Thought of the Day !!

Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord's kindness. – 1 Peter 2:2-3 (NLT)

Peter tells us that we must crave pure spiritual milk.  Now there are two things that jumped out at me here.  First of all there’s this phrase “pure spiritual milk”.  Well, what is it?  You could say that it’s the Word of God, it’s the wisdom of God, or it’s the Truth of God.  And I think you’d be on the right path with any of these.  But to put the phrase in context here where Peter has just warned us to rid ourselves of various things, I would have to say that the spiritual milk he’s getting at is the gifts that allow us to combat these things.  It’s the power and strength to overcome selfishness and move towards self-giving love.  The pure spiritual milk that all born again Christians must crave is the gifts that help lead us to the purity of a new life in Christ.

Secondly, Peter says that we MUST choose the pure spiritual milk.  We must choose that which will lead us to maturity.  And we must wait patiently for this.  This is part of the reason people have a hard time choosing the lifestyle of a true Christian.  They want everything right now.

We live in an “instantaneous society” that expects news as it happens, quick returns on our investments, and instant retrieval of information.  Plus our children have to grow up much faster as they watch after each other while both parents work.  Therefore full maturity is demanded quicker than it should be for some. 

But maturity is a process.  It’s not instantaneous.  It’s a process that takes time.  And it takes more time for some and less time for others.  Rather it’s a child’s maturation or the maturing of a Christian, we have to remember that it is still a process.  And so that’s why baptism is just the beginning and not the ending of our salvation story. 

Salvation isn’t defined simply by one moment and then that’s it.  Our salvation as Christians is a process of being formed into the image of Christ where we make mistakes…are forgiven…try again and again…looking back every day saying to ourselves, “I’m not where I should be, but I’m farther along than I used to be.”

We can do this if we crave the pure spiritual milk that God has to offer us.

In the love of Christ,

greg