Hebrews 6:1-3

Summary retelling of Hebrews 6:1-3

We are called to leave behind the simple truth of Christ and plunge ahead into maturity.  We must move beyond the point of repentance.  We must move beyond the point of embracing the faith that God gives to us.  We must move beyond our baptism.  We must move beyond the fact that we are set apart for ministry.  We must move beyond the resurrection of the dead.  We must move beyond trying to learn about the final judgment.  With God’s help, we can move beyond those things.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Let me be absolutely clear with this opening thought.  All six of the doctrines that we must get past are absolutely important doctrines. (Repentance, Faith, Baptism, Being Set Apart for Ministry, Resurrection of the Dead, and Final Judgment)  All of those things are absolutely foundational to the faith.  The author is not suggesting that we ignore them.  What the author is suggesting is that we learn them, master the teaching as best we can, and move beyond them.  We’ll talk more about this in the next thought for the day.  But it is vital to stop and make sure that we don’t read these verses as saying that these doctrines are unimportant.  They are vitally important as the foundation of our faith!

How well can you talk about each of these six doctrines?  If you wish to consider yourself a spiritually mature person, do you think you could teach someone else about these foundational doctrines?

Second Thought:

The author of Hebrews tells us that we must move beyond these doctrines in order to be mature.  This is true for two reasons.  First, yesterday we talked about how mature Christians instruct others in the faith.  If we are to be able to instruct others in these basic doctrines, it is important we reach a point where we can say we have “mastered them.”  Now of course, that doesn’t mean w know every minute detail.  It means that we know enough to teach others about them.

The second reason that we must move beyond them is simple.  Have you ever met someone who is stuck in their repentance?  Even though they know God forgives, they cannot forgive themselves.  Or take someone who is stuck on baptism.  They focus so much on making sure they “get” baptism right that they never actually go forward and do any ministry.  Or take someone who is so worried about how God is calling them into ministry that they never actually get to the work of God.  Or take those people who all they want to do is focus on the coming judgment.  They focus on “scaring people into Hell” and they never really get to the true discipleship-making process.  What the author is saying is that we need to understand these doctrines and use them to compel us forward into God’s work.  If we get hung up in the fundamental principles and do not mature, we never get to the work of God.

Are you doing the work of God?  Are there times and places to focus on learning the foundational doctrines?  In your own words, can you explain why it is that spiritual maturity is connected to actually doing God’s work?

Third Thought:

It is through God’s help that we are successful in maturing.  This is an important point.  Think about a baby.  A baby is born into a loving family (hopefully).  While the parents and grandparents of the baby love the baby as it is, they also hope and pray for the day when the baby is fully mature.  The parents rear the child and cause it to grow.  Babies do not mature on their own; babies mature because the adults around them put the expectation of growth upon them.  So it is with us.  When we come to God, we are spiritual babies.  We need to be fed spiritual milk.  But the goal is for us to become spiritually mature.  It is God who works through this world to bring about that spiritual maturity.

Why is it important to remember God’s hand in the process of our spiritual maturity?  Do you ever forget how important God is in the process of your spiritual maturity?  Why do we often live as though we are the ones causing our own spiritual growth?

Passage for Tomorrow: Hebrews 6:4-6