Let Us Go On To Maturity

Hebrews 5:11-6:12

Key Verse 6:1a

¹Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity,

So far we have been going through the book of Hebrews passage by passage with the goal of studying the entire book. It took 5 Sunday studies to get to this point. Last week, Jonathon gave us a message that introduced the awesome point that Christ is our High Priest and that we need to come to God through him. When we think about this point it is really encouraging and an essential part of the faith. But there is so much more to this topic. So when we look at the flow of Hebrews we can see that the topic is mentioned many more times. In fact Jonathon’s passage was just the intro. The real meat of the subject is in chapters 7 & 8 where we see section titles like Melchizedek the Priest, Jesus like Melchizedek, The High Priest of a New Covenant. All these passages go deeper into the subject of the High Priest. So here is a burning question: what is the point of today’s passage—why did the author suddenly cut away from this important topic and give us today’s passage (a warning against following away)? The reason is the author interrupts his teaching of Jesus’ High Priesthood with today’s fiery exhortation is because he is upset with his readers. He is upset with them because they are underperforming students. As a good spiritual teacher he earnestly desires to take them to new and higher levels of thought. 

Being greatly satisfied with that last verse, the author may have stopped for a moment and put down his quill pen to give thanks to God. And maybe as he looked down at his parchment and read the last words he prayed to God,  “Lord, they need to understand about Melchizedek.” For to talk about Melchizedek would be the best progression but something happened that drastically changed the flow of thought. Perhaps at that very moment, God opened his eyes to the spiritual blindness of the readers. That, although they would read his exposition about Melchizedek they would not take it to heart. So this jarring change of tone takes place: 

“We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn.”

Here the author expresses that he has a bank of knowledge that is ready to be spent on them for their benefitting. He says that he has “much to say”, no doubt with eagerness “but” he can’t say it because it is hard to explain. The knowledge is so good that he desires to say it but simply can’t find the words to explain it to them. What was the problem then?

The passage tells us very clearly, the problem was they hadn’t prepared themselves. For we know the writer of Hebrews is an excellent teacher with God’s blessing and that God had given him a message to write. But the issue was they were “slow to learn.” Another translations uses the expression, “dull of hearing” which means that listened but didn’t retain the knowledge. So when they heard God’s truth they didn’t really comprehend it and so they they were unable to appreciate the truths of God’s deep Word. In a sense, the author was like a PhD. writing to a class of first graders; he wanted to go deeper but it was frustrating because it would go over their heads. It was difficult to explain such truths to them at their level. And the reason they were at this first grade level was because they simply didn’t apply themselves. And the reason they were “slow to learn” wasn’t because they were incapable of being “fast learners” but it was because they didn’t apply themselves.

In the field of art and music there are some people who are so well endowed with raw talent that they learn so quick that they blow away others without even trying. Mozart was such a person. At the age of 5 he was starting to compose his first music and by the time he was an adult he could compose symphony after symphony without breaking a sweat. He was endowed with talent that made him a fast learner. But when it comes to learning spiritual truths, no one is more talented than another. For everyone is a sinner and thereby cannot understand spiritual truths easily. Everyone starts on the same level and has the same difficulty. What makes the difference then? Some are eager to learn and thereby level-up quickly while other believers don’t try that hard nor spend the required time to grow and so become “slow learners” or people who are “dull of hearing”. This was the case of the author’s audience and they had no excuse for their condition. They simply hadn’t applied themselves much and this made the author of Hebrews upset.

But how bad was this problem really? Was it really that bad? Look at verses 12-14.

¹²In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! ¹³Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. ¹⁴But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

This is a shaming rebuke, for the author is basically saying, “You should be at the level of a PhD and helping others to grow. However you are little babies who haven’t even learned the ABCs.” And it wasn’t as if they didn’t have enough time. The author says himself, “by this time you ought to be teachers…” They had wasted time being complacent when they should have been growing up. What we find here is a painful reality check. For when he says here: “you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again”

he tells them directly that they have failed to mature and that like underperforming students they need to repeat their first grade class all over again.

When a student has to repeat a class or repeat a grade level it is a humiliating experience. For as they see their friends go on to the next level they themselves are forced to retake the same content. It is embarrassing because their new classmates are not their friends anymore but are the underclassmen (whom they may have looked down upon). This was the case for me when in my Senior year I was forced to drop down into a Junior level algebra class because I had failed it the previous semester. It was very embarrassing because my classmates in that math class were not equal to me in age and grade level. These were the people that I ruled over as a Senior. I knew that in their minds they thought to themselves, “You must be really stupid, to be in our class. Didn’t you take this class last year?” So to avoid my new classmates I sat in the back by myself. The whole time I thought how much I wanted to get out of this class and be with my friends.

But was it because I was stupid that this happened to me? No, it was because instead of listening to my math teacher the previous year, I was drawing pictures, putting my head down to sleep or just day-dreaming. If I even showed up for class I would ask to go to the bathroom and then walk around the school looking for other friends who were doing the same thing. So when I got my failing grade in that class, of course I wanted to blame the teacher and the curriculum. However the real issue was me and I had to spend another semester doing the same work I could have done the first time: I had to have someone teach me all over again the things I should have already learned. 

And yet there were many students at my school that were even worse than me! One guy named “Joe” was 20 years old his Senior year. He had to repeat entire grades over because of his poor academic performance. It was shocking because he had a full mustache like a grown man and a mature body build. He was in one of my classes and I that he too wasn’t stupid or unable to pass the easy high school curriculum but he was held back because of ditching classes repeatedly (30+ times a semester). Now image how bad Joe felt when he thought about his friends being two years into college already and he was just finishing high school! But today’s passage paints an even worse picture of the author’s audience for they should have been “teachers” by then but they needed to be taught the “elementary” truth of God’s word “all over again”! Were they dumb? Of course not! But they were lazy, undisciplined, uncommitted students who didn’t do their spiritual homework. They had underperformed so bad that they needed to repeat first grade and be taught all over again. How shameful?

And yet there are even more negative consequences to their delinquency: they had no idea how to live a holy and righteous life that pleases God. Look at these verses again...

You need milk, not solid food! ¹³Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. ¹⁴But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Here “milk” symbolizes “elementary truths of God’s word”. Whereas “teaching about righteousness” is symbolized by “solid food”. This “milk” is for spiritual babies who need to consume the basic teachings about repentance, faith, the resurrection and judgement. These spiritual babes cannot comprehend advanced teaching because they haven’t first digested the elementary teaching. The mature though have consumed the “milk” (and probably a lot of it) and have digested it fully. Such people have to move onto “solid food” because milk isn’t satisfying anymore. They need spiritual food that is hardy and filling. They need the advanced “teaching about righteousness” instead of baby food. 

What then is the nature of this spiritual food? First, spiritual “solid food” has to be chewed-up. It can’t be consumed instantly on-demand like milk. It takes, effort and time to chew and it is often times hard work. Practically, “chewing” means studying a passage and reading it continually and praying about it until it makes sense. Maybe after several hours or even several days one could say they have “chewed the passage up”.

But there is more, secondly, it needs to be further digesting? This part of the process takes even longer because the spiritual food’s energy needs to be broken down even further. For instance, with real food, once it is chewed it goes into the stomach where acids and enzymes attack the food until there is nothing “solid” about it anymore, it looks more like a liquid paste. Only then is it totally broken down and ready for absorption. Usually after intensive study a believer automatically meditates on what he has studied and his heart further dissects the passage. When they are driving they think about it. When they lay down in their bed they think about it. With even more time thinking about the implications and meanings of the passage are further appreciated.

Finally, thirdly, after the meal has been thoroughly broken down absorption begins. The body takes in the nutrients, minerals, carbohydrates and proteins. The solid food has now been brought into the body and the body is using the energy. Likewise, when a believer has absorbed a passage it gives strength and life to their spirit.

In the end a huge effort has been exerted to get the energy out of the solid food? There is no doubt about it, digesting “solid food” requires much more work than drinking milk. 

So why eat solid food if it is so difficult? If we are to keep with the analogy; milk isn’t nearly as nutritious ounce for ounce as a steak or a potato. If you don’t require a lot of energy, like a baby, milk is okay but if you need a lot of energy and you have hard work to carryout then you need solid food. An active adult can maintain a strong and mature body by eating solid meals. The same principle applies to spiritual meals.

What is the effect of constantly eating solid food? How do you feel? Is there a sense of being spiritually “pumped up”? What happens after eating a spiritually “solid” meal? Here, the passage gives us interesting insight into this question:

¹⁴But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

According to this verse, when one “constantly” uses solid food (advanced teachings about righteousness) they consequently train themselves to “distinguish good from evil.” Wow! What an interesting result! This ability to distinguish is necessary to maintain a holy life. For, some believers think that they are permitted to do whatever they want with their life as long as it doesn’t break the ten commandments. But the ten commandments weren’t made to cover all the small events of our life. For the daily maintenance of a righteous life there has to be a keen sense of good and evil. Eating solid food creates this ability. 

Here is an example: somewhat recently, a client of mine wrote a check for over $2200.00 and bounced it. It wasn’t for services but for reimbursement of supplies and costs. This client was determined not to pay me back so I began the necessary legal actions to get the money back. As I called the district attorney and filed paperwork I had a sense of doing wrong but I couldn’t see why it was wrong to get back the money. Day after day this went on where whenever I thought about taking the next step in the legal matter I was burdened in my spirit that I was doing wrong. I thought, “How could God not be with me on this?” and “What am I doing wrong to feel this way?” I decided to not go forward because I had no sense of God’s approval but still I couldn’t figure out why. Soon after though, I came across a passage of scripture while doing a personal Bible study. It was the words of Jesus, “If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.” This passage totally cleared my confusion. Immediately, I could see how I was doing evil by demanding the money back. Without Jesus’ words I couldn’t distinguish my evil actions for what they were but God’s word totally cleared things up. But what would have happened if I hadn’t been doing personal Bible study? I would still be confused and maybe done evil before God and not even known how.  Let’s read verses 13 and 14 one more time.

¹³Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. ¹⁴But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Let’s read verses 1-3.

¹Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, ²instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. ³And God permitting, we will do so.

These verses tell us what the “elementary teachings” are specifically. The author says we need to leave these things and go on to maturity. Ironically, it seems that most of American Christian culture is constantly talking about these subjects over and over. Could Christianity in America be stuck in the elementary teachings about Christ? It sure seems so. We find here in verse 3 that the author really wants to move past these things and I believe God does permit him to go on because after today’s passage he goes back to the rich topic of Jesus’ Priesthood and Melchizedek. But what happens to believers when they don’t mature and leave the elementary teachings behind? The next verses tell us such people may just “drop-out” and fall away forever because they refuse to move forward. Let’s read verses 4-6.

⁴It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, ⁵who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, ⁶if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.

This scenario does happen and it is here as a warning to the recipients of this book and to us. For if we choose to neglect solid food and act like lazy, uncommitted students of God’s word we run a risk of irreversible consequences. Even after having good times with God those who  continue to be “slow learners” could slip down further and become spiritual “drop-outs”. Once this happens the passage says “it is impossible” for them to return. This tells us that being in the school of righteousness is a privilege that must be solemnly considered. We can’t keep fooling around with God’s word and not acknowledge the ultimate price for failure. We can’t stay at the same level because it is easier that way. God cannot be mocked and he knows who is struggling to digest his Word and who is playing games.

But does the author stop there? No, he drives home the point even more! Look at the next verses 7 and 8.

⁷Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God. ⁸But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned.

Here two types of land are contrasted: good land and bad land. Christians who play around with God and don’t bear good fruit are “in danger of being cursed.” Such people need to get serious and make headway quick or else they will be burned up.

But after laying things out so clearly, the author finally relents in his solemn assault and confesses:

⁹Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are confident of better things in your case—things that accompany salvation. ¹⁰God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.

And then in his closing we find the purpose for this passage’s rebuke and fiery exhortation:

11We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. 12We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

The author simply wanted them to work just as “diligently” to the very end as they did at first. For starting strong is easy but finishing strong takes hard work and determination. Surely, God wants us to not “become lazy” in our faith but keep digesting his word and maturing with the same fervency as when we first were saved. May we became better students of God’s word and train ourselves with “solid food” to distinguish good from evil so that we might produce a crop that is blessed by God. Amen.

One Word: Move onto Maturity.