GREATER THAN (A STUDY IN THE BOOK OF HEBREWS) WEEK 12 - MILK, MEAT, & MOVING AHEAD

When people don’t mature like they should, we recognize that there is something wrong with that. What’s even worse is when people experience a real psychological phenomenon called Personality Regression.

Personality regression is a mental state in which one suddenly adopts an identical or similar personality, thought structure, mannerisms and behaviors to that of their past self from a younger age. During this state, the person will often believe that they are literally a child again and begin outwardly exhibiting behaviors which reflect this belief. These behaviors can include talking in a childlike manner, engaging in childish activities, and temporarily requiring another person to act as a caregiver or guardian.

Now…what could be unhealthy in a physical sense (because there is the truism that healthy things grow, right? And if you’re not growing - or if you’re regressing - that’s NOT healthy)... what could be called unhealthy in your physical life, I can argue that it’s just as unhealthy when you are regressing or not progressing in your spiritual life as well!

We now come to a section in the NT Book of Hebrews - this letter that we have been in since back in the Fall - where the Author (remember, we don’t know WHO wrote the letter, we just know it was written to Jewish converts to Christianity - religious people who were being tempted to go back to trying to earn their salvation by works of the OT Law, rather than on the sufficiency of Jesus as the one who didn’t abolish the Law, but fulfilled it by his perfect life and sacrifice on the cross) - this section is where the Author is bemoaning the spiritual maturity level of these people.

We can suppose that in the Author’s mind, if the Hebrew converts were well past the fundamentals of the faith, the “elementary truths,” he will call them, if they were more mature in their faith then they wouldn’t be tempted to regress!

Apparently the Author of Hebrews is concerned that these believers remain ALIVE in their faith - not dead and unproductive. DEFINITELY NOT regressing, but moving forward. Because if we aren’t, well, then, there is something wrong.