69 Bible Verses about Growth

And this shall continue, until we all attain to that unity which is given by faith and by a fuller knowledge of the Son of God; until we reach the ideal man--the full standard of the perfection of the Christ. Then we shall no longer be like infants, tossed backward and forward, blown about by every breath of human teaching, through the trickery and the craftiness of men, towards the snares of error; But holding the truth in a spirit of love, we shall grow into complete union with him who is our Head--Christ himself.

But I, Brothers, could not speak to you as men with spiritual insight, but only as worldly-minded-mere infants in the Faith of Christ. I fed you with milk, not with solid food, for you were not then able to take it. No, and even now you are not able; you are still worldly.

When I was a child, I talked as a child, I felt as a child, I reasoned as a child; now that I am a man, I have done with childish ways.

Brothers, do not show yourselves children in understanding. In wickedness be infants, but in understanding show yourselves men.

For whereas, considering the time that has elapsed, you ought to be teaching others, you still need some one to teach you the very alphabet of the Divine Revelation, and need again to be fed with 'milk' instead of with 'solid food.' For every one who still has to take 'milk' knows nothing of the Teaching of Righteousness; he is a mere infant. But 'solid food' is for Christians of mature faith--those whose faculties have been trained by practice to distinguish right from wrong.

like newly born infants, crave pure spiritual milk, so that you may be enabled by it to grow till you attain Salvation--

By that which fell among the brambles are meant those who hear the Message, but who, as they go on their way, are completely choked by this world's cares and wealth and pleasures, and bring nothing to perfection. But by that in the good ground are meant those who, having heard the Message, keep it in the good, rich soil of their hearts, and patiently yield a return.

By the seed which was sown among the brambles is meant the man who hears the Message, but the cares of life and the glamour of wealth completely choke the Message, so that it gives no return. But by the seed which was sown on the good ground is meant the man who hears the Message and understands it, and really yields a return, sometimes one hundred, sometimes sixty, sometimes thirty fold."

But the cares of life, and the glamour of wealth, and cravings for many other things come in and completely choke the Message, so that it gives no return. But the people meant by the seed sown on the good ground are those who hear the Message, and welcome it, and yield a return, thirty, sixty, and even a hundred fold."

And he who supplies 'seed to the sower, and bread for eating,' will supply you with seed, and cause it to increase, and will multiply 'the fruits of your righteousness').

We are glad when we are weak, if you are strong. And what we pray for is that you may become perfect.

This is the Christ whom we proclaim, warning every one, and instructing every one, with all the wisdom that we possess, in the hope of bringing every one into God's presence perfected by union with Christ.

Epaphras, who is one of yourselves, sends you his greeting. He is a servant of Christ Jesus, and is always most earnest in your behalf in his prayers, praying that you may stand firm, with a matured faith and with a sure conviction of all that is in accordance with God's will.

Our boasting, therefore, is not unlimited, nor does it extend to the labors of others; but our hope is that, as your faith grows, our influence among you may be very greatly increased-- though still confined to our sphere-- So that we shall be able to tell the Good News in the districts beyond you, without trespassing on the sphere assigned to others, or boasting of what has been already done.

Brothers, it is our duty always to thank God about you, as is but right, considering the wonderful growth of your faith, and because, without exception, your love for one another is continually increasing.

and advance in the love and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. All glory be to him now and for ever.

My prayer is that the God of Jesus Christ our Lord, the all- glorious Father, may inspire you with wisdom and true insight through a fuller knowledge of himself; That your minds may be so enlightened that you may realize the hope given by God's Call, the wealth of the glory of his heritage among Christ's People,

And pray that, in proportion to the wealth of his glory, he will strengthen you with his power by breathing his Spirit into your inmost soul, So that the Christ, through your faith, may make his home within your hearts in love; And I pray that you, now firmly rooted and established, may, with all Christ's People, Have the power to comprehend in all its width and length and height and depth,read more.
And to understand--though it surpasses all understanding--the love of the Christ; and so be filled to the full with God himself.

Then you will live lives worthy of the Master, and so please God in every way. Your lives will be fruitful in every kind of good action, and your characters will grow through a fuller knowledge of God;

For his divine power has given us everything that is needful for a life of piety, as we advance in the knowledge of him who called us by a glorious manifestation of his goodness.

And indeed you do act in this spirit towards all the Brethren throughout Macedonia. Yet, Brothers, we urge you to still further efforts.

And what I pray for is this--that your love may grow yet stronger and stronger, with increasing knowledge and all discernment,

And for you, may the Lord fill you to overflowing with love for one another and for every one, just as we are filled with love for you;

piety by brotherly affection, and brotherly affection by love. For, when these virtues are yours, in increasing measure, they prevent your being indifferent to, or destitute of, a fuller knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

He fails to maintain union with the Head, to whom it is due that the whole body, nourished and knit together by the contact and Keynesian of every part, grows with a divine growth.

I planted, and Apollos watered, but it was God who caused the growth. Therefore neither the man who plants, nor the man who waters, is of any account, but only God who causes the growth.

For of this I am confident, that he who began a good work in you will complete it in readiness for the Day of Jesus Christ.

Now that you have done with all malice, all deceitfulness, insincerity, jealous feelings, and all back-biting,

If you live in obedience to your earthly nature, you will inevitably die; but if, by the power of the Spirit, you put an end to the evil habits of the body, you will live. All who are guided by the Spirit of God are Sons of God.

With these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that pollutes either body or spirit, and, in deepest reverence for God, aim at perfect holiness.

And those who belong to Jesus, the Christ, have already crucified their earthly nature, with its passions and its cravings.

For you learned with regard to your former way of living that you must cast off your old nature, which, yielding to deluding passions, grows corrupt; That the very spirit of your minds must be constantly renewed; And that you must clothe yourselves in that new nature which was created to resemble God, with the righteousness and holiness springing from the Truth.

Therefore destroy all that is earthly in you--immorality, uncleanness, passions, evil desires, and that greed which is idolatry. These are the things on account of which the Wrath of God comes, And to which you, like others, once devoted your lives, when you lived for them.read more.
You, however, must now lay aside all such things--anger, passion, malice, slander, abuse. Never lie to one another. Get rid of your old self and its habits, And clothe yourselves with that new self, which, as it gains in knowledge, is being constantly renewed 'in resemblance to him who made it.'

Therefore, let us leave behind the elementary teaching about the Christ and press on to perfection, not always laying over again a foundation of repentance for a lifeless formality, of faith in God-- teaching concerning baptisms and the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead and a final judgment.

Now on this subject I have much to say, but it is difficult to explain it to you, because you have shown yourselves so slow to learn. For whereas, considering the time that has elapsed, you ought to be teaching others, you still need some one to teach you the very alphabet of the Divine Revelation, and need again to be fed with 'milk' instead of with 'solid food.' For every one who still has to take 'milk' knows nothing of the Teaching of Righteousness; he is a mere infant.read more.
But 'solid food' is for Christians of mature faith--those whose faculties have been trained by practice to distinguish right from wrong.

I entreat you, then, Brothers, by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, for this is your rational worship.

And let endurance do its work perfectly, so that you may be altogether perfect, and in no respect deficient.

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always been obedient in the past, so now work out your own Salvation with anxious care, not only when I am with you, but all the more now that I am absent.

Not that I have already laid hold of it, or that I am already made perfect. But I press on, in the hope of actually laying hold of that for which indeed I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.

Yes, and for this very reason do your best to supplement your faith by goodness, goodness by knowledge, knowledge by self-control, self-control by endurance, endurance by piety, piety by brotherly affection, and brotherly affection by love.read more.
For, when these virtues are yours, in increasing measure, they prevent your being indifferent to, or destitute of, a fuller knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And he it is who gave to the Church Apostles, Prophets, Missionaries, Pastors, and Teachers, To fit his People for the work of the ministry, for the building up of the Body of the Christ.

Seek this Love earnestly, and strive for spiritual gifts, above all for the gift of preaching. He who, when speaking, uses the gift of 'tongues' is speaking, not to men, but to God, for no one understands him; yet in spirit he is speaking of hidden truths. But he who preaches is speaking to his fellow men words that will build up faith, and give them comfort and encouragement.read more.
He who, when speaking, uses the gift of 'tongues' builds up his own faith, while he who preaches builds up the faith of the Church. Now I want you all to speak in 'tongues,' but much more I wish that you should preach. A Preacher is of more account than he who speaks in 'tongues,' unless he interprets his words, so that the faith of the Church may be built up.

And this shall continue, until we all attain to that unity which is given by faith and by a fuller knowledge of the Son of God; until we reach the ideal man--the full standard of the perfection of the Christ. Then we shall no longer be like infants, tossed backward and forward, blown about by every breath of human teaching, through the trickery and the craftiness of men, towards the snares of error; But holding the truth in a spirit of love, we shall grow into complete union with him who is our Head--Christ himself.read more.
For from him the whole Body, closely joined and knit together by the contact of every part with the source of its life, derives its power to grow, in proportion to the vigor of each individual part; and so is being built up in a spirit of love.

And Jesus grew in wisdom as he grew in years, and 'gained the blessing of God and men.'

The child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the Wilds till the time came for his appearance before Israel.

Saul's influence, however, kept steadily increasing, and he confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by the proofs that he gave that Jesus was the Christ.

Bearing fruit and growing, as it does, through all the world, just as it did among you, from the very day that you heard of God's loving-kindness, and understood what that loving-kindness really is.

Another parable which he told them was this-- "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard-seed, which a man took and sowed in his field. This seed is smaller than all other seeds, but, when it has grown up, it is larger than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that 'the wild birds come and roost in its branches.'" This was another parable which Jesus related-- "The Kingdom of Heaven is like some yeast which a woman took and covered up in three pecks of flour, until the whole had risen."

Jesus also said: "To what can we liken the Kingdom of God? By what can we illustrate it? Perhaps by the growth of a mustard-seed. This seed, when sown in the ground, though it is smaller than all other seeds, Yet, when sown, shoots up, and becomes larger than any other herb, and puts out great branches, so that even 'the wild birds can roost in its shelter.'"

So Jesus said: "What is the Kingdom of God like? and to what can I liken it? It is like a mustard-seed which a man took and put in his garden. The seed grew and became a tree, and 'the wild birds roosted in its branches.'" And again Jesus said: "To what can I liken the Kingdom of God?read more.
It is like some yeast which a woman took and covered in three pecks of flour, until the whole had risen."

Jesus also said: "This is what the Kingdom of God is like-- like a man who has scattered seed on the ground, And then sleeps by night and rises by day, while the seed is shooting up and growing--he knows not how. The ground bears the crop of itself--first the blade, then the ear, and then the full grain in the ear;read more.
But, as soon as the crop is ready, immediately he 'puts in the sickle because harvest has come'."

Many, however, of those who had heard the Apostles' Message became believers in Christ, the number of the men alone amounting to about five thousand.

So those who accepted his teaching were baptized, and about three thousand people joined the disciples on that day alone.

And still larger numbers, both of men and women, as they became believers in the Lord, were added to their number.

So God's Message spread, and the number of the disciples continued to increase rapidly in Jerusalem, and a large body of the priests accepted the Faith.

And so it came about that the Church, throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria, enjoyed peace and became firmly established; and, ordering its life by reverence for the Lord and the help of the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers.

The power of the Lord was with them, so that a great number who had learned to believe came over to the Lord's side.

The same thing occurred in Iconium, where Paul and Barnabas went into the Jewish Synagogue, and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed in Christ.

So the Churches grew stronger in the Faith, and increased in numbers from day to day.