10. What helps to keep the right view of the Kingdom work?

¹⁰ Does this mean that God’s work is unimportant? Not at all! To the contrary, the mature Christian spiritually discerns that his dedication to Jehovah calls for him to love Jehovah with his whole heart, soul, mind and strength. He remembers the words of James that “faith, if it does not have works, is dead in itself.” By always being conscious of his dedicated relationship to Jehovah he is able to take the right view of his work and engage in it with the right motive; because of love for his heavenly Father, out of a desire to exalt His name, out of love for his neighbor and sharing with him the same privileges and blessings. A mature understanding of the initial step of dedication paves the way for mature worship “with spirit and truth.”—Mark 12:30; Jas. 2:17; John 4:23.

11. How could a married man show a lack of spiritual discernment?

¹¹ Spiritual discernment, then, results in having the mature view of the ministry that takes into account the other responsibilities one may have as a dedicated servant of Jehovah. A man who is married, with children, has many blessed privileges and responsibilities. It would show a lack of spiritual discernment for him to neglect family obligations just to build up an outstanding record of service in the field. Not only must the Christian provide for the necessary material needs of his family, but he will be alert to “provide for those who are his own” in a spiritual way, studying with them and aiding them to become mature in God’s service. To fail to give such proper attention to “those who are members of his household” is the same as ‘disowning the faith.’—1 Tim. 5:8.

12. What will the mature Christian discern as to his preaching activity, and as to any necessary secular work?

¹² A record of service in preaching the good news is not in itself the proof of maturity. Of what avail would such be if, at the same time, one failed to walk in harmony with the Bible principles of morality, or in some other way practiced what was hurtful in the congregation. This would not be walking worthily of Jehovah, not fully pleasing him. While working diligently in God’s service, telling others of the good news, the Christian discerns the need to pursue the course of integrity in every part of his life if he is to serve for the vindication of Jehovah’s name. At all times the mature person remembers he is dedicated to do the divine will and always he will want to please the One whose servant he is, Jehovah. He will not be doing things just to please men, whether when engaged in congregational activities or in his secular work, but he will do all things honestly, “with sincerity of heart,” working “whole-souled as to Jehovah, and not to men.”—Col. 3:22-24.

13. (a) How does the mature publisher pursue a balanced ministry? (b) What is the secret of being truly joyful in the ministry?

¹³ In the ministerial work itself the discerning publisher of the good news keeps a proper balance, always having in mind the more important things of the ministry. He is not content with just house-to-house work distributing literature. He sees it is not enough just to be able to preach. He discerns that now is the time he ought to be a teacher, able to feed the sheep and help them find the way to eternal life. So he is diligent to keep a record of any interest he has found and to call back. When he makes his return visits he is prepared with interesting Bible sermons and is alert to arrange a home Bible study with those persons of good will. Being filled with accurate knowledge of God’s Word, with love for Jehovah the Great Shepherd, for the good Undershepherd Christ Jesus and with love for the other sheep, the Christian minister moves out in the service with a burning desire to find and feed the sheep—out of love and not just from a sense of duty. That is the secret of being truly joyful in the ministry.—Heb. 5:12; John 21:15-17.

14, 15. (a) What blessings result from Christian maturity? (b) What must be guarded against? How?

¹⁴ Spiritual maturity brings with it untold joys and blessings. His being filled with accurate knowledge and spiritual discernment makes the Christian strong, able to ward off attacks of the enemy, Satan, able to identify his subtle snares of materialism and fear of men and to resist them. He escapes the frustrations, worries and self-inflicted pains that come from unwisely following senseless and hurtful desires and avoids foolish actions that lead to self-reproach and a guilt-heavy conscience.—1 Tim. 6:9, 10.

¹⁵ While enjoying the blessings such maturity brings we must guard against overconfidence and always remember that Christian maturity and spiritual discernment do not result from just our own efforts but come about by the operation of Jehovah’s spirit in expression of his loving-kindness to us. So we will continue to look to Jehovah in prayer to help us continue serving him in a mature way, to hold us back from any presumptuous acts, that ‘the sayings of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts may become pleasurable to Jehovah’ at all times.—Ps. 19:13, 14.

16, 17. In what way can each one share in the spirit of joyful optimism of the New World society?

¹⁶ The faithful servant of Jehovah moves forward confidently, happy and contented as he works under the direction of the reigning King, Christ Jesus, and the visible theocratic organization that God has established in the earth. His Christian maturity enables him to strengthen and build up his brothers and persons of good will so that they also may attain to full Christian manhood and share the same joy and blessings.

¹⁷ The happy, confident outlook demonstrated by the New World society of Jehovah’s witnesses is an evidence of its maturity. Each one can share in that spirit of joyful optimism by reaching out for the goal of Christian maturity, and getting filled with spiritual discernment. By our doing so unnumbered joys and privileges can be our portion both now and in the new world just ahead, “provided, of course, that you continue in the faith, established on the foundation and steadfast and not being shifted away from the hope of that good news which you heard, and which was preached in all creation that is under heaven.”—Col. 1:23.

“Spiritual Malnutrition”

American clergyman and religious writer Roy L. Smith has written about the spiritual food dispensed by Christendom’s churches: “A people that will sell principles for profits, barter character for pleasure, or sacrifice manhood for dividends must be prepared to face the disintegration that inevitably follows. The cause of this collapse is spiritual malnutrition. We have been feeding on much food, but it has not produced strength for the crisis. More than a generation ago Dr. Stephen M. Babcock, of the University of Wisconsin, made the amazing discovery that cattle might be eating prodigious amounts of food and at the same time be starving to death. Extended investigation revealed the fact that life-giving food contains a strange element called vitamins, which furnish the vitality necessary for maintaining life, and that the value of any food depends upon its vitamin content. The spiritual collapse of these last days makes evident the fact that we have been feeding on food that is lacking in spiritual vitamins. . . . We have been abundantly fed but not well fed.”—Treasury of the Christian Faith, p. 267.