Hebrews 5:12–14 (NKJV)
“For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”
Spiritual maturity doesn’t just happen over time. It doesn’t come simply from going to church or being busy with religious activities. Real growth happens when a believer becomes rooted in the Word; learning it, applying it, and letting it train their life.
In Hebrews 5, the writer speaks to believers who had stayed spiritually immature. They had been Christians long enough to be teaching others, but they were still stuck on the basics. Instead of moving forward, they were still drinking milk (basic teachings) when they should’ve been eating solid food (the deeper truths of God’s Word).
Milk is good for spiritual babies, but it won’t sustain long-term growth. Those who remain on milk are described as “unskilled in the word of righteousness.” That means they haven’t learned to use the Word well. They remain weak, easily misled, and ineffective. But those who feed on solid food; who go deeper into Scripture, reflect on its meaning, and obey it; grow stronger in spiritual understanding. They develop discernment. They begin to tell right from wrong, truth from lies, and God’s way from the world’s way.
This kind of maturity doesn’t come just from listening to sermons. It comes by reason of use, by practicing the Word in everyday life. You grow by using the Word in your choices, your conversations, your work, your relationships. Like physical exercise, your spiritual senses grow stronger through regular use.
God doesn’t want you to stay immature, dependent, or shallow. His plan is to make you complete and useful in every good work (see 2 Timothy 3:17). But that requires growth, and growth requires the Word.
So take a look at your spiritual diet. Are you still on milk, or are you pressing into the solid food of Scripture? Are you just reading the Bible, or are you using it to shape your life? Maturity doesn’t mean perfection. It means you are growing, steadily, deeply, and intentionally. That’s what it means to be rooted in the Word.
Confession: I am growing in the Word and moving toward spiritual maturity. I feed on solid truth, discern rightly, and live wisely by the power of God’s Word at work in me.
