Always Advancing

Take your Bibles, if you would, please, and turn to Hebrews, chapter 5. We'll be in verses 11 through 14 today, and perhaps some of chapter 6 as well. And we'll be talking about the subject of always advancing. And so if you are taking notes and you want to write down a title, you can write down "Always Advancing." Always advancing in the faith is the encouragement from today's text. And we'll see that. And it is, most certainly, encouragement. Don't hear the words of today's text in any type of degrading way. This is encouragement to move from one step to the next. And especially as we build a foundation of faith, which is upon Christ the solid rock in which we stand, we will see how to move forward from the elementary teachings to the mature teachings.

In Hebrews, chapter 5, verses 11 through the following says this, "Concerning him." Now, always, you have to ask the question of who is that and whatnot. In verse 10, you'll see that it is Melchizedek. We're going to get there. And so there is a lot of content about this mysterious fellow. And I want to whet your appetite for knowing more about him like the preacher of Hebrews does. This is the second time that Melchizedek has been brought up in this passage, in this book of Hebrews. And so now, he then kind of skips over and continues with his thought, then comes back to Melchizedek in chapter 7. And then in chapter 7, Melchizedek is mentioned. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, or eight times it seems. And so we'll dive into the subject. We'll go verse by verse about him then.

And so for today, concerning him, that being Melchizedek, we have much to say that's coming up. And it is hard to explain since you have become dull of hearing. I would like to go slowly with this text with you before we dive in. Pause if you would there. And I'd like to show you just an interesting nuance. Hold your place and turn to 2 Peter chapter 3. 2 Peter chapter 3, because this subject of things that are hard to understand was brought up by Peter. And I will give you a nuance as to why I believe that Paul was the author of Hebrews is because of so many little interesting nuances like this. This is just one of many that I have taken note of. But it's so interesting that I feel like we need to look at it together.

And so in 2 Peter chapter 3 verse 16 says these very similar concepts. It says in 2 Peter 3:16, "As also in all of his letters. Well, you got to think, well, whose letters are those? Well, in verse 15, he specifies it as Paul. Okay, so Peter is referring to Paul's letters, speaking in them of things in which are some things hard to understand. And so the same concept is referred to by Peter in regards to Paul's letters as hard to understand. Not only that, it also says which the untaught, okay, this untaught word is the elementary or the unlearned ones. And that is also a concept found in today's passage in Hebrews chapter 5. And so this is very interesting that you have this now, if you zoom out just a little bit and look at the subjects that are mentioned by Peter in this passage, the same concepts are lined up in also Hebrews. And so it's undeniable in my mind that you would say, "Wow, the same author, God, speaking through Peter and Paul is lining up some concepts for us to really digest. It all coincides and it all makes perfect sense.

And so now as we move on, we'll see as well in passage how Peter talks about discernment and carrying on to maturity in verses 17 and 18. It's so fascinating how these line up. Now, you know how conversation works if you talk about something to someone and it makes an impact in their heart and mind, then they may would go forward and talk about that same thing as well to someone else. And so Peter and Paul, perhaps in conversation with one another or being united in Christ, have these same concepts lined up. I'm just saying to you today that the Bible is unified in Christ and it is miraculous. Let's go back to Hebrews and continue to learn about these things.

So concerning him being Melchizedek, we have much to say and it is hard to explain since you have become dull of hearing. At that particular verse, you could say, "Well, perhaps this was also mentioned by Peter who was referring to author of this letter as Paul." Interesting, isn't it?

Verse 12, "For though by this time you ought to be teachers and you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God and you have come to need milk and not solid food." Some translations say meat, can't eat meat yet. So these are dull ones, not intellectually but slothfully. In verse 13, it says, "For every one who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant." Now this word infant is referring to unskilled ones, young ones. In verse 14, "But solid food is for the mature because of practice they have their senses trained to discern good and evil." There is a lot in that verse.

Okay, in chapter 6 and verse 1, it says, "Therefore, leaving the elementary principles or the elementary teachings about the Christ and let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God." We'll get there. But for now, let's discuss the subject of this here. This foundation is also mentioned in Isaiah chapter 28 verse 16. And if you like the Old Testament backdrop for these New Testament concepts, Isaiah chapter 28 gives this in verse 16. It says, "Thus therefore says the Lord God." So now you have God speaking. In Isaiah chapter 28 verse 16 is the root idea of this concept foundation. It's interesting. I would encourage you to turn there.

Isaiah 28 verse 16, "Therefore the Lord God says, Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a costly cornerstone for the foundation firmly placed." Okay, so this is a symbolic reference to Christ. And it's also repeated in Romans chapter 9 verse 33, the same words. And then as well in 1 Peter chapter 2 verse 6, the same words. And so this foundation of our faith is Christ Himself. And then it goes on to say, "He who believes in it will not be disturbed." And so you'll be at peace. If you believe in this foundation of faith, Jesus Christ, as the substitutionary person who paid your sin debt, then you have peace with God. You're at peace with the one who punishes sin because your sins have been paid for. You're at peace. You're not disturbed. This is an amazing verse.

Again, Romans 9:33 says, "Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, and he who believes in him will be disappointed." So the same stone that being Jesus Christ both saves and causes others to stumble. The same stone, the same concepts others will embrace and believe and stand upon, but the same concepts others will stumble over and be disturbed by and not embrace and believe these things. And so we're encouraged even from the preaching of the prophet Isaiah to believe in foundation, that is Jesus Christ.

Back to Hebrews chapter 5, as we build on this foundation, this metaphor, this architectural metaphor, a foundation of Christ, now we're encouraged in this passage because this foundation has been established. And it's presuming that the hearers here in Hebrews know this information. And so I would speak to you in the same way. I presume that you'd know about the death and the burial and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ and that we have embraced His salvation and lordship. But here's the point of the passage. No builder stops building at the foundation level. When you lay a foundation, when the concrete is hardened, when the blocks have been put down, when the foundation is established, there's still an entire building to be erected. And so now don't just stop at the foundation of the faith, the elementary principles, the basics of our faith. Don't stop there. Build the building of faith, the pillars of truth, put on the roof of protection, put on everything. Make your life a living temple of the Lord Jesus Christ so that it is functioning well in every way.

The foundation of a building is complete. And if you are truly just still in infancy in regards to the elementary teachings of the faith, then you are not yet being made complete or mature in Christ. And so this passage is encouraging us to spiritually grow out of infancy and to maturity. And there's some spiritual growth stages there. So infants, they need milk, but they grow to need meat, right? They eventually grow to need that. And by the way, as a side note, some of you may have Genesis chapter nine, verse three as a favorite verse where we now eat meat, not just vegetables. And so that verse gives us the directive that we don't have to be vegetarians. In Genesis chapter nine, verse three, it says, "Every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you." You can eat the meat now. And so the children, you may want to re-title this message to moving forward, forgive my humor. But it is true that we need to move from milk, milk to meat and eat the meaty things of the Word, not just literally, but also spiritually.

So children in the faith need the elementary teachings of the Word of God. And we do that here and be kids. And parents, you do that with your children at home. And we don't just run into the deep things of God. We utilize the Word of God as a ramp like it is taught. And we teach the elementary things as well, the basics of the faith, but we just do not stop there. One of the plagues in America, I mean, even around the world, is just stopping at the elementary things of the Word of God. And so we need to continue to move forward.

Paul said in 1 Corinthians chapter three, verse two, "I gave you milk, milk to drink, not solid food, for you were not yet able to receive it." And so it's almost like the dullness or the refusal to embrace the deeper things of God by the Corinthian church shackled Paul. It's like you're refusing to truck with me. You don't want to do the work that's necessary to dive into the depths of the Word to figure these things out. For example, the subject of Melchizedek is only mentioned in three different times in the Bible, but what a rich figure he is, and we'll get there. And so we're moving forward. Paul is encouraging them to move forward. You know, the Apostle John also illustrates spiritual maturity. Turn with me to 1 John. 1 John chapter two, verse 12. He utilizes this familial metaphor of children and youth and fathers in the faith. And this is encouragement because everyone sees babies grow to be children, children grow to be youth, and youth grow up to be parents or mature adults. And so this is important to see, and this is great.

Jesus spoke in visual terms, and here you have another visual understanding of spiritual growth. In 1 John chapter two, verse 12, it starts off, and he's going to interweave in between these concepts, and I'll explain them. In verse 12, it says, "I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven for His name's sake." This is important to realize that when you have been made a child of God, your salvation was granted to you, and it is for God's glory. It's for His name's sake. And in Psalm chapter 23, it also says that everything is done is for His name's sake. And so we are ambassadors of Christ, and as we serve Him, and we encourage, we glorify God in that. So "I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name's sake."

And in verse 13, "I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning." Okay, now fathers know God, not only from the beginning, but also to the end as well. They'd know Him as the Alpha and the Omega. And "I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one." And so the young men then are characterized spiritually as overcomers. Overcomers. You're able to recognize your sin in your life and see that that is displeasing to the Lord, and then repent of that sin, overcome the shackles that come with that particular sin, and then continue in righteousness. That's a youth in the faith. And so your spiritual growth stage is one that has learned how to overcome the sin in this world. And so you are not in bondage to reoccurring sin. You don't keep falling into the same sins over and over, and over again. You've overcome these things.

And as you continue in the text, "As I have written to you, children, because you know the Father." They know God. They've been born again. In verse 14, "I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning." A repeated phrase here because it's important. "And I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the Word of God abides in you." So another characteristic of being a youth in the faith is that you have become able to wield your own sword, so to speak, to handle the Word of God well. You've become strong in the Word. You know your Bible. Memorizing verses, you can work your way around in the text. You understand what the Word of God is saying. You're strong in the Lord, and it abides in you and your heart. And you have overcome the evil one.

One of the characteristics of a father is that he is a teacher and a reproducer. This applies to mothers as well. And so the spiritual progression in this text is, first of all, children are learners, but they grow and become overcomers, and then they continue and grow to become teachers or reproducers. And so I would say to you, what spiritual growth step are you on? Are you just a learner, a child in the faith, perhaps an infant? It's fine. Be encouraged to continue to move forward in your faith to learn how to not have to be told everything in the Word of God, but to read it for yourself and discern it and to overcome the things that need to be overcome, and then to be able to teach others also. This is a spiritual growth stage that's unmistakable.

And if you're taking notes, point number one in our text here would be, "Do not be slothful learners." Slothful learners. We all know what a sloth is. They're slow. But more than that, the text in Hebrews chapter 5 uses the word "dull." I couldn't help but smirk when I saw this word, and I enjoyed looking it up. But it doesn't necessarily make a dig at anyone's intellect. Remember, this text is encouraging. This is a word that helps us to understand that the ones whom were the audience of this letter were lazy. They were slothful. They were dull of hearing. And because of their reluctance to learn the Word, it made it hard for this to be taught, hard to understand, it says. It's hard to explain since you've become dull of hearing. And you know that that's hard to teach someone who is reluctant to your teaching. When we are reluctant to learn God's Word, we truly make it hard on the teachers and the preachers. And so if you have a child who just will not listen, then it is also hard on the heart because you have one who is reluctant. Don't be that way toward God.

The text is encouraging us to move from infancy to youthfulness, to overcome these things, and to move towards maturity. And in verse 12, it says, "You ought to be doing this." And so point number two in the text is to take personal responsibility in learning. Take personal responsibility. This is so important for you. And I'm not talking to just the children, but I must certainly am talking to the children as you need to go to the point to where you can take personal responsibility. You ought, this word ought indicates obligation. In Mark 12, verse 30, "You are commanded to love the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all of your soul and with all of your mind and all of your strength." And so this implies personal responsibility. And so I want to talk to you today as well, are you taking personal responsibility to grow in your faith? It's not just attending church, and it's not just listening in church, but your personal responsibility is that you have your own Bible at home and you are not only reading it in a shallow way, skimming across the surface like a speedboat going across the water, but you are fishing the depths of the Word of God.

You are doing your Word studies. You are doing what's necessary to be able to find out what the truth of God really is. It's your duty to study, to become mature mentally and spiritually, and get to the point to where you can teach continually. This was, unfortunately, demonstrated already by the hearers' forefathers. And so the close context is that they are drifting, and the author wants them no longer to drift away from Christ, but to continue in Christ. Don't be dull of hearing, mature in the faith. And then at the same time, if you was to look at the continuing context of this, it would be along the lines of what is demonstrated in Psalm chapter 78.

Go there with me and see that the example that they have been left, the legacy of faith that was before them was very shallow, very poor, even stubborn and rebellious. And so the author is saying, "Don't be like that. You ought to be continuing in the faith." In Psalm 78 verse 4, the Bible says, "We will not conceal them from our children," talking about the works of God, the knowledge of God, "but tell them to the generation to come." Okay? So this is personal responsibility on the part of the fathers whom have grown from infancy above being a youth in the faith to being a true father in the faith to where they can reproduce the faith. Okay?

Continue reading with me and starting in verse 4 again, "We will not conceal them from their children, but tell them to the generation to come the praises of the Lord and His strength and His wondrous works that He has done. For He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers that they should teach them to their children, that the generation to come might know, even the children yet to be born, that they may arise and tell them to their children, that they should put their confidence in God and not forget the works and not like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not prepare its heart and whose spirit was not faithful to God." This is the unfortunate spiritual legacy of the Israelites for which the preacher of Hebrews is warning against.

We must not only grow in our faith, but we must spread the faith. We've got to tell the next generation so that the next generation can tell the next generation. And this is superbly important because if you are not teaching in a way that it is transferable, then how is it going to pass from one generation to the next? If you have not truly repeated the death and the burial and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, I'm telling you that your children may not be able to repeat the Gospel for themselves and teach their own children. And so it has got to be done over and over, and over again, not just in church, but at home as well. And so parents have to really, really train their children up in the admonition of the Lord.

Now we've looked at the close context and the continuing context. What about the complete context? If you even go back farther in Deuteronomy chapter 4 and verse 9, you'll see that grandparents have a responsibility to teach their grandchildren not only to keep yourselves pure, but also to teach the next generation and the next generation. In Deuteronomy chapter 4 and verse 9, the Bible says, "Only give heed to yourself and keep your soul diligently so that you do not forget the things which your eyes have seen." Now think about this. In Psalm 78, the fathers forgot about what God had done. I mean, how can you forget about the parting of the Red Sea, about the Exodus, about the wilderness experience, all these things. These are monumental pictorial truths of coming out of sin and following the Lord. Don't forget these things, okay, "and which your eyes have seen and do not depart from your heart all the days of your life, but," here's a conjunction, "make them known to your sons and your grandsons." This is so important to get your purpose right while you're still here. It really matters. It's really all about God and the Gospel. It's all about these things, and if you are not speaking these things, they're not going to be known.

This is an oral tradition that I'm referencing here back in Deuteronomy and in Psalms. They didn't have the Bibles like you have. It was dependent upon the parents to verbally tell the next generation. And so is still true for us today. You don't want to just give your children a Bible and say, "Learn it. It's your responsibility." You want to impart to them not only the basic elementary truths of the Word and build a foundation, but to continue to build upon that foundation. And so you ought, back in Hebrews, it's very clear in verse 12, "For though by this time you ought to be teachers."

So your duty then is to move beyond the laziness in life to become a teacher for yourself. Proverbs 15:19 warns against laziness, "You yield thorns." In Proverbs 18:9, it says that the lazy often have bad friends. Don't you see that true? Those who are lazy that are unproductive, they hang out with unproductive people and they do bad things. And then as well, in Proverbs 24:30, it says it sluggers, they lack common sense. And then in Proverbs 24:30 and 34, it says that slumber leads to poverty. These are words of wisdom. They're warnings not to be lazy, not just in your work, but also in your spiritual development.

But I want to press in just a little bit farther and say what Jesus had to say about laziness. He said it was wickedness. Jesus identifies the lazy as wicked in Matthew chapter 25 verse 26. Matthew 25:26 is a parable where Jesus identifies those who are lazy and he is correlating this to our own spiritual growth. It's actually wickedness to ignore this oughtness. It's wickedness to ignore the oughtness in the Bible. And so when you see the word ought to, this is a command. It's not just a suggestion to continue to, like what Paul told Timothy, to rightly divide the Word of God in 2 Timothy 2:15. You need to be able to rightly divide the Word of God and get the truth out of it for yourself and not be dependent like an infant on others.

Point number three, if you're taking notes, is that everyone is to be discipling someone. Everyone is to be discipling someone. Turn, if you would, to Ezra chapter 7 and see just a perfect model of teaching. Ezra 7 and verse 10, it says, "For Ezra has set in his heart to study the Law of the Lord and to practice it and to teach its statutes and ordinances in Israel." So study, practice, teach. There's a ramp for you, or you may say steps. Learn how to study the Word of God, learn how to put it, what you have studied into practice, and then teach it to others. There's a good goal for you to become teachers. You say to yourself, "But preacher, Ezra was a priest. I'm no priest." Oh, how many try to elude the commandments of the Bible. And if you perhaps are thinking in that way, I would quote to you 2 Peter chapter 2 verse 9, it says that, "You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood." And so for what the priest did in the Old Testament as ministering to God, praying, handling the Word, we are then as great commission Christians to be doing the same things. And so we are a royal priesthood.

If you've been saved and born again, then it's your responsibility to take and push the Word of God. All right, now don't be dull, move on from infancy to maturity so that you can teach the Word. A little caveat here, James chapter 3 verse 1 says, "Not many of you should be teachers." You may be thinking of that verse as well. "Not many of you should be teachers." James chapter 3 verse 1. How do you reconcile the command for everyone to teach the Word of God versus not many of you should be teachers? Well, it's easy. Context is king. And so when it comes to teaching with authority on behalf of God in His church, not many of you should be teachers. You'll be held to a higher level of account on the day of judgment. And so God trains His men to teach sound doctrine in the church and He raises them up to be able to do these and it's wonderful to be able to see that. And believe me, the teachers feel the weight and the gravity of the holiness of God and His righteousness to be able to accurately portray what the Scriptures say. It takes a lot of work and we have a fantastic rotation of godly men who teach the Word here. And they put a lot of work into it. They're engaged in training and hermeneutics. And being taught how to rightly divide the Word of God. They're engaged in learning from great teachers of the Word of God. This is fantastic.

John Owen says this, "Every church was then to be a seminary to instruct more and more until the people are capable of teaching." John Owen was the dean and chancellor at Oxford in the 1650s and he is a mighty Puritan of the faith. And he said that every church needs to be a seminary which is to raise up people to teach the Word of God. And I would say to you today that Beulah Baptist Church is most definitely a seminary. We are training not only children to be able to quote Scripture and handle the Word of God, but we're training up men in pastoral training and implementation, PTI. And these men are doing a great job in imparting the truth of the text in our Bible study groups and Sunday school classes. And on Wednesday nights and we have these stair steps available for them to continue to mature in Christ. And so listen, we have really taken the Bible seriously here at Beulah Baptist Church. And the spiritual growth steps that are necessary for us and our children are in place here at this church.

And if you're here for a year or two or three or four or five, you will see yourselves and your children growing in their faith. And that is God's will for your life. The Bible says so, that God's will is for your sanctification, not only just to be born again, but to grow in your faith. And so we have available to everyone 3D Bible study cards to learn how to study the Bible for yourself. And then as well, theological Wednesdays to study who God is, PTI like I've mentioned already, and the teacher rotations like I've mentioned already. We really have a family discipleship congregation.

On Wednesday nights, you will see our children and youth in the faith stand up before the Wednesday night study group and proclaim the Word of God, quote Scriptures and recite to us what they have learned from a Biblical worldview in their education. It's amazing to see how even from ones who are at first scared to speak in front of a group, becoming bold in the faith. And this is truly raising them up in righteousness. And you see this before our very eyes. We really know that our children are going to surpass our spiritual state when they become our age. Wherever we are in our spiritual growth, our children are going to outdo us. We've really implemented the right things here at the church. And I'm so proud of how we're doing these things. This implies that we are investing time.

Again, it flies in the face of cultural Christianity where you do whatever you want during the week and just attend and give on the weekends. And most churches are happy with your attendance and your giving and your hiding of your sin. If you just attend and give and hide your sin, most churches are like happy, love you. But a Biblical church is going to see, I should say, oversee your soul and show you how to grow in Christ and to continue to lovingly shepherd and guide you gently and lovingly, to show the path forward in these ways. The opposite is not to be one who will grow in Christ, not to disciple your own, not to disciple your neighbors, not to disciple.

And John MacArthur said this, "To be a Christian and not to disciple is a contradiction." And so the result then from not discipling is an absolute mess. When Christians do not take the Great Commission seriously to make disciples and they do not disciple, you create a mess. This mess was in the island of Crete and Paul had to send Titus to straighten out all the churches. They were an absolute mess. The wrong men were leading in the churches. They were after money and they were liars. There was all kinds of gossip going on and Paul had to establish eldership through his young son in the faith whom he had personally discipled, Titus, and send him there with an authoritative document in the letter of Titus to the churches to help straighten all of this out. And this is the mess that Christianity is in today. Churches become something that is just upside down. It's become an absolute show and an absolute mess. The wrong priorities are right before us.

And so it's not a show, it's worship. Preaching is preaching the Word, it's not tickling your ears. And fellowship, true fellowship really happens as a result of what Christ is doing in your life. It's not just being a shallow friend. I mean, I can get along with someone who talks about, you know, fishing and sports and forward wrap trucks and that type of stuff. God, that is just so shallow. I was so proud of our church, by the way, on Super Bowl Sunday, it didn't even come up. Not one of our men brought up that it was Super Bowl Sunday last Super Bowl Sunday. Man, I'm so glad at the spiritual height that our men are at here at Beulah Baptist Church. They truly have Christ, the forefront of their mind, as Lord of their hearts and are truly working hard in these areas.

And so it's, how do you define success? First of all, it's glorifying God, right? Now it moves on to you growing in the faith. Listen, churches not to give you an endorphin kick. Church is not to entertain you and you go home and say, "Wow, that preacher, he made a good joke and made me feel good." Or churches not to show up and to be such that you can be left content in the same state that you're in. We worship God and the immensity of His holiness makes us to feel that we need to become more and more like Him as little Christians. And so we have a duty to become more like Him, to eliminate our sin, and to glorify Him, to continue to progress in our faith, to become more and more like Him, to make sure that our garments are spotless so that when we meet Him, we are as pure as possible. Listen, if you have sin in your life, you will be ashamed when you meet Him. But if you are free from sin and you are continuing in Christ and you are loving you're already striding in the right direction, it's going to be an amazing transition. You look forward to the judgment.

In Judges chapter 21 and verse 25 it says that everyone did what was right in their own eyes. And this seems to be a characteristic of shallow churchism today, to where cultural relativism dictates what the church actually does. It becomes the means of ministry. And so they would poll the community, see what the community desires, and the lost desires of a community now dictates what the church does. It's opposite of what the Bible says to do. We have a prescribed means to be able to follow here in the Bible. You have also theological laziness to where a low standard is acceptable by and large. And then as well, you're happy for everyone as long as they are so-called spiritual. If you talk with someone who is just happy for you because you are a spiritual person and you agonize in your heart because they did not believe that Jesus alone was Savior, the aura of today is that if you're spiritual then you're in a good spot. Then that's not true. That's laziness.

We're not dull of hearing here at Beulah Baptist Church. We are truly ones who not only attend and not only serve, not only worship, not only study here, but also our entire life, Sunday through Sunday, is all about the Lord Jesus Christ. We even work as unto the Lord. In Colossians chapter 3 verse 23 it says, "Whatever you do, do it heartily as unto the Lord." All of our work, our jobs, our loving of our spouses, our children, our homes, the way we maintain ourselves, everything is as unto the Lord.

Back to Hebrews in chapter 5 and verse 12, this interesting concept of solid food comes up. And point number four, if you're taking notes, is to train to win. Train to win. Too many Christians are losing the battle against Satan today because they have not trained to win. Who of you have been in the military? Who have you have been in, you know, law enforcement? Have you played sports? Did you practice to win? Or did you go out there and play around and go to war and lose? And how much more real is spiritual warfare? Right? I mean, when you lose as a Christian, you lose for eternity. And so now we have to get this concept inside of our heart and mind that we are training to win, to win souls.

And so train to win. How do you do that? Well, it's deep doctrines. It's advanced theological teachings. This is what's going to help you build a life upon the foundation of Christ. Read with me in verse 12, "For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles and the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk, milk and not solid food." In 1 Corinthians chapter 3 verses 1 through 12, Paul berated the Corinthians for engaging in immorality rather than eating the meat of the Word. And they were definitely immoral people and they needed to be berated. Now in Hebrews, they're not being berated, they're being encouraged. But the Corinthians were Corinthianizing. They were participating in sin. And Paul said to them, "I can't speak to you in meaty terms. I've got to speak to you in milky terms. Shallow milk as if you're still infants."

And he wished and wanted more for them. But here you see that this solid food. Now what's going to build a bodybuilder? Milk or meat? And what's going to build a life that is strong in the Lord? Milk of the Word or meat of the Word? It's pretty simple. In Ephesians chapter 6 verses 10 and 11, it says, "To be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God so that you will be able to stand against the schemes of the Devil." And when you're able to do that, then not only are you standing strong against the schemes of the Devil, but you are developing what is called perhaps healthy habits in your life. Let's continue to read in Hebrews chapter 5 and get down to these subjects of practice and training.

In Hebrews chapter 13 it says, "For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the Word of righteousness." For he's an infant. This word accustomed is akin to the word practice in verse 14, but verse 14 says, "But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice." Now, do you have healthy reading habits in your life to where you consume the Word of God regularly? This diet, not just of reading but of studying, study the Law of the Lord. You see, David in his Psalms clearly indicates that he did more than just read of it. He was one who knew the depths of the Lord. And the same thing for Timothy, young Timothy, his mother and his grandmother taught him the Word of God, the depths of the Word of God, and he was right for becoming a preacher. And Paul picked him up and taught him how to be a pastor and preacher and evangelist and a missionary. And through all of this practice, habitual, continual, developmental trainings, he became strong in the Lord. And so we need to train for wins.

Define a win. What's a win? Think about who you want to be in five years. Aim at this, train to win. Think about who you want your children to be in five or ten years. Aim at that, train to win. Training is winning. You don't win just because you show up to a football game or to win because you have practiced and trained. Training to win includes then reducing, you're not going to like this, reducing amusements. If you're going to train to win, you've got to reduce some of what the world would call me time, some of my time, you know, focused on the self and the flesh. The individualistic push of the carnal world is thick. But if you're going to train to win, you've got to reduce amusements and self-centeredness and increase reading, increase studying, increase your intake of the Word of God, train to win, increase these things.

Reading the Word then on purpose, finding and memorizing principles in the Bible, laziness in Christianity, wants somebody else to do everything for you. Jesus addressed this when he said a lazy generation looks for a sign, a miracle, you know, "You prove to me, God, that you exist." So in the pride of man they would say, "You give me a sign." Jesus said that that was laziness and evil. In Matthew chapter 12 verse 39, "An evil and an adulterous generation craves a sign." And then he goes on to say, "There's already been a sign, Jonah, what more do you need?" So laziness in Bible reading then produces what I would simply call theological jellyfish, spineless and brainless. We need to use our mind to love the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. And we need to have spiritual spines to be able to stand on convictions. In order to be able to do that, you've got to be finding these and when you find them in the Word of God and you write them down, here's another tip, conceptualize them. Find out a way to remember them. And if your brain is like mine, you like note cards, write it down and review them. If your mind is like mine, you like rhymes, then figure out a way to conceptualize the Scripture or just memorize the Scripture for itself.

When it comes to discipline and children, and we've told our children as we've grown up, this memorable phrase, you can learn God's lessons through your ears or through your tears. It's memorable and it helps our children to grow up with a desire to learn God's principles. So nevertheless, this takes a little bit of work, a little bit of time on your end to be able to invest in your own spiritual growth. And there's all kinds of miracle chapels, there's all kinds of healing ministries, there's all kinds of stuff like Paula White for $1,000, she'll give you a personal miracle. There's all kinds of this fake Christianity out there. And easy believism is not true belief. We need to know what the Word of God says for ourselves, like Ezra, chapter 7 and verse 10 says, "You study and then you put what you found into practice," because Christ is guiding you through His Word in your own personal stage. "And then you teach whom you have influence with, you continue to leave them." And so moving forward from this, we memorize verses around here all the time, and we have a new handout today when it comes to the verses that we're going to memorize.

Can you imagine if in just a few months we had everybody in our congregation obeying and not lusting, not complaining, not arguing, thinking about the things of Christ, forgiving one another, not worrying and not sinning, and training in righteousness. Just think about these verses alone. Ephesians 6:1 says, "Children obey your parents and the Lord, for this is right." And then 2 Timothy 2:22 says, "Flee from your youthful lust and pursue righteousness." And think about this, Philippians 2:14, everyone flunks this one, "Do all things without complaining and murmuring." And then in Colossians chapter 3 verse 2, it says, "Set your mind on things above and not on things of the earth." Colossians 3:13 says, "Just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you." And then as well, one that everyone struggles with as well, is worrying. Matthew 6:25 says, "I say to you, do not be worried about your life." And then all of us struggle with sin, so we need to memorize 1 John 1:9. If you confess your sins, He's faithful and just to forgive you of your sins and to cleanse you from all in righteousness. These are some basics of Christianity that help us to ingrain the right things and how to live, but you have to be engaged in training.

1 Timothy chapter 4 verse 7 says, "Train yourself for the purpose of godliness." And so you see the personal responsibility again is on us to have some type of personal training going on. I must say that I know of many in here who have a very good system of training. And the Ames family is visiting with us today, and I've met with Mike, and he has an entire system being developed right now. It's incredible. And the same thing with other men who study the Scriptures with their wives and children, and you who are engaged in 3D or even 5D Bible study personally yourselves and studying God's Word, it's great. It's almost already doing what point number five is. Point number five is be aiming at always advancing.

Be aiming at always advancing. And so remember, in Hebrews chapter 5 here, it's encouragement to move forward in the faith to advance. This is not a dig on where you are. In fact, it's by God's sovereign plan to be where you are today. So if you have not been saved, be saved. If you have been saved, then move forward in your learning of the Word of God. And then as you learn, trust the Lord in His sovereign plan for your life to continue to overcome sin in your life, to glorify Him better, and to be able to teach those same things which you have learned to others as well.

What's the goal? The goal is a mature man. Ephesians 4:13 says, "To the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ." A mature man. A mature man to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. And so that is a goal. And here's another reason why I believe that Paul is also the author of Hebrews. In Philippians chapter 3 verse 12, he says, "I have not yet reached perfection, but I press on." And in this letter of Hebrews, he encourages them to move on with him together, therefore leaving the elementary teachings about Christ and let us press on.

My point is this, if Paul in fact was the author of Hebrews, what a theological giant he was to have been able to know all of what he has penned in Hebrews. And yet at the same time, he says to those who are drifting that are elementary in their faith that are still infants, let us together press on in the faith. And so you may look around at others in the congregation today and say they seem to be farther beyond in their faith than I. Or you may look around and say others could use some spiritual growth. We are all growing together. It's a beauty of God's Word in His church. And so there's no judgment. There's only encouragement to continue in the Word. John 8:31 says to continue in the Word and so prove that you are disciples of mine. And so always be at advancing.

Two take-home truths and I conclude. What's your next step? In the form of a question, point number one for your take-home truth is what's your next step? And perhaps you like an outline, and I've given you an outline in next steps. And everyone who wants one of these books can have one for free on the way out today. And so I would say to you, your next steps, number one, to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and the death and the burial and the resurrection as a substitute for your sin. Be saved. And then point number two or chapter number two is to be Biblically baptized. Learn what that truly is. Just a Wednesday or two ago, our elder David Parker did a phenomenal teaching on baptism. I highly encourage you to listen to that, to print out that handout and to listen to that teaching and take your time, fill in the blanks and really absorb what baptism is before you get baptized.

And then chapter number three is to become a member of a Bible believing church. And so moving on from belief and baptism to belonging to a church, then you learn how to study the Bible for yourself, and then you go and make disciples. You pass on the Gospel like as if a track runner was passing a baton to the next one. So which step are you on in this process? So many of you may be on step number five where you're making disciples and passing the Gospel on. I would say name your disciple then. Prove your obedience. Prove to me that you are truly a Great Commission Christian. Whom are you leading in the next steps of Christ? But if you haven't believed, whatever step you're on, know wherever you are in your walk with Christ and take the next step in the right direction. This is kind of a manual to do that yourself or with a small group or with your family. Point number two then is to lead someone to their next step.

And if you are going to do that, mothers, I would encourage you to start with your children, husbands, I would encourage you to start with your wives and your children, and then kind of progress outward from there. And going through something that would be the basics of the faith like next steps is, helps you to develop a firm foundation in Christ for which you can build a life upon. So you've got to get the foundation right first. You've got to get Christ right first. You've got to get these things. And then once you're able to get these things right, then you need to pass on the basic elemental foundational things to the next generation who can also teach the next generation. And so this is the encouragement for moving from milk, milk to meat or solid food. And in doing this in verse 14, "But solid food is for the mature, and because of practice, these habits, these disciple making habits, their senses have been trained." This is important for today because their discernment of what is right and wrong is quick. They can see what's right and they can see what's wrong and they can make a life decision and not get sucked into a trap.

Satan's a schemer and he is a master of his trade and he knows how to get you trapped for a long time because of practice, because of discernment, because you've been trained in the Word, you can avoid these types of traps. In chapter 6, verse 1, "Therefore leaving the elementary teachings about the Christ and let us press on to maturity." That's our encouragement for today. Let's pray together. Lord, thank You for the opportunity to go verse by verse through Your Word and just simply say what the text has said and to challenge us then to obey it. And wherever we are in our spiritual journey, our walk with You, I pray that it has been made clear today to each person that they now know how, would know how to progress in their faith and to make disciples. I pray Lord that this would be extremely pleasing unto You and that each of us has been changed no matter where we are in our spiritual walk and maturity with You, that we would continue in Your Word. God, we pray that if anyone has not been saved, that they would place their faith and trust in You by confessing that You are Lord and Savior. This doesn't have to be verbal. It can simply be the attitude of their heart where they submit to You and they embrace the fact that You bow down on the cross for their sin and they believe that without believing in Your death that they would die and live forever in an eternity in Hell rather than in Heaven which is not Your will.

I pray Lord that You would save souls and continue to see that they be saved and baptized and become members of the church and to learn how to study the Bible and make disciples all in Your sweet timing. Let us walk with You. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.