1 Peter 2:1-2

1 Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby

Question:

God’s word is non-material, so how can it be so important for growth?

This reminded me of the studies on young children and babies evacuated to orphanages in WWII.  Some were kept clean and quiet by keeping them away from the dirty and noisy older girls from London slums. But they had stunted growth, while those who the older girls were allowed to love and care for, thrived and grew well.

And so it is with us.

Modern man-made philosophies like Existentialism, that fill our media and social media, came to us from clean human logic in the so-called Age of Reason. But they are like verse 1, full of malice and deceit; they cause people to become stunted and shrivelled, jaded, weary, bitter and twisted.

But God’s word came to us from the real, noisy, and dirty experience of human struggle and conflict with one another and with God, and with God’s intervention to save us from our own destruction.  It is like pure milk; it contains everything we need to grow and be fruitful, and to reach out to God to lift us from where we have fallen.

God’s word is:

• Necessary for life – Matthew 4:4; Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God
• Life-giving – John 20:31; these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.
• Given by God – 1 Corinthians 2:13; We do not speak in words taught by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit.

How Do We Grow?

• We come to know ourselves, given true self-awareness, as we see ourselves as God sees us;
• We have purpose and direction, as we focus on Jesus and trust our lives to Him;
• As we live by faith, God loves and cares for us and provides all that we need, through his Spirit and through other people – even our relationships with others are transformed from destructive self-interest into fruitful fellowship that grows in God’s love;
• We have active occupation, as we respond in obedience to what God calls us to do.

It’s wonderful to think of how we can continue to grow, even when we are old.

References:

1 Cor 14:20, KJV; in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.