Laziness

I am always amazed at how true the Bible is. Now, as a Christian, I believe it is true because I have faith in the God who wrote it. But, even without that faith, I think so much of the Bible is obviously true if we simply consider it in terms of life around us. Take, for instance, laziness. I was reading through Hebrews 6:1-3 this morning. Verse 1 says: "Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God . . . ." The verses go on to list other "elementary teachings." Really, what this verse is saying is "stop being lazy." Why does it say to stop being lazy? Because you can't grow if you're sitting still. Is this true everywhere in life? Yes! You can't build a house if you're always focused on pouring and re-pouring the foundation. The apostles could not follow Jesus without first leaving behind what they were doing. We are to leave the elementary teaching about Christ. Notice it doesn't say "leave behind" -- just leave, as in move forward from something. These truths are excellent, essential, foundational - but we can't live our lives simply sitting on them. God is not a "good enough" God! He always wants us moving forward. The next part of the verse says to "press on to maturity." This is not to assume that we will ever reach maturity. But, as Barnes says, "No man accomplishes much who does not aim high." Think about it - if you find something sitting completely still anywhere in this whole universe, you have found something dead! Every action of life is characterized by movement, from our cellular level up to our lungs moving up and down when we breath. The same is true of your spiritual life - if it is still, if it isn't moving, you are dead. So, if you have claimed to believe in the truths about God, get moving! Don't just sit there! Not only is mediocrity not a goal Christ supports - it is dangerous to our souls.