“Though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.”— Hebrews 5:12-14
God likes food. One of His greatest gifts to us is the enjoyment of nourishment, physically and spiritually. The recent holidays are usually a time for celebrating and feasting!
Food and drink metaphors run throughout the Bible, from the moment Eve ate the apple. Fruit of the Spirit…the land of milk and honey…Jesus as the Bread of life…living water… new wine…the milk and strong meat of the Word are a few.
In the verse above, the writer distinguishes between “milk” and “meat,” solid food. Milk is predigested food for babies. You could have been teachers by now! the writer says. But you aren’t ready. You’re still living on milk and need someone to teach you meat.
The milk of the Word is defined here as “elementary truths of God’s Word.” Milk teaches us the basic facts of our faith: the life of Jesus. His birth, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. We never outgrow our need for “milk.”
But to mature as a believer is to grow into someone discerning and insightful, who understands good and evil, and can experience the fullness of God’s blessings. You need to move on to a daily diet of solid spiritual food. You need to grasp the more profound, living levels of understanding that God’s Word delivers and then incorporate those truths into daily life.
Milk is hearing about the life of Jesus. Meat is LIVING the life of Jesus.
Our spiritual “muscle” can only be developed by exercising God’s Word in our lives.
Make the study of God’s Word your steady diet this year. Go beyond the basics and dig in. Take in God’s Word, digest it, let it nourish your soul and spirit, and enjoy it for the rich, abundant, and altogether satisfying feast that it is!
“Let your soul delight itself in fatness”. —Isaiah 55:2
