Altar Call – Opelika-Auburn News
Walter Albritton
May 3, 2015
Moving from milk to solid food
A loving parent,
exasperated with the childish behavior of a lazy teenager, finally said with
disgust, “It’s time for you to grow up!” Those who have raised children
understand that frustration.
Wise parents recognize that
the transition from childhood to adulthood is never easy, yet they long for
their children to “grow up.” They want to hear their kids say what Saint Paul
said in his famous letter to the Corinthians: “When I was a child, I talked
like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a
man, I put childish ways behind me.”
Biblical writers remind us
that “baby” Christians need to grow up also. For example, the writer of the
Book of Hebrews sounds at one point like a parent talking to a child when he
discusses milk and solid food.
In one translation (The Message) the writer says bluntly, “By this time you ought to be teachers yourselves, yet here I
find you need someone to sit down with you and go over the basics on God again,
starting from square one—baby’s milk, when you should have been on solid food
long ago! Milk is for beginners, inexperienced in God’s ways; solid food is for
the mature, who have some practice in telling right from wrong.”
Christians stunt their
growth by remaining satisfied with the milk of the gospel. Some believers
remain infants in the faith because they want only a little Bible now and then
and a little worship now and then. Maturity never comes until believers move
from milk to the “meat” of the gospel.”
The
elementary truths about Christ are the milk. The deeper truths of the faith are
the meat. When our boys were infants, they were satisfied with a bottle of milk
or applesauce. As they matured, they began to eat solid food. It would have
been tragic for them to grow up content with the food of infants.
This,
regrettably, is the predicament of many Christians who have settled for
immaturity instead of striving for spiritual maturity. They prefer to stay in
the kindergarten of faith, drinking milk, rather than do the hard work
necessary to become mature, well-informed disciples of
Christ. Such lethargy can be found in many adult Sunday School
classes; lesson quarterlies are often studied by no one but the teacher.
The
Hebrew Christians were reprimanded for remaining students when, by now, they
should have become teachers. The writer uses “teachers” in a broad sense for he
means much more than persons who teach others in a classroom. He wants growing
Christians to teach by moral example and by a lifestyle like that of Christ.
Spiritual
immaturity results in spiritual dullness. Mediocrity can retard our growth,
causing us to live like babes in Christ rather than like men and women who are maturing
by probing the deeper truths of faith. To discern between good and
evil, believers must learn to wrestle with greater issues than the ABCs of the
faith.
The
writer of Hebrews warns Christians not to retreat to Judaism but allow the
Spirit to lead them into genuine, mature faith. He warns them of the grave
danger of being cut off from God’s mercy if, having “tasted the goodness of the
word of God,” they “fall away.” Those who reject Christ are certain to face the
judgment of God and miss the eternal reward reserved for the faithful.
He
affirms the Christians, complimenting them for their good work and “labor of
love.” He expresses confidence that God will not forget their service to him.
Therefore, he pleads, be diligent and persevere in the faith. He issues a
clarion call to be intentional about growing in the faith so that they may
realize their full potential as servants of Christ. His admonition to the
Hebrew Christians reminds us of Saint Paul’s warning to the Galatians:
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the
proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (6:9).
The
Book of Hebrews can be a wake-up call – to resist the temptation to rest on our
laurels and be content with our spiritual maturity. We must not surrender to
lethargy that settles for mediocrity. We must grab ourselves by the nap of the
neck and plead with the Holy Spirit for a fresh anointing that can propel us
toward full maturity in Christ. To settle for less will be a disgrace to the
One who bought us with his own blood.
Those
who persevere in seeking a deeper walk with Christ may one day say with Paul, “I
have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I
have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day.” (2 Timothy
4:7-8).
The
sad alternative is to stay in the crib with the other babies who are satisfied
to drink milk. + + +