Thou Shalt Not Live On Milk'shakes alone!!

By Todd Tillinghast

Do you remember when you were a kid and Mom and Dad would go out for an evening and you would be stuck home with the baby sitter?  Now unless you had a really cool babysitter these times weren’t always the best.  There was always that feeling that Mom and Dad were having a lot more fun then you were. But the one thing that I always looked forward to during these times was the change in diet.  You see when Mom and Dad were home we would always eat the same old boring meat and vegetable meals night after night after night.  I’ll never forget watching my brother choke down beats at the dinner table one night; it was not a pretty sight.  But when the baby sitter came we would get pizza or some other exotic food usually accompanied with a sugary treat given to us as a bribe to ensure the baby sitter’s safety.  

Now as much as we looked forward to those tasty variations in our normal dietary practices and as much as we would have gladly eaten that way everyday we also knew that our parents were just doing what was best for us.  Or at least this dawned on us sometime later.  For those who are now parents, the realization has been firmly cemented in your understanding that your children “Shall not live on Milk’ shakes alone.”  

When I look at the church today, by in large, it seems as if we are a band of children left to the care of the baby sitter who is immersed in her IPod and cell phone completely unaware of the fact that the milk ‘shakes that we can’t finish are adding a new coat of paint to the walls and are being dumped over each other’s heads.  I certainly believe that this is a result of the kinds of teachings (meals) that are being served.  But I also believe that it is due to the kinds of meals we are able to digest.

 

One of the most significant reasons why the church, by in large, seems to be in the same state as that of the Hebrews which the author addressed in (Hebrews 5:11-14) is because we as a church are not motivated to truly learn and understand the Bible.  The reason why we still want to be fed the regurgitated milk of someone else’s study of the scriptures rather than delve into our own self discovery is because we lack motivation or rather we have the wrong motivation for studying the scriptures to begin with.

 

If we fail to make the connection between illumination and application then we will never understand the rich wonders and joys of studying the scriptures.  Our Christian walk will remain on the level of obligation and legalism.  The place to begin preparing to study the Bible is in self discovery.  We are much more motivated and possess the possibility of true transformation when we discover the truths of the scriptures for ourselves in response to our own personal study or the teaching of others.

     

We can see the antithesis of what the author of Hebrews was writing about in regards to the milk of the word in what Jesus said to His disciples in John chapter 4.  They had been shopping for food while He had been ministering to the woman at the well.  When they came back He told them in vs 32 that He had a “meat” or “food” that they did not know of.  Then in vs 34 He told them what that food was, “to do the will of Him who sent me and to finish His work.”  It is imperative that we search for something to do that will require us to utilize what we are learning.  We can really begin to digest the meatier things of God’s word when we are doing His will.  Then it is no longer theory but has become a reality that we are experiencing.  Look for opportunities to practice or live out the word every day in your life and relationships.