Part 1 of 9"Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this will we do, if God permit" (Heb 6:1-3).
We have here before us a vital truth! One as vital as this should not be casually overlooked, for herein lies God's key to perfection: a sure foundation! It may surprise some to realize that the perfection Jesus is after is that which will usher forth from His great and perfect book, the precious "mirror" which we are admonished to continually behold with unveiled face (2 Cor 3:18). Men who neglect to study to show themselves "approved unto God" will be the ones who readily hate this thought. Those who have clung tightly to spiritual experiences alone, while neglecting the Bible, too will scoff and scour at these principles, deeply wishing on the inside that their Biblical slothfulness will have no consequential effects.. but it's not too late! Friends, all the "ecstatic experiences" in the world will be but icing on the cake of this masterpiece God is building (Eph 2:19-22); they are never to replace maturity in the Word of God, as so many are prone to assume. The perfection God wants is to be founded and grounded in His Word, which is to be complimentary to our spiritual experiences, never instead of. You will then begin to realize the great measure of glory that God has instilled within His Word, which gushes out to us as we meditate upon His mysteries! It is outright ignorance that teaches the Bible is "dead and dry"! After all, the coming move of God in the earth will be manifested via a messenger who possess "a little open book" (Rev 10)! Who wouldn't want to be a part of that company? But the only man able to rightly "build the old waste places" and "raise up the foundations of many generations" is the man who has thoroughly laid a foundation in himself first: "[first] that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual" (1 Cor 15:46). We can never become a "repairer of the breach" if our own lives are riddled with un-repaired breaches. We can never become a "restorer of paths to dwell in" if we've been off our own path, and lost our own way (Isa 58:12)! Like begets like, flesh begets flesh, and spirit begets spirit.
This foundation, seen here in the Hebrew epistle, is but the beginning of our spiritual learning. It is to be built upon, line upon line, precept upon precept, line upon line, precept upon precept (Isa 28:9-10).. even as a natural house must have a floor before it can have a roof. How else can we expect to accurately launch out into the deep but by first treading the shallower waters, and growing from glory to glory? Oh we can try and launch out immediately, but our doctrine will be flawed and quite dangerous. Any house that is built haphazardly, and aside from the prescribed order, is a great danger to those living inside. The roof could cave in any minute; the floor just may sink! It is no different with the spiritual realm. This faulty man will be "ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth" (2 Tim 3:7). Indeed, "The foundation of God standeth sure" (2 Tim 2:19), but only if it is built according to the divine pattern. What is that pattern? Hebrews 6:1-3 gives us a glimpse - the Spirit has breathed these truths onto the pages of holy writ, and for good reason! Any great deviance from God's prescription is to risk damaging the whole spiritual edifice! "If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?" (Ps 11:3). This was Paul's counsel too: "Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe" (Phil 3:1).
In Hebrews 6, Paul had just rebuked the Hebrew Christians for their inability to receive from him (Heb 5:10-14). They had become "dull of hearing", or as the Amplified reads, "you have become dull in your spiritual hearing, and sluggish, even slothful in achieving spiritual insight". These believers possessed a lack of response to the Word of God; for them there was a "famine of hearing" (Amos 8:11). Like many today, these believers were at a place in their lives where they should have been considerably grown up spiritually, and able to teach others... but they were not (Jn 16:12). The reason for Paul's rebuke is because we cannot go on unto perfection without first allowing God to lay a foundation in us. Paul urges the Hebrews to grow passed this point; to move forward! Why? Because if we're not moving forward, we're actually falling backward (Heb 10:39).
God has asked us a direct question: "Whom shall He teach knowledge? Whom shall He make to understand?"
And God has also given us the direct answer: "Them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breast".
And thankfully, God has given us a method: "For the Word of the Lord was unto them... precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little..." (Isa 28:9-13).
"...knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth" (Prov 14:6). Do we want this testimony? Then begin building a foundation!
To be continued...
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