What is the author trying to get at here? Is he saying that if the believer does not exercise obedience in the early part of their life, their will be an inability to accept solid food?
And what constitutes solid food?
The author addresses an example of solid food earlier – the topic of Melchizedek. The topic is only found 2 or 3 times in the Old Testament. Yet he pulls so much teaching out of the short snippets of information available. The author wants to teach them a truth of Christ, but they can’t receive it. They just can’t receive it!
Consider this.
All the Word speaks of the Christ. The Word is Christ centric. The author exhibits this understanding by expanding an Old Testament personality into teaching that elevates the Christ. But they can’t receive it!
Let me ask my dear readers – Are you a believer in a hobby horse? That is, have you settled into a teaching, defended it to the death, and refused to consider alternate views?
Are you in, what I call a Christian ghetto, where you only hang with those who think, talk and act like you? Group think permeates your existence, and if someone comes along with an alternate viewpoint, the term heresy is ever so light on your lips?
I find it to be the height of pride to think that as a believer, the first teaching you received is the only good teaching available. I lived this type of boastful arrogance for years!
But I think the author also has something more difficult to consider.
Christian maturity is not simply dependent on the knowledge of the Bible, the doctrines that are clearly taught in the Scripture. Knowledge is the first step. Don’t make it the last step. And don’t let it puff you up!
1 Corinthians 8:1
Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that “all of us possess knowledge.” This “knowledge” puffs up, but love builds up.
As I said, the author is seeking for more out of these believers. He is looking for all of them to be teachers, skilled in the word of righteousness.
Wait – what?
That is impossible. Teachers need classrooms in the church, and each classroom fits 10 -100(?). How can all believers be teachers, if each teacher requires an audience?
Alas, I have fallen into the modern church concept of Christian service and life.
Waiting for Sunday to teach a group of believers was something I loved and every Sunday was a high for me. But the author is looking for believers that teach by way of life, not only by voice.
Back to the topic of Discernment
There are some in Christendom that claim to have powers of discernment and yet whose lives are moral ship wrecks, with open sin in their lives (covetousness, adultery, deceit…) The author cannot be describing what these are claiming, since this discernment is a result of constantly distinguishing good from evil.
Golly – they can’t do it for themselves. (They need to make their own bed!)
How is your training coming along? Training is difficult and causes weariness at times. Weakness and pain are associated with training, along with periods of failure and loss.
The author reminds us that our powers of discernment (judgement) grows as we are trained to identify good and evil. (If you don’t judge, there will come a day when you can’t).
Thanks for joining me in this study. Hope to visit with you in our next post as we look at the Greek term δικαιοκρισία.
Be Blessed.
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