"(1)Therefore, laying aside all malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and all evil speaking, (2) as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the Word that you may grow thereby."
I Peter 2:1-2 NKJV
Here, Peter is addressing new Christians - babes. However, it does us all good to re-evaluate our walk with God so that we can check how we are doing; rather like we may visit the surgery for a health check, we often need a spiritual check too. You see, we belong to Jesus, we were Made in Heaven and we carry Jesus' DNA. We no longer belong to this world. Therefore, we need to act in such a way that demonstrates this.
Let's take a look at Peter's check list:
MALICE This is a desire to harm others. We may feel that we don't have this in our thinking; but what about when someone has seriously hurt us; are we tempted to enjoy their suffering? 'They got what was coming to them', type of thing. Where is the forgiveness in this?
DECEIT This misleads and tricks people. It is pseudo, in other words false. It should never be in us. But have there been times when we have led people to think what we are not?
ENVY Wanting what others have, even to the point of feeling jealous about this. Many marriages can be at risk by meeting up with someone who falls into this category.
HYPOCRISY Again, this is false, making out you do when you don't. It has a form of godliness but misses the mark so much and has the ability to hoodwink people and draw them away.
EVIL SPEAKING This consists of slander, gossip, criticising, judging and generally speaking what a Christian should never speak. Praising God one moment and cursing the next.
All of us can be accused of being this way every now and again, whether a baby Christian or a seasoned one. Therefore, we should all desire that pure milk of the Word. We would never take a very young baby out for a steak dinner, so likewise, we should never try to run before we can walk. We need to learn to grow in the Lord.
One way that we can do this is to look at three ways that can help us:
ATTITUDE We need to train our attitudes to come in line with Jesus' attitude. He was never rude to people, firm yes, but He was never aggressive. Some people can be very difficult; but think, so can we.
APPETITE What do we feed on - TV, Films or Reality shows? Or do we read our bibles or a good Christian book. There is nothing wrong with watching TV or Films, although we do need to be selective. However, we need to get the balance right. Feed on what will encourage and help growth.
AIM So decide what your target for 2021 is. Despite the Lockdown you can still be productive. You are a unique person, chosen by God to shake the part of the world where you reside.
Let your motto be: GROW, GO AND SOW
Copyriight 2020 Grahame Howard
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