Foreigners in a Foreign Land
Longing for the Pure Spiritual Milk of the Word
1 Peter 2:1-3
David Taylor
We are finishing the first of three mini series in 1 Peter, “Foreigners in a Foreign Land” (1.1-2.10) where we have been looking at what Peter writes to Christians suffering persecution. In a couple of weeks, we will begin the second mini series, “Living on Mission in a Foreign Land” (2.11-4.11) and then start the last series in the fall with, “The Church in a Foreign Land” (4.12-5.14). Today's message is “Longing for the Pure Spiritual Milk of the Word.”
Big Idea – We are to crave the goodness of God from the word of God and so grow spiritually into our salvation.
Chapter one is about hoping in Jesus in the midst of suffering. Peter has emphasized that salvation is the work of God – God set his affection on them in eternity past, God has caused them to be born again, and God is keeping them through their suffering. Today we see that God has given us his word as the primary means of sustaining us and sanctifying us, killing sinful desires and replacing them with new, righteous desires. When I was pastoring in Los Angeles, I had a guy who came to me because he was in a spiritual funk and when I asked him about his devotional habits he told me that he did not read the Bible. He knew it too well and was bored with it. What was more shocking was that he did not see it as a spiritual issue at all! Then early in my ministry here in Homer I was having a conversation with one of Homer's long standing pastors who in a matter of fact attitude told me that 'we know that most Christians don't read their bibles.' He acted as if this lack of desire for the word was normal and really ok. The problem for all of us is not desire or lack of desire but desires for the wrong things! We desire all kinds of things and do not desire God. Is this ok? Is this normal? Peter does not think so.
Overview of passage: Peter commands us to long for the word because it will kills sinful desires and grow us into our salvation. Peter sees salvation as something future here.
Our Desperate Need for Spiritual Milk
The command to long for pure spiritual milk presupposes a need for spiritual milk, the word. Jesus demonstrated this need when he told the devil that 'man does not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.' There is something more fundamental than the need for food. If we do not eat within three or four hours, your body lets you know – your stomach growls, you become easily agitated, etc. It is so basic to our health that we identify a lack of appetite as a sign that something is wrong. He sees us as desperately needing the word and identifies the lack of strong desire as spiritually dangerous, even fatal. So he gives us several reasons why we desperately need the word. Every reason should stun us. First, the word is true (1:22) and the truth sets us free, it changes our thinking and our appetites. Second, the word is a seed (1:23) that generates life. Third, the word is the very word of the Lord (1:25). It is the transcribed words of God. Last, it is pure spiritual milk (2:2), the source of spiritual nourishment and growth.
Long for the Milk of the Word
Everyone of us are commanded to long, yearn for, thirst after, crave the word. Do you have strong desires for the word? Peter compares us to newborn babies. You don't have to tell a baby to desire their mothers milk. They will make it loud and clear that they want to be fed. They will nurse on demand if you let them. But nursing is not just for feeding; it is also for comfort and relational connection with the mother. When they lose their appetite we become alarmed, something must be wrong. Notice that he does not tell us to read the bible or study the bible, but something more basic, 'long for the pure spiritual milk.' Get desire. That is the same verb for lust in the bible. It means strong desires. The issue is not that we don't desire but that we desire the wrong things. We desire to hurt others, deceive others, to be somebody we are not, or make ourselves look good by talking about others (2:1). God commands us to do something that we cannot possibly do. Get desire. I don't know about you but I cannot create desire at will, desires are either there or not. Get desire is like telling a blind man to read a billboard or a lame man to fly. Why would God tell us to do something we cannot possibly do? Because God gives what he commands. For instance,
For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. (Psa 33:9 )
To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power. (2Th 1:11)
We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. (1Th 1:2-3)
John Bunyan, who wrote Pilgrims Progress, conveys this truth in a poem:
Run, John, run, the law commands but gives us neither feet nor hands,
Far better news the gospel brings: It bids us fly and gives us wings.
We are commanded to run, we have a duty to run though our legs are trapped in the cement of sin. So we trust that God gives the power to do what he commands. It is in that trusting that we make the decision to move. It is not moralism or legalism because we are acting in faith that God gives desires. So we pray that we would crave the word then we read the word, believing the desire will come. But it demands that we spend the necessary time reading, pondering, praying over the word for the word to do its work. If the word is powerful enough to cause you to be born again, to create life in us, it can create desires consistent with that new life. This command, like the previous ones we have seen is based upon the prior work of God. Long for the pure spiritual milk, if or better, since, you have tasted (past tense) the goodness of God, been saved by the word.
Word is the Means of Spiritual Growth
“Long for the pure spiritual milk that you may grow up into salvation.” The result of longing for the word is that we will grow into salvation. The word is the means of spiritual growth, spiritual strength and vitality. Goal of salvation is transformation into the image of Christ (Rom 8:28-30). Obedience, spiritual growth, persevering in the faith are not optional no matter how slow and painful. Look at 1:5, “who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ. Future salvation is promised but it will not come outside of transformation into the character of Christ, spiritual growth, or obedience to Christ. That is why he says long for pure spiritual milk. The word as seed begets new birth; the word as milk begets spiritual growth. It does this two ways – kills sinful desires (2:1) and creates new ones.
If you do not long for the word, if you are not in the word, then your heart is not well. You can be moral and appear religious but you are not fooling God. If you are a Christ follower, your faith will be like a pygmy, stunted, stale, cold, etc. Sin destroys our appetite for God and the word destroys our appetite for sin. This book kills sin but you have to spend time in it, study it, mediate on it, and read good books to help you understand it.
