Hebrews 5:11-14
The church this letter was written to had an issue with its congregation. They weren't maturing in their faith. They were still sipping milk instead of eating steak. They were still in the shallow end instead of going into the deep end.
Four Symptoms of Spiritual Shallowness
- Spiritually Complacent (v.11) … They came to church and heard the messages. But they weren't listening and it went in one ear and out the other without impacting their lives. They were comfortable where they were and didn't push forward.
- Spiritually Behind (v.12a) … The people of this church had been attending church for a while but they were still learning the basics. They should have been able to teach others by this point, but they couldn't because they were still just on the basics. A church should be making disciples who make disciples. But this church wasn't doing that. If you feel behind spiritually, it's not the end of the line, Our church officers Wednesday night classes called EQUIP classes to help us grow and mature in our faith. Your church probably has something similar. Dive in and start growing.
- Spiritually Immature (vv.12b-13) … Maturity doesn't always come with age. Maturity comes with knowledge and understanding. This is why it's important to study the Bible and do our best to understand it. It's why our church should be helping people to understand God's Word.
- Spiritually Undiscerning (v.14) … The writer of Hebrews suggests that this congregation was at risk of leaving their faith behind because they didn't have a deep faith and hadn't been trained in knowing good from evil. Even today, kids who grow up in church and go to college often leave the church and their faith behind. Why? Because they weren't asked to be more than a surface-level believer. They lack a deep faith because the church didn't ask enough of them to make them go deeper.
4 Remedies to Spiritual Shallowness
- Show Up Consistently … Go to church regularly. If you aren't there, you can't learn from other believers.
- Be Fully Engaged … Pay attention to the sermon and to your connection group lessons. Take in the lessons and let them change you.
- Use Good Resources … Find good personal Bible studies and Christian books to read. Watch and listen to good podcasts about Christianity.
- Learn in Community … Get in a connection group (or whatever your church now calls Sunday School). Go to the extra classes and events your church offers.
For Further Study/Resources Used to Prepare This Message
- Deep Discipleship by J.T. English
- Exalting Jesus in Hebrews by Albert Mohler
- Hebrews for You by Michael Kruger
- Hebrews REC by Richard Phillips
- Hebrews: Preach the Word Commentary by Kent Hughes
- Hebrews ESV Expository Commentary
- Hebrews by Grant Osborne
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