“Our Daily Bread”   

http://odb.org/2012/10/25/a-fresh-glimpse-of-glory/

The Daily Devotions of Greg Laurie                                  

http://www.harvest.org/devotional/daily-devotions/home.ht

1 Peter 2:1-3… Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, ² as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, ³ if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.  (NKJV)

I have spent the last couple of days explaining why the Bible will be a mystery to those that are not Christians; and still hard to totally understand by Christians who are not filled with the Holy Spirit… This is because God reveals the hidden wisdom in His Word through the Holy Spirit, given to the unredeemed sinner at the moment they become a Christian in God’s eyes…1 Corinthians 2:7-10…

I also spent a day, writing about how someone becomes a Christian in God’s eyes to begin with, titled… “God’s Grace through Obedience to the Gospel of Christ”… Anyone who is not familiar with the gospel of Jesus Christ, and who has therefore not obeyed this prerequisite to becoming a Christian in God’s eyes, I would urge to open the following link and learn what God tells us in the Bible is required to become one of His redeemed children… https://godsmanforever.wordpress.com/2012/10/20/gods-group-thoughts-for-10202012-gods-grace-through-obedience-to-the-gospel-of-christ/

Once a person has been forgiven of their sins by God, through establishing a personal relationship with Jesus Christ…they have been given salvation by God through saving faith alone in Jesus Christ… They have been blessed with this free gift of grace, and have indeed…“tasted that the Lord is gracious.”

But the new Christian cannot just stop there, once God has received them into His family…  They have been sanctified (set apart) by God from Satan, and his world of sin and shame…  But the Christian is by no means complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)…  They are only “newborn babes” in Christ; and need to grow in their spiritual knowledge and wisdom God will provide them through reading and absorbing the truth found in Bible…

Just like new born babies need to eventually go from drinking milk, to eating solid food (meat)…so the Christian must be continually fed spiritually by God’s Word, in order to grow closer to God…and to become more “Christ like” in the lifelong process called sanctification…

Jesus tells Satan (and us) this, in…Matthew 4:4… But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”  (NKJV)  

Christians that spend little or no time in the Bible, will not grow in their spiritual wisdom… Living for the Lord is a 7 day a week, every waking moment responsibility… Christians that go to church once a week, believing they have satisfied their weekly obligations (or those Christians who don’t even bother with church), and who don’t spend much time in their Bible, likely be spiritually immature…

The writer of Hebrews was writing to Christians who were not past the “newborn babes” in Christ stage, in this scripture…Hebrews 5:12-14…  For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. ¹³ For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. ¹⁴ But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.  (NKJV)

The Apostle Paul speaks about this solid food as meat, when he writes to the brethren in the church at Corinth; and tells them they are still babes in Christ, and carnal Christians…1 Corinthians 3:1-3… (Christians living in the sins of the flesh)… Without spending time in God’s Word to grow in spiritual wisdom; the immature Christian will never learn what God will reveal to the Christian to help strengthen and equip them for combat against Satan, and the temptations of sin… Read…Ephesians 6:10-20…about God’s spiritual armor… http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Eph6:10-20&version=NKJV

Once again, this hallmark piece of scripture written by the Apostle Paul, sums up in two verses what spending time faithfully in God’s Word will do for the Christian who is striving to become complete, to do the work God has called all Christians to do… 2 Timothy 3:16-17…  All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, ¹⁷ that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.  (NKJV)

Heavenly Father Your Word is the spiritual food that all Christians should be feeding upon to grow closer to You…  Give all of Your children the urge to “desire the pure milk of the word”, so as to grow in their spiritual wisdom, and understand why they should be obedient to Your will and Your ways…  I pray for this sanctification for all of Your children, in Jesus’ most precious name and for His sake…Amen…

written by bruce r mills