How Do Believers Grow According to 1 Peter 2:2?

     Don't confuse spiritual growth with learning more Bible knowledge.  They're not the same.   Peter 2:2 shows us that spiritual growth comes from eating and drinking just like our human growth.

As newborn babes long for the guileless milk of the word, that by it you may grow unto salvation. 1 Peter 2:2



Ebey's Landing in December

     I really liked this excerpt on page 128-120 of chapter 15 of the Life-Study of 1 Peter because it shows the difference:

"We received the divine life through regeneration, and we need to grow in this life and with this life by being nourished with the milk received in the word of God....Many Christians think that to grow is to gain more knowledge....However, he may not hear a word that helps him to realize that through regeneration he has received the divine life and that now he needs to grow in life. He may only be helped to learn the stories in the Gospels and then the stories in the Old Testament.  Gradually, he may pick up more Bible knowledge and some may regard this as growth.  This concept of growth, however, is altogether contrary to that in the New Testament. According to the New Testament growth is the genuine increase in the measure of life. Knowledge does not help us to increase in the measure of life" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of 1 Peter. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry. 1982, Print). 

      After that Witness Lee points out that it is only through gradually receiving healthy nourishment over many years that a 6 pound infant can grow to be 180 pounds! Think about it.  God has really given us an excellent picture of what spiritual growth looks like. No mother would be so foolish as to just read menus to her kids or show them pictures of food.  Every mother is an expert in preparing nutritious meals for her children.  I felt this chapter was  calling me  to just come to God's word and get nourished. 

      Another amazing point that he brings out in this chapter is there's divine antibiotics in this spiritual milk!  I learned here that Peter uses the phrase guileless milk because it counteracts the guile that's in my fallen nature in the same way that a healthy immune system continually destroys cancerous cells in our bodies. 

I like to listen to the Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee while I'm cooking or typing. You can listen to live excerpts of these messages that were given in 1982 along with some outstanding commentary. 

What is the Sanctification of the Spirit in 1 Peter 1:2?
What is Obedience to the Truth in 1 Peter 1:22?
How Do Believers Grow According to 1 Peter 2:2?
How Does God Get the Living Stones in 1 Peter 2:5?
What Does 1 Peter 4:1-2 Say About Sufferings?
Why Does 1 Peter 4:17 Talk About God's Judgment?
What Does Partaking of the Divine Nature Mean in 2 Peter 1:4?
How Does the Prophetic Word in 2 Peter 1:19 Prepare Us For the Lord's Coming?

Other Posts on Spiritual Growth:

From the Collected Works of Witness Lee
What Causes the Seed to Grow in the Parable in Matthew 13?

From the Life-Study of Colossians
What Does Colossians 2:7 Say About Spiritual Growth?
What is the Goal of Spiritual Growth in Colossians 2:9?

From the Life-Study of James
How Spiritual Growth is Connected to the Lord's Coming in James 5:7-8