Hebrews 5:12 – For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. (KJV)
The writer of Hebrews, believed to be Apostle Paul by many, shares an instructive message in the fifth chapter of the book. The writer recognized that the believers he was writing to had been in Christ for a while – they were not new converts. This would mean there’s an expectation on Christians, particularly one that has been in Christ for a long time. The writer wasn’t necessarily expressing his expectation of them to be Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastor and Teachers but to have had the understanding of elementary doctrines of Christ and be able to communicate such to their neighbors, children or family members.
The five-fold ministry gifts have two responsibilities to the church. The first duty is prayer while the second is the ministry of the Word of God (Studying and teaching the Word of God). We see this in the early Church when Apostle Peter said “But we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). Our opening verse showed that these believers had been taught but haven’t grown. “Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing (Hebrews 5:11). It was obvious the problem wasn’t from the teachers but the students were “dull of hearing”. We have such people in our churches today; they refuse to take responsibility for their spiritual growth. They get offended easily and at almost everything in the church. They never want to be part of anything within their local church but are the first to point out what is wrong in the church; you may know them and hopefully, you are not one of them.
The Lord promised “And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding” (Jeremiah 3:15). The first duty of the believer is to learn the first principles of the oracles of God. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples before he assigned them another responsibility. It is time to take responsibility for your spiritual growth because many things are dependent on it. There are spiritual things you cannot access except by growth. Take the study of the Word of God seriously. Be a part of your local church and invest in material that will grow your spiritual life. Today is the best day to start.
PRAYER
Father in the name of Jesus Christ, I submit to the leadership of the Word of God over my life.
