Hebrews 6:1-3 - Don't get bogged down, move on!

Concerned with the believers’ spiritual lethargy, the author now gave the remedy. He had diagnosed that they were suffering from sluggishness and spiritual stagnation, so he told them to press on toward maturity. The author knew that if they remained in their spiritual lethargy, they would be tempted to return to their old belief system. So he gave them two steps to attain maturity. Firstly, they must not dwell on the elementary teachings about Christ. If they continued to belabour the rudimentary stuff, they would never be able to progress beyond the basics. Secondly, they had to press on toward maturity. The idea is more than just being determined to progress. It demands that believers yield their lives to Christ and act upon the disciplines that could bring them forward. 

 

 

What should they not belabour on? Here we see six foundational truths in three pairs. The first pair comprises repentance from dead works and of faith toward God. The second pair is instruction about washings or baptisms and laying-on of hands. And the third pair is made up of the resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment. The first pair points God-ward; the second, man-ward; and the third points to the future.

Repentance and faith has to do with one’s relationship with God. Repentance refers to a radical change of attitude toward God and sin, and that would lead one to turning away from sin toward God. Here, we see that the object they must turn away from is “dead works.” By dead works, the author was probably referring to their dependence on their futile Levitical sacrifices. For an effective relationship with God, repentance alone is insufficient; it must be accompanied by faith toward God.

The second pair has to do with relation to the Church. In Judaism and Christianity, baptism is a symbol of spiritual cleansing and putting away of sin, and receiving a new life in the spirit. Notice that word is “baptisms,” it is in the plural. This could be referring both to John the Baptist’s baptism and the ceremonial washing under the Law. The author seems to be referring more to ceremonial cleansings. The laying of hand is symbolic of imparting a gift by the laying of hands and praying for another person. In the New Testament, the laying of hands has been used for imparting the gifts of the Holy Spirit on a person.

The third pair deals with doctrines pertaining to the last things. They are the eschatological issues adopted by the Church. It must be said that in Judaism, they also believe in these doctrines.

Verse 3 says, "And this we shall do, if God permits." This phrase could be seen in two ways. Firstly, the author could be saying, “I will continue to teach you these things if God permits it". Or it could also be taken to mean that one could go on to maturity only if God allows it so. However one sees it, the idea is that there is a need to depend on God for spiritual growth. He is the One, Who enables a believer to grow in grace.

Let’s hear the voice of our beloved Lord, beckoning us to come along with Him:

‘Arise, my darling, my beautiful one,
And come along.

¹¹ ‘For behold, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone.
¹² ‘The flowers have already appeared in the land;
The time has arrived for pruning the vines,
And the voice of the turtledove has been heard in our land.
¹³ ‘The fig tree has ripened its figs,
And the vines in blossom have given forth their fragrance.
Arise, my darling, my beautiful one,
And come along!’” (Songs 2:10b-13)