Maturing in Christ: Its Development I. Introduction A. Hebrews 5:12-6:2 B. The Hebrew author demonstrates the need to mature in Christ 1. Spirituality, as with life, cannot stop 2. Change is constant-- the question is whether one adapts by growing and developing with change or attempts to work against change and possibly be lost C. Having established that maturity in Christ is essential, how does maturity/growth/development come about? D. The Hebrew author provides the key to understanding E. Let us examine Hebrews 5:12-6:2 in more depth and understand how we can mature in Christ II. Textual Analysis: Hebrews 5:12-6:2 A. Hebrews 5:12-6:2 really a part of the same section 1. Chapter and verse demarcations added later 2. In original text, there would be no division between chapters B. The text is actually a rebuke 1. Since the church in Jerusalem is the oldest of all Christian churches, it would stand to reason that they would be the most mature 2. In the time of the Hebrew author (ca. 65 CE), however, this is not the case 3. hence, Hebrew author rebukes the Christians of Jerusalem for still requiring the milk of the Word when they ought to be teachers 4. The statement is somewhat ironic, since although the Hebrew author says that the Christians in Jerusalem require milk, the substance of the Hebrew letter is meat! C. Hebrews 5:12-13 1. The Hebrew author introduces the metaphor of milk and meat (or "solid food") to describe the spiritual needs of his audience a. Paul and Peter use the same imagery in 1 Corinthians 3:2 and 1 Peter 2:2, respectively b. metaphor refers most directly to the digestion capability of the audience-- they cannot handle the meat, only milk 2. The metaphor is explained-- milk refers to the basic doctrines and precepts of Christianity, while meat refers to the deeper doctrines and precepts of the faith a. part of the distinction is in level of understanding-- for instance, baptism as immersion in water for the remission of sins is the basic understanding of baptism (Acts 2:38); a more "meaty" understanding would involve Romans 6:3-7, the death of the old man of sin and the rebirth in newness of life b. note that when gospel is first preached to the people, the former is highlighted, while the latter understanding is reserved for believers who have already been baptized c. another part of the distinction is highlighted in Hebrews 6:1-3-- the basic elements of the faith [repentance, faith, baptism, laying on of hands (for that time), resurrection and judgment vs. more "esoteric" concepts, more indirectly related to salvation (e.g., the substance of the Hebrew letter: Christ as ultimate High Priest, priest in order of Melchizedek, nature of testament, etc.) 3. The metaphor is extremely appropriate for understanding, since it parallels human physical development with human spiritual development 4. As babies, only milk can be tolerated a. physically, babies can only stomach milk and water b. milk provides the necessary nutrients; without milk, the child will not survive c. spiritually, those very young in the faith understand only the "milk" of the Word d. they need to build the basic understanding of and foundation of repentance, baptism, resurrection, judgment, etc. before moving on to more complex understandings of the basics and the deeper mysteries of the faith, just as a baby must grow before handling solid foods e. If they do not receive the spiritual milk of the Word, they will not spiritually survive! 5. As a child grows, milk alone will not stimulate development a. as human babies grow to be young children, solid food is necessary to gain more nutrition b. their growth will not be stimulated by only having milk c. likewise, as younger Christians grow and develop in the faith, a diet of spiritual milk alone will not stimulate growth: they must move on to solid food d. once the basic understanding is established, development requires meat! 6. On the other hand, milk is never completely removed from the diet a. Even though we grow up as human beings, we still drink milk b. Milk is combined with solid food to reinforce our diet c. Likewise, even though Christians may move on from a diet of pure spiritual milk and begin with meat, there is always a need to reinforce the basic concepts of the faith d. As milk and meat combined represents a good physical diet for humans, a spiritual diet including confirmation of basic truths along with growing understanding of the mysteries of the faith is essential for good spiritual health D. Hebrews 5:14 1. The Hebrew author here provides the pattern for development a. Maturity in the faith is defined b. "Having the powers of discernment trained through constant practice to distinguish good and evil" c. let us examine this statement 2. "Having the powers of discernment trained..." a. if training is necessary, it is evident that we do not automatically have discernment b. our powers of discernment must be trained! c. many rely on what is commonly called "conscience" to guide them d. if their conscience is clear, they engage in action; if not clear, they may feel guilt or not engage in the action at all e. the conscience, however, is never called the standard of judgment in the Bible! f. Paul, in Acts 23:1, affirms to the council that he has lived in good conscience until that day... g. ...yet in 1 Timothy 1:12-16 he laments how he blasphemed and persecuted the church! h. Conscience, therefore, obviously can lead one astray if not properly trained i. 1 Timothy 1:5: the goal of a Christian is to love through a good conscience j. What that conscience discerns as good and evil must be dictated by the Word (2 Timothy 2:15)! 3. "...by constant practice..." a. A major problem with religion in the world is that there are far more "professors" than "actors" b. Many profess Christianity, but do not actually practice its precepts; far fewer are those who actually strive to live according to the will of God (cf. Matthew 7:13-14) c. There are many who may know the Scriptures and who have studied the Scriptures, yet do not practice its precepts d. in fact, many who have studied the Scriptures the most believe in them the least! e. Christianity was never designed to be an intellectual exercise-- it is designed to be a lifestyle-- a thing believed and practiced (cf. James 1:27)! f. The Christian will only be able to discern right from wrong through practice-- perhaps having to decide between the same two options over and over, and/or perhaps having to decide between different sets of options over and over g. Proper discernment is not something that is just read and immediately picked up upon-- it is only gained through practice 4. "...to distinguish good and evil." a. when all is said and done, the Christian life may be boiled down to choosing good over evil b. The perfect life is always choosing good over evil; we are to strive for this, repenting and asking forgiveness whenever we choose evil over good (1 John 1:7-9) c. To discern good and evil, however, we must know what is good and what is evil! d. The whole Word may assist in this matter, and especially the condensation provided in Galatians 5:19-23 e. We will do well to compare any choice we are given with the works of the flesh versus the fruit of the Spirit-- we are to eschew anything comparable to the works of the flesh, and hold fast to anything a part of the fruit of the Spirit 5. Developing Discernment a. as one studies the Scriptures and gains the understanding of what is good vs. what is evil, it is easier to recognize good vs. evil, and constant practice makes it easier to choose good b. just as choosing good will reinforce the conscience... c. ...knowingly choosing evil causes the conscience to be seared, and it becomes a far harder task to unlearn that sinful behavior (cf. 1 Corinthians 8:7-12, 1 Timothy 4:1-3) d. we must, therefore, strive to train the powers of discernment with constant practice to distinguish good and evil! III. Explanation A. What, then, does Hebrews 5:12-6:3 teach us in regards to maturity? B. It shows that while we are young in the faith, we gain the basic understanding of the faith through personal study of the Scriptures, collective study of the Scriptures, preaching, etc., and as we grow and develop, our understanding grows and develops (2 Timothy 2:15, 2 Peter 3:18) C. Our understanding will grow and develop to the point where we are no longer subsisting on spiritual milk alone, but sinking our teeth into the meat of the Word D. Meanwhile, as our studies continue, our understanding of what is good and evil according to the Scripture continues to develop, and our senses begin to be trained E. Our study is to be combined with practice, living the Christian life by choosing good over evil, and therefore training our powers of discernment with constant practice to distinguish good and evil (Hebrews 5:14) F. Since we in the flesh will never reach the point of perfection, we will always be striving to understand the faith better and to discern our senses better 1. A significant temptation for older Christians is to get the idea that they can retire from Christianity, that they have reached the summit 2. Such thinking actually leads to backsliding! 3. A major tenet of wisdom is the understanding that the more one learns, and the more wisdom one attains, that one realizes that there is far more to learn, and far more wisdom to gain! 4. Since there is always more to learn, and more wisdom to gain, all of us-- either 22 or 72-- must continue to develop and mature in the faith IV. Conclusion A. How, then, do we mature and develop in the faith? B. Through studying the Word, we gain first the basic understanding, and then we move on to the deeper mysteries of the faith C. Meanwhile, through study and constant practice, we train our power of discernment to better distinguish good and evil D. The task is never done-- there is always more to learn, more wisdom to gain, senses of discernment better trained! E. Let us all strive to continue to mature and develop in the faith F. Maturation and development is dependent, of course, upon being in the faith 1. you can know all about the Word of God, but if you have never obeyed Jesus Christ, it is of no avail to you (2 Thessalonians 1:6-9)! 2. please come to faith in Christ, believing, confessing His name, repenting of sin, being immersed in water for the remission of that sin, and begin upon the path of Christ! G. Perhaps you have not been maturing in the faith as you would like-- you may still be on the milk of the Word, your powers of discernment may not be well-trained, or you have seared your conscience and need encouragement to unlearn such behavior H. Or perhaps you require encouragement for another reason I. Whatever we can do to help, please allow us to do so by coming to the front as we stand and sing