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Isn’t it is helpful that the Bible gives us complementary positives and negatives that clarify what we are to do or not do? We CRAVE pure spiritual milk. It is commonly understood that this refers to the Word of God. But that doesn’t just mean that we must have a driving obsession to carry a bonded leather New Testament in the back pocket; that would be silly. No, we
desperately long to understand and do what the Word says!-
What do we NOT crave?
*all malice
*all deceit
*all hypocrisy
*all envy
*all slander.
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Looking at the verses above, if we crave the one, we should equally have an aversion to the other, right? When we find these on the plate, our strong desire should be to push them away, so it would be beneficial to understand the meaning of these negatives.
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Now, these may seem obvious to you, but if I have any takers, I would like to explore what it means to “rid yourself of all hypocrisy.”
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What does that mean; what does it not mean? Please indulge me.
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9 comments:
"Pure spiritual milk. It is commonly understood that this refers to the Word of God."
The Word of God is becoming more of a slippery idea for me. I mean, of course, it refers to the Bible. I'm not questioning that.
But Logos is something bigger than "a bonded leather New Testament" right? It's Jesus himself--who is God himself. The Logos is God revealed to us. Through the Bible, but also through Jesus in us, also through the Spirit in us. Also through the Church itself, the body of Christ, the Logos in the world.
I take the hypocrisy to be a plural issue. Like vs. 5 (You also, as living stones are built up.) Like vs. 2 for that matter (as newborn babes). Not that my Greek is good.
And not that I'm trying to rationalize hypocrisy in my own life. But I think Peter is calling us to be accountable to each other. Don't let your friends be two-faced about their faith. If someone sees me being a hypocrite, they need to call me on it every time. Remove all hypocrisies from the church.
What does it mean to "crave pure spiritual milk"? I think this analagy implies more than just desire--it's a nonnegotiable need. When my babies were born, they "craved" milk in no uncertain terms. And it was a constant thing. Pretty much those newborn babies were attached to me constantly.
It's the same way with us. We are to crave spiritual milk like a newborn babe. Without it, we will not survive. And as God nourishes our souls through His word, we are convicted of sin and told in no uncertain terms to get rid of it. We must not tolerate sin in our lives.
Geesh. All of my answers to you lately sound oh so spiritual. Not sure what that's about except God is most definitely at work -- ridding my own life of sin. And as I find this new freedom, I want everyone to experience it!!
Great point about “Logos,” mark! In this text, I think that “Logos” is implicit rather than explicit, but I have not personally done a careful word study to know for sure what the Greek says.
Amen lm, that level of craving which you describe matches the intensity I want to cultivate for the Lord and all things pertaining to Him!
But as it relates to hypocrisy though, where do we draw the line between an authentic effort and being a phony?
your question "But as it relates to hypocrisy though, where do we draw the line between an authentic effort and being a phony?"
It's in the heart. Are you doing (craving which you describe matches the intensity I want to cultivate for the Lord and all things pertaining to Him!) for God, to get closer to Him personally OR are you doing it to impress others?
What is the motivation behind the action? You or God?
I reflect that it first means I have to stop kidding myself... and that is no easy matter. Fortunately, having an honest spouse goes a long way towards developing my personal hypocrisy guage!
I think my wife and kids have a better handle on who I am than I do. I tend to look at my walk through rose colored lenses. They, on the other hand, can be brutle.
This craving the milk of the word is the necessary result of a genuine regeneration experience. Good post.
Ahh wow. I love what you said, Charity!!
"...confessing to the Lord in prayer that I may be obeying Him for the wrong reasons, and asking him to redeem my acts anyway.
Oh, the depravity of our own hearts and the sweet faithfulness in mercy of our God!
Sola fide!
By the way Craver ~
Look at you! All cutting loose and putting links up! :) Very nice!
Rock on
Motivations, intimidations, personal reflection, spousal accountability, genuine regeneration, depravity and mercy… all great stuff to chew on! You guys are amazing!
Hey, I heard that bluecollar wasn’t allowed to join the football team ‘cause he was OVERqualified! So, don’t make jokes about his ginormous arms; he’s sensitive about that kind of stuff. ;-)
Rocking on…
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