It's Time To Grow Up

For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need that someone would teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection... For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame. (Hebrews 5:12–6:6)

One of Scripture's sharpest two-edged passages: God calls His children to grow up, and warns the tempted not to fall away.

Emerging Adulthood and the Cry to Grow Up

Over the last ten to fifteen years a new term has emerged to describe the generation now called Millennials—roughly those from 37 down to 17 years old. What was once pejoratively called "delayed adolescence" now gets a positive spin: "emerging adulthood." This describes a stage in which most pursue undergraduate and graduate studies, delay marriage (the average age for a man to marry is now nearly 28), are slow to leave home, and often don't earn a livable wage until their early thirties.

Researchers note that many in this group won't reach the five major stages of adulthood—finishing education, starting a career, getting married, starting a family, and buying a home—until their late thirties or forties. This has become a huge frustration to many adults, and more than a few baby boomer parents have seen their dream of an empty nest squashed. In their frustration the thought arises: Would you not just grow up?

If you can identify with that at all, you'll have no problem understanding the text before us.

God's Goal Is That His Children Grow Up

The first point is this: God's goal for His children is that they grow up. Every parent can relate. Hebrews 5:12 makes it plain—by this time you ought to be teachers, yet you still need milk, not solid food. Since that is God's goal, it is our goal as the leadership of this church.

This is the very commission Jesus gave: go into all the world and make disciples, teaching them to observe all that He commanded. According to Ephesians 4, the work of pastors, teachers, apostles, prophets, and evangelists is to equip the saints for the work of the ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ. That is why we study through the Scriptures verse by verse. As Paul told Timothy, the Word of God is inspired and useful for reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness, so that the man or woman of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Scripture often uses the metaphor of food. Peter writes, "As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby." We consume God's Word so that we grow. Growth is the goal of all our study.

Never Settle for Baby Huey Christianity

Sadly, growth does not always lead to maturity. Some never come to that place. This is not a new phenomenon. Two thousand years ago Paul confronted the Corinthians: "I could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able." Where there is envy, strife, and divisions, he said, you behave like mere men.

So our second point: we should never be satisfied with baby Huey Christianity. Prolonged Christian infantilism is unacceptable. Now, little babies are cute as can be—I have four of perhaps the cutest specimens on the planet. But a few years ago I happened to watch a documentary called My Crazy Obsession. One episode featured a thirty-something man who spent eight to ten hours a day dressed in baby clothes, sucking a pacifier, drinking from a bottle, and sleeping in a crib. I say it without cruelty—he clearly needs help, and the grace of God could help him wonderfully. But here's the point: what is cute in a toddler is disturbing in an adult.

What is the cure? Hebrews 5:13 says the one who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness. So we must develop skill in the Word—the Scripture that deals with what is right and wrong. Solid food belongs to those who are of full age, who by use have their senses exercised. We should be able to consume Scripture on our own, not needing it constantly chewed up for us.

The Measure of Maturity: Discernment and Obedience

Point three: the measure of maturity is discernment and obedience. I can discern right from wrong, and I can do what is right and refuse what is wrong. Maturity is evident in those who know what to do and do it.

Every parent quickly recognizes that children do not come pre-programmed in doing right. Mine certainly didn't, and I was not shocked—I believe wholeheartedly in original sin, and I have perfect examples of it in these cute little kids. They do have a conscience, a basic understanding of morality written on the heart, as C.S. Lewis describes in Mere Christianity. But that has to be built upon.

What a glorious thing when the kids reach the point where you actually see evidence the work is taking hold—especially when another adult tells you they saw it. John writes, "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in the truth." It's a little beacon on the horizon that says you can launch them into the world and they won't be complete hooligans. But it takes parental training, all for the purpose of growing them up. That growing-up process is what we call discipleship.

A Disciple Is a Faithful and Obedient Follower of Jesus

So Hebrews 6:1 says: therefore, leaving the discussion of elementary principles, let us go on to maturity—not laying again the foundation. The elementary principles he names are repentance from dead works, faith toward God, the doctrine of baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection from the dead, and eternal judgment. We are not to relay that foundation constantly.

Point four: a disciple is a faithful and obedient follower of Jesus. That is the target here—that if you trust Jesus, you grow into a faithful, obedient follower who can self-direct that following. Not that you no longer need pastors and teachers, but that you can also feed yourself, know right from wrong, and walk in it. That is why we don't spend every single week only on repentance, faith, baptism, the gifts of the Spirit, heaven and hell. If you feel you don't yet grasp those things well, that is one reason we offer our school of discipleship. But when we gather on Sunday, we want to move beyond the foundation to things that lead to maturity.

A Heavily Debated Warning

So we step into some heavy, sinewy things—Hebrews 6:4–6—among the most discussed and debated verses in the entire Bible. The author writes that it is impossible for those once enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance.

A month ago in Hebrews 3 and 4 we dealt with the same topic: apostasy, the abandonment of religious faith. Some conclude that when a person abandons trust in Jesus, they also abandon the associated benefit—salvation—and therefore lose it. Hence the long-running debate: can a Christian abandon their trust so as to lose the benefit associated with it?

This year, 2017, is the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, and much of this debate grew out of it. There are two primary camps named after two sixteenth-century reformers: the Calvinists, after the Frenchman John Calvin, who held that one cannot lose salvation, emphasizing the sovereignty of God; and the Arminians, after the Dutch theologian Jacobus Arminius, who taught from the responsibility of man that someone could become apostate and lose salvation. This passage is the beloved proof text of the Arminian, just as Romans 8 and following is the Calvinist's. And so they go back and forth.

Spurgeon's Honest Admission

When Calvinists come to Hebrews 3, 4, and 6, they typically argue that the person described as apostate was never really a Christian. But one of my favorite Calvinists, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the Prince of Preachers, takes an interesting view. He wrote: "If you read Dr. Gill, Dr. Owen, and almost all the eminent Calvinistic writers, they all assert that these persons are not Christians... Now it strikes me that they would not have said this if they had not had some doctrine to uphold. A child reading this passage would say that the persons intended must be Christians. If the Holy Spirit intended to describe Christians, I do not see that He could have used a more explicit term. How can a man be said to be enlightened, to taste of the heavenly gift, to be made partaker of the Holy Ghost, without being a child of God?... I humbly conceive that they allowed their judgments to be a little warped."

I wholeheartedly agree with Spurgeon: what is described here is a Christian. Consider the five characteristics in verses 4–6 of this person who is apostate: they were once enlightened; they tasted the heavenly gift, the sweetness of coming salvation; they became partakers of the Holy Spirit, who is in them; they tasted the good word of God; and they tasted the powers of the age to come. If that describes a non-Christian, then I might fear being one myself.

Let me clarify—I'm not saying I'm an Arminian. If you hear me teach Hebrews 6 you'll think I'm an Arminian; if you hear me teach Romans 8 you'll think I'm a Calvinist. Why? Because there is real tension in Scripture: the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man are both clearly taught, and we must wrestle with both. That is what we do at Cross Connection—we wrestle with the tension.

Infant Christian Mortality

Spurgeon, holding to God's sovereignty, said this describes a hypothetical apostasy that cannot really happen. But here I see point five: there is such a thing as infant Christian mortality. That is striking, and it should produce reverential fear.

My objection to dismissing it as merely hypothetical goes back to my message on March 26 in Hebrews 3, point one: warnings exist for a reason. The language here is strong—not that it is difficult to renew the apostate to repentance, but that it is impossible. We must take heed. We deal with challenging warnings as we deal with all Scripture: wisely, prayerfully, and carefully, so that we can apply them fully.

It is impossible, he says, for these formerly true Christians, if they fall away, to be renewed to repentance, because they put the Son of God to open shame. They spit upon the risen Lord, and in so doing forfeit the promise that only Jesus gives.

Falling Versus Falling Away

My sixth and final point: there is repentance for those that fall, but not for those that fall away. This clues us into something vital in the wording. There is a difference between falling and falling away.

To fall is to stumble into sin—and every Christian here, myself included, does that far more than we'd like to admit. By sundown today everyone in this room will stumble into sin (maybe not the ladies as much, but husbands, certainly). When we fall, we look to Christ and confess. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Thank God that when I come to His throne of grace, He doesn't put up a sign that says "Closed for business." What Christian hasn't rejoiced over the continual forgiving grace of Jesus?

But to fall away is something else: to leave the faith of Christ, to remove your trust in Him for forgiveness and salvation, and to place it in something else—yourself, another religion, another cause. This is precisely the issue the author addresses. The book of Hebrews is written to Christians who left the old covenant of Judaism to trust Jesus, and who are now being tempted to abandon that trust and return to the temple, the priesthood, and the sacrifices. The whole book insists: Jesus is preeminent, Jesus is supreme, Jesus is the only way. Do not fall away.

Deconversion in a Post-Christian Age

You may say you can't imagine anyone abandoning trust in Jesus. I hope you're right. But warnings exist for a reason, and there are real stories. On April 24 of this year, the Religious News Service ran an article titled "When belief dies, can it be resurrected?"—a promotional piece for the book Why I Left, Why I Stayed, co-authored by minister Tony Campolo and his son Bart. Tony writes about why he stayed in trusting Jesus; Bart, who at fifty told his parents on Thanksgiving Day, "I no longer trust in Jesus," writes about why he left. The book recounts his "deconversion."

In our supposedly post-Christian society, these are now literally called deconversion stories. People say, "Yes, I once went to church, served in the church, prayed to Jesus—but I no longer think I need to." Bart Campolo is now a humanist chaplain. Christianity Today writes about these stories frequently.

The Calvinist among us will say such people were never really Christians, citing 1 John 2: "they went out from us, because they were not of us." Maybe. Or maybe they were once enlightened, had tasted the heavenly gift, were partakers of the Holy Spirit—and left to trust in something else.

Not Fear, but Watchfulness

Someone may object that these warnings make Christians cower perpetually in fear of losing their salvation. Didn't Hebrews say that Jesus through His death destroyed the one who had the power of death, the devil, and freed us from that fear? Why bring it back? But I do not think these cautions exist to make us cower daily. Remember the difference between stumbling into sin and falling away.

Consider an illustration. I have four small kids, and we live in San Diego County where rattlesnakes are a real problem this time of year—my neighbors keep posting photos. I tell my kids, "Watch out when you go into the brush; there might be rattlesnakes." Now, my kids don't sit in the living room cowering in fear that a rattlesnake will come get them. They ride their bikes in the cul-de-sac without panic. But when they venture near that brush, my warning rises in their hearts—and they even say back to me, "Dad, watch out for the rattlesnakes."

So it is with this caution. I'm not afraid as I walk with Jesus that He will cast me aside for my many sins and failures—and they are truly many. But if there ever begins to arise in me, as Hebrews says, "an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God," then the words of Peter come to mind: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." The warning is for the one who begins to depart. There's a snake in the brush—walk circumspectly, walk worthy of your calling, and do not be tempted to leave the faith. As Hebrews 10 says, if we sin willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there remains no other sacrifice for sins. He is the only way.

Why Renewal Becomes Impossible

Why is it impossible to renew the apostate to repentance? Who will not repent except the person who thinks he no longer needs to? My good friend David Guzik puts it well: if someone falls away, we must understand why they cannot repent—it is because they don't want to, not because God prohibits it.

Consider Bart Ehrman, professor of New Testament and history at Chapel Hill in North Carolina. He was once an evangelical Christian who trusted Jesus; today he teaches that he isn't even sure Jesus existed as a historical figure. He certainly seems to have been once enlightened, having tasted the good word of God, yet he has walked away entirely. If he doesn't believe Jesus even lived, he would never feel compelled to repent and turn to Him. And so it is impossible.

Repent and Trust in Christ Alone

Having chewed on this heavy steak, how do we move forward? Under the first words of Jesus's ministry—the same first words John the Baptist preached and the apostles preached on Pentecost—"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

So I say to you: repent. Turn to Christ. There is only one place for salvation; there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. I firmly believe in the sovereignty of God, and by His sovereign grace He has brought you here today to hear His word—turn to Him, put your trust in Him. Hopefully you already have. If not, there is salvation in no other. That was exactly the message the author of Hebrews gave his friends from Judaism who were tempted to turn back: do not turn back; put your faith in Christ, for He is the only way.

Closing Prayer

Father, we come before You today and ask that You would speak to our hearts, fill us with Your word, and help us to solidly trust in You, Jesus, not turning to the left hand or the right, but trusting only in You, because there is salvation in You alone. Even though it has become politically incorrect in our culture to say the way is narrow and the gate is narrow, encourage and strengthen us to speak this truth clearly and boldly. Help us not to deviate from it, and help us to take heed to the cautions and warnings of Scripture, even when they are heavy.

It may be that some here have never put their trust in Jesus. I call to you, just as the Scriptures call you—repent, trust in Him, for He alone is the way. If that is you, pray with me now: Dear Jesus, I recognize my need for You. I cannot live perfectly; I have fallen short of Your perfect standard. Would You come into my life, forgive me of my sin, and help me to follow You, by faith, in Jesus' name.

God, we thank You for Your salvation and Your good grace. Help us to walk boldly in it, not just today but for the rest of our lives. Now may the God of peace, who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.