Spiritual Growth is from Heart to Mind to Heart (Part 2)

Spiritual Growth is from Heart to Mind to Heart (Part 2)

Renewing the Mind: The Journey to Spiritual Maturity

When you accept salvation through faith, you embark on a transformative spiritual journey. The first step, justification, secures your eternal peace with God and grants you a new identity in His kingdom. However, this is only the beginning of the fuller salvation experience. The second step, sanctification, is where the real work begins—the renewal of your mind and growth into spiritual maturity.

Think of your spiritual life as similar to your physical life. When you were born, you received an identity and began to grow, explore, and develop. You learned, set goals, and gradually adopted new patterns of behaviour. Likewise, your spiritual identity as a child of God calls for growth and development. You cannot remain a "spiritual babe." Just as an heir to an empire must mature to fully enjoy the benefits and participate in the responsibilities of their inheritance, you must grow spiritually to embrace the fullness of your future inheritance in our Father's heavenly kingdom.

What Does Renewing the Mind Mean?

Romans 6: Growing Beyond Justification

Romans 6: Growing Beyond Justification

Justification through faith, as described in Romans 5:1, is not the end of the Christian life. Instead, justification marks the starting line of a transformative journey of faith. It is the open door to a lifelong process of spiritual growth and maturity. What follows justification is essential for believers: the renewal of the mind and ultimately the transformation of one’s heart.

Romans 6 introduces us to the next critical step in this journey—introspection. It calls believers to turn inward and address the dominion of sin that remains a force in our mortal bodies. Without engaging with this inward transformation, many believers remain spiritual babes, as Paul lamented regarding the Corinthians, 1Cor.3:1-2. But with intentionality, we can progress towards the maturity God desires for us. Romans 6 equips us for this step, guiding us to understand what it means to be dead to sin and alive to God. This renewal is foundational for every believer who seeks to grow into the fullness of their faith and Paul’s doctrine.

Let us now explore the powerful truths of Romans 6, particularly focusing on the crux of the matter found in Romans 6:16, which reveals the vital process of yielding, obedience, and the fruits of righteousness.

What Romans 6 Teaches Us: Dead to Sin and Alive to God

Romans 6 addresses a profound truth: through Christ, our relationship with sin has fundamentally changed. We are no longer slaves to sin, but we are invited to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4). However, this does not happen automatically; it requires a mindset shift and an active faith.