Eat More Meat

Hebrews 5:11 - 6:3: Eat More Meat! If you have your bibles, please find Hebrews, chapter five. We will be in verses eleven through chapter six, verse 3. As you find your way there, let me ask you a question. How many of you remember your first job? I remember mine; it was a seasonal job at a department store called Mervyn's. I can remember getting up super early and walk the mile or two to go to work or working into the late hours of the night. I remember Black Friday in the shoe department. Terrifying. As a teenager, I felt a bit more grown up when I got that first job. But I also remember the paycheck. Not that it was great, but I can recall that it was actually a great disappointment. When you see those deductions and taxes being taken out, you realize that you're not taking much home after all. Then when you get your first car, more costs. You start dating, even more costs. After a while, you realize that growing up is hard. Growing up requires a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes being a kid is just easier. However, I would venture to guess that most of you here wouldn't want to be a kid forever, or even go back to your childhood. What we'll see this morning at this church of Jewish converts is that some of them were perfectly content being Spiritual children, babies even. Let's read what the writer of Hebrews says to these Christians, and let's work through this passage to see how it applies to us today. 11 ABOUT THIS WE HAVE MUCH TO SAY, AND IT IS HARD TO EXPLAIN, SINCE YOU HAVE BECOME DULL OF HEARING. 12 FOR THOUGH BY THIS TIME YOU OUGHT TO BE TEACHERS, YOU NEED SOMEONE TO TEACH YOU AGAIN THE BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE ORACLES OF GOD. YOU NEED MILK, NOT SOLID FOOD, 13 FOR EVERYONE WHO LIVES ON MILK IS UNSKILLED IN THE WORD OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, SINCE HE IS A CHILD. 14 BUT SOLID FOOD IS FOR THE MATURE, FOR THOSE WHO HAVE THEIR POWERS OF DISCERNMENT TRAINED BY CONSTANT PRACTICE TO DISTINGUISH GOOD FROM EVIL. 1 THEREFORE LET US LEAVE THE ELEMENTARY DOCTRINE OF CHRIST AND GO ON TO MATURITY, NOT LAYING AGAIN A FOUNDATION OF REPENTANCE FROM DEAD WORKS AND OF FAITH TOWARD GOD, 2 AND OF INSTRUCTION ABOUT WASHINGS, THE LAYING ON OF HANDS, THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD, AND ETERNAL JUDGMENT. 3 AND THIS WE WILL DO IF GOD PERMITS. First, it is important to understand the immediate context. Recall, that the original text doesn't have chapters or verses, so we too need to read the full text that was as well. In verse 11, the word "this" connects this to verse 10 and the preceding verses. This is to say that the writer is referring to the idea of Jesus being a High Priest, after the order of Melchizedek. So, the writer pivots here because he will pick this back up in chapter seven. So, why this pivot? What is the purpose of this pivot? He answers this - in part - in the beginning of verse 12, where he says that they OUGHT TO BE TEACHERS by now. This is to say that they had been Christians long enough, under the right teaching long enough, that they could be - and arguably should be - teaching others. But therein lies the problem, they were not. They were still spiritual babies, drinking milk instead of solid foods. With that brief background in mind: Here is the main idea I want to develop today: To become a mature disciple, I must develop a hunger for God's Word. You see, the problem identified here is that the church was immature. This is evidenced in the analogy of the food they were consuming. The picture here is that the church was still on the bottle, and not at the stage of solid foods yet. What the writer is saying here is that: What we eat is indicative of our level of maturity. Parents, think about your own children. As most of you know, I have two children. Elizabeth, my oldest is what most would say, fully functioning. So far in her life, she has hit every milestone from infancy to now. After breastfeeding and formula, she graduated to pureed food, from there to solid foods, etc. In school, she went from preschool, to kindergarten, to first grade and so forth. She has grown physically, and her mind has sharpened in school and in life experiences. This development is considered "normal" and as I learned in my Psychology class part of lifespan development where a child develops from infancy to childhood to adolescence to adulthood. Now, contrast my youngest daughter, Gabrielle, who has a rare brain malformation that delays this natural development and, at the risk of sounding insensitive, has remained in the infancy stage of development at eight years of age. The writer of Hebrews is saying that this church, these Christians have remained in the infancy stage of their Spiritual development. But why did this happen? Is it because of poor teaching? Perhaps. But the author identifies this right away in this section. Verse 11 reveals that the people were "DULL OF HEARING." The word "dull" here means "sluggish" or "slothful." It means that they were being spiritually dull and are no longer listening (NLT) or they have become too lazy to understand (CSB). You see, they were not growing or maturing, not because they were unable - like my youngest daughter, but because they became spiritually lazy. So, HOW DOES A CHRISTIAN BECOME SPIRITUALLY LAZY? 1. Become bored of the Word of God. a. Going back to verse 11, we see that they had become hard of hearing, lazy, slothful and sluggish in their approach to the Word. b. Now, recall again, that in verse 10, the writer just finished this section on Jesus as High Priest, after the order of Melchizedek. This appointment was of God and unlike the appointment of the priestly lineage of Aaron. c. If you have ever spoken in public, you may be able to relate. Sometimes if the audience is not interested or the content is something not of interest or too high level for them, they become uninterested. Their eyes are glazed over. They become distracted by other things because they are simply not connecting with the message. That's what is happening here. This entire section is almost like a rabbit trail, or a digression - or, like I said earlier, a pivot. It's almost like he realizes that this topic of Melchizedek and Jesus is just too dense for them. There is too much there. And in a moment of disappointment, he rebukes them. d. A good, Bible teaching church is an important aspect of Christian living, but we cannot stress enough the importance of personal study and group study regularly. We'll talk more about this later. 2. Stay focused only on elementary doctrine. a. Now, the text calls this fundamental, and is in no way discounting the importance of the basic doctrines and message of the Gospel. b. What the author is saying here is that we cannot stay there, we must move forward, we must mature, we must grow. c. Let's go back to the picture we were given by the author, food. i. A few of us guys try (key word, try) to get together every other week for fellowship and food. Imagine one of us sitting down at a steak house or burger joint and while everyone orders a meaty burger or steak, one of us just simply orders milk, or applesauce, or even orders off of the kids menu. In general, that just doesn't look right, but more than that, adults need adult food for basic nourishment if nothing else. ii. Or, imagine at our Monthly Men's breakfast, instead of bacon and eggs, we have a bucket of those yogurt tubes and some juice boxes. It just ain't right. iii. Forgive me for breaking the cardinal rule of talking about food in church. d. How about the example of learning and education? Imagine if one of our children just stayed in kindergarten instead of moving on to the next grade and building on the foundation of kindergarten. This is what the author is speaking about. Milk is important, but you can't stay there. The ABC's are critical, but you can't stay there. 3. Remain unskilled in the Word of righteousness. a. Another word for "unskilled" is "inexperienced" b. The writer calls them children. He says that they have not learned enough to graduate to that next level. c. They have failed to age, spiritually because they fail to develop their understanding of God through His Word and in His Word. d. At a certain point in your walk with Jesus, you should have a deeper understanding of Him. e. At Thornydale Family Church, we have bible studies for each of the age groups for the kids and teens. This is because their level of understanding and maturity is different. Their needs are different. What they experience is different. f. This verse tells us that they are still children and because of this, they are unskilled. So, HOW DOES A CHRISTIAN BECOME HUNGRY FOR THE WORD OF GOD? 1. Train a. In Proverbs 22:6, we read these familiar words: TRAIN UP A CHILD IN THE WAY HE SHOULD GO; EVEN WHEN HE IS OLD HE WILL NOT DEPART FROM IT. b. Verse 14 tells us that a mature disciple of Jesus trains BY CONSTANT PRACTICE TO DISTINGUISH GOOD FROM EVIL. c. This term can also be translated "exercise" or "discipline," as used later in Hebrews 12:11, where discipline "YIELDS THE PEACEFUL FRUIT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS" d. This is a training of the mind. i. Author, J.P. Moreland wrote a book called "Love Your God With all Your Mind," under the premise of Romans 12:1-2, where Paul beseeches us to renew our minds, and from Matthew 22:37-39 where the Pharisees asked Jesus what the greatest commandment was. In the culture today, it is critical for us as Christians to understand what is true. We will not get that from the world. Moreland says this: "Today, people are inclined to think that that the sincerity and fervency of one's beliefs are more important than the content. As long as we believe something honestly and strongly, we are told, then that is all that matters." Moreland argues that growing the mind, through training, is an essential function of the Christian. ii. John R.W. Stott challenges us with these words: "Has God created us rational beings, and shall we deny our humanity which he has given us? Has God spoken to us, and shall we not listen to His words? Has God renewed our mind through Christ, and shall we not think with it? iii. We need to train our minds. 2. Graduate from elementary school. a. We touched on this a bit earlier, but I wanted to expand on the section from 6:1-2. b. The writer gives a list to these Christians. Now, this list has been used by some as curriculum of sorts for new Christians as it seems to outline some basic truths for the Christian, but Pastor David Guzik hints that it may have a different purpose. Here is the list, from verses 1-2: i. Repentance from dead works ii. Faith toward God iii. Instructions about washings (some translations use the word Baptism here) iv. The laying of hands v. The resurrection of the dead vi. Eternal judgement c. Remember that the audience of this letter are Jews, converted to Christianity. We know from our prior studies that the writer has been proving to them that Christ is superior and greater than anything else - including Judaism. d. If this list is a basic outline for new believers, what do you think is missing? Christ! Christ is missing from this list. Guzik suggests that this is because this list is a list that is both Jewish friendly and Christian friendly. e. You see, the word "washings", or as some of your translations may say "baptisms" is the same word used later in Hebrews 9:10 where the writer is speaking about the temple and the holy place, and also in Mark 7:4 where Jesus was questioned why His disciples didn't wash their hands, as per the custom. This word is not the same word used for baptism by immersion that we see elsewhere in the New Testament. This is to say, this was a ceremonial washing, not baptism as we know it today. f. So, this list is what I would say, is safe. Recall, the Jews were tolerated by the Romans, but not the Christians. If the church here held tight to these principles that are true in both Judaism and Christianity, they are safe from persecution. g. I believe it is fair to say that many Christians today want to be safe. For example, it is easy to say "Thank God," or "God bless" since these are fairly acceptable terms used in the culture. Or what about claiming that "God loves you." That's an easy thing to agree with because its nice and peaceful. Or, what about, "love others." Again, this is safe. h. Graduating from elementary school requires us to take the complete message, not just the shiny parts of the message. Does your personal evangelism include the doctrine of hell? Of sin? Of sickness and death? If we are preaching the need of a savior, what do people need saving from? 3. Develop a desire for God's Word. a. Do you love His Word? b. Do you look forward to reading it? Studying it? Talking about it? c. I want to take the next few minutes reading Psalm 119 ... okay, okay, we're not really going to read all of Psalm 119 ... by the way, if you didn't laugh at that, it may mean that you don't know your Bible very well. But seriously, take some time this week to read the Psalm, it's a good one. The Psalmist speaks to the wonders of the Word of God. He celebrates it and speaks eloquently about how it impacts his life. Do you feel that way about the Bible? d. Think about a loved one that you may not have seen in a long time. What joy would it bring you to hear their voice again? e. When we are bored, or tired, or lazy with the Word of God, we are silencing the greatest Voice. f. For many, it is because it may be hard to understand. One possible solution to this is purchasing a good Study Bible. There are many to choose from, but this is a good start to understanding the Bible a little better. 4. Depend on God. a. The writer here is rebuking them, reminding them that they are too "old" to be acting like babies. i. Babies are wholly dependent on their mother and father 1. They can't eat on their own 2. They can't clean themselves 3. They can't dress themselves 4. They can't make rational decisions, and so forth ii. So, when we read verse one again, we see that the writer is saying, "Enough! Today is the day to move on, today we move towards maturity." iii. But, brothers and sisters, this is only possible through God. Our dependence must be in Him. That's what verse three teaches us. I like how the New Living Translation renders this verse: AND SO, GOD WILLING, WE WILL MOVE FORWARD TO FURTHER UNDERSTANDING Today, we saw that: To become a mature disciple, I must develop a hunger for God's Word. What's stopping you? Do you not understand what you are reading? Remember the Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts 8? He picked up the scroll and began reading but didn't know what he was reading. So, God sent Philip to explain it to him. What about the example we see in Titus 2? The older (more mature) men teaching the younger (less mature) men, and the older women teaching the younger women. We have something that is even better than Philip or the old timers, we have the Holy Spirit ... and we also have some great people right here at Thornydale Family Church that would be happy to sit with you. Every child who learns to walk, must take their first step. Maybe today, your first step is to surrender your life to Jesus. If this is you, please see myself or Pastor Pat after our service. Maybe your first step is to develop a healthy habit of reading the Word of God. We have a great reading plan that we've been doing together as a Church, we'd love for you to join us! Are you ready to graduate to more solid foods? We'd love to be a part of that journey. Let's pray. 2