“Ya big baby!” As a child, I remember how being called a baby was a capital insult. Why does this insult instantly make one prickle with annoyance? Babies are cute, adorable, and sweet; in theory, it shouldn’t be an insult. I think this insult stings because it negates years of work to grow and mature, while babies cry to get their way, cannot clearly articulate their needs, and only draw nourishment from one thing, milk.  

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One of the many milestones I have loved in watching my children grow is the transition to solid foods from a milk-only diet. I loved watching their tiny expressive faces play through the mix of contrasting emotions of wonder and confusion, excitement and shock. It was always a terrible mess trying to teach them to keep the food in their mouth and then to swallow it. That “solid” mush going down was so foreign and strange to them. Sometimes they weren’t too sure about solid food, but inevitably after a few repetitions of eating real food, they were starting to eye my plate with increasing interest. While the familiar bottle was still a comfort to them, they were no longer strictly content with just a bottle. As they grew, not only were they not content with just a bottle, but the bottle also no longer served all their needs.  

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Paul is not so subtle in his attempt to explain the need for spiritual growth. In effect, it sounds like he’s calling his audience a bunch of babies. Which is only offensive to those who are not babies but may act like them in their immaturity. If I got frustrated feeding my baby solid food for the first time and said, “Why are you so messy? You’re eating like a baby!” Anyone listening would question my sanity, looking at my sweet little baby just trying to learn to eat. By contrast, however, if I sat my almost-13-year-old in a high chair at our table and only fed her mush, and she still spit it everywhere, unable to swallow “solid food,” well, you might still question my sanity, but you would likely also discern that something is not quite right in her developmental growth. This is the hard truth Paul is pinpointing. To state the obvious, the natural progression of becoming mature is to practice eating until one can independently gain nourishment from a variety of solid foods.  

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Spiritually speaking, baby Christians are content and totally filled by the basic milk of salvation, in the knowledge of Jesus their Lord and Savior. This is good and right – to have a child-like faith and love of the Lord. But as we grow into more spiritually-mature Christians, we require more mature spiritual nourishment. We cannot solely rely on being “fed” by our pastor on the weekends or listening to Christian music (which are also good things). The knowledge of salvation and child-like faith in Christ are still comforting, but we should be eyeing that filet mignon on Dad’s plate – longing for the spiritual teeth to dig in and properly chew up the meat of Scripture, if you will. God created us with a natural desire to grow and experience the next thing. One cannot discern fully between good and evil unless they work their way up to that knowledge. This is developed through practice, prayer, Bible study, Christ-centered community, and repetition.  

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In this series called “Men, We Need You,” we are highlighting God’s design for men and our tendency to downplay His assignment for them. While today’s Scripture is speaking to any believer, Titus 2:6-8 specifically calls out young men to be self-controlled and living with integrity. Earlier in the chapter, verse 2 says, “Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness.” The list is longer for older men, which appears to indicate that their additional years have provided them the maturity to have more responsibility placed upon them. This brings us to an obvious conclusion: Men are not born, they are formed. Some growth is a result of natural progression, but some growth requires action, discipline, effort, and intentionality.  

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So, how old are you? No answer is inherently wrong, but it's good to assess where we are to determine the next step. Are you operating like a baby, being fed by others only? Are you a toddler dabbling in feeding yourself but still reliant on others to prepare your spiritual food? Or are you quickly maturing in your consistent practice of studying God’s Word? I pray this breakdown of assessing your spiritual maturity is not a discouraging reason to stay stuck, but a catapult to challenge you to keep moving forward and digging deeper in knowing God better.  

God, You are so good and Your plans for us are perfect. I thank You for the design You gave men. I thank You for the men in my life who reflect Your love. I pray You would be with my brothers in Christ as they mature and grow in exercising the gifts You’ve given them. Help them to continue to move from desire to continue to grow into the men of action You have called them to be. We love You and desire to please You in all we do. Amen.