A Word in Season: The Pure Milk of the Word (1 Peter 2:2)

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When a child is born, it feeds, it cries out for food. That's the image that the apostle

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Peter uses in first Peter chapter two, when he says that Christians laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the

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Lord is gracious. So Peter's explaining to us that one of the true marks of a child of God, those who've really tasted that the

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Lord is gracious, is on the one hand, this putting aside of all the characteristic sins of their own hearts and the world around them, all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, and as newborn babes to desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby.

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So the image is of the newborn Christian as a baby, very vulnerable, very frail, but with this eager appetite, with this strong desire for the best of food.

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And a mother's milk is designed to do good to the baby who is suckling.

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It's full of all the right nutrients. It's full of everything that that child needs in order to develop.

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And in the same way, the word of God contains everything that is needful for the child of God to grow in the grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.

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So if we're newborn babes in the spiritual sense, then we will desire, notice, the pure milk of the word.

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It's unadulterated. It's not something that is mixed with the streams of human wisdom, not something that is poisoned with the notions of human religion.

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It is heavenly religion. It is God's revelation. It is the food that our souls need.

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It has everything that is required for the nourishment of every part of our redeemed humanity.

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It will instruct the mind. It will strengthen the hope. It will increase the love.

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It will enhance our faith. It will develop every faculty of our newborn humanity.

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It will guide us in all righteousness. It will lead us in all truth.

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But the more of human notion there is in that, the less effective, the less pure it will be.

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And so we need to make sure that our first concern, if we're to be healthy believers, is to desire to feed frequently and fervently upon the pure milk of the word.

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And there's a proper consequence to that, that you might grow thereby.

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Perhaps you know a Christian who is distinct in their maturity, someone who's got real wisdom and insight, someone who's properly balanced in their graces.

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They're not overexaggerated in one thing, but lacking something else. There's a breadth to their spirituality and there's a depth to their spirituality.

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I would wager that that man or woman has been one who's been feeding on the word of God.

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Every day, perhaps week after week, month after month, year after year, they have been taking in the pure milk of God's word.

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That's been their primary concern. They've drunk it down, they've taken it in, and it's proved health -giving, life -giving, strength -giving to their souls.

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And they have grown by it. It's been the natural and the proper consequence of good feeding is this proper growing.

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And they've become strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. They know, they love, they do, and they can teach

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His truth. They have grown to maturity on the pure milk of the word of God.

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Especially then at the beginning of our path as Christians, we need to be feeding on God's word.

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We need to desire to take in this pure milk. And there's a sense in which we never outgrow it.

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We might, if you use a different illustration, go on to spiritual meat, but the milk itself is good for our souls.

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And that's Peter's point here. If you want to grow as a Christian, then desire the pure milk of the word of God.