NASHVILLE (BP) — This weekly Bible study appears in Baptist Press in a partnership with LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Through its Leadership and Adult Publishing team, LifeWay publishes Sunday School curricula and additional resources for all age groups.
This week’s Bible study is adapted from the Explore the Bible curriculum.
Bible Passage: 1 Peter 2:1-10
Discussion Questions: How would you describe the spiritual nourishment needed for a Christian to live and thrive? Why do believers settle for something less than the pure milk of God’s Word when it comes to spiritual nourishment? How can we recognize pure spiritual milk and where do we find it?
Food for thought:
Endurance athletes turn to a variety of foods to replenish their bodies after a long run, ride, swim or workout, including chocolate milk. While some will eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, yogurt with granola, or a smoothie, there is just something about chugging a bottle of chocolate milk that makes the exercise worth it! But imagine opening that bottle and being greeted by the smell of soured milk. It is even worse if there are things floating in it. Our noses and eyes revolt and we turn instead to that smoothie filled with kale or a simple glass of water. We expect our chocolate milk to be fresh and pure.
Peter echoed this same expectation but did so in reference to spiritual milk. He reminded his readers that pure spiritual milk helped them develop from newborn believers to strong followers of Christ (see 1 Peter 2:2). A strong faith was required by his readers since they were facing persecution. In the same passage, Peter identified malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander as things that contaminate spiritual nourishment. He encouraged them to crave the pure spiritual milk of the Gospel as opposed to craving the things that once defined their lives before Christ. These actions would bring spiritual sickness, while the pure milk of the Gospel would bring needed nourishment. Peter questioned why a person might crave these unhealthy things when they have experienced the truth of the Gospel (1 Peter 2:3).
Peter’s point was simple. If we want to grow into mature believers, we must crave God’s truth which is found in His Word and confirmed through His Spirit. The problem is we acquire a taste for other things — malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander. These things feed what we once were: sinners separated from God by our sin. The only way to acquire a taste for something is to eat it. If we are to gain a taste for God’s Word, then we must read it, study it and act upon it. God’s Word, His pure Word, refreshes us for the endurance race called life.
Explore the Bible
Explore the Bible is an ongoing Bible study curriculum that helps groups dig into the key truths of each Bible book, while keeping the group on pace to study through the Bible books in a systematic way. More information can be found at LifeWay.com/ExploreTheBible.
Other ongoing Bible study options for all ages offered by LifeWay can be found at LifeWay.com/SundaySchool.
