Hebrews 5:11 Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing. 12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. 13 For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. 14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
These verses are a parenthetical break from the main theme of the chapter. There is some discussion as to Who God is speaking of here but it would seem that He is referring to Jesus Christ. In chapter 7 He will return to His teaching with regard to Melchisedec. If we look at verse 10 we see that the writer is speaking of Jesus Christ and His lineage. In verse 11 the writer is directed to warn the saints of a major problem they had. They were not willing to hear the greater truths that needed to be spoken. God wants us to be well informed with regard to Himself and of Jesus Christ. There is much carelessness with regard to Who Jesus Christ is, even in our time. There are many people who claim to love Jesus, but they demonstrate that they do not know Him. They use the perversions and they follow false teachers and they love the CCM music and ‘worship teams’ that make a mockery of worship. We need to be willing to listen to the facts and accept the Biblical truth, not the man-made assumptions that many follow and promote. In verse 12 we are reminded that there is a need for teachers of God’s Word. We cannot be teachers if we are not willing to learn. I have found that not many people want to be taught. They assume they are just as capable of knowing the truth even though their “truth” is not Biblical truth. Bible doctrine is absolute. It is not negotiable. God is the author of the Bible. He laid out His Word in an orderly manner and it fits together. You cannot take a verse here and there and make up any version of doctrine that you want. II Timothy 2:15 reminds us:
II Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Ephesians 4:11 tells us:
Ephesians 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
That passage continues the same thought until verse 16. God appoints His servants. The apostles and prophets gave us the Scriptures. They are all dead, but their writings were inspired of God and we have them available to us in the Bible. Not just any Bible but in God’s Word. The King James Version is God’s Word for the English speaking world. If we cannot accept that fact, there is no hope of knowing the true Jesus. It is the only English Bible that is faithfully translated from the Masoretic Hebrew and the Textus Receptus Greek. I know there is much discussion on this matter. Humility is required in order to receive the truth. If a person is “too wise” to accept the truth, there is no hope for them. I Corinthians 1&2 points out a major problem that many people have with God’s Word. Their pride gets in the way. God’s Word is a spiritual Word and unless the Holy Spirit indwells the student, he or she will not receive the Word of God because it is foolishness to them and they cannot know it because it is spiritually discerned. That is the problem that God is addressing in our verses today. God knows our hearts. He knows who is willing to learn and who has set up roadblocks that will keep the person from learning. It is not wise to be stubborn and self-willed. In the end every person will meet the Lord. Those who reject His salvation will meet Him at the great white throne judgment. There is no hope for those people. The majority of mankind will be at that judgment. Those who are saved will meet the Lord at the judgment seat of Christ. There they will be judged as to what rewards they will receive, or what rewards they will forfeit. There will be those who will be saved though as by fire. It is important for those who are saved to be teachable and to be willing to retain the true doctrines they have been taught. It is important to set aside time for studying God’s Word. It is important to be in prayer prior to studying God’s Word. It is important to have a heart that is prepared to receive the truth. In the context of our verses, we are dealing with saved people. The first principles of the oracles of God are important. However, we need to let them sink into our heart and be firmly planted there. We need to review them and be sure that we are building upon that. Those who are still in need of milk do not have stability in their walk with the Lord. As we can see here, God is not content to leave His child in a state of infancy. New Christians need to be given milk. New Christians need to allow the milk to be digested well into the heart and mind of the saint. Verse 13 tells us that the person who is still on milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness. That is God’s Word. It is important to note here that the problem is not with the Word of God. The problem is with the heart of the hearer. The Holy Spirit indwells every true child of God. He is there to help the new believer to understand the Word of God. He is there to help the new believer identify sinful habits that need to be cast off. He is there to help the new believer to cast down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. Those who are saved cannot have any book that is of greater importance than the Word of God. They cannot hold any person or religious group higher than the Word of God. The study needs to be by comparing Scripture with Scripture. It does not matter what your parents believed or taught. Your pastor is not a greater authority than God’s Word. It matters what God declares. A true pastor will carefully teach God’s Word and show that he is speaking the truth by rightly dividing the Word of Truth. Strong meat is for those who are no longer babes. Strong meat is what God wanted to teach these saints here, but they were not ready to receive it. Notice that those who can handle strong meat are those who use God’s Word faithfully. They read it every day and they are frequent attendees in a good, Bible-believing church. They have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. As a true saint studies God’s Word, It exposes the imaginations that need to be cast down. We spoke this week about a series that is being promoted called “The Chosen”. Many professing Christians are flocking to this false teaching. It promotes Catholic doctrine. Many people love movies and they love to watch some entertainment. The true child of God may have been deceived to watching a little of this poison, but the Holy Spirit indwelling him or her, will show him this is just that: poison. Those who want to fight and argue against this prove they are most likely unsaved and cannot even receive milk yet. Those who are saved will not argue long because the Holy Spirit Who indwells them will not allow them to remain in a carnal state. God loves His children far too much to let them remain in a carnal state. As we see in these verses, God insists that His children get past milk and into the strong meat. This is what God says. I am just the messenger. Listen to what God says and know His blessing in your life. Pastor Bartel
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