Oct 30, 2022 Preaching | Bro Marco Pulmano
Growth. The development of species from birth to maturity. It’s puppies growing into dogs. It’s butterflies transforming from eggs into caterpillars, into pupae, and into its full-fledged colorful form. It’s beautiful, natural, and necessary. A process expected of all living things, and from each and every one of us. Yet interestingly, some people find the process of growth challenging. They seem to never want to grow up, and find it difficult managing adult responsibilities and relationships. Psychologists call it the Peter Pan syndrome, one that sadly also applies to some Christians who are stagnant in their spiritual life today.
Last Sunday, Bro. Marco took us through 1 Peter 2:1-3 and challenged us with the call “It’s time to grow up”. It’s time to put away the childish things in our lives and to start growing in our relationship with Jesus Christ. It’s time to move on to the next level of our Christian journey following Peter’s 3 step advice.
Step 1: Remove all hindrances. “Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander” (v1). Peter calls us to get put aside these destructive characteristics. He calls us to get rid of malice when it tempts us to wish harm in others, deceit when it woos us to hide the truth, hypocrisy when it entices us to criticize others on the very things we ourselves are guilty of, envy when it persuades us to maliciously think we deserve what others have, and slander when it coaxes us speak ill of others behind their back. To mature in our spiritual walk, he calls us to get rid of these sins that hinder us from growing in love for one another. It’s a task that seems daunting, but one we can take on knowing that we are not alone. We can trust in God’s help and power to remake us, to transform us, to help us break way from our past and live a new life as a committed follower of Christ.
Step 2: Feed on the word. “Like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation” (v2). To grow in our spiritual walk, we need to be continually nourished and protected by God’s word, just like how babies receive nourishment and antibodies regularly through their mother’s milk. Most of us Christians know the importance of spending quality time with God’s word, yet some of us still struggle in this spiritual discipline. Some of us might give up when we struggle to comprehend what we read. Some might mistakenly believe that God’s word is reserved only for preachers or for that one day in the week we attend service. Some might avoid it in fear of getting convicted of certain sins. Whatever our barriers might be, we all need to feed on God’s word to grow. Whether we are new believers or mature Christians, we need to persistently cultivate a hunger for God’s word, a passion to know Him more, obey Him more, and reflect Him more in our daily lives.
Step 3: Focus on the kindness of God. “If you have tasted the kindness of the Lord” (v3). The habit of feeding on God’s word might prove challenging, but Peter calls us to do so having already tasted who God is. Just as we crave for the taste of good food, Peter reminds us that the taste of the pure milk of God’s word is worth craving for again and again. When we struggle in our spiritual walk, Peter calls us to remember what God has done for us, “knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with the precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ” (1 Peter 1: 18-19). He asks us to recall God’s goodness, how He loved us first and provided for us, and in remembrance rekindle our passion for Him and His word.
It’s time to grow up. It’s time to remove all our hindrances, feed on God’s word, reflect on His goodness, and embark on the journey of maturing in our Christian walk.