“But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.” Hebrews 5:14
Sometimes we read a familiar verse, understand its general meaning, and move on. There is nothing wrong with understanding Scripture plainly. In fact, we should begin with the plain meaning of the text.
But plainly does not mean carelessly.
Sometimes a verse deserves more than a quick reading. We should slow down, notice how the words fit together, examine the context, and compare Scripture with Scripture. The goal is not to discover some secret meaning hidden beneath the words. The goal is to understand more fully the meaning God has already placed in the text.
Hebrews 5:14 gives us a good example.
Normally we read a sentence from beginning to end. But this verse describes a process, and if we examine that process backwards, something interesting happens. Each part leads us to the part before it.
So let’s start at the end.
“Discern Good and Evil”
This is where the verse ends, but it is really the goal toward which everything else in the verse is moving.
The mature believer has learned to “discern good and evil.”
Discernment is the ability to recognize the difference between what is true and what is false, what is right and what is wrong, and what comes from God and what merely sounds spiritual.
That is increasingly important because error does not always announce itself as error. False teaching may contain enough truth to sound convincing. A bad decision may seem reasonable. Something accepted by the culture may still contradict the Word of God.
That is why Scripture tells us:
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God.” 1 John 4:1
Notice the word “test.”
Christians are not told to accept every preacher, teaching, spiritual experience, or popular idea simply because someone attaches the name of God to it.
We test what we hear by Scripture.
Discernment therefore requires more than feelings. Something can feel right and still be wrong. Something can be popular and still be unbiblical.
The question must always be:
What does God’s Word say?
But Hebrews 5:14 tells us that this kind of discernment does not simply appear overnight.
So we move backward one step.
“Have Their Senses Trained”
How does a believer become able to discern good and evil?
His spiritual senses become trained.
Training takes time.
Think about someone learning to recognize counterfeit money. He becomes familiar with the genuine article until something false begins to stand out.
The Christian needs that same familiarity with truth.
The more deeply we know Scripture, the more readily we begin recognizing ideas that do not agree with it.
The psalmist said:
“I have treasured Your word in my heart, so that I may not sin against You.” Psalm 119:11
God’s Word stored in the heart begins affecting the way we think, judge, and respond.
This is one reason a believer who rarely opens the Bible can become vulnerable to false teaching. He may know what people say about God without knowing well what God has actually said.
A pastor especially needs trained spiritual senses. He is responsible not only for what he believes personally but also for what he teaches others.
Paul told Timothy:
“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15
Notice that Scripture must be accurately handled.
We do not begin with what we want the Bible to say and then hunt for a verse to support it. We begin with the text and allow the text to shape what we believe.
But how are our spiritual senses trained?
Hebrews gives us the answer if we move backward again.
“Because of Practice”
This may be the part of the verse we pass over too quickly.
Their senses are trained “because of practice.”
Knowing Scripture is essential, but biblical knowledge that is never put into practice does not produce the maturity Hebrews is describing.
James says:
“But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not just hearers who deceive themselves.” James 1:22
We learn discernment partly by repeatedly applying God’s Word to real life.
We face a decision and ask, What does Scripture say?
We hear a teaching and ask, Does this agree with Scripture?
We recognize an attitude in ourselves and ask, Does God’s Word approve of this?
We encounter temptation and ask, What has God said about this?
Then we obey what we know.
And we do it again.
And again.
That is practice.
This is why spiritual maturity cannot be measured simply by how many Bible verses someone knows. A person may accumulate considerable biblical information while ignoring what he already understands.
Jesus said:
“If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.” John 13:17
Knowledge matters.
But knowledge is meant to become obedience.
Each time we take God’s truth seriously and apply it, our ability to recognize right and wrong becomes sharper.
Now we can move backward to the beginning of Hebrews 5:14.
“Solid Food Is for the Mature”
This is where the verse begins, but when we read the verse backward we can see how we arrive here.
“Solid food is for the mature.”
The writer of Hebrews had just rebuked his readers because they had not grown as they should have.
The previous verse says:
“For everyone who partakes only of milk is unacquainted with the word of righteousness, for he is an infant.” Hebrews 5:13
There is nothing wrong with milk for an infant.
The problem comes when someone who should have matured still cannot handle anything more.
The same is true spiritually.
A new believer begins with foundational truths. He needs to understand salvation, prayer, Scripture, obedience, the church, and the basic truths of the Christian life.
But he should not remain spiritually where he began.
Peter wrote:
“Like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation.” 1 Peter 2:2
Notice the purpose:
“so that by it you may grow.”
The goal is growth.
There should come a time when the believer can examine difficult passages, recognize false teaching, understand deeper biblical truth, and help others understand God’s Word.
That is maturity.
But Hebrews 5:14 shows that maturity does not come merely from getting older or sitting in church for many years.
It comes through a life shaped by the Word of God.
Now Read the Verse Backwards
Now the process becomes easier to see.
We want to discern good and evil.
To discern good and evil, our spiritual senses must be trained.
Our senses become trained through practice.
And that practice produces the maturity that enables us to receive solid spiritual food.
Read backwards, the verse gives us a picture of spiritual development:
Discernment ← Training ← Practice ← Maturity
And read normally, it gives us the same process from the other direction:
Maturity → Practice → Trained Senses → Discernment
That is what makes this little verse so rich.
A Lesson in How to Study Scripture
There is another lesson here besides what Hebrews 5:14 teaches about maturity.
It teaches us something about how we should study the Bible.
Do not rush.
Look at the words.
Notice how one phrase connects with another.
Ask what comes before the verse and what comes after it.
Look for cause and effect.
Compare the passage with other Scriptures.
Ask why the writer said what he said.
And sometimes, as we have done here, examine the order of the thoughts from another direction.
But there is an important boundary.
We are not trying to be clever with Scripture.
We are not looking for hidden codes or secret meanings that God never placed in the text.
Good Bible study does not add meaning to Scripture.
It carefully draws out the meaning that is already there.
That distinction matters greatly for anyone who teaches God’s Word.
What Does Hebrews 5:14 Teach Us?
Spiritual discernment does not develop by accident.
It grows as we know God’s Word, put it into practice, and repeatedly allow Scripture to judge our thoughts, decisions, beliefs, and actions.
The Christian who continually practices the truth becomes increasingly able to recognize error.
And the believer who grows in that way becomes capable of receiving deeper spiritual truth.
That is especially important for anyone who teaches others.
Before we ask, “What can I preach from this verse?”
We should first ask:
“What does this verse actually say?”
Then look carefully.
Look at every corner.
Compare Scripture with Scripture.
And when you think you understand it, look once more.
Sometimes you may even need to read it backwards.