The Rebuke of Immaturity

Hebrews 5:9–14
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This is exactly the situation with these Hebrew Christians. They had been going through the same experience again and again, all the years of their Christian life, but had never grown. In this passage the writer makes it very clear that age will never, in itself, bring Spiritual maturity.

Dr. Warren Wiersbe explains it best when he shows how the writer deals with four marks of spiritual immaturity:

1. Dullness toward the Word (v. 11). One of the first symptoms of spiritual backsliding is dullness toward the Bible.
2. Inability to share (v. 12a). Not all Christians have the gift of teaching, but all can share what they learn from the Word. One of the hardest lessons children must learn is the lesson of sharing. The same is true with many Christians when it comes to sharing spiritual things.
3. A “Baby Food” diet (vv 12b-13). The “milk” of the Word refers to what Jesus Christ did on earth. This includes His birth, life, teaching, death, burial and resurrection. The “meat” of the Word refers to what Jesus Christ is now doing in heaven as our High Priest.
4. Unskillful in using the Word (v. 14). A characteristic of little children is that they lack discernment. A baby will put anything in its mouth. An immature believer will listen to any preacher on the radio or television and not be able to identify whether or not he is true to the Scriptures.

Application

My capacity to feast on the deeper truths of God’s Word will depend on my own Spiritual growth. In order to feast at God’s banquet table I must grow in the Lord and put into practice what I have learned. Only then will my capacity to understand increase.