Moving On To Maturity

Introduction:

The Lord encourages us to grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who we are made to understand grew physically and spiritually to perfection before returning to heaven seating at the right of His majesty.

And our text today which is taken from Heb 5:7 to 6:3 exhorts us to leave the elementary teachings about Christ and move on to maturity. How we can leave the elementary teachings and move on to maturity shall be the object of this sermon.

A. What are the elementary teachings about Christ?

All these are listed in verses 1 to 2 of Hebrew 6. They are:

Repentance from act that lead to death – being born again,

Faith in God - belief in God,

Instruction about baptism - water/Holy Spirit baptism

Laying of hands – Setting apart for service

Resurrection of the dead – belief in life after death

Eternal Judgment – final judgment

Brethren, our Christian walks and journey to heaven is in stages:

Stage of hearing His Word

Stage of responding to His call for our salvation

Stage of growing and producing fruit for Him and

Stage of reporting back to Him to give account of ourselves

I know some of us have heard His Word and responded to His call and we are therefore born again. I say congratulations. To those who have not yet responded, I say you can also respond today. He is waiting to receive you to His kingdom.

Through our text this morning the Lord is reminding us once again not to rest on our oars and say “yes we are already born again and ready for heaven”. No brethren, the Lord wants us to go beyond this.

B. Why does he want us to leave the elementary teachings and move on to maturity?

• We are saved to serve and produce fruits,

Rom 7: 4 So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God.

We are saved not only for the purpose of making heaven, but also for helping others to make heaven as well.

Ever since you give your life to Christ, how many people have you lead to Christ? How many can you call your spiritual children?

We must also recognize that an immature tree or plant does not produce fruit. It is only mature plants/trees that produce fruits.

We therefore all need to grow and be matured so that we fulfill the purpose for which God created us.

• He wants us to understand His deep and secret things and mysteries.

Heb 5: 11. We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn.12 In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! 13. Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.14. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

God have some deep and secret things which He wants to be revealing and entrusted to you and I, which unfortunately our level of maturity will not allow us to understand.

Dan 2:22 He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.

Lk 8: 10. And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.

1Cor 4: 1 [Apostles of Christ] So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God.

Remember there were some secret things which our parents did not reveal to us while we were young, but as we grow in age, they started revealing them to us little by little. So also is with God, His revelation to man is progressive. The higher we grow in Him, the more He reveals to us. Some of His deep and secret things He wants to be revealing and hand over to us, but we have not matured to the level of their understanding. Therefore we need to grow quick so that we can start receiving them.

C. How then do we move on to maturity?

Part of our text this morning says we should leave the elementary teaching and move on to maturity. And some of the elementary teachings of HOW we can move on to maturity include:

• The need for the Word, 1Pet 2: 2