Grace Church
04102022 Together for Solid Food
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Isaiah 53:5ESV
- Praise Him! Praise Him!
- Fairest Lord Jesus
- Hosanna
Hebrews 5:11–14ESV
Hebrews 5:11–14ESV
- Opening prayer, dedicationSymbol of Lent - PalmsMusic ministry106 Praise Him! Praise Him!88 Fairest Lord JesusHosannaWord of God - Hebrews 5:11-14Message: “Together for Solid Food”Palm Sunday is a special time in the life of the ChurchIt is more than s “Symbol of Lent”Palm Sunday is the beginning of Holy WeekI find it interesting that Holy Week begins with a day that centers around a misunderstandingYou may recall that last week I talked about the death of a friend of Jesus named LazarusOnce Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, many heard the storyJohn 12:9 reminds us that the chief priests cooked up a plan to kill Lazarus because his story was leading people to believe in JesusThat’s where we’ll pick up the story in John 12:12-13
John 12:12–13 ESV 12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”The people were so excited to have a party for “their king”They had in their mind that Jesus was going to be the conquerorThe one to physically overpower evil leadershipIn fact, they called out to Jesus “Hosanna!”We see the original meaning of the word we see as “hosanna” isDictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Greek (New Testament) (6057 ὡσαννά)Hosanna!, formally, Save us, please!; it was an exclamation of praise, implying rulershipThe scene was one of joyful pleading, if you willThey were excited to someone to believe inThey just were wrong about what kind of king Jesus would beI would argue this is because they were so immature in their faithThey lacked understandingThey had information, but they let their desires create a picture of the king instead of letting Jesus influence their desiresI would argue that we make this mistake in the culture todayToo many exalt or hold up human leaders as something they simply are NOTThey let they desires create a false impression of who the person really isThis is a key to Spiritual maturity, so we’ll put it up on the screen“Spiritual maturity comes when Jesus influences our desires instead of our desires influencing our view of Jesus”This topic of Spiritual maturity will be woven throughout upcoming servicesSometimes our prayers reflect that our spiritual maturity is lackingI say that as a guilty party, not to accuse anyone elseWhen we ask Jesus to “Take this problem from me, for instance”I know myself that I have not always considered if God may want me to use that problem to create a gain for the Kingdom, or even to benefit meI hope you came to or watched the Midweek services that Jim has ledHe talked about James 1:2-4James 1:2–4 ESV 2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.Instead of praying for trials to go away,shouldn’t we pray for God to open our minds that we may see how to grow in faith,become more steadfast and more godly?It is not easy to deal with trials, but they can produce great growthEven knowing that growth is a possible outcome, we struggleWhich is one reason we should surround ourselves with other BelieversThat they may help to hold us upThat they may keep watch as we rest when neededWe got to experience a great example of this just yesterdayWe have a cow named “Cinnamon” and she gave birth to a calf Saturday morning [Image]This calf did not seem to stand up on its own as soon as normalThere was one older calf who was literally bullying the new babyEven once the calf stood, the older calf was trying to mount and pushed the new calf downBecause the herd trusts me, I was able to go out and stand guard to keep the bully awayAnd one of the other cows started inserting herself to keep the bully backGiving the new calf and mom a chance to rest and get things back on track.The herd works together to make sure that all are as safe as possibleAs the babies get older, they need to stop eating from their mom’s milk and start eating grassIf they don’t make that changeIf they live by the rule of “No change for me”, like some peopleThat hurts both the Mom and the babyIn fact, the whole herd can be harmedIt is impossible for the Kingdom of God to grow as intended if people don’t grow and changeand that growth does not end until God calls us homeThat’s really what is being talked about in our core text today, Hebrews 5:11Hebrews 5:11 ESV 11 About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.If Believers get set in their ways, they will not hear what God tells them to do nextThis section is a warning against “apostasy”, or turning against GodBaker Encyclopedia of the Bible Apostasydeliberate renouncing of the faith by a once sincere believer rather than a state of ignorance or mistaken knowledge
This is a big deal and very dangerous for us BelieversWhen we have been fully exposed to the Gospel and DECIDE to listen to ourselves or the culture instead of GodEven worse, if we start leading others away from God we have a problemWe would be wise to learn from Jeremiah 26:13Jeremiah 26:13 ESV 13 Now therefore mend your ways and your deeds, and obey the voice of the Lord your God, and the Lord will relent of the disaster that he has pronounced against you.Each one of us is a sinner and we MUST turn from whatever our sinful ways are and turn back to GodWhen we have knowledge of God and His Word tells us to do or NOT do certain thingsFailing to obey, especially when we take others with us is apostacyWe see apostacy in the church when we try to justify actions that really aren’t rooted in Scripture, but in our own desire and practiceThen when we are asked to back up our position with scripture, we suddenly have a “hearing problem” as described in verse 11Often we hear, “oh but it’s too hard” or “God knows how hard it is”Yes, it is too hard to follow God.., unless you rely on the Holy SpiritYes, God knows it’s hard, but if we are in God, then it is possibleLook to 1 John 5:4 as a reminder1 John 5:4 ESV 4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.There is great victory in the empty tomb we are about to celebrate, so use the power of the empty tombGod is strong enough and God is ableTogether all we have to do is stay on the right team!There are two things mentioned in our core text today that we are not allowed to doWhat We Can’t Do1. Stay the same (already discussed)See Hebrews 5:12-13Hebrews 5:12–13 ESV 12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, 13 for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child.We must grow in our faithGrowing in faith requires learning and sharingBy definition that means we must be in community in order to do this wellSure we can study on our own, but we need godly counselAnd the purpose of study can’t be only personal knowledgeWe must gain knowledge so we can share with othersThe purpose must be to produce gain for the Kingdom of God, not your own satisfactionIf a calf continues to drink milk from their mom too longThe calf never develops as it oughtThe mother will not be as healthy as it should beThe herd suffersIf people are content with spiritual milkWhich means someone spoon feeds them Scripture piece by pieceTelling them what to think about each pieceAnd never forcing them to study on their own and learn what God wants them to learnWhat We Can’t Do1. Stay the same2. Be Content with Spiritual Milk AloneSurely God is not pleased with us if we are “unskilled in the word of righteousness” as verse 13 statesThere is a big difference between have the faith of a child and being a spiritual childIt is good for us to easily accept the love and sacrifice of Jesus as a child mightBut we cannot stay at that level (Luke 18:17)Luke 18:17 ESV 17 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”We start with that faith and heartWe must move on from that to building a true understanding of our faith that allows us to spread our faith othersAnd that is required of each of usI have a picture in my mind of what our spiritual family and life should beIt’s like a big Thanksgiving dinner event where the WHOLE family is presentYou have the “seasoned” grandparents and great-grandparents all the way to the youngest babiesEach have a special place and function in the gatheringThe elders help to inform the “youngers”The food that MUST be thereThe prayer that MUST be presentThe conversations that should NOT be allowedThey are, in fact, preparing the way for the younger generation to understand the meaning and value of the gatheringEven if a generation before them does much of the physical workFarther down the line you have the little kids who are bringing a combination of chaos and joy until it is their turn to start learningOne day the “littles” will be teaching their own childrenIt is TOGETHER that the family learns to experience a true Thanksgiving dinnerEvery phase of life appreciated for what it offers and the love that covers it allEven as some children are living on nothing but milkThe adults would never be allowed to stay at that stageNo, they must move up the chain and fulfil the new roleSo, in our spiritual journey each of you are called upon to move aheadTo encourage those still drinking spiritual milk to move on to solid food as Hebrews 5:14 describesHebrews 5:14 ESV 14 But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.May all we together bring to the table be goodAnd may we all train up a new generation of Believers whoWill recognize Jesus and know what kind of king He isThat they will be able to Discern or “Know” good compared to eviland are obedient to God’s WordThat together we will hear, “well done my good and faithful servant”AMENClosing Hymn/Invitation:Lord, I Need You (Short)Pastoral prayer/BenedictionInvite confirmands to wave palms down center as folks leave John 12:12–13ESV
James 1:2–4ESV
Hebrews 5:11ESV
Jeremiah 26:13ESV
1 John 5:4ESV
Hebrews 5:12–13ESV
Luke 18:17ESV
Hebrews 5:14ESV
- Lord I Need You