One of the fun things to watch as a new baby develops is the progression in their diet. We have two grandchildren who are currently in that stage. Watching them eat squash, bananas, or sour fruit for the very first time is fascinating and hilarious. The look on their faces and the recognition that “this is good” is so entertaining.
It has always amazed me how God designed a mother’s milk to provide all the nourishment necessary for a child to grow—to a point! For there comes a time to move from milk to solid food.
No wonder God has used this very process—moving from milk to solid food—to describe our spiritual nourishment and growth.
“For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil” (Hebrews 5:12-14).
The Hebrews author describes the process of a Christian growing in godliness through God’s Word, much as we have seen in 1 Timothy 4:6, where we are to “discipline ourselves for the purpose of godliness.” Hebrews 5:12-14 likens this same process of growth in godliness to a person growing from infancy to adulthood. In fact, the word "discipline" in 1 Timothy 4:6 (from which we get the word gymnasium) is the same word used here as “trained to discern good and evil.”
We see how an infant naturally progresses from milk to solid food. When that doesn’t happen, something is terribly wrong. It would be disastrous for a baby, and it is disastrous for the Christian, as well. This is applied to our growth and development as mature Christians. The natural order of spiritual nourishment and development is that one moves from milk to solid food, from something basic to more meaty food.
Early on, a child can only tolerate her mother’s milk. In time, as she is nourished, she naturally progresses to solid food. With this more substantial nourishment of solid food, the baby grows and matures and eventually becomes an adult.
Analogous to the Christian life, we need baby food when we are babes in Christ. We need the simple milk of the Word. In time, that nourishment causes us to grow and mature. How does one become mature, and how does one move on to spiritual adulthood? It is not through passivity but through an active involvement in exercising God’s Word as we take in its nourishment.
We are not passive in this process; that is, just eating. We are to “practice” the Word of God, that is, to obey it, to live it. This is the process of growing in godliness. “Solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.”
When we practice God’s Word, our senses are trained, or disciplined to know right and wrong, good and evil, ungodliness and godliness, and the same Word empowers us to choose obedience accordingly. But keep in mind that the nourishment is in the food, not in the technique of eating. We don’t think that someone is excellent at the mechanics of eating—“they’re a great chewer and swallower!” No, all the nourishment is in the food.
And so it is with the nourishment that comes through God’s Word. The nourishment is in the food, not in the act of eating. In the Scriptures, feeding on God’s Word goes beyond simply reading it. Jesus said, “Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Feeding on God’s Word means much more than the mechanics of reading it. We are to take it into our souls and digest it so that it becomes part of our lives, understanding that we cannot live independently of it. It changes us because it is part of us as we live by His every Word.
We see two things at work then: the supernatural Word of God and our obedience to it. We must eat. But we also must practice the Word. We don’t become godly just by reading the Bible or carrying one to church. It must nourish us as our senses are trained/disciplined by its practice.
We should pray and seek that godliness becomes a natural feature of our lives, not some technique we employ. 19th Century churchman Richard Whately said, “Honesty is the best policy; but he who is governed by that maxim is not an honest man.” We don’t want just to practice honesty; we want to be honest. We don’t want just to do godly things; we want to become godly people in our very being.
So, how about your spiritual diet? What are you feeding on and living on these days? Do you live on a steady diet of social media or cable news? Is it romance novels or gaming? Honestly, how does the intake into your heart and mind stack up with your spiritual nourishment?
Maybe it’s time to move on from the milk, the strained squash, and mashed bananas to a meatier spiritual diet. Baby food is too easy. The solid food of God’s Word can and will change you from infancy to adulthood as you practice it and are trained for the purpose of godliness.