5:11
“We have much to say about this ...” The writer intends to expand on the importance of Melchizedek, but he realises that this is a difficult topic and he has concerns about his readers’ ability to comprehend it. We may well empathise with their inability! But note also that the writer clearly thinks they should be able to understand, so we should take that as an encouragement that we too should actually be able to make sense of it all!
The NIV says “because you no longer try to understand”, the ESV has “because you have become dull of hearing”. The NIV is probably an interpretation rather than a translation of the Greek. However, it might be an accurate assessment of the situation. There are parts of Scripture that we do find difficult and give up trying to understand. We need to realise that part of the work of the Holy Spirit, part of the purposes of God, is that we become alive to His word, that we see the truth. So we should never take a lazy attitude, we should never rest on our laurels. There are infinite depths of truth in the Bible and we should never stop trying to explore all the depth that is in there.
5:12
There is a clear expectation of growth and maturity. Becoming a Christian is absolutely not about a “ticket to heaven”. It is about being born again, about being adopted into God’s family, about becoming a child of God and a servant of Christ. It is about starting to become all that God intended us to be.
“All should be teachers”. This might imply that the original recipients were leaders in the church. Or it could be “teachers” in a more general sense. All mature Christians should be an example for others, we may not all be formal teachers, but our lives should teach others.
The writer admonishes them for still needing to be taught the basic truths of the gospel. The whole of the New Testament is clear that we should grow in our faith, both in the quality of our lives, and in the depth of our understanding.
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