign concept today. It’s no wonder with the future pastors coming out of seminaries with a degree in Biblical knowledge but void of practical application.  Seminaries, just like secular universities and colleges, often don’t teach through application but through lectures. What once developed young people into mature adults through apprenticeship, for the most part now is devoid of true application. When relationship is removed from discipleship maturity is rarely developed.

Unless local pastors learn how to walk in their Christian faith by being mentored by other mature believers who are spiritual parents, they will not develop Christian communities into the likeness of Christ. Pastors today all too often have churches that are more like secular businesses, selling a product of faith without seeing that they have forgotten to make disciples like Jesus did.

Being Responsible for natural or adopted children is as old as humanity. We are told in the book of Genesis to be “Fruitful,” which in Hebrew means to “Multiply” or increase. Our bodies were created for multiplication through  the male and female. In the same way our spiritual lives are designed for multiplication and maturity through relationship. The whole idea of Matthew 28:19 is for each of us to make disciples after our own faith and walk with God. We were not born again just to enjoy the goodness of God, but rather to share with others the blessings God provides to us. One only has to see the terrible lack of maturity in our culture where children are being raised by just one parent. Jesus said we should love one another “LIKE” he did which was in the context of being a spiritual parent. The apostle Paul reflected the same mindset when he told the Thessalonians that he cared for them like a mother.

John 13:34-35

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

1 Thessalonians 2:7

But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children.

Is there any wonder that a majority of believers today barely know the God they say they know, considering that the idea and practice of spiritual parenting is missing from our Christian education? We all were designed to learn from others “MODELING” their faith. If we don’t build solid spiritual relationships as we should, where spiritual parents raise their spiritual children by explaining their values and then modeling them, then spiritual growth will be stilted at best and carnal at worst. Take a look at major colleges and universities which were once started to produce ministers of the gospel like Yale, Harvard and Princeton. Within just a few generations they have transformed into the most liberal colleges in the world because you can’t separate relationship from learning and hope to raise up healthy believers in Christ.

The apostle Paul referred to himself and acted as the spiritual father to local churches. Why? So the growing Christian population would know how they were to care for others of the same faith. He was building the idea of “Family” for these new fellowships so their spiritual “DNA” was constructed around relationship, not after a business model like so many churches today. Personal modeling is required to produce healthy saints of God.

Galatians 4:19

My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you,

Paul even spoke of individuals as his spiritual sons because he built such a close relationship with them. Remember Paul said follow me as I follow Christ. Wouldn’t that mean we are meant to have spiritual children like Paul did? Look at these passages and make your own conclusion.

1 Corinthians 11:1

Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

Titus 1:4

To Titus, a true son in our common faith:

So much of what we call “Church” today is a far cry from the image and care of a family. The modern church all too often reflects a “Business” rather than a family. We live in a fast paced world and the enemy of our souls uses that to degrade the idea and practice of family both in the natural and the spiritual. In natural families today the intimacy and education of children has been turned over to public schools and culture, rather than parents who were meant to be the main source of nurturing. Parents go to work in the morning, don’t see the kids until the evening and are often so tired they barely have conversations with their kids before bed. The fruit of such parenting produces children who don’t feel responsible for themselves, let alone those around them.

Healthy adults don’t happen by accident. Neither do healthy and mature Christians. Discipleship and mentoring happens best in the context of healthy relationships where “Spiritual Parents” have a vested interest in individuals, which is tangible and not casual. These relationships help new believers learn how to process their Christian faith. There is no shortcut to healthy believers. There must be spiritual parenting in the context of healthy church families.

I have personally had times in which spiritually mature saints cared for me like spiritual fathers. Those relationships have changed my life and my faith because I saw the love of God in their mentoring. I so appreciate the value of those kinds of connection. We should desire both to receive and to offer ourselves as spiritual mothers and fathers.

Who is your spiritual parent and are you willing to become a spiritual parent to someone else, or are you living as an orphan in the body of Christ just being engaged in a crowd of knowledge ?

Questions:

1) Are you engaged practically with a person on a weekly basis who is more mature in their Christian walk? If you are not, are you willing to humble yourself and ask someone or ask your pastor for advice about who to ask?

2) Are you truly mentoring someone in their faith or ignoring God’s call to make disciples? Discipleship is not about having all the answers or being a perfect follower of Christ, but a person ready to help someone grow who is weaker than yourself.

All my Christian life I have had spiritual children, helping them grow in what I have learned, You can do the same!

Pastor Dale