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Faith by Debbie Wallis
"Like newborn babies, you crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good" Peter 2:2-3. The moment you receive Christ as your Savior, you were born again spiritually into God's family. Last week I wrote about the process of becoming a new believer in Jesus Christ; being born again spiritually. Just like a newborn baby requires the nourishment of milk for good development, a newborn Christian requires spiritual milk. Milk is used as a comparison in scripture because we all can relate to this one truth about a baby, they cannot chew real food and they need milk to develop. God designed a new born not ready for anything other than milk. They have to drink their nourishment drop by drop. Have you noticed the effort it takes a baby nursing or drinking a bottle? Sometimes they tire out and you have to wake them up to finish eating. A human baby and a spiritual baby’s maturity are similar. Human babies are fed by their parents and growth is natural. A baby Christian will grow as they read, obey and apply the Word of God to their life. But, just as a human baby cannot survive alone, born again Christians need a spiritually mature believer to help them; a spiritual parent in a since. If you leave an infant alone it will not survive. The survival of a new born Christian is comparable to that. “The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and
Monday, January 18, 2016 immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away.…” Matthew 13:2021. That is were discipleship and accountability is needed so the born again Christian can learn to understand the Bible. The Bible is not written in chronological order so as a baby Christian I would not start in Genesis and read through Revelations….you’ll be confused. Begin by reading one or all four of the gospels and then I would recommend Genesis. Genesis reveals God’s dealings with the nation of Israel and shows the origins of the people of God, deals with the fall of mankind and the consequences of disobedience. The New Testament is focused on Jesus Christ; it makes good sense for a new Christian to start reading the Bible with any of the four gospels. I love the Gospel of John. He emphasizes the love of God as found in Jesus. If you read the first chapter and first few verses of John, you’ll discover that it starts God’s plan for man even before the creation in Genesis One. The book of Mark is a great introduction to Jesus Christ, also. The gospel of Matthew is slightly more technical in the beginning and emphasizes the Jewish lineage of Jesus. Luke was a physician so he writes a little different than….say I do. Any of the four gospels would be a great place to start because they all point toward Jesus being the sole means of redemption and salvation. That’s the milk of the Bible. You have to believe and understand that first. As a baby grows into a toddler its diet needs to change to solid foods. If a toddler is still drinking a lot of milk, it’s appetite for the nourishment in food will be too small for the needs of its age. Our twin granddaughters were like that. They loved milk. Their parents had to withhold the milk until they would eat their solid food. Sometimes toddlers still want to be fed. At times it’s because they have been fed to long by their parent. Sometimes it’s more convenient or less of a mess for a parent just to hand feed their toddler. On occasions a toddler doesn’t like the feel of the food on their hands and wants the parent to hand feed them. Sometimes it’s the parent having a hard time allowing the baby to grow up. Yet, sometimes the toddler may not have the self-control to feed itself yet, it’s developing a little slower. A new born Christian can have the same issues. They may be depending on their spiritual parent
or the spiritual parent may have a hard time letting go. Discipleship is age appropriate as the new Christian matures. A toddler has to eat real food with the nourishment that’s necessary to develop correctly and grow. A toddler has to gain the strength to stand alone to be able to walk. There are Christians who have been saved many years, but spiritually they are still babies living on milk or someone else to feed them. They can’t understand the deeper truths of the Word of God. Don’t be in a hurry when you’re reading your Bible. Stop and think on the words and pray for the Holy Spirit to open up the meanings and understanding of the Bible. It is God the Father that reveals spiritual knowledge through the Holy Spirit and He reveals these truths to those who He has called to salvation. I suggest that you repeat the four gospels at this point because you can never go wrong with the very teaching of Jesus Christ Himself. Then as a toddler…venture out. The Bible is composed of 66 books written by 40 authors and it all leads you to the Truth that saved you. Jesus Christ is Lord. I pray you make Him Lord over your everyday
Page #8 choices. If you are a new believer in Jesus Christ please get connected in a Bible teaching church. But…you cannot eat just once a week. Get connected with a regular Bible Read and study the bible everyday. Find a spiritually mature Christian who can answer questions and encourage you. There are many good apps for your phone or books on reading the Bible in a year. Stay in the Truth of the Bible so you will grow and mature healthy spiritually. Last week was part one of a series on Spiritual growth. Step by step we will learn the comparisons of being Born Again to growing in Wisdom. Next week it’s all about the teen years. If you do not have a bible, please contact me at sfadebbie@yahoo.com and I will provide you one.
