Training Vs Trying Series

INTRODUCTION

• SLIDE #1

• Where are you spiritually today? Are you growing, is your faith exciting to you or are you bored and disconnected?

• There are times when Christians struggle to grow in their faith.

• Over time we see people who were excited about Jesus walk away. Maybe you have experienced a lull in your walk, where things just are not connecting with you.

• People wouldn’t know it just by looking at you, but maybe your faith isn’t quite as strong as it once was.

• The passion you had isn’t as strong as it was before. Those subtle ones can last a few months or even a few days … honestly even a few hours.

• Spiritual growth isn’t so much like taking a step after step towards God. It’s so often two steps forward, one step back, two steps forward, three steps back … you get the idea.

• If you are connecting with any of this, today is for you. Whether you are new to this whole Jesus/ Church thing, or if it’s your first time back in a long time, or even if your relationship with God isn’t what it once was, you have come on the perfect week.

• Am I moving forward spiritually? Or am I stagnant? Or am I moving backwards?

• Maybe you have had feelings that God is so disappointed in you: You did that again? You’re still struggling with that? I thought we were past this? Here is a cool thing we see over and over in the life of Jesus.

• Jesus always called people to a higher standard, but He did not destroy them when thy fell short. Jesus encouraged them to GROW!

• Jesus was the ultimate encourager. He was always cheering people on. Get back up. Let’s try again. I believe in you. That’s why people were constantly flocking to him

• Why do I need spiritual disciplines to grow in my faith?

• We as a church will reproduce not just what we say but what we do. Your spiritual maturity is bigger than you … it impacts others.’

• Do you have a faith that will attract others to Jesus or possibly repel them? Jesus called for the church to reach the world (Matthew 28:8-20), but for that to happen, it begins with each one of us growing to spiritual maturity.

• Let’s begin by looking at verses 11-12

• SLIDE #2

• Hebrews 5:11–12 (HCSB) — 11 We have a great deal to say about this, and it’s difficult to explain, since you have become too lazy to understand. 12 Although by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the basic principles of God’s revelation again. You need milk, not solid food.

I need Spiritual disciplines to grow my faith because…

• SLIDE #3

SERMON

I. A lack of spiritual growth is not supposed to be the standard for Christians.

• This situation sounds bad.

• The Hebrew writer in the previous section of the chapter starts to talk about the Priesthood of Melchizedek, quoting from Psalm 110:4, but before he expounds on that important Old Testament passage, he needs to make sure the readers are ready to understand it.

• The Hebrew writer gets a little harsh with them. We have a great deal to say about this, and it’s difficult to explain, since you have become too lazy to understand

• The folks had gotten to the point where they were no longer trying to understand things. The readers are Christians.

• It seems like they had not given up on God, but rather they had given up on moving forward spiritually.

• This isn’t supposed to be the norm for Christians. We are called to be growing all the time!

• One can get to the point where they are going through the motions of their faith without ever growing.

• When you are hungry to grow, everything you learn is exciting.

• It’s possible to be at church every weekend and no longer be trying to grow closer to Jesus!

• The people still needed elementary truths taught to them, apparently they had sufficient time to have grown.

• In verse 12 the writer says, Although by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the basic principles of God’s revelation again. You need milk, not solid food.

• The author of Hebrews is saying, “You should be off the bottle by now and on to steak. You need to grow up spiritually.

• If you are not intentional in growing in spiritual maturity, then over time you’ll drift from God.

• It’s not that you purposefully walked away from God; you just got complacent … to the point where, one day you wake up and wonder,” How did I get here? How did I drift so far from God?