<\/p>\n
\nHebrews 5:9-14. <\/b>\u00a0And\u00a0having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,\u00a0\u00a0called by God as High Priest\u00a0\u201caccording to the order of Melchizedek,\u201d\u00a0\u00a0of whom\u00a0we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become\u00a0dull of hearing.\u00a0For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need\u00a0someone<\/i>\u00a0to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need\u00a0milk and not solid food.\u00a0\u00a0For everyone who partakes\u00a0only<\/i>\u00a0of milk\u00a0is<\/i>\u00a0unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is\u00a0a babe.\u00a0\u00a0But solid food belongs to those who are of full age,\u00a0that is,<\/i>\u00a0those who by reason of use have their senses exercised\u00a0to discern both good and evil.<\/p>\n
Hebrews 6:1-3 <\/b>Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary\u00a0principles<\/i>\u00a0of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from\u00a0dead works and of faith toward God,\u00a0\u00a0of the doctrine of baptisms,\u00a0of laying on of hands,\u00a0of resurrection of the dead,\u00a0and of eternal judgment.\u00a0\u00a0And this we will do if God permits.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
As an evangelist, I share the simple Gospel of Jesus Christ as clearly and plainly as possible: that we\u2019re all sinners; that\u2014while we were yet sinners\u2014Christ died for us; that He is the way, the truth and the life, and that whosoever believes may not perish, but have everlasting life.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s so simple, and yet eternity hangs in the balance.<\/p>\n
>>Get\u00a0Wednesday in the Word<\/em>, a weekly devotion from Will Graham, straight to your inbox.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n
But there\u2019s still work to be done, even after someone has accepted Christ. Our organization works hard to follow up with each person, plugging them into the local church and helping them grow in their faith. Why? Because, much like a child grows in wisdom and power, that is how inquirers mature from \u201cbaby\u201d believers to strong Christians as they begin to apply Scripture to their faith journey.<\/p>\n
This all sounds good, but sometimes it\u2019s easier said than done. As in any area of life, some passionately pursue a goal while others rest or focus on other priorities.<\/p>\n
In Hebrews 5:11-14, we see the characteristics of a group of believers who are not maturing in their faith.<\/p>\n
Lazy or \u2018Dull\u2019
\n<\/strong>A person\u2019s faith is immature because they are lazy or \u201cdull of hearing\u201d (v. 11). There is no drive or initiative, and this prevents understanding. They sat and listened, but were not paying attention and applying what they had learned from God\u2019s Word.<\/p>\nRefusal to Grow<\/strong>
\nMany of these same people who were weak in their walk were refusing to grow (v. 12). They had a knowledge of Jesus and identified with Him, but they refused to mature in their faith and apply it to their lives. They had not progressed from \u201cmilk\u201d (basics) to \u201csolid food\u201d (applying the Scriptures).<\/p>\nUnskilled<\/strong>
\nSome people are spiritually underdeveloped because they are unskilled (inexperienced) in the Word of God (v. 13). By this time they should be teaching, but could not because they refused to be trained in spiritual matters.<\/p>\nDo Not Exercise Discernment<\/strong>
\nFinally, some believers remain spiritually immature because they do not exercise their mental and spiritual senses (v. 14) and are therefore unable to discern between good and evil.<\/p>\nReviewing the characteristics of a stunted Christian may hit a little close to home for some of us. So what\u2019s the remedy? How can we become fully developed and mature Christians? Hebrews 6:1-3 offers some guidance.<\/p>\n
First<\/strong>, we must build on the teachings that we already know (v. 1). The foundation has already been laid. Now we need to develop our spiritual structure, adding depth and understanding.<\/p>\n
Second<\/strong>, we must be determined to grow (v. 3). The author makes a declaration (\u201cThis we will do\u201d), which shows the determination required to grow as a Christian.<\/p>\n
Third<\/strong>, we must also realize that we are totally dependent upon God for growth. By saying, \u201cif God permits\u201d (v. 3), the author shows that we cannot grow apart from His strength.<\/p>\n
To summarize, the answer for a stunted and immature spiritual walk is a motivation to build on the foundation we have, with determination and a reliance on God\u2019s faithfulness and strength.<\/p>\n
My friends, it\u2019s easy to slip into laziness and immaturity. We must passionately and deliberately pursue our Savior and the incredible wealth of wisdom He has given us. This will strengthen your faith walk and better prepare you to impact the world for the Kingdom.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hebrews 5:9-14. \u00a0And\u00a0having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,\u00a0\u00a0called by God as High Priest\u00a0\u201caccording to the order of Melchizedek,\u201d\u00a0\u00a0of whom\u00a0we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become\u00a0dull of hearing.\u00a0For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need\u00a0someone\u00a0to teach … Continue reading “Will Graham – Devotion”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-186231","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-daily-prayers"],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/186231","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=186231"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/186231\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":186234,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/186231\/revisions\/186234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=186231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=186231"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=186231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}