The Sincere Milk of the Word

 

 

 

 

The apostle Peter wrote: “As newborn babes, desire the sincere mild of the word, that you may grow thereby.” (1 Peter 2:2) We might make several observations about this passage.

First, just as a newborn baby needs milk in order to grow physically, so Christians need the word of God in order to grow spiritually. This is why we need to attend church regularly and why we need to privately read God’s word. Forming these two habits ensures that we will have a regular diet of God’s word.

Second, note the word sincere* – “the sincere milk of the word.” The New King James Version translates it better like this: “the pure milk of the word.” We certainly would not want to give contaminated milk to a baby. The same is true in spiritual matters. We need the pure, unadulterated, uncontaminated milk of God’s word. Everything else you read may be contaminated: books, articles, newspapers, etc. Only when we read our Bibles can we be sure that what we read is totally pure truth.

Third, note that Peter says “desire.” We really need a strong desire to know what God has to say to us in his word.

* “Sincere” as in the KJ may have a proper meaning. It may mean that we can depend on God that He is sincere in what he tells us. He does not have some hidden agenda. E.g. The devil seems to have convinced Eve that God had hidden motives – “God doth know…” Check the usage of the Greek word in the NT.

 Claude