Stabilizing New Converts

by James B. Orten
Introduction:
The importance of this topic can be confirmed by noting that almost every church in the nation could double, perhaps triple, its membership over-night if it could only reclaim the members it has lost. But I wonder if you noticed the flaw in my title? Stabilizing converts, new or old, cannot be done as a primary activity. Just as an airplane in flight can only be stable while making progress, a Christian can only be stable in growth.

I do not say these things to complain about the brother who suggested the topic, or the brethren who assigned it to me, anymore than I am complaining about myself. I accepted the topic and was well into thinking about it before I realized that, technically, I had agreed to do the impossible.

I point out the flaw in the title because I sincerely believe it is symptomatic of a flaw in the way we think about discipleship. I think we assume that if we can just get people stable in doing certain religious activities (which translates into doing them habitually), they will be all right. In fact, to do this and be satisfied with it could be the most dangerous position of all.

As great a servant of God as Paul was, he did not consider himself to have arrived.

1. Philippians 3:13, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do ...
2. Nor did Paul expect other Christians to reach a state on earth in which they could stop growing. Ephesians 4:13, “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man.”

The switch that we must make is comparable to the one the medical profession is making from a “curing disease” model to a “promotion of health” model.

1. Doctors used to think that if a child did not have any of the known diseases then he must be healthy. We know now how dangerous that assumption is. The number of things that can be wrong with a child was not known then, is not known now, and probably will never be known, because new diseases keep arising.
2. It is much more profitable to think in terms of promotion of health. Consequently, today pediatricians have charts that show normal growth curves for height, weight, metabolism, etc. They know that if a child measures up well on these standards, they can be more certain of his health than by looking only at whether he has measles, strep throat, or even cancer.

If you were going to construct some “normal spiritual growth” charts for young Christians, what types of characteristics would you put on them?

1. If you are like me, you have trouble even thinking in these terms. Again, this is a symptom of our problem.
2. Please continue thinking about normal, desirable growth patterns for Christians. We will come back to this principle later.
3. So much for a rather lengthy introduction.

I. The Scriptures teach that there are three sides to a Christian’s growth and ultimate salvation.
A. The individual Christian’s own responsibility. No one will ever be saved against his will. No one will grow as a Christian without his active participation.
1. 1 Peter 2:2, “as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.”

The apostle’s analogy is instructive in many ways. Children are born with an instinctive “will to live” that makes them crave their natural food. They are also equipped at birth with a sucking reflex that enables them to acquire it. Craving and accepting the food that is given them is about all we expect of infants, because that is about all of which they are capable.

This comparison of new converts to infants causes us to think about who is responsible for a Christian’s growth at what times in his Christian life. I picture a continuum in which at birth others are mostly responsible for him. At maturity, he is mostly responsible for himself, and he bears some responsibility for other disciples

Responsibility for Christian GrowthAt birth: Others are mostly responsible for you.
At maturity: You are responsible for yourself and some for others.

If an infant dies of starvation or exposure, who is responsible for its death?

As a Christian grows, he bears more and more responsibility for himself.

1. 2 Peter 1:5 “And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance”.
2. This is a personal command, directed to individual Christians. “Add” means you add to your faith. It is clear that Peter here lays additional responsibility on the individual.

Philippians 2:12 suggests a time when disciples could be told to “work out your own salvation,” which suggests most of the responsibility would then be on them. This passage clearly implies growth. Ellicott says that the phrase “work out” means to carry through to completion.

These passages and many others show that individual Christians have some responsibility for their own salvation at all stages of their spiritual lives. But they show just as clearly that in their infancy others are mostly responsible for them.

1. Many humans, especially men, fear having others be dependent on them. Because of this, I fear that we want to cut babes in Christ loose too soon, making them responsible for themselves before they are able.
2. As one example of this, a young man is baptized and we put him up immediately to teach, i.e., before he can feed himself, we give him the responsibility for feeding others. And we have been known to send talented babes in Christ out to be preachers of the gospel! Some of these have been overwhelmed and discouraged by this responsibility
3. Paul said Hebrews 5:12, “For when for the time you ought to be teachers . . .
4. This passage implies that there is “a time” when disciples ought to have grown to a state that they can be teachers, which also implies that there is a time they cannot be expected to do so. Additionally it suggests a certain normal standard of growth.

II. The second side to man’s salvation is God’s part. While it is true that Christians of all stages of spiritual growth bear some or much responsibility for themselves, God promises to help.

A. I Corinthians 3:6, “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.”
1. The word “gave” here means made to grow. Some translations say, “I planted the seed, Apollos warned it; but God made it grow.”
2. The seed, as in other places, is the Word of God. The passage means that Paul preached the Word first, Apollos came later and preached supporting what Paul had done. But it was God who produced the results.

B. I was surprised upon getting into this study at how many biblical passages speak of God’s part in man’s salvation. Here are some examples.
1. Jude 24, “Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.”
2. This verse is not suggesting that God has this power but will not use it. Ellicott translates it, “who can bring it to pass that you stand blameless before the judgment seat.”
3. Romans 16:25, “Now to Him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel . .
4. “Stablish” means to strengthen all facets of Christian character, or as we might say, to confirm in a healthy pattern of spiritual growth.
5. 2 Timothy 1:12, “For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.”
6. Paul’s analogy is that of depositing a treasure with a strong and beloved king who will allow no enemy to steal it until it is returned to its owner at a specified time. This passage is linked by commentators to the one in Psalm 31:5 that was quoted by Jesus from the cross which says, “Into thine hand I commit my spirit.”
7. There are many other passages that speak of God’s willingness to preserve His saints: Colossians 1:22; 1 Thessalonians 3:12-13; 2 Thessalonians 2:17, 3:3-4, and others.


C. At this point I can imagine that some of you are saying to yourselves, “Now where is he going with that; how is he going to say that God strengthens and preserves Christians?”
1. Perhaps I am going to disappoint some and relieve others, but I am not going to describe the mechanism by which God works in this matter.
2. A part of the reason I shall not make this attempt is that I believe it to be the wrong question. We may never know, or at least never agree on, how God accomplishes such purposes.
3. In this, as in other matters, if we ask the wrong question, we will never get the right answer.
4. The right question is, “How do we access this great power of God?” And the answer to that question is clear. We access it through prayer.
5. Examples of Paul praying for new converts: Philippians 1:3-9; Colossians 1:9-11.
6. An example of Paul being strengthened: 2 Timothy 4:16-17, “At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me . . . Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me and strengthened me.”
7. I see no evidence of this being a special miraculous process, but rather I assume it to be of the ordinary type available to all Christians.
D. Perhaps we often neglect the best possible thing we could do for new converts ---.(teaching them to pray, and praying for them --- pdc)

III. While it is certain that the individual bears responsibility for his growth, and that God helps, it is also clear that brothers and sisters bear responsibility for each other.

A. Jesus’ analogy of Christians being born into the household of God as babes demands this view.

1. We often puzzle over why Christians fall away, but I believe if we think in terms of what it takes to promote growth and health in an infant and translate that into spiritual terms, we will be on the right track.
2. For example, we know that infants must be shielded from certain harmful influences.

B. Jesus’ law of offenses shows that we are held responsible for one another, and it shows one of the negative influences from which we must shield each other, especially babes in Christ.
1. Matthew 18:7 “Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!”
2. The warning here is clear. In addition, Jesus seems to move in this verse to a general statement on offenses, from the verse just before it, in which he had talked specifically about offenses to the young.
3. Matthew 18:6, “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.”
4. This passage shows the responsibility of the elder for the younger. It is wrong to cause any person to stumble; but the young in physical life and spiritual life are so much more vulnerable, that Jesus seemed to give a stronger warning for their protection.
5. It is interesting to note that the word “offend” in this passage is the same as used in Matthew 13:41: “The son of man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity.”
6. Many other passages teach this principle. For example, Romans 14:13: “Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way."

C. Because offenses loom so large in Biblical teaching regarding new converts, we must be concerned about what causes offenses.

1. Scandals.

a. The phrase “things that offend” in Matthew 13:41 is sometimes translated “scandals”
b. As I understand it, the use of this word in this place is a figure of speech, synecdoche, in which a part of a thing or process is put for the whole. In this case, the scandal is put for the persons, their behaviors, the effects, etc.
c. Christians, especially older Christians, who get involved in sins may claim they are hurting no one but themselves. Not only is that false, the Scriptures teach that they shall be held accountable for the hurt their sins do to others.

2. A misuse of Christian liberty. Romans 14 and I Corinthians 8 both teach that liberty is not to be used to the discouragement of others. 1 Corinthians 8:9 says, “But beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak.”
3. Strife and Divisions.
a. The books of 1 and 2 Timothy teach strongly on this topic. For example,
2 Timothy 2:23-24 says, “But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes. And the servant of the Lord must not strive but be gentle unto all men.”
b. I Timothy 1:4 says that these types of questions promote “controversies” rather than godly edifying.
c. There is a parallel here with children who grow up in homes in which the parents fight. Children are always damaged by this experience. They frequently go through phases of fear, followed by anger, followed by cynicism and disgust. And they often distance themselves from the home as quickly as possible. Is there any wonder why young Christians leave the church in similar circumstances?
d. The church has just begun to take notice of child abuse in a physical sense. It is time we begin thinking in terms of “spiritual child abuse.”

IV. But infants need more than just the absence of offenses. Their caretakers must provide positive benefits too. Two of the most important are nourishing food and loving care.

A. Actually, in life and in the Bible, these two go together.

1. In Ephesians 4:15, Paul clearly showed that “teaching the truth in love” would cause Christians to grow up to be in all things like Christ.
2. In the natural realm, there are numerous studies that show that infants who are held, cuddled, and talked to while they are fed, grow faster and have fewer feeding problems than those who have their bottle propped up for them.
3. Both elements are essential. No amount of love without food (the Word) will produce spiritual growth (1 Peter 2:2), but conversely, teaching done in a cold and arrogant atmosphere will not be digested.

B. An ancient French king’s experiment illustrates this point. He hated other languages, especially German, which he considered coarse, and believed French to be the “natural” language. He thought all children would grow up to speak French if they were not corrupted by hearing other languages and he designed an experiment to prove his belief. Gathering several orphaned infants he built them a home and instructed their caretakers to provide well for them but never to speak a word in their presence. When these children grew up to speak French, as he was sure they would, he would have proved his contention. The caretakers, in fear of speaking to the children, avoided them except to provide care. What language do you think these children spoke? None. They died; every one of them! We could have predicted that in advance now; children literally cannot live without love. Neither can spiritual children.
1. The cause of these French children’s deaths was originally called “Marasmus”; it is now called “Failure to Thrive Syndrome.” Sometimes there is a physical cause, but most often it is due to poor nurturing. The child simply slips into a decline, refuses to eat, and unless it is reversed, dies.
2. We are seeing more “Failure to Thrive” in busy two-career families. Some children are put in nurseries at as little as five or six weeks of age. Nursery attendants feed them on schedule, change them, but provide little love. When busy parents take them home they may feel relieved if the child is willing to lie quietly in his crib. But it is dangerous to allow them to do so.
3. When these children are brought to doctors, they pull out the charts to see how far behind they are, and quickly suspect “Failure to Thrive.”
4. The cure for “Failure to Thrive”? In early stages the doctor talks to parents (or more likely has a social worker do it). There are programs which show naive parents how to love their infants. But in severe cases, they hospitalize the child and bring in a grandmother who loves babies and enjoys holding, cuddling, and talking to a child. The doctors know that “Failure to Thrive” is deadly unless it is reversed.

C. I believe we have the religious equivalent of busy, two-career families in our congregations, and because of it, we are producing “Spiritual Failure to Thrive” cases in many of our new converts. In effect we tell them: “The feeding schedule is 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays and twice on Sundays; be here at those times and we will give you the pure milk of the Word.” And we often never touch them in between.
1. We give new converts the pure milk of the Word, and that is absolutely essential, but it won’t go down without love.
2. 1 Corinthians 8:1, “Now concerning things offered to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.”
3. In this passage Paul is not saying that knowledge of God’s will is unessential; but rather that knowledge without love produces arrogance. knowledge with love produces growth.

D. We are eager to promote knowledge among our preachers and teachers. This “Preachers’ Study” is an example. You know that I am not opposed to it, because I have been a happy participant for many years every time I have been invited. But we have probably neglected other dimensions.
1. What do you suppose would happen if we held a preachers’ training session on “How to Show Love to the Brethren”?
2. The hoots would likely crackle like lightning in a storm. Yet, that might be one of the most profitable things we could do.
3. Over the years I have had a small stream of Christians, especially young Christians, tell me they have trouble talking with preachers and church leaders. They say they get brushed off, ignored, or given Band-Aid answers.
4. A good exercise for us older Christians would be to observe ourselves when a young person approaches us. Do we greet them with the same enthusiasm given to colleagues; do we listen with the same keen interest or take their problems as seriously?

E. One of the saddest developments in our brotherhood in recent years is the process by which we have allowed “love” to become a four-letter word.
1. We did it because some people were teaching false doctrine in the name of love.
2. We would have been better off to have maintained a balance and reminded ourselves that love includes discipline.

V. Characteristics of Spiritual Growth.

A. In closing I would like to return to the principle of “charting” Christian growth.
1. The book of Hebrews is an excellent place to center this aspect of the study. It was written to “stabilize” the Hebrew Christians and keep them from falling away under their great persecution.
2. In Hebrews 8:10-11 and Hebrews 10:16, Paul gives one of the surest tests of spiritual maturity. It is having the law of God written in one’s heart.

B. The Old Law could not produce this type of spiritual growth. It could not “make those who approach perfect” (Hebrews 10:1). But Paul says that we have a “better covenant” that was founded on “better promises” and a “more excellent ministry” of the better covenant. It can produce spiritual maturity.
1. But what does it mean that one would have the “law written in his heart,” and that we would not teach every man his neighbor to “know the Lord”? (Hebrews 8:11)
2. I believe it means that the gospel has the power to change an individual from the inside out. It can become so much a part of one’s thinking and behavior that he does what is right not because it is the law, but because it is a part of who he is. Thus, the law is not written on tables of stone, as was the Old Law, but is written on the heart.

C. For example, as long as one is still attending the worship because it is required, the law for that Christian is still written in the text. When he comes to worship because that is what he wants to do, the law is written in his heart. And so it is with all Christian duties.
1. But what did Paul mean, that when we become spiritually mature we shall “not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest” in Hebrews 8:11?
2. He did not mean that we will no longer need to preach the gospel to the lost or teach to edify believers. I believe he meant that among the spiritually mature we will not have to police each other to see that we do our duty. That will not be necessary when the law is written in our hearts.

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