The Crisis of Spiritual Immaturity (Part 1)
The Crisis of Spiritual Immaturity • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 42:06
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About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.
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,
for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child.
But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.
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,
The author of Hebrews was felt the need to interrupt what he was saying about the priesthood of Christ that was patterned after the order o Melchizedek to call out his audience for their surprising spiritual immaturity.
Pay attention to the detailed contrast between spiritually immature and spiritually mature christians.
There is a massive crisis in churches today.
Few are aware of the crisis.
Fewer still will concern themselves with it.
The crisis is spiritual immaturity.
We could say a state of perpetual infancy.
Many Christians never growing up and become mature in their faith.
Not willing to ask “why”?
Not willing to search the scripture beyond what they were once taught.
1. Spiritually immature Christians cannot focus on doctrinal truth.
1. Spiritually immature Christians cannot focus on doctrinal truth.
A. Their lack of maturity impacts the quantity of doctrinal consumption.
A. Their lack of maturity impacts the quantity of doctrinal consumption.
Hebrews 5:11 (ESV)
About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.
A. Their lack of maturity impacts the quantity of doctrinal consumption.
A. Their lack of maturity impacts the quantity of doctrinal consumption.
“About this (the priesthood of Christ) we have much to say.”
It was going to take some time to dig into the doctrinal truths of the priesthood of Christ.
But they couldn’t listen.
They couldn’t pay attention and glean from the depths of spiritual truth.
There is a reason our services are as long as they are.
We want to honor God well with scripture reading, prayer and singing.
Then we want to dig into the depths of scripture.
The deeper a Christian digs, the more there is to say about the treasures they have found.
A spiritually mature Christian has the appetite to listen to a greater quantity of teaching of deep spiritual truths.
Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;
A. Their lack of maturity impacts the quantity of doctrinal consumption.
A. Their lack of maturity impacts the quantity of doctrinal consumption.
The context is God’s Word - the deep truths of scripture.
Be eager and be skillful to hear.
There is a reason our services are the length they are.
One day out of the week we come together corporately to worship and learn spiritual truth.
So we don’t want to rush singing, prayer, or scripture reading.
Remember that even the preaching time is worship.
There is no need to rush.
Also, as we dig into the depths of God’s Word.
Pastor Mike and I often have much to say.
We are careful with what we say.
There is a lot you don’t get.
But there is still much to say.
Not only that, what is your desire to consume doctrinal truth beyond a Sunday morning?
A mark of spiritual maturity is the quantity of doctrinal truth a Christian can consume.
B. Their lack of maturity impacts their understanding of doctrinal consumption.
B. Their lack of maturity impacts their understanding of doctrinal consumption.
Hebrews 5:11 (ESV)
About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.
B. Their lack of maturity impacts their understanding of doctrinal consumption.
B. Their lack of maturity impacts their understanding of doctrinal consumption.
“It is hard to explain,”
The subject of Christ’s priesthood was one of considerable difficulty but it certainly was not beyond understanding or explanation.
Spiritual immaturity causes us to not really want the truth.
We want what makes us comfortable.
Maybe we’ve been taught something earlier in our Christian life, but it isn’t correct.
Spiritually mature Christians desire to know the truth.
They embrace the truth - even if its difficult and makes them uncomfortable.
C. Their lack of maturity impacts their concentration during doctrinal consumption.
C. Their lack of maturity impacts their concentration during doctrinal consumption.
Hebrews 5:11 (ESV)
About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.
C. Their lack of maturity impacts their concentration during doctrinal consumption.
C. Their lack of maturity impacts their concentration during doctrinal consumption.
“You have become dull of hearing.”
“Dull”
It is only used here and a few verses later.
so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
C. Their lack of maturity impacts their concentration during doctrinal consumption.
C. Their lack of maturity impacts their concentration during doctrinal consumption.
Comes from two greek words meaning “no” and “to push”.
No push.
Lazy, sluggish, slothful. (The slang word: stupid)
One commentator helps us understand what the author of Hebrews: “You are, in your listening to the Word, like lazy people, who do no work and achieve nothing because of their dull, inactive inclinations.”
Solomon helps paint a better picture for us.
Let’s think about these through the lens of or spiritual formation and scripture.
Whoever is slothful will not roast his game, but the diligent man will get precious wealth.
There is precious wealth to be gleaned from scripture but it takes work!
Whoever is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys.
You may wonder how this applies, but file it away for later.
I passed by the field of a sluggard, by the vineyard of a man lacking sense,
and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns; the ground was covered with nettles, and its stone wall was broken down.
Then I saw and considered it; I looked and received instruction.
A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,
and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.
We could even go to one of Christ’s parables.
But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed?
C. Their lack of maturity impacts their concentration during doctrinal consumption.
C. Their lack of maturity impacts their concentration during doctrinal consumption.
The greatest problem is that the servant was lazy.
Unlike Paul’s letter in 1 Cor 3 when Paul said they needed milk because they were worldly, the cause of this is laziness.
When people truly come to Christ they are initially hungry for whatever they can get.
They want to listen and learn as much as possible.
But we can become dull of hearing.
The newness wears off and it starts to take effort and we don’t put in the effort.
(Preaching the Word Commentary) F. R. Webber, in his massive three-volume A History of Preaching in Britain and America, tells us that one of the curious by-products of the Awakening was a sudden interest in shorthand. According to Webber: Men and women studied shorthand in order that they might take down the sermons that were stirring the English-speaking countries. This had happened once before in Scotland, and it made its appearance once more in all countries where the influence of the Awakening was felt. It was not at all unusual to see men with a portable inkwell strapped about them, and a quill pen thrust over an ear, hastening to join the throng assembling on the village green.
But as the newness of it all died down, so did the listening
What is your appetite for quantity and quality of deep spiritual truths?
We dig deep in Sunday School.
We have a wide variety of things planned over the next year for Sunday nights.
Kids: what was the problem with the Christians in Hebrews 5?
They were lazy listeners.
2. Spiritually immature Christians cannot teach doctrine even at the elementary level.
2. Spiritually immature Christians cannot teach doctrine even at the elementary level.
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
Hebrews 5:12 (ESV)
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,
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
“By this time you ought to be teachers.”
The ability to share spiritual truth with others is a mark of maturity.
The author clearly tells them that teaching others was their duty.
The recipients of this letter did not consider it their duty or their responsibility to invest in others.
They thought is was enough to benefit from what they were hearing.
This church in Hebrews had a “what’s in it for me” mentality.
The ability to share spiritual truth with others is imperative to the great commission.
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
The recipients of this letter had been saved long enough to be able to share truth with other, but they could not.
Scholars believe quite a long time had passed since their salvation and this letter.
By now they should have been teaching others.
They should have brought people to Christ and been teaching them how to grow into mature Christians.
Not every Christian has the gift of teaching.
Not every Christian is expected to teach publically.
That’s not what the author is talking about.
Every Christian must share truth with others.
I found something interesting as I studied this word.
It is used for public teaching.
And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues.
And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers,
But even more so, it is used for personal teaching.
A Rabbi/student type of teaching.
And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”
Teacher or Rabbi
And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
This is another Rabbi reference.
“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
Rabbi or discipler/disciplee reference.
You can follow it all through the gospels and find the same thing!
It is clear that a mark of spiritual maturity is teaching someone intentionally.
This is supposed to be the goal of every Christian.
“You should be teachers.”
We need teachers.
We need disciplers.
This is the biblical expectation of every Christian.
A mark of spiritual maturity.
Everyone should be either already teaching someone or preparing to teach someone.
In other words learning from someone else.
This is why we take Eph 412 so seriously.
to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
A. This compromises the mission of making disciples.
To equip is to fill in the gaps.
Every Christian is expected to intentionally teach someone, but the church is expected to fill in the gaps they have and give them the tools they need to be able to teach someone.
B. This results in them regressing in their understanding of doctrinal truth.
B. This results in them regressing in their understanding of doctrinal truth.
Hebrews 5:12 (ESV)
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,
B. This results in them regressing in their understanding of doctrinal truth.
B. This results in them regressing in their understanding of doctrinal truth.
“You need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God.”
They were regressing. They needed to be taught the same thing again and again.
This also compromises the mission of disciple-making because someone is responsible for continuously reteaching.
They are investing time in someone when they could be investing in someone else who is not lazy but wants to grow and thrive.
Let’s look again at what Solomon said:
Whoever is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys.
B. This results in them regressing in their understanding of doctrinal truth.
B. This results in them regressing in their understanding of doctrinal truth.
Those who are spiritually immature because of laziness, at best slow down the growth or stunt the growth of the church.
Instead of being able to consistently move forward, someone is slowing down to come back and teach AGAIN.
Instead of contributing to the growth they slow the growth.
Questions for the week:
Checking my maturity against this passage…
How much doctrinal truth can I consume before I’ve had enough?
What kind of truth can I consume? (Am I ok with the things I currently think being challenged biblically? Do I have and interest in deep doctrinal discussions?)
Do I fall in the category of “by this time you ought to be teachers”? If so, who am I teaching?