| | WHAT DO WE HAVE TO EAT?
. As far back as I can remember mature Christians around me
have talked about sermons as MILK or MEAT. I don't remember ever
asking any of them what they mean by these terms, so I can say
only what I think they mean by them. By milk I think they mean a
clear , easy account of the basic Christian faith - how
Christians can be set right with God and how they can work
towards holiness. By meat I think they mean a rigorous
examination of the subtle doctrines and mysteries of theology.
. They seem to think that each diet has its place. Milk is
all right for anybody, but it is especially for people whose
mental grasp of Christianity is shallow. Meat is for people with
better training and more inquiring minds. Milk is likely to
soften disagreements between Christians and to play down
distinctions between doctrine. Meat, on the other hand, is apt
to emphasize these differences and to trace their implications
through obscure issues. This, I think is what people mean by
milk and meat.
MILK AND MEAT IN HEBREWS
. This milk and meat talk comes from the Bible. The last four
verses of Hebrews 5 say, "We have much to say about this [the
priesthood of Christ], but it is hard to explain, because you are
to slow to learn. ...You need milk, being still an infant, not
acquainted with the teaching of righteousness. But solid food is
for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to
distinguish good from evil."
. This sounds at first like what I described earlier. When we
look a bit further though, we find a big difference. Hebrews 6:
1-8 points out that what makes milk MILK is not that it is easier
to understand, but that it must come from our Christian growth.
Certain people have to be on it for a long time, not because they
can't understand meaty teachings, but because they haven't put
the first teachings into practice yet. They are spiritually lazy
and proud, consequently they are in danger of falling away
altogether.
. So, too, the solid food of Christian wisdom is not for the
intelligent. Rather, its for persons who persistently deny
themselves and follow Christ's example of loving service to
others. The mature are those "who by constant use have trained
themselves to distinguish god from evil." The kind of food we
need depends not on what we can understand, but on how we live.
MILK AND MEAT IN 1 CORINTHIANS
. The Bible says more about milk and meat. In 1 Corinthians
3:2-3, Paul writes, "I gave you milk, not solid food, for you
were not ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are
still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among
you, are you not worldly?"
. A meaty sermon, accordingly to the notion first outlined
here, might very likely accent differences between Christians.
According to this notion, Christians who eat solid food are those
who are zealous for doctrinal distinctiveness and wary of
cooperating with other kinds of Christians. According to the
Bible, though, these Christians are fooling themselves. They
aren't ready for solid food; they need milk.
. The Greek word translated as jealousy in verse three points
to a partisan zeal at the expense of the larger Christian
fellowship. This kind of zeal is not a mark of Christian
maturity, but of spiritual childishness. We should all try to
become sensitive to doctrinal purity and to doctrinal error, but
we must work our doctrinal sensitivity into a full-grown, healthy
Christian personality. Otherwise we will wind up fighting with
each other, suspecting each other of evil purposes, and finding
it hard even to talk to one another.
. Try to remember 1 Corinthians 3 as you work out problems in
your spiritual growth and relationships with other Christians
that are different from you.
Written by: James l. Vandernlau
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