When I was in seminary, I had to take two language classes Greek and Hebrew. The first language class I took was turbo Greek. They call it turbo Greek because they squished two semesters worth of Greek into two months. I took these two classes over the summer and they were the only classes I took.

One thing I realized quickly was that if I was going to learn this language, I had to put in the effort, which meant I had to do more than show up for class. So that summer I spent hours flipping through vocabulary cards, doing practice exercises, and memorizing charts. Any chance I got I worked on Greek. I even downloaded an app to my phone so I could work on it while my wife and I were out shopping, or I had a spare moment. While it was a lot of work, it paid off. I ended up doing pretty well in the class.

Just as learning a foreign language does not happen solely by showing up to class, becoming a fully mature disciple of Jesus does not happen just by showing up to church once a week. It takes effort and time; it's not an easy thing, which means we have to fight for our Christian growth. There are several ways we can fight.

How to fight for your growth in Christ:

(1) Be a member of a local church

We need the local church. We need to hear God's Word faithfully preached week in and week out. We need Christian community to build us up in times of need, encourage us when things are going well, serve us when we need help, love us through hard times, and hold us accountable.

(2) Serve in the church and the community

Growing as a disciple involves more than imbibing the weekly sermon, or class lecture. Part of growing as a disciple means serving as Jesus served, which means we need to find ways to serve in our local church as well as in our local community.

(3) Be active in making Disciples

Along with serving, we also need to actively be involved in making disciples. We need to share our faith with others, as well as we need to bring others on the journey of Christian growth with us. In order to bring others along, we don't need to wait for the church to setup a discipleship program. The church already has structures in place to help us grow and most of us are already doing things that contribute to our own Christian growth; we just need to invite others to participate with us. So the next time you attend Sunday Service, Bible study, or a Men's group, invite someone to come with you. The next time you plan to serve in the community or share your faith, invite someone to come with you. The next time you are going to read a book, invite someone to read it with you and discuss it on a regular basis.

Those are just a few ways you can fight for your Christian growth. They all take time, effort, and intentionality, but the effort you put in will be worth it.

Receive a Free eBook by Charles Spurgeon!

To celebrate Pastor Appreciation Month this October, we’re giving away a free eBook from Charles Spurgeon! This work from Spurgeon is meant to encourage pastors and ministry leaders to endure in their ministry for the glory of God and the good of the Church. We pray it encourages you and your church this month.

Additionally, Midwestern Seminary is releasing new content and giveaways across social media, including a $10,000 Pastor Appreciation Package to be awarded to one pastor who is entered! Enter your pastor to win and find out more about how we’re celebrating Pastor Appreciation Month by clicking the button below.