Today on Bold Steps weekend, Mark Jobe asks if you're eager to grow spiritually.

Today on Bold Steps weekend, Mark Jobe asks if you're eager to grow spiritually.

The apostle Paul is writing to these people and he's saying, you're not learning and growing because you're not motivated to learn and grow anymore. You've lost your desire to grow and learn and go to the next level. You're not hungry anymore to do that. So therefore, because you're not hungry, you're not motivated. You're not learning.

The apostle Paul is writing to these people and he's saying, you're not learning and growing because you're not motivated to learn and grow anymore. You've lost your desire to grow and learn and go to the next level. You're not hungry anymore to do that. So therefore, because you're not hungry, you're not motivated. You're not learning.

Welcome to Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jobe. Mark is president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. And I'm Wayne Shepherd. Do you remember a time when you were all in and God was doing some amazing things in your life, but then things just stopped? Well, today, Mark, you're going to tell us how we can start this process of hope and change all over again.

Welcome to Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jobe. Mark is president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. And I'm Wayne Shepherd. Do you remember a time when you were all in and God was doing some amazing things in your life, but then things just stopped? Well, today, Mark, you're going to tell us how we can start this process of hope and change all over again.

You know, Wayne, there's times in our life where we really grow. We're like sponges, absorbing everything that God wants to teach us. And then, if we're not careful, we can go into those seasons where we just stagnate.

You know, Wayne, there's times in our life where we really grow. We're like sponges, absorbing everything that God wants to teach us. And then, if we're not careful, we can go into those seasons where we just stagnate.

Lose our first love, so to speak. Right.

Lose our first love, so to speak. Right.

Yeah. And that desire to learn, to grow, to draw closer. And this passage is about that, directed to a group of people that had become, well, stagnant and slow to grow. And the writer of the Hebrews is motivating. It's time to get out of your growth slump and get back into growing.

Yeah. And that desire to learn, to grow, to draw closer. And this passage is about that, directed to a group of people that had become, well, stagnant and slow to grow. And the writer of the Hebrews is motivating. It's time to get out of your growth slump and get back into growing.

Well, let's see what God has for us today as we open His Word in Hebrews chapter five. This message is titled Growth and Change.

Well, let's see what God has for us today as we open His Word in Hebrews chapter five. This message is titled Growth and Change.

The writer of the Hebrews in Hebrews chapter five verse 11 says, we have much to say about this, but it's hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though, by this time you ought to be teachers. You need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's Word all over again. You need milk, not solid food. Anyone who lives on milk being still an infant is not acquainted with the teachings about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good and evil. I've had an opportunity to speak at a lot of churches and minister for a long time, over two decades, and one of the observations I've made is that oftentimes people start out in their Christian life fast. They have a conversion experience in which somehow they they come to an altar, they pray with a person, but they bow their knee and they say, Jesus, you will be Lord of my life. And they give themselves over to Christ. And then they get up with excitement and enthusiasm and begin to try to change their life and change their family members and neighbors. And they have this zeal about them of a new believer. I want to tell everybody, invite people to church and learn as many verses as I can and hungry for God because they're just starting out and it's sort of this fast out of the chute run. But I've also noticed over the years that oftentimes people slow down and it's normal. You need to slow down. Sometimes that energy and enthusiasm of the beginning gives way to more maturity. But I've also noticed that oftentimes in our spiritual progress, that we slow down to the point that many times we stop growing, that people come to the point. Sometimes they've been believers for ten years, but it doesn't mean they've grown for ten years. They may have grown for the first five years and then stopped growing after the fifth years, and now they're just kind of at the same place they were five years ago. They stopped growing and they get stuck. They're not learning. They're not stretching. They're not growing in character. They're not using their spiritual gifts anymore. They're just kind of stuck in a place. They haven't gone back to the world. They haven't backslidden, but they have. They're not making progress. They're not changing. They're the same as they were several years back. And the writer of the Hebrews is, is challenging some people that were in that condition. And I'm going to give you this morning four characteristics of people that grow. It's my desire that we as a church, as a body, as a people, as a community of faith, that not just the new believers grow, but those believers that have been believers five years, seven years, ten years, 20 years, 15 years. I believe that God wants us all to be growing. Every single one of us needs to be growing in our knowledge and our character and our gifting. We need to be going to the next level. It is not God's desire that anybody should be stagnant in this place. So this morning, I want to challenge you to growth. Challenge you to go to the next level. Challenge you not to get stuck. And if you're not going to get stuck. Here's four characteristics that need to be a part of your life. Are you ready? Number one, if you're taking notes, write this down. People that continue to grow. The first thing that's evidence in their life is that they learn quickly because they're eager to grow. A person can change without growing, but you cannot grow without changing. And change is difficult. But what I've discovered is that people that grow are eager to grow. They want to grow. They're hungry. It says, the writer of the Hebrews says, we have much to say about this, but it's hard to explain because you're slow to learn. Now that that phrase slow to learn in the Greek literally is dull of hearing, we have a lot to say to you. He's saying, but we can't say it all because you're dull of hearing. You're slow to learn, is what the NIV says. Um, it doesn't mean that their IQ was low. It doesn't mean that they just kind of like, hey, what are you saying? We can't understand what you're saying. No, no, it's not about their IQ. It's not about their ability to comprehend. It's about their hearing had become dull. Not not their physical hearing. They weren't wearing hearing aids. I mean, they could hear, okay, but it was their spiritual ears had become dull. You know, when someone's hearing is dull, you only catch half of the things that are said because you can't really hear it. Well. Now, how does your spiritual ears become dull? Your spiritual ears become dull when you stop listening because you're not that interested in what is being said. You see, we typically listen to the things that we are motivated to listen to. Someone once said that that motivation is the spark that lights the fire of knowledge and fuels the engine of accomplishment. When we lack motivation, we stop learning. How do I learn something new? Only when I'm motivated to learn something new, I stop learning when I cease to be motivated. The Apostle Paul is writing to these people and he's saying, you're not learning and growing because you're not motivated to learn and grow anymore. You've lost your hunger. You've lost your eagerness. You've lost your desire to grow and learn and go to the next level. You're not hungry anymore to do that. So therefore, because you're not hungry, you're not motivated. You're not learning. Let me explain it this way. When I was in high school, I had algebra, and I remember arguing with my mom saying, I'm never going to use it. I mean, all these fancy formulas. I mean, what practical use does it have? I mean, when am I ever going to use algebra in life? So therefore, if I'm not going to use it, why should I learn it if I'm not going to get into if I'm not going to become an accountant, which I'm not going to become, then why do I have to learn algebra? Because I don't I'm not going to use it. I'm not going to practice it. So why do I need to learn it? So therefore I became a demotivated learner because I didn't see any practical use for what I was learning. When you're not motivated to learn something because there's no practical use, then typically you don't learn it. Let me give you another scenario about motivation. If this morning I were to say I need ten volunteers and ten people to raise their hands. And I say, okay, I'm going to give you a lesson this morning. And we were to jump into the church van, and we were to drive down to O'Hare airport. And I would say, we have an airplane waiting for you at O'Hare airport, and you're going to learn about skydiving today. And so we were to load those ten people into that airplane, and we were to put parachutes on their back, and we were to set out and get several thousand feet up into the air. And we were to open the door of the airplane. And as that wind is brushing in, I were to say, hey, the instructor is going to give you a few little tips on skydiving. I can guarantee that as that instructor was talking about skydiving, every single person would be hanging on to every last word he said. And at this quarters, at that one. What if it doesn't work? And how far do I have to be before I pull it? And what if it doesn't happen? And do people really die? And how many die? And what if the wind blows this way? You would be listening to everything he says. You'd be attentive, taking notes. Say that again. Asking questions. Why? Because you're a highly motivated learner. Why are you highly motivated? You're highly motivated. Because what is being taught you're going to put into practice right away. So therefore, because you're going to put it into practice right away, you're highly motivated to learn what is being taught. Are you tracking with me? I remember when my daughter, uh, a couple of years ago, she was young and I was she was asking a little bit about driving, and I was saying, see, honey, here's when you put in the gear and this is a gas pedal and brake pedal. And she, she, she wasn't that interested. And she said, oh, that looks easy. I think I could do it. Several months ago, she got her driver's permit. And so I decided that her first drive in the car, we would do it in an empty parking lot. That's smart. Empty parking lot behind a theater. I said, okay, honey, get in the driver's seat. She sat in the driver's seat. She said, okay, the pedals, which is the gas, which is the brake, okay. Gas brake. Here's how you put it into gear. She was asking questions. She was motivated. She gave me a few head lashes while she first started out, but I was instructing her and coaching her. Okay, dad. Now how? Where do I go? Okay. Dad, dad, dad! Tell me. And I'm instructing her. Coaching her? Turn right here a little harder, honey. Watch it. There's a car coming. Watch it! A car, a car, please, honey. Slow down. I'm giving her instruction. Very motivated to listen to me because she's putting into practice immediately what I'm teaching her. Then she got a little confident. After ten minutes of driving, decided to take a wide turn. It was when there was snow around the embankment and literally I thought she was going to turn our van upside down because we went onto an embankment like this. When we plopped down, my heart was up, up, up. She was highly motivated because she was immediately putting into practice what she was learning. Track with me here. These people had become dull of hearing because they were not putting into practice immediately what they were hearing. It had become theory to them, not life to them.

The writer of the Hebrews in Hebrews chapter five verse 11 says, we have much to say about this, but it's hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though, by this time you ought to be teachers. You need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's Word all over again. You need milk, not solid food. Anyone who lives on milk being still an infant is not acquainted with the teachings about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good and evil. I've had an opportunity to speak at a lot of churches and minister for a long time, over two decades, and one of the observations I've made is that oftentimes people start out in their Christian life fast. They have a conversion experience in which somehow they they come to an altar, they pray with a person, but they bow their knee and they say, Jesus, you will be Lord of my life. And they give themselves over to Christ. And then they get up with excitement and enthusiasm and begin to try to change their life and change their family members and neighbors. And they have this zeal about them of a new believer. I want to tell everybody, invite people to church and learn as many verses as I can and hungry for God because they're just starting out and it's sort of this fast out of the chute run. But I've also noticed over the years that oftentimes people slow down and it's normal. You need to slow down. Sometimes that energy and enthusiasm of the beginning gives way to more maturity. But I've also noticed that oftentimes in our spiritual progress, that we slow down to the point that many times we stop growing, that people come to the point. Sometimes they've been believers for ten years, but it doesn't mean they've grown for ten years. They may have grown for the first five years and then stopped growing after the fifth years, and now they're just kind of at the same place they were five years ago. They stopped growing and they get stuck. They're not learning. They're not stretching. They're not growing in character. They're not using their spiritual gifts anymore. They're just kind of stuck in a place. They haven't gone back to the world. They haven't backslidden, but they have. They're not making progress. They're not changing. They're the same as they were several years back. And the writer of the Hebrews is, is challenging some people that were in that condition. And I'm going to give you this morning four characteristics of people that grow. It's my desire that we as a church, as a body, as a people, as a community of faith, that not just the new believers grow, but those believers that have been believers five years, seven years, ten years, 20 years, 15 years. I believe that God wants us all to be growing. Every single one of us needs to be growing in our knowledge and our character and our gifting. We need to be going to the next level. It is not God's desire that anybody should be stagnant in this place. So this morning, I want to challenge you to growth. Challenge you to go to the next level. Challenge you not to get stuck. And if you're not going to get stuck. Here's four characteristics that need to be a part of your life. Are you ready? Number one, if you're taking notes, write this down. People that continue to grow. The first thing that's evidence in their life is that they learn quickly because they're eager to grow. A person can change without growing, but you cannot grow without changing. And change is difficult. But what I've discovered is that people that grow are eager to grow. They want to grow. They're hungry. It says, the writer of the Hebrews says, we have much to say about this, but it's hard to explain because you're slow to learn. Now that that phrase slow to learn in the Greek literally is dull of hearing, we have a lot to say to you. He's saying, but we can't say it all because you're dull of hearing. You're slow to learn, is what the NIV says. Um, it doesn't mean that their IQ was low. It doesn't mean that they just kind of like, hey, what are you saying? We can't understand what you're saying. No, no, it's not about their IQ. It's not about their ability to comprehend. It's about their hearing had become dull. Not not their physical hearing. They weren't wearing hearing aids. I mean, they could hear, okay, but it was their spiritual ears had become dull. You know, when someone's hearing is dull, you only catch half of the things that are said because you can't really hear it. Well. Now, how does your spiritual ears become dull? Your spiritual ears become dull when you stop listening because you're not that interested in what is being said. You see, we typically listen to the things that we are motivated to listen to. Someone once said that that motivation is the spark that lights the fire of knowledge and fuels the engine of accomplishment. When we lack motivation, we stop learning. How do I learn something new? Only when I'm motivated to learn something new, I stop learning when I cease to be motivated. The Apostle Paul is writing to these people and he's saying, you're not learning and growing because you're not motivated to learn and grow anymore. You've lost your hunger. You've lost your eagerness. You've lost your desire to grow and learn and go to the next level. You're not hungry anymore to do that. So therefore, because you're not hungry, you're not motivated. You're not learning. Let me explain it this way. When I was in high school, I had algebra, and I remember arguing with my mom saying, I'm never going to use it. I mean, all these fancy formulas. I mean, what practical use does it have? I mean, when am I ever going to use algebra in life? So therefore, if I'm not going to use it, why should I learn it if I'm not going to get into if I'm not going to become an accountant, which I'm not going to become, then why do I have to learn algebra? Because I don't I'm not going to use it. I'm not going to practice it. So why do I need to learn it? So therefore I became a demotivated learner because I didn't see any practical use for what I was learning. When you're not motivated to learn something because there's no practical use, then typically you don't learn it. Let me give you another scenario about motivation. If this morning I were to say I need ten volunteers and ten people to raise their hands. And I say, okay, I'm going to give you a lesson this morning. And we were to jump into the church van, and we were to drive down to O'Hare airport. And I would say, we have an airplane waiting for you at O'Hare airport, and you're going to learn about skydiving today. And so we were to load those ten people into that airplane, and we were to put parachutes on their back, and we were to set out and get several thousand feet up into the air. And we were to open the door of the airplane. And as that wind is brushing in, I were to say, hey, the instructor is going to give you a few little tips on skydiving. I can guarantee that as that instructor was talking about skydiving, every single person would be hanging on to every last word he said. And at this quarters, at that one. What if it doesn't work? And how far do I have to be before I pull it? And what if it doesn't happen? And do people really die? And how many die? And what if the wind blows this way? You would be listening to everything he says. You'd be attentive, taking notes. Say that again. Asking questions. Why? Because you're a highly motivated learner. Why are you highly motivated? You're highly motivated. Because what is being taught you're going to put into practice right away. So therefore, because you're going to put it into practice right away, you're highly motivated to learn what is being taught. Are you tracking with me? I remember when my daughter, uh, a couple of years ago, she was young and I was she was asking a little bit about driving, and I was saying, see, honey, here's when you put in the gear and this is a gas pedal and brake pedal. And she, she, she wasn't that interested. And she said, oh, that looks easy. I think I could do it. Several months ago, she got her driver's permit. And so I decided that her first drive in the car, we would do it in an empty parking lot. That's smart. Empty parking lot behind a theater. I said, okay, honey, get in the driver's seat. She sat in the driver's seat. She said, okay, the pedals, which is the gas, which is the brake, okay. Gas brake. Here's how you put it into gear. She was asking questions. She was motivated. She gave me a few head lashes while she first started out, but I was instructing her and coaching her. Okay, dad. Now how? Where do I go? Okay. Dad, dad, dad! Tell me. And I'm instructing her. Coaching her? Turn right here a little harder, honey. Watch it. There's a car coming. Watch it! A car, a car, please, honey. Slow down. I'm giving her instruction. Very motivated to listen to me because she's putting into practice immediately what I'm teaching her. Then she got a little confident. After ten minutes of driving, decided to take a wide turn. It was when there was snow around the embankment and literally I thought she was going to turn our van upside down because we went onto an embankment like this. When we plopped down, my heart was up, up, up. She was highly motivated because she was immediately putting into practice what she was learning. Track with me here. These people had become dull of hearing because they were not putting into practice immediately what they were hearing. It had become theory to them, not life to them.

You're listening to Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jobe. And before we continue with the second half of today's message, I'd like to share an exciting opportunity with you. If you've been inspired by Mark's passionate teaching, I want to invite you to become part of our growing Bold Steps community. One of our most popular free resources is The Bold Step Weekly. It's a thoughtful email devotional that arrives in your inbox every Monday morning, and hundreds of listeners have already joined this encouraging weekly journey. And we'd love to have you join, too. Signing up is simple just visit Bold steps. Org and look for the Bold Step weekly tab. There's no cost or obligation. It's our gift to help you take your next bold steps in your faith journey. And while you're at the website, you'll also find additional resources to support your spiritual growth. Now, let's return to the second half of today's message. Mark Job titled it Growth and Change.

You're listening to Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jobe. And before we continue with the second half of today's message, I'd like to share an exciting opportunity with you. If you've been inspired by Mark's passionate teaching, I want to invite you to become part of our growing Bold Steps community. One of our most popular free resources is The Bold Step Weekly. It's a thoughtful email devotional that arrives in your inbox every Monday morning, and hundreds of listeners have already joined this encouraging weekly journey. And we'd love to have you join, too. Signing up is simple just visit Bold steps. Org and look for the Bold Step weekly tab. There's no cost or obligation. It's our gift to help you take your next bold steps in your faith journey. And while you're at the website, you'll also find additional resources to support your spiritual growth. Now, let's return to the second half of today's message. Mark Job titled it Growth and Change.

Oh, I wish you could hear me this morning because this is huge. You see, if you're not putting into practice what's being taught, you lose your motivation to learn. All it becomes is theories and principles that had no direct relevance to your life. But if every time you hear the Word of God you're saying, I want to apply it, I want to learn. I want to take that to my marriage, to my job, to my children, to my life. I want to become more like Jesus. I don't want to stagnate. I want to grow. I want to become different than what happens is that whatever is taught, you're eager to learn because you're applying it to your life immediately, and it has direct relevance to where you're at because you're applying the word. You're not just a hearer of the word, you're a doer of the word. And so therefore you are hungry and eager and desirous to learn because you're putting it into practice. When someone doesn't put into practice the word, you start feeling okay. Here's another message. I hope it's short. I hope it's not hot. I hope the chairs aren't because you're not putting it into practice. And so people that learn. People that grow, they learn quickly because they're eager to grow. They're hungry to grow. Have a desire to grow. Secondly, write this down. People that learn and grow are people that build on the foundational truths and begin to teach others. Notice what he says next. He says. In fact, though, by this time you ought to be teachers. You need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's Word all over again. You need milk, not solid food. The writer of the Hebrews is saying, you've been Christians long enough at this time that you should know the basics of Christianity. In fact, you should be teaching others the basics of Christianity by this time. But what has happened? Although you should be teachers by this time, not only are you not teachers, but the basics that you should be teaching, you don't even remember the basics because they've grown fuzzy in your own life. So therefore, even though you should be teachers by this time, you need someone to teach you the elementary basic foundational truths all over again because you started to forget them. You say, well, how does that happen? Well. If you don't use it, you lose it. If you don't use the basic knowledge that you have, you begin to lose it. It becomes it becomes rusty to you. When I was 16 years old, I wanted to work somewhere to make some money. I had a friend that had a connection in, in in France, in a town in France. I lived in northern Spain. And France wasn't all that far from us. And so he got me a job as a dishwasher and a room cleaning person. And so my brother and I and someone else, we went up to this hotel in southern France, and I washed dishes and learned how to scrub these big pots and learn how to clean rooms. And we worked in room service and dishwashing at a hotel in northern France for, for for three, two and a half months to three months. And then we slept in the basement with all the other people that were down there. And then we worked hard, but we were in France, so we we were submerged in the French culture, the French language. The next summer I went there again to make money. It was pretty good money. I worked in southern France and since I was in France there enough time, I actually learned to speak some French and I could understand pretty much most of what was being said to me, and I could speak enough to be dangerous. And so after I got out of there, I felt like I in fact, I picked up a a French New Testament and I would read my Bible in French and, and je parle and petit des Francais, mais pas beaucoup. Mais je travaille en France do it. Yeah. So I thought, you know, I know French pretty good. I mean, I can understand. And so this a few weeks ago we were in northern Spain and I decided, hey, I'm going to take my kids to show them where I worked, uh, get a little incentive in their bones, show them where I worked for the summer. So we drove up to 2.5 hours away, Drove up to this little town in France. And what I discovered is that the basics of French that I thought I knew so well suddenly, because I haven't used it in a long time, I've gotten rusty. Those basic words that I used to know real clearly. I was struggling to remember those words that back then, 20 some years ago, came to me very easy. And I realized that, hey, my French isn't as good as I thought it was. It's rusty because I haven't reviewed it, I haven't used it, I haven't gone over it. So therefore if I haven't used it and reviewed it and gone over it, I start to lose it. Now some of you are tracking where I'm going with this, right? You see, the Bible says that by this time you ought to be teachers. You say, well, pastor, I'm not a teacher, I'm not a pastor, I'm not a preacher. It doesn't matter. Let me tell you this. Every single follower of Jesus Christ. If you have become a follower of Jesus Christ, we are all called to make disciples. That means what you know you need to share with someone else that knows less than what you know. We're all called to make disciples. It means that the basic things that you know, you start to you start to share with other people that know less than you. How many of you know there's always people that know less than you? There's always people that know more than you, but there's always people that know less than you. You say, well, I don't know a lot, but guess what? You know more than what other people know that have never been to church, never opened a Bible, never looked at verses, never saw, sat under teaching. You know more than some other people know. So what you do know, you start to share with people that know less than you. We have baptisms every month, every month as people get baptized, everybody that gets baptized, we take them through three basic lessons, three elementary lessons, faith, repentance, and baptism out of some blue books. Guess what? Guess who does those mentoring people in the congregation take a new believer and begin to teach them the basic things they need to learn. This is what Jesus said. Jesus said, I will make you fishers of men. Matthew 2819 and 20 says, go ye therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world. Jesus basically said, if you're a follower of mine, then I want you to begin to share what you know about me. As you begin to share basic things that you know, you will keep those things fresh in your mind. If it's been a long time since you shared, a long time since you've mentored, a long time since you've helped someone grow. Then the very basic things that you knew a long time ago will start to become fuzzy in your mind, Because you have not used your knowledge. By this time you ought to be teachers. But yet you're not a teacher. And now someone's got to come back. Back to you and teach you the basic things all over again. You need milk, not solid food. Now, this is huge. Because what happens is, I believe that God wants all of us to grow. And I believe that we grow the most when we're grounded. Okay. The third thing I want you to write down, I'm talking about people that grow. The third thing, third characteristic about people, people that grow is this people that grow, they move out of the role of a receiver and they become givers, he says. By this time you ought to be teachers, but you need milk, not solid food. You know, there's a time frame. Milk is not bad. Milk is good. I still drink milk. But if all I could handle was milk, if I went over to your house and I said, you know what? Sorry, I can't eat God tacos yet. Because, you know, I just haven't developed a system to handle that yet. Well, how about some cereal? No, no, no, just milk please. Milk and milk is good if you're a baby. But if you're four years old and all you can handle is milk, there's something wrong. If you're 15 and all you can handle is milk, is something wrong? If all you can eat at 20 years old is milk and a little baby food, then there's something wrong with your system. It's okay when you're a baby to eat milk, but you need to graduate beyond milk. You need to be able to handle the stronger stuff, the tougher stuff, the stuff that gives nutrients to you. And the writer of the Hebrews is saying, hey, it's okay that you have milk, but by this time you should be beyond milk. You should be eating stronger stuff, healthier stuff. You should be able to be chewing on meat that can digest stuff that's, that's that's more solid in your system. Here's what the Scripture says. It is more blessed to give than to what?

Oh, I wish you could hear me this morning because this is huge. You see, if you're not putting into practice what's being taught, you lose your motivation to learn. All it becomes is theories and principles that had no direct relevance to your life. But if every time you hear the Word of God you're saying, I want to apply it, I want to learn. I want to take that to my marriage, to my job, to my children, to my life. I want to become more like Jesus. I don't want to stagnate. I want to grow. I want to become different than what happens is that whatever is taught, you're eager to learn because you're applying it to your life immediately, and it has direct relevance to where you're at because you're applying the word. You're not just a hearer of the word, you're a doer of the word. And so therefore you are hungry and eager and desirous to learn because you're putting it into practice. When someone doesn't put into practice the word, you start feeling okay. Here's another message. I hope it's short. I hope it's not hot. I hope the chairs aren't because you're not putting it into practice. And so people that learn. People that grow, they learn quickly because they're eager to grow. They're hungry to grow. Have a desire to grow. Secondly, write this down. People that learn and grow are people that build on the foundational truths and begin to teach others. Notice what he says next. He says. In fact, though, by this time you ought to be teachers. You need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's Word all over again. You need milk, not solid food. The writer of the Hebrews is saying, you've been Christians long enough at this time that you should know the basics of Christianity. In fact, you should be teaching others the basics of Christianity by this time. But what has happened? Although you should be teachers by this time, not only are you not teachers, but the basics that you should be teaching, you don't even remember the basics because they've grown fuzzy in your own life. So therefore, even though you should be teachers by this time, you need someone to teach you the elementary basic foundational truths all over again because you started to forget them. You say, well, how does that happen? Well. If you don't use it, you lose it. If you don't use the basic knowledge that you have, you begin to lose it. It becomes it becomes rusty to you. When I was 16 years old, I wanted to work somewhere to make some money. I had a friend that had a connection in, in in France, in a town in France. I lived in northern Spain. And France wasn't all that far from us. And so he got me a job as a dishwasher and a room cleaning person. And so my brother and I and someone else, we went up to this hotel in southern France, and I washed dishes and learned how to scrub these big pots and learn how to clean rooms. And we worked in room service and dishwashing at a hotel in northern France for, for for three, two and a half months to three months. And then we slept in the basement with all the other people that were down there. And then we worked hard, but we were in France, so we we were submerged in the French culture, the French language. The next summer I went there again to make money. It was pretty good money. I worked in southern France and since I was in France there enough time, I actually learned to speak some French and I could understand pretty much most of what was being said to me, and I could speak enough to be dangerous. And so after I got out of there, I felt like I in fact, I picked up a a French New Testament and I would read my Bible in French and, and je parle and petit des Francais, mais pas beaucoup. Mais je travaille en France do it. Yeah. So I thought, you know, I know French pretty good. I mean, I can understand. And so this a few weeks ago we were in northern Spain and I decided, hey, I'm going to take my kids to show them where I worked, uh, get a little incentive in their bones, show them where I worked for the summer. So we drove up to 2.5 hours away, Drove up to this little town in France. And what I discovered is that the basics of French that I thought I knew so well suddenly, because I haven't used it in a long time, I've gotten rusty. Those basic words that I used to know real clearly. I was struggling to remember those words that back then, 20 some years ago, came to me very easy. And I realized that, hey, my French isn't as good as I thought it was. It's rusty because I haven't reviewed it, I haven't used it, I haven't gone over it. So therefore if I haven't used it and reviewed it and gone over it, I start to lose it. Now some of you are tracking where I'm going with this, right? You see, the Bible says that by this time you ought to be teachers. You say, well, pastor, I'm not a teacher, I'm not a pastor, I'm not a preacher. It doesn't matter. Let me tell you this. Every single follower of Jesus Christ. If you have become a follower of Jesus Christ, we are all called to make disciples. That means what you know you need to share with someone else that knows less than what you know. We're all called to make disciples. It means that the basic things that you know, you start to you start to share with other people that know less than you. How many of you know there's always people that know less than you? There's always people that know more than you, but there's always people that know less than you. You say, well, I don't know a lot, but guess what? You know more than what other people know that have never been to church, never opened a Bible, never looked at verses, never saw, sat under teaching. You know more than some other people know. So what you do know, you start to share with people that know less than you. We have baptisms every month, every month as people get baptized, everybody that gets baptized, we take them through three basic lessons, three elementary lessons, faith, repentance, and baptism out of some blue books. Guess what? Guess who does those mentoring people in the congregation take a new believer and begin to teach them the basic things they need to learn. This is what Jesus said. Jesus said, I will make you fishers of men. Matthew 2819 and 20 says, go ye therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world. Jesus basically said, if you're a follower of mine, then I want you to begin to share what you know about me. As you begin to share basic things that you know, you will keep those things fresh in your mind. If it's been a long time since you shared, a long time since you've mentored, a long time since you've helped someone grow. Then the very basic things that you knew a long time ago will start to become fuzzy in your mind, Because you have not used your knowledge. By this time you ought to be teachers. But yet you're not a teacher. And now someone's got to come back. Back to you and teach you the basic things all over again. You need milk, not solid food. Now, this is huge. Because what happens is, I believe that God wants all of us to grow. And I believe that we grow the most when we're grounded. Okay. The third thing I want you to write down, I'm talking about people that grow. The third thing, third characteristic about people, people that grow is this people that grow, they move out of the role of a receiver and they become givers, he says. By this time you ought to be teachers, but you need milk, not solid food. You know, there's a time frame. Milk is not bad. Milk is good. I still drink milk. But if all I could handle was milk, if I went over to your house and I said, you know what? Sorry, I can't eat God tacos yet. Because, you know, I just haven't developed a system to handle that yet. Well, how about some cereal? No, no, no, just milk please. Milk and milk is good if you're a baby. But if you're four years old and all you can handle is milk, there's something wrong. If you're 15 and all you can handle is milk, is something wrong? If all you can eat at 20 years old is milk and a little baby food, then there's something wrong with your system. It's okay when you're a baby to eat milk, but you need to graduate beyond milk. You need to be able to handle the stronger stuff, the tougher stuff, the stuff that gives nutrients to you. And the writer of the Hebrews is saying, hey, it's okay that you have milk, but by this time you should be beyond milk. You should be eating stronger stuff, healthier stuff. You should be able to be chewing on meat that can digest stuff that's, that's that's more solid in your system. Here's what the Scripture says. It is more blessed to give than to what?

Than to receive.

Than to receive.

Learning to become givers instead of receivers. That's the takeaway of today's message from Mark Jobe on Bold Steps Weekend. You can learn more about Mark, our teacher and this ministry when you go online to Bold Steps. Org. These daily messages are made available because of our partnership with listeners. Just like you. We call them bold partners. And here at the beginning of this exciting new year, we're looking for followers of Jesus to join the team, come alongside us, and partner with us as we share the unfiltered truth of the Bible with people across the country and around the world with authenticity and bravado. Signing up is simple and easy when you visit Bold steps. Org or when you call us at 800 D.L. Moody, that's (800) 356-6639. Now, if it's easier, you can also send your gift in the mail by addressing your envelope to bold steps. Weekend 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. And when you give a gift today in support of this ministry, we'll say thanks by sending a book titled Winning the War in Your Mind. Pastor Craig Groeschel exposes the lies that lead to toxic thinking, and he reveals how to experience the peace of mind that comes from Christ. Request this powerful resource today and break free from the negative thought patterns. Renew your mind and truth when you visit us online at Bold Steps. Org or call for the book (800) 356-6639. And before we end today, we want to encourage you to join us on social media and get connected with our growing online community. You'll find us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube by searching for Bold Steps Radio and let us know when you're there. Also, be sure to subscribe to our podcast for easy listening on the go. Open up the podcast app on your phone or smart device and search for Bold Steps weekend with doctor Mark Jobe. Well, that's our time for today. I'm Wayne Shepherd, inviting you to join us next time when Mark explains why growth and change are an important part of our lives. It's part two of our message from the same title, and you'll hear it next time on Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jobe. Bold Steps Weekend is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.

Learning to become givers instead of receivers. That's the takeaway of today's message from Mark Jobe on Bold Steps Weekend. You can learn more about Mark, our teacher and this ministry when you go online to Bold Steps. Org. These daily messages are made available because of our partnership with listeners. Just like you. We call them bold partners. And here at the beginning of this exciting new year, we're looking for followers of Jesus to join the team, come alongside us, and partner with us as we share the unfiltered truth of the Bible with people across the country and around the world with authenticity and bravado. Signing up is simple and easy when you visit Bold steps. Org or when you call us at 800 D.L. Moody, that's (800) 356-6639. Now, if it's easier, you can also send your gift in the mail by addressing your envelope to bold steps. Weekend 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. And when you give a gift today in support of this ministry, we'll say thanks by sending a book titled Winning the War in Your Mind. Pastor Craig Groeschel exposes the lies that lead to toxic thinking, and he reveals how to experience the peace of mind that comes from Christ. Request this powerful resource today and break free from the negative thought patterns. Renew your mind and truth when you visit us online at Bold Steps. Org or call for the book (800) 356-6639. And before we end today, we want to encourage you to join us on social media and get connected with our growing online community. You'll find us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube by searching for Bold Steps Radio and let us know when you're there. Also, be sure to subscribe to our podcast for easy listening on the go. Open up the podcast app on your phone or smart device and search for Bold Steps weekend with doctor Mark Jobe. Well, that's our time for today. I'm Wayne Shepherd, inviting you to join us next time when Mark explains why growth and change are an important part of our lives. It's part two of our message from the same title, and you'll hear it next time on Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jobe. Bold Steps Weekend is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.