This is a Bible

Introduction

In July 1961, Vince Lombardi kicked off the first day of training camp for the players on his Green Bay Packers football team. The prior season had ended in a heartbreaking loss to the Philadelphia Eagles after blowing a lead in the 4th quarter of, what was then called, the NFL Championship Game (the later equivalent being the Super Bowl).

When the players came in to start training camp, they expected to immediately begin where they left off and work on ways to advance their game and learn fancy new ways to win the championship in the new season. When they sat down and began, Vince Lombardi held up a football and said, “Gentlemen, this is a football!”

He then had everyone open up their playbooks and start on page one, where they began to learn the fundamentals – blocking, tackling, throwing, catching, etc. That was clearly not what they expected as players who were at the top of their game.

While I enjoy the game of football, it, in and of itself, is rather insignificant. However, the parallel of our world and the sport is quite undeniable. Their battle was for their own fame and glory and possibly a spot in the history books, while the battle that we face is much more dire and important. The consequences go far beyond the lack of a ring and a trophy: it is the very life of those we know and love. We are in the midst of what could be seen as a cultural loss. What was once considered to be mental illness is rampantly celebrated as “identity” and protected and affirmed, rather than treated. The outside world looks bleak and, from a certain perspective, it can seem as if the church has “lost” the battle.

For us, faithful attenders on a Wednesday night service, serving in the church, preparing meals, and holding offices, it is easy to feel as if we are beyond the “basics” of discipleship; beyond the basics of Christianity. But as we will look at this evening, and into next week, there is an ever-growing need in todays society and in the church for us to get back to the “basics” of our doctrine and belief: to understand how to win the battle set before us.

So as we start tonight, allow me to simply state with all respect and deference to your years of service and dedication to the Lord and His church: Ladies and Gentlemen, This is a Bible. Contained herein are the words of God that lead to life everlasting and hope eternal. And if you will but bear with me a moment, we will begin to look at some fundamental truths from Peter’s first epistle:

Please turn with me to 1 Peter 2:1 we are going to read through verse 12 tonight, but will break this up into two sessions.

1 Peter 2:1-12 -

To understand the context of this passage, it is important to know that Peter was writing to a group of believers during the time of great persecution. The emperor Nero famously, or rather infamously, was known for burning Christians as torches for his gardens and other atrocities. So it should be no surprise that the believers Peter is writing to here are scattered and considered “resident aliens” or refugees. As such, the audience of this epistle would be in the midst of cultural turmoil.

In the world around them, the emperor cult was the religion of the day, deifying the emperor and holding the expectation that all within its empire would do the same. Christians, however and rightfully so, viewed Jesus as Lord and would not bend to the cultural pressures and expectations; causing them much grief and persecution. Their neighbors did not understand them and often lobbed false accusations and misinterpretations of their practices and behaviors. They would have been considered intolerant, unaffirming of Roman culture, and possibly dangerous to the society at large (in fact, Nero, because of the widespread dislike of Christians, used Christians as a scapegoat, blaming them for the buring of sections of Rome to hide his own involvement).

It is to this group of people, in this situation, that Peter, through the power and leading of the Holy Spirit, is writing to encourage and to bring hope. And, I believe, this same letter is to and for us today, in the midst of our own cultural battle, as strangers and aliens in this world that we live in. It is a call, a reminder of the basics of our faith, the fundamental purpose and calling in which we are called to Christ. The playbook that we must study, starting at page one.

The call to return to the basics is for all believers

Peter was not writing to new converts 1 Peter 1:1-3

While surely there were new converts who were among the dispersion group in these areas, Peter’s address is effective for all.

1 Peter 1:1–3 ESV

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

This letter was to be dispersed between several churches throughout the region of Asia minor, churches that were most likely started by Paul, as an encouragement to the believers who had been experiencing persecution.

The testimony of their faith proves they were not weak believers. 1 Peter 1:6-9

1 Peter 1:6–9 ESV

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

The believers in these churches had stood the test and had faith through the power of the Holy Spirit, not because they had seen Christ, but because they had been called, drawn to Christ by the Spirit, and Sanctified by the Spirit of God and the working out of their faith through tribulation. Many of these churches were most likely established by Paul on his missionary journeys, so they would have been familiar with his writing and his encouragements. And Paul, as well as Peter, through his acknowledgements here, had taught them that…

True faith will be tested:

My mentor and former pastor in North Georgia, Darey Kittle, used to say: “You are either in collision with the devil, or you are in collusion with him.” What he meant was the same thing that Paul tells Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:12 that “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,” (talking specifically about the persecution that Paul, himself, has experienced in similar regions of Asia Minor where these churches we are discussing are). Here, Paul expresses that that the work of faith will bring you at direct odds with the world. 2 Timothy 3:12

2 Timothy 3:12 ESV

Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,

That doesn’t mean that you will live, necessarily, or that you have been called, necessarily, to a life of constant non-stop persecution, but it does mean that if you NEVER face any type of persecution, if there is no resistance to your walk and witness in the faith, you may want to check to see if you are swimming upstream against the flow of the enemy or downstream along with him. Because walking in faith, living out the faith, is an affront to everything the world and culture holds dear. It might mean that your faith, having not been tested, is in danger of being weak.

Look at 1 Corinthians 3:13 “each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.”

1 Corinthians 3:13 ESV

each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.

It is through trials and persecution that the state of our faith is truly revealed.

Faith that is never practiced is merely theoretical, not practical.

The apostles were taken in, threatened with their life, beaten and threatened again in Acts 5, but yet, when they were released, what did they do? Acts 5:40-42

Acts 5:40–42 ESV

and when they had called in the apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.

Persecution was a badge of honor to the apostles. It was the evidence that what they were doing for the Lord was fruitful, it mattered, and more importantly, it was impacting the kingdom.

The Book of James tells us that “Faith without works is dead!” It doesn’t exist! If you are not working, there is no faith! If you are working, and you have faith, back to 2 Timothy 3:12 “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,” you will, at some time, face some sort of opposition. And when you do, that faith becomes practical, you aren’t just talking about having it, you aren’t assuming it works, you know! There is proof! You have the scars, so to speak, to attest that you have been found faithful to be true and solid!

So Peter wasn’t writing to untested, untempered believers. No, he understood that these believers were in the midst of a battle and that they needed encouragement.

Peter was writing to fellow soldiers:

This was the same Peter who confessed that Jesus was Lord, only to betray him three times after the trial. The same Peter who asked Jesus to call him out to walk on the water, took his eyes off Jesus, and began to sink. The same Peter who, sitting with the resurrected Jesus, couldn’t bring himself to say that he loved Jesus the way Jesus desires for us to love him, with unconditional, Agape’ love, but would only capitulate to loving him as a friend, Phileo. This same Peter knew the difference between theoretical faith, a faith that knows the answers, and practical faith, a faith that is lived out, unashamedly in the midst of a culture that despises everything he stood for. And so, also, this is the same Peter, who on the day of Pentecost preached and thousands were added to the church. This same Peter arrested with the disciples, stood before the Sadducees and Pharisees in Acts 5 and boldly proclaimed to them, Acts 5:29–31 “…We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.” enraging them to the point of wanting to kill them all.

Acts 5:29–31 ESV

But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.

Peter’s faith became his practice. It was practical: real. Tangible and actionable. So it is with that understanding, and that history, that Peter is addressing these believers. The commonality of faith between them. The understanding of the concept and very real threat of persecution and death that faced them. It is the lived-out portion of their faith from which he is appealing to them.

Going back to the basics is not simply for those new to the faith, it is for all believers at all times, at the height of their game, professionals and newcomers alike! No one is above the basics. So this call is for all believers.

The call to return to the basics is for all parts of our life

Peter’s tone here shifts somewhat to a challenge in the midst of his encouragement. He goes from talking about love and their calling to almost scolding them and questioning them in this first part of Chapter 2:

1 Peter 2:1–3 “So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.”

1 Peter 2:1–3 ESV

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

It is akin to someone saying “You are what you eat”. The truth of that statement is that:

What you consume affects how you develop. You cannot be unaffected by the world you surround yourself with. It will mold you and shape you, despite what you might think.

The world has a distorted diet:

Dirt Track story - I was raised in the North Georgia mountains, just to the right of the Alabama/Georgia border, so you can imagine that my friends were quite an eclectic group of people who’s necks varied in their shade of red. Being from California originally I hadn’t experienced to joys of what many of my friends took for granted. One of those joys was dirt track nascar style racing. A friend of mine invited me to go with him and his family to their usual weekend outing to the dirt track to watch the race and see the cars. Because I had never been, I was curious so I got permission and loaded up and visited my first dirt track. When we got there it was filled with what you might expect at a venue like that, just maybe cranked up a notch or two. I didn’t have much interest in cars or watching them drive in a circle, so I walked around with my buddy visiting the vendors and showcases that were just behind the stands. While we were there, we heard the ambulance from the middle of the track kick on its siren and looked through the spaces in the bleachers to see it pulling across the track toward where we were. We also heard a bit of commotion coming from the stands. We thought there had been a wreck…no, in fact the race never missed a beat, they just kept on driving. No, the commotion was from someone in the stands, a young lady who, for whatever reason, thought that a dirt track race at 9 months pregnant was exactly what she needed. Apparently, her baby thought so too and was anxious to join in on the fun. Yep, she went into labor AT the dirt track. My buddy Brent and I just happened to be standing right near where the ambulance pulled up. Two EMT’s jumped out, grabbed the stretcher and met the woman and her family, and began wheeling her toward the ambulance near where we were standing. To say this woman was hysterical would be an understatement. She was cursing and hollering and as she approached where we were I heard her say, “I need a cigarette! Somebody give me a cigarette!” Without missing a beat, one of the EMT’s said, “Ma’am, if you smoke that cigarette this baby is going to be born toothless and naked as a jay bird!” To which the woman went [GASP]!

While the EMT’s instruction may have been a clever tactic to get her to calm down or at least forget about smoking, we all know that nutrition for unborn babies is extremely important. What the mother takes in has a direct effect on the child and its development. In the context of this passage, the world is consistently feeding people all that we see in 1 Peter 2:1 and more. It’s malnourishing people because it is feeding them the works of the flesh. In fact, it is the only diet that the world lives on! Galatians 5:19-21

Galatians 5:19–21 ESV

Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Here, Peter is telling these scattered believers to put these things away! These are not the things that nourish our salvation. These are the food of the malnourished masses, lost and craving the things that are unhealthy for their growth and survival. But these things are not to be named among believers! Peter is telling them to leave these things behind, to do away with them. Romans 8:13

Romans 8:13 ESV

For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

And Colossians 3:5

Colossians 3:5 ESV

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

The mortification, putting to death, the works of the flesh, the things that are natural to us in this world, is an essential doctrine and an important part of our maturity, or sanctification, process in the Spirit. What Peter, and also Paul, in these verses is telling the scattered, persecuted believers is “Don’t give up! Don’t blend in with the world around you to hide or make it easy on yourselves!” What you eat, what you take in, what you surround yourself with, whatever your steady diet is will have a direct impact on how you develop as a believer and what you become in the faith! Nobody wants to be sickly and anemic in their walk with Christ, at least, borrowing from Peter’s epistle here, not if they have tasted that the Lord is good!! Never are we told to capitulate to the world and its destructive diet of sin.

Rather we are called to put away, mortify, those things in our life and put on the fullness of Christ no matter what the world around us says, does, or doesn’t do.

Look at the list that Peter gives here: 1 Peter 2:1

1 Peter 2:1 ESV

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.

Malice: Doing something with evil intent

Deceit: Trickery or falsehood intended to deceive.

Hypocrisy: Saying you believe one way and doing another.

Envy: Jealousy of not having or enjoying something that someone else has.

Slander: talking bad about someone, specifically with the intent of damaging them or their reputation.

This same list can be found in a multitude of places as warnings and judgements! The world denies God and defies God even though God has given them everything they need to find Him, to acknowledge him. Yet, they still feed people destructive garbage and label it as entertainment, as harmless fun, all while slapping each other on the back and giving each other awards for it as they watch the world slowly, or maybe not so slowly, descend into the pits of hell! Look at Romans 1:18-32 and tell me if this doesn’t sound like the world we live in today:

Romans 1:18–32 (ESV)

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.

Peter is telling the believers here that they cannot bow down to a culture who is bent on their destruction, who are bound for punishment, nor can they, in any sense, for any reason become hypocrites by giving approval to those who practice such unrighteousness!

Do not be fooled: no manner of coddling, no manner of coercing, no manner of condoning will ever result in the sanctification of the lost.

It is a lie, it is a lie, it is a lie! The world wants you to weaken your position, to sacrifice your convictions, and downplay your dedication only to use it as an excuse to deny Christ when you give over to their whims.

Dear friend, if they will not hear the word of God in truth and love, no ounce of condoning their sin will unclog their ears or open their heart. Don’t fall for that trap.

Sin is never diminished, excused, or absolved through situation, intent, or context.

It cannot be rationalized or bargained with.

Sin is an affront to God and has no place in the life of believers who have the Holy Spirit of God living and working inside them.

Those congregations of people, I refuse to call a church, who have capitulated to this world are exactly what Paul, in Romans, and Peter, here in this passage, are warning against. They are a direct result of a mindset that says it is okay to be friends with the world. We can “win” them if we accept them. “They won’t hear us if we preach the word because it makes them uncomfortable”, Let me assure you, they won’t hear you if you don’t preach the word because you aren’t saying anything of value! There’s nothing to hear! The word of God makes people uncomfortable by design! Why? Because we are sinners in need of a savior. It goes against our very nature! It rubs our sin the wrong way. We don’t like it because we know it’s true! Don’t think for a minute that those people who are so against the church don’t know that it is true because if they didn’t think there was truth to it somewhere down deep inside why would it matter? What would they care? It is precisely because they know it to be true and they don’t want to face it that there is such vitriol against anyone who stands on God word and proclaims it!

The world cannot manufacture anything that has any positive affect on spiritual growth!

Only God through His word can! Some things of the world might taste good at first but they are a ruination to our body! They cannot give any substitute that will provide the sustenance that we need:

The Lord has divine diet.

Only the Lord provides all we need for Spiritual nourishment and growth 1 Peter 2:2-3

1 Peter 2:2–3 ESV

Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

God provides for us all that we need through His word.

Peter here is encouraging the believers that instead of what the world provides, they, and we, should be hungering after that which provides us the most and best benefit in our walk with Christ, the Word of God.

Desire for the word is an indication of life

While it is not the sole indicator, it has been well said that “Dead men don’t eat”. If you have been saved by God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, your desire is toward the word of God.

See here that Peter did not say to preach, teach, or hide, or study the word. No, he is starting at the very basic part of our faith.

The preaching, teaching, studying, and hiding of the word are commanded in scripture, and we should do that, but, you cannot teach, preach, study, or even hide the word if you don’t first have a desire for the word!

Newborn babies primary desire is for food! They want nourishment. They need healthy milk to help them grow! We too, like babies, need to desire, to crave the word.

We need food, but we nosh on junk

The main reason we see unhealthy churches, backslidden ‘christians’, and sour-faced saints is because instead of feasting on and relying upon the pure and sincere milk of the word they have been feeding themselves with junk-food the world provides.

Junk food isn’t always as obvious as it should be

Some junk food is very obvious. it’s the list that Peter gives us in the previous verse and tells us to put away.

We know what the junk food is full of, but we still keep going back to the store and buying it. We know that it is bad for us, but we still want it.

Our problem isn’t that we don’t know it’s bad for us, the problem is that we don’t care that it is bad for us. We excuse it as a “guilty pleasure” or an escape, when all we are doing is becoming sluggish and callous toward the true, spiritual food provided to us through the word. Guard yourselves from that! Put it away from you, don’t let those things be named of you.

In comparison, that should be the easy part. We know these things are bad, we know we are told to stay away from that. Okay, got that. can do.

But some junk food is cleverly disguised as good stuff.

Have you ever looked at protein bars? The healthy food isle stuff? Read the backs of some of them. some of them are worse than regular junk food! the same is true with some things that masquerade as Christian material. It looks sanctified, it might even use scripture, but the concepts and doctrines taught in them are deadly and dangerous! The only value they have is for self-gratification and ego-boosting. I’m okay, you’re okay! There is nothing of substance in them!

The obvious question you might be asking is “How do you know the difference?” The answer: by devouring the word of God. By desiring the sincere milk of the word! When you’ve tasted truly good food, everything else begins to lose its appeal. You are no longer satisfied with TV dinners when you’ve been fed tender juicy steak. That may be a poor analogy for some, but the basic truth is that once you feed on the word of God as a steady diet, no other “food” will satisfy you quite the same.

It is said that the best way to mess up your theology is to read the Bible. While that is said very tongue in cheek, the truth is that heresy like the prosperity gospel and the health and wealth gospel exist because people who claim the name of Christ do not actually read the word of God and have abdicated their desire for the word to those who see the word as a means to selfish gain. For true believers, those truly called and sanctified in Christ, this should not be named among us. 1 John 4:1-6

1 John 4:1–6 ESV

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

The only way to know the spirit of error is to know the Spirit of Truth. My first job in Florida was back in the early 90’s. I got an opportunity to work for Sea World selling frozen lemonade. During staff training we had a section on money handling where they handed each and every one of us a $20 bill. Score! Already getting paid! But what they did in that training with that $20 struck me. They had us examine it, to feel it, to test it out. We were to get to know every detail of how it looked, how it felt, what its characteristics were. Why would they do that? Because when we learned what the real thing felt like, when we knew its characteristics, when we were confident in its ridges and details, we could spot a fake almost instantly.

I tell you today that it is the same when it comes to the word of God. If we study it, if we devour it, if we are in the word regularly, if we know its details if we are intimately familiar with its content, spotting a fake, false doctrine will become easier and easier. Our desire for the word of God should be so great that anything that sours it is quickly noticed and discarded.

Some food has good content, but isn’t sufficient for sustenance

I wouldn’t call this category necessarily “junk” food, but it is surely food that, while it has good content, cannot take the place of the Word of God. There are some really good devotionals and study books out there. I highly recommend reading some of the great authors of the faith like Spurgeon, Weirsbe, and the like. But while those may be good for you, they are not meant to be your steady diet.

The problem is that many in the faith supplant the reading and desire for the word with whatever popular or favorite devotional book is available and never take in the actual word of God for themselves. They substitute a steady diet of the Word for the thoughts and opinions of others. They satisfy themselves on snippets of scripture instead of reading it in context to get the full meaning intended by the author. They miss out on the blessing of what the Holy Spirit wants to say to them because they are relying solely on what God has said to someone else. Our faith is PERSONAL. It belongs directly to us, and the worst thing we can do is to temporarily satiate our desire for the word with the crumbs from someone else’s table when we have the entire banquet readily available in our hands!

Still yet, some rely only on the preaching of the word, which, while vital and valuable for you, should still never replace the personal diet of the Word. For the believer the desire to hear the word of God preached should be the outflowing of the steady diet of being in the word and seeking to know more, learn more, and grow more through its teaching and exposition. We need the preaching of the word, we need to hear and read good, doctrinal biblical texts, but we cannot and should not let that be our sole source of spiritual food!

If you only ate two meals a week and took two bites per day, you wouldn’t be just sick, you’d die! You’d shrivel up and waste away to nothingness. That is what happens to our growth in Christ when we settle only for those things spoon fed to us by others. They never meant to be your only sustenance! If you were to ask any of them, they would tell you what Peter is telling you here: Desire, long for, devour the pure spiritual milk of the word.

All of this hinges on one simple requirement: “If, indeed, you have tasted that the Lord is good”

Remember we said “Dead men don’t eat”? It is true. And your desire for the word of God can be a test you can ask yourself to determine where you are spiritually.

Peter is talking to people who were in the midst of persecution! What do you mean, Peter, “IF”. Peter means exactly that. If. Friends, if you have no desire for the word, it doesn’t matter what you have endured. It doesn’t matter where you grew up, how connected you are, what service you provide for the church; if you don’t desire food, chances are, you’re spiritually dead. Ask yourself:

Do I desire the word of God? Do I hunger for it?

Do I guard and protect a time in the word and when I don’t get it, is there a hole, a missing part of my day; a sense of starvation inside me?

Do I hunger for the things of this world more than I hunger for the things of Christ? Where do my affections lie?

This is the very basic beginning of our faith. The “page one” of being a disciple in Christ. It is where we, as believers learn the fundamentals that help us to grow and win the battles set before us.

Maybe tonight is the first time you have been challenged by this. Maybe you are confident in your salvation but you’ve let the world crowd in and choke out your desire for the word. Whatever the case, be honest with God. If you need a restored desire for the word, if you need to cast off the things of this world, whatever your need, lay it at His feet today for He is ready to receive you, welcome you and restore in you the joy of your salvation and hunger for His everlasting word. Let us pray.