Each week we feature a devotional, book review or testimony ~ a “Devotional Spotlight”, written by a woman in our ministry. May you be blessed reading a devotional by Kelly Whitehead on the kinship of natural and spiritual birth…
For nine months my child was supernaturally woven together in the protected environment of my womb. I was nauseous. I gained weight. My husband and I made lists and named him. Finally, the God-ordained moment arrived, and out popped a seven pound, bouncing baby boy. It is not an extraordinary narrative, but I would dare say that very few can contemplate the birth of a child without standing in awe of the miracle called life.
Second Corinthians 5:17 says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” Spiritual birth is no less miraculous than natural birth and should elicit a similar awe-filled response. For, to be in Christ is to exchange a life of sin for a life of righteousness, which comes only through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, the perfect son of God. It is to receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, who changes believers from the inside out. “They are not reformed, rehabilitated, or re-educated. Instead, they are new creatures, born again and living in vital union with Christ.” (Paraphrase: NIV Life Application Bible; notes p. 2099)
Now imagine the newborn baby left to himself. Without someone to meet his basic needs, he would fail to thrive. The same is often true for young believers. The exchanged life requires nurturing. To grow strong the young Christian should be cared for by those more mature. He should be encouraged to daily feed on God’s Word. He should be instructed in righteous living and taught to pray and worship the One for whom he now lives.
The Bible teaches that newly born Christians crave spiritual milk to grow up in their salvation. Solid food, however, is for the mature believer who has the “powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil” (1 Peter 2:2; Hebrews 5: 11-14)
Just as it is my husband’s and my goal to train up our children to maturity so they are ready to face the world confidently and independently, it should be the goal of mature believers to positively influence those who come after them in the faith. It is for those of us who have a longstanding, intimate relationship with Jesus to initiate such relationships. Therefore, if this is you, I would urge you to pray and ask God to place a young believer on your path to encourage in such a way. On the other hand, if you are one who would benefit from having a spiritual mentor, I suggest two things. First, pray that God would pair you with someone who will embolden you in your walk. Secondly, join a women’s Bible study where you will learn to study the Word of God with Christians of varying levels of maturity. By doing so, in due time, you should be feasting on solid food while inspiring your own fledgling follower of Jesus Christ.
