HEBREWS 5-6 5:12-6:122008 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Hebrews 5-6 5:12-6:12

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2008. This week we're looking at one of the most difficult passages of the scripture, if not the most difficult passage.

And of course, with any difficult passage, there comes a whole variety of opinions and interpretations and thoughts and even sometimes passions and lots of people who are dead set in one side and dead set in the other side. And as we look at these things, I want to just share with you, I'm not going to be trying to cover and explain every interpretation, every possibility of everyone who has ever said anything.

But there's some specific things that I believe God has put upon my heart for us this morning that we would be edified, that we would be encouraged, and that we would be drawn closer to Him. And I think one of the primary things, one of the first things right off the bat we need to get settled in our hearts is that this passage is for you.

I think we have more difficulty when we try to use this passage to determine the state of someone else and whether or not another person is in a right relationship with God. And really, that's not what the passage is intended for. This passage is for you and it's for me in order to challenge us

to exhort us, to cause us to examine ourselves, that we would make sure that we continue in our relationship with God exactly where He wants us to be. And it's not a passage that is meant to be used for us to evaluate the state of someone else. As we look at these things, there's a specific idea that I want to apply to it, and something that God has showed me as I was studying these things.

Ten years ago or so, I was playing basketball here at the church in the parking lot. And as we were playing, I got hit in the face with the basketball. And it probably tells you a little bit of my skills as a basketball player.

I got hit in my face, but more specifically, it hit me directly in the eye. And it was one of those things where I kind of felt the suction of the ball hitting me and pulling away, and it hurt really bad. I couldn't see straight for a little bit after that. Well, the next day we went to Magic Mountain as a youth group, and we were there. And I don't remember the exact circumstances and context of how it happened, but I got elbowed in the eye by somebody. And I was like,

And again, it was the same eye and it was a direct hit. And again, I couldn't see straight for a little bit. And later on during the day, people began to look at me funny. And those who knew me at the end of the day looked and then took a second look and said, what in the world is wrong with your eye? And I said, what are you talking about? And so finally I get to a mirror and I see this one eye is all bulged out like a softball.

And it's just humongous and I'm going, what in the world? It's the eye of course that got hit by the basketball, got hit by the elbow. And so the next day or a couple days later, I go to the doctor because my eye is bulging out and I'm not sure if this is how it's supposed to be, if this is okay.

And so I go to the doctor and explained him the situation, give him the details. I got hit this night, then the next day I got hit again, and now I have this big old eyeball that's exploded in my head. And...

The doctor says, okay, and he asks me a bunch of questions. And so he says, okay, well, we need to send you to go get some blood taken. Now, many of you who know me, you know that needles and I don't go very well together. And here I'm thinking, this doctor, you know, anytime you go to the doctor, that's why you shouldn't go, because they just are looking for an excuse to pick you with a needle, prick you with a needle, stick something in you, because they just love to do that. But he goes to send me to get my blood drawn, and he does these tests. And come to find out,

Although the hits to the eye aggravated it, the original problem was hyperthyroidism and a particular disease that I have that causes eyes to bulge and those other things just aggravated it and brought it to light. They brought it so that everybody could see that there was an issue. The symptom that I had was an eye that was enlarged. The diagnosis was nothing like I thought.

It wasn't a swollen eye, but instead it was hyperthyroidism. And God has been bringing that example into my head as I was studying this passage throughout the week. And there's...

There's this perspective that I believe God wants us to dwell on in this passage. And again, there's lots of other perspectives, lots of ways we could discuss this. And if you have really strong feelings and opinions about it, you could talk to George or Harvey afterwards. They'd love to hear it. But for us this morning, the medical perspective...

When you go in for some type of medical treatment, when there is an issue going on, it usually starts by some type of symptom. And you have some type of symptom and you may or may not know what it is or what's causing it. But in my case, I had a bulging eye.

And you go in for this symptom and the doctor comes up with a diagnosis. He does an evaluation, he does some tests, he asks a lot of questions and he comes up with a conclusion of what it is that is going on with your body. And at that time, hopefully, it's something that they're able to help you with and so they come up then with a treatment plan. A way that they're going to help you with this disease or with this complication of whatever is going on with your body.

Along with that, the doctor will also give you a prognosis. And a prognosis is the doctor's estimate or opinion of what will take place with this disease and where it will lead you and what it will do to your body if it continues on in this way. And then finally, if he's a good doctor, he'll give you a goal, a healthy life. This is what we're going to do so that you can live a healthy life.

And it's these five things, symptom, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and goal that will apply to Hebrews chapter 5 and 6 this morning to give us a better understanding into what the author of Hebrews is seeking to communicate to

to those that he's writing to into you and I this morning. We start off with the symptom. What is the symptom? Well, we covered that briefly last week. We ended off with verse 11 of chapter 5 as he's talking about Melchizedek, the high priest, and how Jesus is a priest after the order of Melchizedek. And he says, we have so much to say about these things, but it's hard to explain because you have become dull of hearing. Here's the symptom.

The people that he is writing to, and perhaps you this morning he's writing to, and he's saying, you have become dull of hearing. You're unable to hear what God has been speaking to you. You're unable to hear what God would like to reveal to you. You've become dull of hearing, he says. And when we've become dull of hearing, our tendency is to apply a hearing aid.

And by hearing it, I'm speaking of, well, it's hard for me to hear from God and I really haven't been hearing from Him and He hasn't been speaking to me perhaps like He once was. And so then we go to other people and other sources and say, you tell me what God is saying. You tell me what the Lord wants me to do. You tell me what I should do in this situation and the things that I face. When we're dull of hearing...

The thing that we think we need most often is a hearing aid. We need someone else to speak to us. But as the author of Hebrews gives them a diagnosis, determines what it is that is really causing them problems, he will share with them, it's not that you need someone else to tell you, it's that you yourself need to get in to the Word of God and hear what God is saying.

They're dull of hearing. So they go to the doctor. The author of Hebrews writes to them and he comes up with a diagnosis. What's the diagnosis? He says, you're immature. You're immature. This is the problem. This is what's causing you to be dull of hearing. Look at verse 12 of chapter 5. He says, "...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."

He says, here's the problem, guys. You've become dull of hearing and you've been around long enough. You've been in the church long enough. You've been around the things of God long enough that by this time, you ought to be teaching others. But the tragedy is that you need someone again to teach you the first principles of the oracles of God. As we studied through 1st and 2nd Timothy, as well as the book of Titus, we saw week after week that

We are called to make disciples. Every one of us has that call. And by this time, the author of Hebrews is saying, you ought to be making disciples. By this time, you've been around, you've known the Lord for long enough. By this time, you ought to be making disciples and encouraging others and training up others and sharing with them and ministering to them, whether it's one-on-one or with a multitude.

By this time, you ought to be making disciples. You ought to be mature by this time. But the author of Hebrews says, you're not. The reason why you're dull of hearing is because you are immature. Instead of being able to hear from the Lord and share with others and teach them, you are an infant in a state of needing constant attention for someone to teach you again the first principles. And so this morning, I would ask you,

If you have the same symptom of the Hebrews that he was writing to, are you dull of hearing? Are you dull of hearing? Or does God speak to you regularly? Does God speak to you regularly in your walk, in your relationship with him, in your daily routine? Does God speak to you? Does he minister to you? Does he reveal himself to you?

Does He give you direction in your life and share with you insight into things that He wants to do or is going to do? Does He help you and give you discernment in regards to situations? And does He give you understanding that you might make decisions that He wants you to make? Does God give you direction? Does He give you insight? Does God speak to you on a regular basis? We can play the denial game, but the author of Hebrews makes it hard to do that.

By giving us two things to examine in our own lives, that makes it abundantly clear. He gives us a maturity analyzer. And we learn our maturity status by the place of these two things in our life. Milk and solid food. By looking at and understanding milk and solid food in our lives, we learn very quickly where we are at in our Christian walk. He says, you have come to need milk and not solid food.

This is not a compliment. It's not something he's praising them for. He's saying this is a tragedy. Instead of being mature and feeding others, you instead need to be fed. You need to be nursed. You need to be fed milk and you're not able to consume solid food. Milk I would describe as pre-processed food.

What you need as a Christian, what you've come to need as a Christian, he says, is pre-processed food. You see, when a mom feeds her baby milk, she first of all eats milk.

And she digests the food that she has eaten and her body brings from that the nourishment that she needs. But it also takes that nourishment and puts it into the milk so that the baby and the nutrients that the baby needs are well fed. And the baby is able to receive it in the way that the mom can produce it. Milk is pre-processed food.

Solid food, on the other hand, it's a whole different thing. It's not pre-processed, but it's food that your body has to process for you. It's food that, well, you got to chop it up, you got to cut it up, you got to chew it, you got to digest it. Your body processes it and brings out the nutrients and things that will help you and the nutrition that you need. Solid food and milk.

Going on and speaking about milk, he says in verse 13, He says, Again, this is pre-processed food. Milk is not a bad thing. It is good. It's good for you. And as a Christian, spiritually speaking, milk is a necessary part of your diet.

Listening to a teaching, understand though, is pre-processed food. As you're here this morning, this is pre-processed. As you listen to other pastors and teachers on the radio, as you read other people's commentaries and devotions and thoughts,

They've prepared. They've studied. God has spoken to them. They've broken it down and they bring it back in a way that's easy to digest and they bring it in that form and deliver it so that you're able to receive it, so that I'm able to receive it. It's pre-processed food, things that God has spoken and brought through them to us. And that's a good thing. That's an important part of the Christian faith.

However, what he says here is the danger is and the problem of the Hebrews that he was writing to is that everyone who partakes only of milk. See, there's a problem when that is the whole of your diet spiritually. When that's the only time you receive the Word of God. When that's the only time you receive things from God. When other people are bringing them to you. He says...

Those who are in that state, everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness for he is a babe. The author of Hebrews says, you're a baby. You're immature. If you only open your Bible when you're at church, you're immature. If you only receive the word when it is taught by others, you are immature. When you listen on the radio, when you come to Bible studies, when you

When you watch on TV, reading the commentaries, the devotional books, all those are wonderful things. They're good supplements to our spiritual diet. But if that is the whole of your spiritual diet, if that's the only way that you receive the Word of God, the author of Hebrews says you're immature. And this is not just for newer Christians. You say, well, I've been a Christian for 35 years. Well, that's wonderful. But notice he says...

In verse 11, you've become dull of hearing. Then he goes on to say, you've come to need milk. And everyone who partakes only of milk, even for those who have been around for a long time, understand that we will be quickly reduced to infancy if we only partake of milk. You may have gone great lengths and grown great maturity in your spiritual walk, but we will quickly be reduced to infancy if right now,

In the present time, we only partake of milk and we only receive the word of God when it's brought forth by others. Now, in contrast to milk is solid food. We see that again in verse 14. It says, but solid food belongs to those who are of full age. That is those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Solid food is not pre-processed, but it's food that you must process for yourself.

And solid food belongs to those who are of full age or those who are mature. So, does that one describe you? Are you mature? Are you a mature believer? He says the mature are those who by reason of use. The use of what? Well, it's connecting back to verse 13. It's the word of righteousness. Because they've used the word of God a lot. Because they've spent time in it. Because they've spent time with God through His word.

Because they have experience with God and His Word. They have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Maturity comes by reason of use. It comes by digging into the Word of God on your own and learning to hear His voice. And that's why so often we encourage you to read your Bible.

Why do you think that we encourage you to take notes? We put that section in the bulletin. It's so that you can pay attention, that you can write down the scriptures, so that you can look into it on your own, like a Berean. Examine yourself whether these things are true. Because maturity comes as you use the scriptures. Why do you think we encourage you to do the weekly assignments and read ahead and look at what the scriptures have to say and prepare yourself?

For what God will be speaking this week in His Word. It's because maturity comes by reason of use. As we use the Word of God, it brings growth in us and draws us close to Him. Why is it, do you think, that we encourage you year after year to read through the Bible in a year with us? Because it's by reason of use maturity is brought to us. It's how we grow. It's how we mature.

And so we need to be reading the Word of God. The diagnosis for these Hebrews is that they're immature. They're only partaking of milk and they're not partaking of solid food. Now there's some common objections that I'll just hit up very quickly here. Objections that come whenever we encourage people and share with people, you need to be reading the Word of God, you need to be studying it on your own. The first objection that people often bring is, well, I tried to do that, but you know, I just found that it's not really interesting.

It's hard for me to really engage in stuff because it's just, it's pretty boring. It's not very interesting. And I would present to you that, as I often have, interest in the Word of God is much like interest that you receive from your bank.

The more you put into it, the more you get out of it. You put more into your bank, you get more interest out of it. You put more into the Word of God, and you will get more interest out of it. It will become more interesting as you continue and are diligent and disciplined to read, to study, and use the Word of God.

Another objection, well, I don't understand it. I would like to, but I just read it and, you know, I'm not as smart as you, Jerry, or I'm not as smart as this person, and I just don't understand it. And this one is a little bit humorous to me because I would ask the question, do you think that the rest of us just open up the Bible to a random place and look and say, oh, I know what that means.

Do you think that on Sunday morning I get up about 8 o'clock, 30 minutes before service, and let me see, what am I teaching today? Oh, got it. Okay, got all five points. Perfect. We're good. Ten minutes of studying and we're ready. No. Hey, this doesn't come easy to any of us. Yeah, it's difficult to understand, especially as we're dealing with passages like this. But take your time. Dig in. Use it. Learn it. Put some time into it.

Be diligent and faithful. Don't just give up right when you don't understand. God wants to show you. He wants to speak to you. He wants to reveal himself to you. Be persistent. Don't give up just because you don't understand it. God will help you to understand it. Final objection. Many will say, I just don't have time. And let me just share really bluntly, if you don't have time for God, he is not your God. Make time. Make the word of God a priority in your life.

Because if you're dull of hearing, the diagnosis is there's immaturity. You're unable to process solid food. So he gives him this diagnosis. He says, you're immature.

But now he gives him the treatment plan here in verses 1 through 3 of chapter 6. It says, So here's the treatment plan. Essentially, he says...

Go on to maturity. Don't just sit there. Don't just continue on in the way that you are, only partaking of milk, but learn to partake of solid food. He says, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles. There's elementary principles which are the foundation for us as believers in Jesus Christ. This foundation is important, but it is not necessary

The whole of the Christian life. It's the foundation upon which the rest of our life is built upon. There's much more beyond the foundation that God seeks to do in our hearts and in our lives. He gives us six elements of the foundation. Number one, repentance from dead works. Number two, faith toward God. Number three, baptisms. Number four, laying on of hands. Number five, resurrection from the dead. And number six, eternal judgment.

Those are the foundational things. Those are the elementary principles. And the Hebrews were in a state of constantly revisiting those and having constant discussions about the foundation and never growing past that foundation. Now there's nothing wrong with new believers learning the foundation. And there's nothing wrong with us, older believers, studying and strengthening the foundation.

But there is a problem if we do not grow past the foundation. If we do not continue on beyond these initial things, beyond these six elements, the elementary principles of Christ. We need to go on to perfection.

And I would ask you, do you know what the Bible teaches about these things? What does the Bible teach about repentance from dead works? These are things that every believer should have a solid grasp on what the Bible says, what they believe, and why they believe it. What is repentance from dead works? What is that all about? What does that mean? What does it mean to have faith towards God? What type of faith can save you?

What about the doctrine of baptisms? Why is it plural? Is there multiple baptisms? What are the different baptisms? What do they mean? How do they play a role in my life? The laying on of hands, what's that all about? Is that for healing or for recognition and appointing someone to office? What does the Bible teach about the resurrection of the dead? What happens to those who die with Christ or apart from Christ?

And apart from Christ is that sixth one, eternal judgment. Is there really a hell? What does the Bible say? Every believer needs to know these things and what the Bible teaches. But there's a danger if that's all that we know and that's the furthest that we grow in our Christian walk. The author of Hebrews is saying, don't just stay there, but go on to perfection. Let us go on to perfection.

Perfection is another variation of the word that was translated full age just a verse before. Full age is maturity. Let's grow up, he's saying. Let's grow on to maturity. And how do we grow on to maturity? How do we go on to perfection? Well, those who are mature are those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

We get into the Word of God. It's by using the Word of God, applying the Word of God, that we're able to then go on into maturity. And that's why, again, I say, read your Bible. Spend time with God and His Word. And I know a lot of people do not like this treatment plan that is offered here. We don't like it because, well, it takes work and we're lazy.

We don't like it because we want the easy answer and we don't want to have to figure it out for ourselves. A lot of times when people come in for biblical counseling, let's say you're having trouble with your husband or your wife, you know, she's acting crazy and you come in and you say, look, this is what's going on and hey, the first thing that should take place in that biblical counseling session, if it's biblical counseling, the first thing that should take place, the first thing that should happen is they should ask you, where's your walk with the Lord?

What have you been reading through lately? What have you been studying? What's God been speaking to you through His Word? And the reaction many times is, what does that have to do with anything? Can you fix her? She's broken. Tell her what she needs to do or tell him what he needs to do. It's this, he needs to work. And the first thing that needs to happen is, you need to know, where do you stand with God? Where's your walk? Where's your heart? At Harvest, if you go for some biblical counseling there,

We did some training with them and so I'm familiar with what they do and their practices. They assign homework the first week when you come in. And your homework is to read through a chapter every day, take notes, and bring back the notes of what you read, the devotions that you read out of the scriptures for every day that whole week.

And their policy is, if you won't do that, if you won't spend time every day in God's Word, reading and writing down the things that apply to you, the things that speak to you, the things that minister to you, they won't pursue any type of biblical counseling with you. Because you're not serious. If you're not willing to spend time with God and allow Him to do the work that He wants to do through the power of His Word, then no amount of biblical counseling can help you.

It's the Word of God that's living and active and powerful and sharper than any double-edged sword. It's the Word of God that we need. It's how we go on to maturity. But we say, no, I need a hearing aid. You tell me what the Lord is saying. That's what we think we need, but that's not what we really need. What we really need is to get in the Word of God on our own and learn to hear from God that we might go on to maturity. Verses 4 through 8 now get into...

More difficult territory. More troubled waters. And so I'll take the encouragement and advice of my wife and say they're self-explanatory. Let's move on to verse 9. No, I'm just kidding. The symptom, they're dull of hearing. The diagnosis, they're immature.

The treatment plan, you need to go on to maturity. Now he gives them the prognosis. Now again, the prognosis is the medical opinion as to the likely course and outcome of a disease. This is what is going to happen if this is not treated. This is what's going to happen to you if you do not take care of this problem, if we do not correct this situation. So here is a great warning. It's a very serious warning. And it's a warning that has troubled many people.

In verse 4 it says, Here in verses 4, 5 and 6,

We have this great passage of difficulty. And again, there's a variety of opinions on the passage and there's many ways to look at it. But I want to encourage you and exhort you, let's just look simply at it as an exhortation to our own selves. To examine our own selves and not others. It's not meant to be a surefire way to tell whether your neighbor is going to heaven or hell. This is meant to give us a warning of this is what happens next.

If we continue on in immaturity. He says, for it is impossible...

And what is that that's impossible? Well, he continues that thought in verse 6. It is impossible if they fall away to renew them again to repentance. And here's where we freak out. What does that mean? Does that mean if I fall into sin that I'm forever lost? Does that mean that if I walk away from God for a season that I can never come back? Does that mean if I backslide that I'm lost forever and I can't go to heaven, I can't have relationship with God? What does that mean?

First of all, let's look at who we're talking about. He says there in verse 5, well, he describes a type of person. This type of person is enlightened. They have tasted the heavenly gift. They've become partakers of the Holy Spirit. They've tasted the good word of God. And they've tasted the powers of the age to come. From these elements that he describes here, I believe that it is clearly teaching. He's clearly sharing knowledge.

There's no doubt here. This person is a born-again believer. He's received the light. He's been enlightened. He's come to the light. He's tasted the heavenly gift. Now, some say, well, see, he just sampled. He didn't really partake. He just kind of tasted. Yet, would you apply the same interpretation to Hebrews 2, verse 9, where it tells us that Jesus, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone? He just kind of sampled it a little bit? No, he didn't.

He died. He received. He partook of death for everyone. He's sharing with us. This is a person who has an encounter with God and been changed and transformed. He's partaken of the Holy Spirit and tasted of the good word of God. God's been working in them. They've been walking with God. And so we're talking about a believer. We're talking about a Christian. And he says, it is impossible.

And again, this is where we can start to freak out. What in the world does this mean? Now, this is a very difficult verse. Not just difficult in the sense that we don't like what it says, but it's difficult as well because, well, for example, the word fall away there, it's translated fall away, is a very difficult word.

It's a word that's used only this time in the scriptures. It's not used in any other times in any other passages. And there's some that enjoy that and love those, you know, one-time used words in the scriptures and place a lot of value on that. But I look at it from a different perspective. And that is, if we only have it one time in the scriptures, we have a very limited understanding of how that word is used.

And if we have it many times, we can see it in many different lights and many different contexts. And we can understand more clearly how that word was used and how it was meant to mean throughout the times that they used it. But since it's only used one time, we have to rely upon the Greek scholars and the linguists of today. And there's a lot of controversy over what this word means and should be translated.

And here's where I say, it's okay though, it's only used one time, no big deal, because we have the balance of Scripture to give us insight into what God is saying. You see, we don't base beliefs and doctrines upon one particular verse, but we balance it in the whole of what Scripture says. And we can see this even as we continue on. What does the next verse say? Verse 7, he starts out with the word for.

Now, starting out with 4, he tells us, I'm going to be connecting this thought to what I just shared. So if they fall away, it's impossible to renew them again to repentance.

What does that mean? Well, let me give you an example. He says in verse 7, So the author now gives us this example to help us understand the point.

And it's very similar to what we looked at on Wednesday in Isaiah chapter 55, where God used this same cycle, how the rain comes down and it waters the earth. And it's not ineffective and it doesn't just return to him without accomplishing anything, but the rain comes down and produces growth, causes growth.

In the same way he compared it in Isaiah 55 to the word of God. It goes forth and it produces growth. It accomplishes what God sent it forth to do. Well, here in Hebrews, he uses this example to show the earth receives the rain. It produces fruit, herbs for use by those to whom it is cultivated. And it receives blessings from God. But if it doesn't produce growth, if it doesn't,

Rejected means to not stand the test. It was tested and found not to be genuine. Near to be cursed. It's not cursed yet, but it's close.

not a place we want to be, whose end is to be burned. And that's the idea here is they're on this course of destruction. Their end is to be burned. If they continue down this path, there will be destruction. So he gives us this picture and it's a picture that's not unfamiliar to us. Jesus used a similar picture in John chapter 15. He says, I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me and I in him bears much fruit. For without me, you can do nothing.

He goes on to say, if anyone does not abide in me, he is cast out as a branch. Or in Hebrew's words, he is rejected and is withered. Or in Hebrew's words, near to being cursed. And they gather them and throw them into the fire and they are burned. Again, in Hebrew's words, whose end is to be burned. Jesus gives us this same picture.

about abiding in Him. As we abide in Him, we'll produce fruit and without Him we can do nothing. But if we do not abide, we will not produce fruit. We will be cast out just like a branch and withered and gathered up to be burned. In Romans chapter 11, Paul is dealing with the subject of the nation of Israel and how God still has a plan for them.

And he's talking to the Gentiles and the Gentiles, they say, look, they were pulled out and I was able to be grafted in. And he says in verse 20 of Romans 11, well said, because of unbelief, they were broken off. And you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, he may not spare you either. So here Paul says something similar. They were broken off. They were pulled out because of unbelief.

And so he says, don't be haughty, don't be arrogant, but fear because if they were broken off because of unbelief, he may not spare you either. All of these things we can pull together and understand that the author of Hebrews is describing a person who produced thorns instead of fruit because they did not abide in Christ and they were broken off because of unbelief. This is a strong and stern warning.

Again, it's the prognosis. It's the events that will take place, the likely course and outcome of a disease if it's not treated. Romans chapter 10 tells us that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. But if you're dull of hearing because you're immature, because you only partake of milk and not solid food, what does that produce? Not faith. It produces unbelief. Dull of hearing caused by immaturity is

which is the result of only partaking of milk, leads to unbelief and ultimately it will lead to rejection of God. Again, this is a strong warning. But understand why warnings are given. Warnings are not given to say you should just give up. Warnings are given to say this is why you need to take heed.

Warnings are given so that you will apply the treatment, that you will take the steps necessary, that you'll go forward in the prescription that is given to you. It's a warning that you and I would be encouraged and exhorted to go on to perfection, to grow up and get into the Word of God and draw close to Jesus Christ, that we might abide in Him. And some scared Christians will say, but what if I'm this person?

Understand that Jesus said in John 6.37, One who comes to me, I will by no means cast out. Anyone who comes to Jesus, he will not cast out.

He's not talking about those other people and they shouldn't come and we shouldn't witness to them and they shouldn't even bother. Or He's not saying to us, don't even bother trying to follow God. You're this person. We've lost hope on you and you can't come back to God. That is not what He's saying. He gives this warning so that we know this is the end result if we persist in unbelief, if we persist in immaturity, if we persist, we will end up rejecting God.

But right now, we're not there yet. And so right now we have opportunity to repent. We have opportunity to change. We have opportunity to turn back and abide in Christ. And that's the goal. The goal is to live a healthy, eternal life. The prognosis is not the end of the story. The warning here is not the end of the story. But it goes on, verse 9 says,

He says,

Again, it's a warning not to say you should give up, but it's why you need the treatment. He says, hey, we're confident of better things concerning you. You're not there yet. We're confident of things that accompany salvation with you. Even though we speak in this way, this is a warning so that you don't continue down the path of immaturity, but that you change and learn on your own to get into the Word of God and to grow.

that you might live a healthy eternal life. Look at verse 10. He says, The reason why he's confident of better things concerning them, he says, because you've produced fruit.

Because there is some fruit in you, he says. You have been growing. There has been a work of God in you. And it continues. He ends there by saying, and you do minister. You continue to produce fruit. So, he says, I'm not saying these things of you because this is where you are. I'm saying these things of you because this is where you're headed. If you don't take heed. If you don't turn back.

You're on the road to destruction, but you're not there at the end of the road yet. You still have time to turn around and come back and abide in Christ and grow in Him and draw close to Him. Verse 11, He says, And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Here's the goal, a healthy eternal life.

He says, and we desire that each one of you show the same diligence. You've been diligent before and there was fruit as a result of that. You were walking with God before. You were close with God. You were growing in Him and there was fruit as a result of that. And even still there's fruit from your relationship with God. But he says, here's our desire that you would show the same diligence to the very end.

You've been wavering, Hebrews, in your faith. You've been wavering in your commitment to the Lord, wanting to go back to the old covenant, the old things. You've been walking in the old ways. And we want you to be diligent to the very end, to the full assurance of hope until the end.

As you've been diligent before, be diligent now, he says, and be diligent to the end. Abide in Christ. And you see, as we abide in Christ, there is full assurance. There's no reason that we should not have full assurance of our salvation. As we abide in Christ, as we stay close to him, he says, we desire that you do not become sluggish. That's lazy. Don't become lazy. It's easy for us to get lazy.

It's easy for us to become dull of hearing because it's so much easier for other people to process our food for us. And we say, well, I'm so blessed whenever I listen to this person or that person. I always read this commentary as well because, man, I'm so blessed. And those things are good, don't get me wrong, but they're no substitute for you on your own spending time with God and His Word.

And we come to difficult portions like this, and oh man, it's so easy, isn't it? Oh man, this is hard to understand. What does it mean? Well, let me see what John Corson says. Oh, what does David Guzik say? Pastor Chuck? Oh yeah, Warren Wearsby, let's open up what he says. And it's so easy to go and again, I'm not saying those things are bad, but I am saying...

If that's all of your diet, if you can't on your own work out the Word of God and study and seek Him and allow Him to speak to you, there's a problem of maturity. Don't be sluggish. Don't be lazy in your Christian walk. It's going to take some time to understand these portions. Spend some time. Read it. Read it over and over. Read corresponding passages. Read the passages around it.

Start from Genesis if you need to, to find other passages that relate. Read the Word of God. Spend time in it. Don't become sluggish. Don't become lazy. Do something about your Christian walk. Go on to maturity. He says at the end there, "...imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises." There's been many around you who've gone before you, who've pressed on and been diligent to the end, who've abided in Christ.

We have the examples of Scripture. He's going to give us many examples in Hebrews chapter 11 of the Old Testament saints. We have the apostles and Jesus Christ, of course, our great example. Follow their example. Imitate them. The Christian faith is a marathon. It's not a sprint. And it's not a race that you run just kind of one time at the beginning of your walk with God. It's a race that we run until the very end. So imitate those who have run the race well.

by faith and patience inheriting the promises. The goal is for you to have a healthy eternal life, an abundant entrance into the kingdom of God. And it's attained by abiding in Christ, by going on to maturity, by spending time with God in His Word. This morning we have the great opportunity to partake of communion together. And so I'm going to invite the worship team back up and the ushers to come forward and make ready.

And as they do, I would ask you to consider these things that we've been looking at here in the book of Hebrews. Do you have this same symptom? Are you dull of hearing? Because the diagnosis for that, if you have trouble hearing from God and He doesn't speak to you regularly in your life, well, it's an evidence of immaturity. But there is a treatment for that. You don't have to continue on perpetually immature. But you can go on to maturity.

Spending time with God and His Word. Understanding that without treatment it is fatal. The goal is for you to live a healthy, eternal life. And I'd like to read to you from 1 Corinthians chapter 11. Something for us to meditate on as we worship the Lord together and prepare our hearts for communion. There the Apostle Paul is speaking about communion and how the Lord first brought it to him.

And he gives some warnings at the end that we might examine ourselves. He says, Therefore, whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this reason, many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep."

For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord that we may not be condemned with the world. Paul says, look, when you come to the table, when you come to partake of the Lord's Supper, prepare your heart, examine yourself. Don't take lightly the things of God and your immaturity. Don't be sluggish in your Christian walk, but examine yourself.

And I would challenge you to allow God to speak to you about these areas and these things. Examine yourself and as you do, come to the cross. Take it to the Lord. He will receive you. He will in no wise cast out whoever comes to Him. And so let's take this time to come to Jesus, to reflect on what He has done for us and take this time to go on to maturity, abiding in Jesus Christ. Let's worship the Lord together.

We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.