The Word: Hebrews 5: 12 – 14 (AMP)
11 Concerning this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull and sluggish in [your spiritual] hearing and disinclined to listen. 12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers [because of the time you have had to learn these truths], you actually need someone to teach you again the elementary principles of God’s word [from the beginning], and you have come to be continually in need of milk, not solid food.
Dig Deeper:
Hebrews 5: 13 – 14 (AMP)
13 For everyone who lives on milk is [doctrinally inexperienced and] unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a spiritual infant. 14 But solid food is for the [spiritually] mature, whose senses are trained by practice to distinguish between what is morally good and what is evil.
Think about it
FROM MILK TO STRONG MEAT….
We ‘ve been discussing the 7 characteristics of living things: Respiration, Nutrition, Excretion, Sensitivity, Movement, Growth, Reproduction. We spoke about respiration. Also yesterday we discussed nutrition and we said for a believer to grow properly, the nutrition (mainly God’s word and prayer time has to be:
1. Consistent (regular or daily). It can’t be haphazard
2. Adequate (enough time daily. Averagely 1hr) and
3. Balanced diet (Cover a range of topics. So we can develop in an holistic way)
Let’s go a bit deeper into the topic of nutrition today.
Firstly, God has a growth expectation over us.
Just like earthly parents have growth expectation, similarly God has an expectation over us. As a baby gets older, there are expectations from the parents. By 6 months, most babies are trying to sit without rolling over. By 9 months, many babies are already getting from just pure milk to semi solids and are practising how to crawl. By 12 months most are already walking or starting to walk. By 18 months, most are already babbling incoherent noises or trying to learn what we say. Now we have these baby milestones. If our baby is a bit behind on these milestones, we become concerned. Atimes we speak to the doctors. In thesame way God has expectations over our growth.
Secondly, we need to make a transition from milk to solid food in order to grow strong.
What is milk?
Mothers produce milk from the food they have eaten and digested. Milk is processed, converted food. Pastors and leaders represents Mothers and fathers because they feed us. However regardless of how sweet mother’s milk is, a baby needs to transit to semi solid and eventually complete solid food at some point. Church sermon, daily word, bible study are all processed food. It’s like drinking milk.
What is solid food?
It is food that you chew, swallow, absorb and process yourself. Regardless of our nutritious a sermon or bible study is, there is a limitation to the level of growth you can get from it. Can you imagine an 5 year old still drinking only milk without any solid food?
How do we go from milk to solid?
Apostle Paul gives us the secret in our text today:
13 For everyone who lives on milk is [doctrinally inexperienced and] unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a spiritual infant. 14 But solid food is for the [spiritually] mature, whose senses are trained by practice to distinguish between what is morally good and what is evil.
….whose senses are trained by practise…. KJV says by reason of use…..So the key word is practise or reason of use.
Nature teaches us a lot of things. Initially our babies are content for us to feed them. but after a while they want to do it themselves. Atimes they collect the feeding spoon, they waste half of the food but they are doing it themselves. To transit from milk to solid, we will need to take responsibility of our study and prayer life. You will need to create some time to study and check on what the pastor was preaching about. Until we take responsibility and practise, we will remain spiritual babies. You will need do it yourself. Get into studying topics yourself. You can’t feed on processed milk alone.
Stages of growth
As our children grow, they start to help us look after and even feed their younger siblings. A believer within a year of being born again ought to be able to:
1. Understand the basics / fundamentals of Christianity.
2. Explain the new birth or what it means to be born again to others.
3. Win other other souls to the Lord.
4. Pray for others and minister Holy Spirit baptism to them.
Can you imagine an 8year who should be helping the parents to nurture his or her siblings still wearing diapers? So instead of we helping to nurture others, God is still trying to nurture us….. But we can rapidly catch up on the growth we should have had. All we need is to start taking responsibility of word and prayer life from now on.
Our memory verse for February
2 Peter 3: 18
18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.
Let’s take a few moment to learn our memory verse for this month by heart. It can be memorised in 3 lines:
Line 1: But Grow in grace,
Line 2: And in the knowledge of our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ.
Line 3: To him be glory both now and for forever.
Once you say it a few times it will stick.
Prayer focus: Father help me to start to catch up and grow in a balanced way this year IJN.
On Grace: God’s lavish Grace – Terry Virgo
Masterlife Workbook: The Church is embarking on weeks of discipleship workbook study starting with the Masterlife: Disciple’s cross
