Saturday, July 11, 2026

Opening Scripture

Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage – with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 2 Timothy 4:2-4

Opening Prayer

Gracious Heavenly Father, thank you for Your mercy and goodness to me. Forgive my lack of commitment and devotion in response to Your unfailing love. Help me to turn my eyes upon Jesus and look full in His wonderful face today, so the things of Earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace. Amen.

Daily Bible Reading

Hebrews 5:11-6:12

We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And God permitting, we will do so.

It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God. But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned.

Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are convinced of better things in your case – the things that have to do with salvation. God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

Reflection  

In today’s passage, the writer suddenly pauses his explanation on the supremacy of Jesus to issue another serious warning about the danger of apostasy. Much of what he has already said about “drifting away” through apathy and neglect is brought back into play here with added force.

The writer has already cautioned: “We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away … how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.”

Though by now, his listeners should be spiritually mature and teaching God’s truth to others, they are still spiritual infants who must be fed spiritual milk. Their lack of maturity is a tragedy for them as well as those they should be encouraging.

The writer has much more to say, but he questions his listeners’ ability to accept and understand it because “solid food is for the mature, who by constant use, have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.” They’re not there yet.

The problem is not a lack of information. They’ve heard the truth repeatedly. The problem is a lack of devotion and application. While the listeners have some “head knowledge,” they are sorely lacking in experiential “heart knowledge.”

As James says, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says!” (James 1:22). As a result of their immaturity – due to a lack of discipline and devotion – the listeners are still unable to distinguish good from evil.

In the context of our series on cultivating spiritual fruit, Peter offers this insight. “Make every effort to add to your faith goodness … knowledge … self-control … perseverance … godliness … kindness … and love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:5-8).

Clearly, the writer of Hebrews was concerned that his listeners were indeed ineffective and unproductive in their knowledge of the Lord. He pleads with them to “go on to maturity.”

Hebrews 6:4-6 offers a solemn warning about the tragic consequence of “ignoring such a great salvation” and failing to mature spiritually. These verses are one sentence in the Greek (as well as the NIV) and constitute a single thought.

This is where we draw on the full witness of Scripture to inform our insight. Sound biblical interpretation should view the Bible in its entirety, allowing the easier-to-understand texts to explain those that are difficult to understand.

The “security of the believer” is the Christian doctrine asserting that once a person is genuinely saved, their salvation is eternally guaranteed by God and cannot be lost. This position is supported by several passages.

Jesus said, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.” John 10:28-29

Paul declared, “Nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39

“Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance.” Ephesians 1:13-14

However, today’s passage indicates that a Christian can live in such a way that their salvation is of no benefit to them or anyone else. Paul offers this illustration.

“But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved – though only as one escaping through the flames” (1 Corinthians 3:10-15).

Paul also refers to those who have failed to “fight the good fight, holding on to faith and a good conscience” and “so have shipwrecked their faith” (1 Timothy 1:19).

How we choose to live each day has consequences both for us and others, for now and for eternity. “We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.”

Flourishing Habit

Flourishing Christians

There is an urgent need for followers of Jesus to actively pursue Christlikeness, sound theology, and a biblical worldview. We must continue to “devote ourselves to the apostle’s teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers.” It is the means for “growing up” and protection from “falling away.”

There is a profound lack of biblical knowledge in 21st-century America. While most Americans still identify as “Christian,” the majority have not cultivated a true biblical worldview based on Scripture, including most Christian pastors (only 37% according to Barna).

The German word “weltanschauung” refers to a comprehensive view of the universe. It is the “lens” through which a person makes sense of the world around them. For someone who has spent time thinking deeply about “life,” it would include philosophic, moral, and religious conclusions and convictions.

A person’s “weltanshauung” (worldview) should answer life’s biggest questions. Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where are we going? It also speaks to where a person looks for “truth.” What informs the process by which we make sense of our surroundings and circumstances?

In his latest American Worldview Inventory, George Barna reports that, while 51% of respondents claim a biblical worldview, further questioning reveals that only 6% actually possess a biblical worldview. It turns out there are serious inconsistencies between what they believe and what the Bible teaches.

In this survey, about half (46%) of the respondents say it is important (very, somewhat, or not too) for their religious faith to influence every dimension of their life. Among that group, a small majority claim to be effective at integrating their faith into the areas of family, religious life, and personal relationships. Less than a third of them integrate their faith into politics, business, entertainment, and news choices.

Barna concludes that most of us develop a worldview by default. He says worldview is more caught than taught in the U.S. “Our studies show that Americans are neither deep nor sophisticated thinkers. Most people seem more interested in living a life of comfort and convenience than one of logical consistency and wisdom. Our children will continue to suffer the consequences of following in the unfortunate footsteps of their parents and elders. People who are willing to fight for a more reasonable way of thinking and acting can make a difference, but it will be slow progress.”

Continued spiritual growth is urgent and essential for two reasons. First, it is the path to maturity and fullness in Christ. Second, it is protection against falling away from the faith. Becoming spiritually mature requires time, effort, and intentionality.

Choosing to set our hearts and minds on things above, rather than on earthly things (Colossians 3), not only allows us to experience the abundant life that Jesus offers (John 10:10), but it also provides a safeguard against “falling away.”

Are you maturing spiritually?

Are you effective and productive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ?

Remember: Nothing changes until something changes!