You don’t have to teach an infant how to drink milk. I find that utterly amazing! Instinctively, a baby knows the mechanics of drinking. The baby is thirsty so its mouth naturally begins to root around for milk. When it finds the milk, everything works: the mouth moves, the milk goes in, the throat swallows; it just works!
God, the great Creator and Sustainer of all things, gives newborn babies the natural desire and natural ability to drink milk. When babies drink the milk, they are properly nourished–and all this without ever being taught!
In the opening verses of 1 Peter 2, God says this is how Christians are to grow. Like a newborn baby, we who are “born again” are to drink the pure milk of the Word; the Bible.
On the one hand, we naturally desire God’s Word. And on the other hand, we sustain that desire as we feed ourselves the Word of God. Just as a newborn baby is first fed by another and then grows to feed itself, so the Christian is spiritually birthed by God and then grows to feed himself by feasting upon the milk of the Word.
By the way, a newborn baby doesn’t drink milk merely for the purpose of mastering the process of milk drinking! That’s not why the baby was created, simply to master the mechanics of drinking milk. The baby drinks for nourishment; the baby drinks to live.
Similarly, the Christian does not drink the milk of the Word merely for the purpose of mastering the Word! That’s not why the Christian was created, simply to become an expert at reading and studying the Word.
The Christian drinks the Word of the Lord in order to live for and to love more the Lord of the Word. Again: the Christian drinks of the Word of the Lord in order to live for and love more the Lord of the Word.
Peter is speaking to a people who–verse 3–“have tasted that the Lord is gracious” or “have tasted that the Lord is good.”
Think of it: what do you do when you taste something good? You want more, right? You want more and more and more and more and more. You say, “Man, this is good! Give me more of it!”
You and I were created to know God. When we are re-born or “born again”–spiritually birthed by God through the power of the gospel–we “taste of the Lord.” And once having tasted of the Lord, we want more and more and more and more.
If you are a Christian, remember when you first were saved. Seriously, do you remember?! You were like, “Wow! This is good!” With the Psalmist in Psalm 34:8, you cried, “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!”
And you began to grow in your relationship with God. You began to know Him more and more as you studied His Word. You desired, He fed. You desired, He fed. You were not studying the Word simply to study the Word. You were studying the Word of the Lord that you might know better the Lord of the Word.
So Peter is reminding Christians–many of whom would have been Christians for some 30 years–to continue to long for the Lord.
You were created to have relationship with God; to long for Him, to learn from Him, to grow in Him, and to glorify Him.
That’s your purpose in life whether you are a doctor, a mechanic, a clerk, or a teacher. You were created to glorify Him. And, to quote another: “God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in Him.”
How do we sustain our longing for the Lord? How do we sustain a spirit of living for Him and longing for Him?
According to these verses there are three ways: ridding ourselves of sin, feeding ourselves with the Word, and delighting ourselves in the Lord. For today’s post we’ll look at just the first action and return to the other two in future posts:
- Rid Yourself of Sin
Peter begins chapter 2 verse 1 with the word “Therefore.” This is a word that points back to what he was previously talking about. And he was previously talking about was how Christians are “born again…through the Word of God (1 Peter 1:23),” the word–verse 25–”which by the gospel was preached to you (1 Peter 1:25).”
So the same Word that births us is the same Word that grows us. Desire the pure milk of the Word that you may grow thereby.
Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, (verse 1)
Since you are “born again…through the Word of God which lives and abides forever…the Word which by the gospel was preached to you,” then lay aside these sins. Lay aside five things from verse 1: malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking.
Peter says that Christians are to “lay aside” these things. It’s the same word as in Ephesians 4:22, where Paul writes, “Put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man…” Or as the writer of Hebrews says in Hebrews 12:1, “Lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us.”
It’s a decisive act. Christians must daily rid themselves of these sins. It’s an act of the will. “Do it,” says Peter. Lay aside; put off; rid yourselves of these sins:
“Malice” or evil, or wickedness. Rid yourself of all actions that are harmful to others.
“Deceit” which is to harm another person by trickery or falsehood.
In your business, are you ever tempted to deceive? Or to blur the lines of ethical standards? Rid yourself of that sin.
“Hypocrisy” is to mask evil on the inside by outward displays of righteousness. It’s the same word used to describe our Lord’s rebuke of the hypocritical Pharisees. He said, “Outwardly [you] appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness (Matthew 23:28).” Rid yourself of the sin of hypocrisy.
“Envy” is fundamentally an inability to rejoice when others are blessed. Can you not rejoice when another gets a promotion, or experiences some measure of success? Don’t do that! Christians don’t live that way. Rid yourself of the sin of envy.
Note the genuine freedom you feel when you can rejoice in the successes of others.
“Evil speaking” is any word spoken in such a way as to tear down rather than to build up. Don’t ever talk negatively about another person, especially a fellow brother or sister.
Remember that in the previous passage, Peter says Christians are to “love one another fervently with a pure heart (1 Peter 1:22).” We cannot love one another fervently if we are tearing others down by our words. Live by Ephesians 4:29: “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.”
How do you long for the Lord? You rid yourself of sin.
What About You?
- “The same Word that births us is the same Word that grows us.” Do you agree? If so, how much time–honestly–do you give to feasting upon God’s Word each day?
- “The Christian does not drink the milk of the Word merely for the purpose of mastering the Word.” Can a person be a biblical scholar yet be spiritually malnourished? Why or Why not?
- Of the five wrong behaviors listed above (malice, deceit, etc.), which do you need to “lay aside” right now?
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