Hebrews 6:1-2 Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and faith in God, 2 instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.
There are some pieces of knowledge that are essential to our spiritual growth. Without them, we stay immature as Christ-followers. But we are called to grow up and become mature in our faith.
But there are a group of believers that seem to want to stay immature. Or perhaps, they don’t know they are supposed to grow, with the end of the growth happening when we are remade into His image. They old must go, and the new must come. And the unholy must be replaced with holy.
The author of our text is challenging his readers to grow up. We must have teaching that goes beyond the basics. Repentance is good, but it is only the beginning. We must turn away from sin and toward God, but we must continue moving in that new direction once the turn has been accomplished through the power of the Holy Spirit.
We must turn from sin and then trust in God. It is not enough to turn. We must begin a new life of trusting in God instead of ourselves or in the many other things that we used to trust. We change the object of our trust from other things to the Living God.
Our text lists several things that he identified as some of these next step teaching subjects. They answer questions like “What does faith in action look like in the life of a believer?” How do we get cleansed from the old sinful life? How do we support each other in prayer when we are struggling. What happens after we die? What does our eternal life look like?
But in my experience, there are many of these topics that are rarely taught these days. Many churches just want their congregants to “feel good” about themselves. They are more of a cheerleading rally than a training ground for spiritual growth and maturity.
These things are the basics of Christianity. But there is more. And the “more” forces us to face ourselves in an even more open manner, being willing to pruned and shaped by the LORD.
I have to admit that the first few times I read through this passage, I asked myself, “Why don’t you teach us these basic things? We need it!” Of course, I was new in the faith and was still coming to grips with these basic teachings.
But I have matured in my faith. I still hold to the foundation of these teachings, but I have grown. The LORD is still refining me as I submit to His Word, as I am in fellowship with my brothers and sisters in Christ, and as I grow in prayer. I haven’t left the basics for something more advanced, but have added deeper and more challenging content to my walk.
Now the challenge for me is putting what I know into action. Christianity is not about acquiring knowledge. It is about living a holy life, a life in obedience to the voice and working of the Holy Spirit in us.
The Arnold Journey 