“Though our Lord accepts and welcomes us as infants, he does not want us to remain in an infantile faith.”
Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – August 21, 2021
So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. 1 Peter 2:1-3, ESV
Few things are more singular in their focus than an infant child in search of milk. Perhaps with the exception of sleep, it is their sole focus and deepest longing. They taste that it is good and for their good, and so they seek it out with every bit of energy that they can muster.
St. Peter offers this as a profoundly helpful image of our own life with Christ. His is the pure spiritual sustenance, lacking in nothing and able to quench our deepest thirst and satisfy our greatest longings. As we feast at his table, we are reminded again and again of his goodness and graciousness to us. Like a proud mother, our Lord takes great pleasure in providing for his children and seeing them well fed and content.
Our distorted passions – deceit, hypocrisy, envy, slander – malnourish our souls and leave us in a state of great sickness. They stunt our growth, contaminating the purity of spiritual milk with toxins and chemicals that wreak havoc on our systems. If left unchecked, the sickness only grows, making it harder and harder to find freedom and a life of pure devotion.
Though our Lord accepts and welcomes us as infants, he does not want us to remain in an infantile faith. Far too often we think of “salvation” as a singular event, having nothing to do with our ongoing life of faith and devotion to Christ. Yet here in 1 Peter, we are encouraged to “grow up into salvation.” Salvation is active, not static. The promises of God received in baptism must take root and establish themselves in your life, nourishing our souls and bringing life to our bodies.
You are invited today to taste afresh the goodness and love of God. And like an infant who discovers the joy and delight of a mother’s milk, that longing is meant to grow, leading us to leave behind all lesser loves and desires as we find the only source of true life, the only nourishment that will lead us from an infant state into the full maturity of a son or daughter of the king.
Prayer
Father, help us to taste and see that you are good and worthy of all devotion and honor, we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Application
What toxins have you mixed into your “spiritual milk” that threaten to stunt your growth and leave you stuck in spiritual immaturity?
Related Reading
Psalm 34:8; Romans 12:1; 1 Corinthians 3:2
Worship Resource
Vintage Worship: Generous Giver
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