The Danger of not getting Better

1. Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,
2. Of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
3. And this we will do if God permits.
4. For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit,
5. And have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come.
6. If they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.
7. For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God;
8. But if it bears thorns and briers, it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned.
9. But, beloved, we are confident of better things concerning you, yes, things that accompany salvation, though we speak in this manner.
10. For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister.

The Danger of not getting Better!

Hebrews 6:1-10

The writer of Hebrews here is talking to Christians. Christians who have got good religion and they have become satisfied. Those church folks who we talked about some time ago. Those who are rejoicing in the fact that they are indeed on milk, and not on that meat of God’s word.

As always when I see that word “therefore”, which is the first word in our text today, I have learned that the writer is referring to something that has been said previously to this verse.

So, I traced it all the way back to the 5th chapter and 12th verse. It reads, “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food”.

There are some of us here today that should have moved on to bigger and better spiritual things, but instead we are still fooling around with elementary stuff. The words “first principle” in verse 12 is talking about the ABCs. You learn the ABCs, which are the fundamental letters of our language.

Once you learn the ABCs, you then learn to read and write. Now watch this, you can’t read and write until you have first learned the ABCs. And the flip side of that is, you can never learn to read and write, if all that you are ever looking at is the ABCs.

It works that same way with Christianity. You learn the fundamental of who Christ is and what He and done for you. Then once you learn those, you learn what He wants you to do for Him.

That learning that I’m speaking of here today comes from practicing. When Mariah was learning to read and she would sometimes come to me and ask me, Papa, what’s that word? When I told her what the word was, she would wander off again practicing how to say that word.

What are you saying preacher, I’m so glad that you asked? We are not going to get any better as Christians, until we first learn how to practice Christianity. It’s strange to me how we can practice everything except how to become better Christians.

When I was playing sports, we always had to go to practice. Our coaches use to tell us that practice make perfect. Many times while I was at softball practice, I played in the outfield, and my coach would hit ball after ball in the air to me so that I can practice the many different catches. And also I could practice my throws back into the infield.

When I was a policeman, we use to have to go to the firing range to practice our accuracy with a pistol. We had to score a certain score in order to remain eligible to carry a gun, so we had to practice how to shoot.

I’ve never really worked on a production line, but I’m sure that before you have to meet production, the employer must give you ample time, which is sometimes called “a probation period”. During that probation period, you’ve got time to practice your job before you have to meet production.

When we got to get our driver’s license, we take a written test first. And we can’t take the driving test on the same day that we take the written test because it is understood that you need time to practice.

I could go on and on, there are many things that we will practice doing so that we can get better in doing them. But when it comes to Christianity, it seems that many and most of us are satisfied right where we are. We are not trying to get any better.

I submit to you today, that God has so many BETTER things for us, once we learn how to become better Christians. For those who refuse to get any better, you need to beware of the danger that it poses.

In chapter 5, the writer goes on to call them “babes” in Christ. He says that solid food is for the ones who are of age. The ones who are mature in the word. They have grown up. So, in chapter 6, verse 1, he simply says, grow up. He says, leave the basics and go on to perfection, which simply means “mature”. It means “get better”.

I submit to this church this morning that for years now we’ve been in the same old rut.

We’ve complained about the same old things.

We’ve sung the same old songs.

We’ve taught the same old dead teachings.

We’ve kept up the same old confusion that we always have.

We’ve told the same old lies that we always have.

We’ve gossiped the same old stories.

We are still divided like we’ve always been

Don’t you think that it’s time that we start getting better?

You might not want to hear me this morning. You can turn you head to the wall in looking out the window if you want too. But I come by to tell you that there is a danger in not getting better.

The writer here list six items in couplets that he calls elementary principles.

1)      Repentance from dead works.

2)      Faith toward God

3)      Doctrine of Baptism

4)      Laying on of hands

5)      Resurrection of the dead

6)      Eternal judgment

He simply says that these things ought to be understood. You won’t find it in the King James Version, but in other version they are called “elementary principles”. Things you ought to already know.

Do you really know what it means to repent? Somebody said it means to turn around but that’s not it. You can turn around all that you want too and still not repent. The Children of Israel is a prime example. They turned around many times, but still they didn’t have a repentance heart. They still wander off into doing the same old wicked things they always done.

Do you know what it means to have Faith toward God? Do you know the Doctrine of Baptism? Or the symbolism of the Laying on of Hands? The Resurrection of the dead? Do you know about the Eternal judgment that will follow this life?

Today we ought to be growing in our love for one another.

We ought to be growing in our fellowship with one another.

We ought to be growing in our concern for one another.

We ought to be growing in peace with one another.

But we can’t grow together with one another, because we are concentrating on fighting one another over these elementary principles that we should have long grown passed.

Now before I proceed in this text I think I need to tell you what the writer is talking about. Although he mentions Salvation in this text, he is not talking about Salvation. For I still hold true to the fact that once you are saved, you are always saved.

Romans 8:35-39 gives us a good reason to believe that. Nothing can separate us from the love of God. So, he is not talking about you losing your salvation, but he is talking about losing your reward.

I’ve told you before, God has so many blessings that He wants to bless us with. He has so many rewards that He wants to reward you with, but He can’t reward you if you are not obedient to His commands. God has some blessings and rewards for you right now, as well as in eternity.   

I’m going to make it live after while, but in order for you to get your “right now” blessings, you have to got to start getting better. Yeah, there is some blessings with your name on them, but you can’t reach up and grab them until you have become better in your every day Christian walk.

God has got some good houses for you to live in.

He’s got some good cars for you to drive.

God’s has got some special things for you in this life, but you are not going to tap into those blessings as long as you are waddling in the same old selfishness that you’ve always been in.

The Shame

The first danger we face is shame. Verse 4 through 6. “For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame”.

If you have indeed been enlightened. That word “enlightened” means that you have full knowledge of the truth. If you are indeed a Christian, you ought to know the truth, because the truth will set you free.

He says, If you have tasted, which actually means experienced the gift of eternal life. If you have indeed had a life changing experience. See, that is the problem with many people today. You really haven’t had a life changing experience.

Paul says in Romans 10 Chapter, you want to be saved, you have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. Instead of you getting better in the truth, you are going about to establish you own righteousness, and you have not submitted yourself to the righteousness of God. Instead of you hearing the word, you think you already know everything. You won’t take time out to practice hearing the word so that you can get better.

He says, you’ve become partaker of the Holy Spirit. Now the word “partaker” means “regenerated people”. Which is to say the only way that the Holy Spirit can have anything to do with you is that you’ve first been re-gene.

It means that God have made you over again. You are not doing those things that you did when you were born of your earthly mother and father, but you’ve got some new genes. And these new genes have taught you how to react better.

They have taught you how to behave better.

They have taught you how to love better.

They have taught you how to forgive better.

They have taught you how to give better.

They have taught you how to fellowship better.

You are just better all around.

If you have tasted the good word of God. verse 6 says, “If they fall away”. And in the Greek it really means “having fallen away”. You know better, and if you are indeed a Christians you have something on the inside of you that makes you do better, but still you have fallen away.

Now here “fallen away” means that you deliberately refuse to do what you know God have commanded you to do. You deliberately did not follow His commandments.

You deliberately did not come to church.

You deliberately did not give like you should have.

You deliberately did not participate like you should have.

You deliberately did not get any better, you have brought shame to God and it will ultimately bring shame to you. It is just like you are crucifying Christ all over again for a second time.

You are professing to be a Christian, but you are doing sinful things. It is going to bring shame to you. God looks at you and He sees what you are doing and it makes Him shame to know how you are acting. Then you have nerve enough to get on you knee and ask Him to bless you.

The Curse    

The next danger we face is the curse. Verse 7 & 8. “For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God; but if it bears thorns and briers, it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned”.

The author here tells a short parable. He illustrates this spiritual truth by using agriculture. The earth which is watered by God’s rain ought to bear herbs that are useful, it ought to be bearing some good stuff, and when it does, it receives God’s blessings. But if it bears thorns and briers, it is rejected and near to being cursed. The Message Bible says, “It gets cuss out”.

I need to make this live for us today. You’ve been coming to church Sunday after Sunday. Wednesday after Wednesday. Sunday school lesson after Sunday school lesson and you are still not producing the kind of life that God so desires of you.

You still are not getting any better. After all the teaching that you’ve been getting! After all the singing and praying that we’ve been doing! After all the encouraging words that you hear at the church! Revival after Revival you still are not getting any better.

See, God wants you and I to produce fruit. He is saying that He is giving us the Word, everything that we need to produce, we’ve already got it. But we are not getting any better. You ought to be producing love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, meekness, temperance, and faith.

If you are not loving like you ought to love, or at least not practicing so that you can get better, God is saying He can’t bless you.

Now when he talks about being “rejected” here, it means “to be disqualified”. You have made yourself disqualified to receive God’s blessings.

Watch this now. If you are sick and you are not getting any better in your spiritual life.

Ain’t no need of asking God to heal you, because you have disqualified yourself of healing.

If you are broke, busting and disgusted, and you are not getting any better spiritually,

Ain’t no need of asking God to bless you financially, because you have disqualified yourself of a blessing.

If you are in trouble and need a hiding place, but you are not getting any better spiritually,

Ain’t no need of asking God for protection, because you have disqualified yourself of protection.

Today, we good folks need to stop bring bad things to God’s house. We’ve been taught in the word, we ought to act like we’ve been taught. For if we continue to bring forth these thorns and briars in the church, we will be cursed! God can curse where no man can bless. 

I need you to understand today, that God will never stop loving you. But He wants you to do better.

And just like the writer here today, I am confident of better things concerning you.

When he says “things that accompany salvation”, he is talking about your reward.

For it is a reward that comes along with salvation. Salvation is the gift of God, but your rewards comes from your works.

For I am confident this morning that God will not forget your works, or your labor of love which you have shown toward His name.

But I stop by to tell you this morning

You can’t become dull in your praise.

Because, when praises goes up, blessings will come down.

I need to warn you this morning,

You can’t stop doing the work of the Lord,

For I heard somebody say, work while it is day for the night will come, when no man can work.

I came by here to tell you,

We ought to learn how to hear the word a little bit better

We ought to learn how to pray a little bit better

We ought to learn how to sing a little bit better

We ought to learn how to fellowship a little bit better

We ought to learn how to love a little bit better

We ought to learn how to come together a little bit better

We ought to learn how to have a little more joy

We ought to learn how to have a little more peace

We ought to learn how to have a little more compassion

Every knee must bow, and every tongue must confess.

We all got to stand at the judgment seat of Christ, and we must give account of everything done in our bodies, whether it be good or bad.

Jesus dies, so you can get a little better.

They whipped Him all night long, and He never said a mumbling word, so that you can get a little better.