YouTube video sermon

1 Peter 2:1-3

Let me invite you to take your copy of God’s Word and turn with me to 1 Peter 2. And while you’re finding your spot, let me ask you: “What do you crave?” Don’t overthink this too much. What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear me ask the question: “What do you crave?” Take a minute and turn to the person next to you or in front/behind you and share with them what you crave.

Okay, so now it’s your turn. Tell me, what do you crave? (Receive and repeat people’s responses.)

It’s interesting; I’m not particularly sure why it is but most of us think of food. I think it’s because of word association. The word “crave” is so frequently linked to food that we automatically answer with a food. But there are all sorts of things (besides food) that we crave. Each year, usually beginning in mid-March, I have a craving to go fishing. Some of you have a craving for hunting certain animals: turkey, deer, ducks, quail, pheasant, etc. All of those have their own hunting seasons that bring about “cravings.” Then there are certain sports: football, basketball, baseball, golf, auto racing.

Well, this morning, Peter is going to introduce us to another form of craving – something that we need to give more attention to, because honestly, it’s something that very few people (including Christians) crave. If you have your Bibles open, then following along with me, or you can follow on the screens:

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

“In these moments, O Lord, renew our minds. Help us grasp the heights of Your plans for us – truths unchanged from the dawn of time that will echo down through eternity. By grace we’ll stand on Your promises, and by faith we’ll walk as You walk with us. Speak to us, O Lord, until we’re conformed to Your image and the earth is filled with Your glory. For Christ’s sake, we pray. Amen.” (Speak, O Lord by Keith and Kristyn Getty, slightly modified).

Now, for those of you that were here last week, I told you that we were finishing chapter 1, and we did. But there’s a little hiccup, a little technicality, a little loophole. See, the first three verses of chapter 2 are actually the last three verses of chapter 1. There’s nothing sacred, there’s nothing holy, there’s nothing inerrant about the verse markings and chapter divisions in scripture. They were added about 800-1,000-1,200 years later to help make references. So, these three verses are actually the end of chapter 1, and in that sense, I might have unintentionally misled you last week.

But before you get upset with me, look at the way 1 Peter 2 begins. In almost every translation (including the original Greek), except for the ESV, NLT and the HCSB, the chapter begins with the word “therefore.” It’s the Greek conjunction oon, meaning “therefore, now then, accordingly so.” In effect, what Peter is saying is, “Here’s how the dots connect.” And that only works if you know what dots came before.

What Peter is saying in these verses is this: The Word of God grows you and grows your hope in Christ Jesus. In the midst of your struggle, in the midst of a crisis, in the midst of chaos, in the midst of persecution, in the midst of plain ole crazy days, you can grow hope and you can grow spiritually, if you’re in the Word of God. Now here’s the progression. I’m going to show you my three points. We must put away what’s in verse 1, in order that we might crave spiritual milk (i.e. Word of God) and grow in our salvation (vs. 2), so that our lives prove that the Lord is good (vs. 3).

We Must Put Away…

Peter is speaking to the Church. He’s speaking to believers. He’s talking to you and me and he’s saying if we don’t put these things away from us then we’ll kill the hope that we have and we’ll stunt our spiritual growth. That’s what verse 1 is pointing to. Listen, let me give you a principle that’s absolutely true. It’s not from the Bible, but it’s confirmed by the Bible. Hurting people, hurt people. The next time somebody unexpectedly pops off at you, just remember; hurting people, hurt people.

By the way, this is a little disclaimer, not all hurting people, hurt people. The funny thing about anger and conflict is that it feels ridiculously good for some people. It feels good to clash with other people. It feels amazing to come out on top. That’s a very foreign concept to most of us. Most people try to avoid anger and stress and disappointment because it doesn’t feel good to them. But generally speaking, hurting people, hurt people.

Think about your own life. How many times have you had a particularly stressful day that you’ve managed to keep under control, then, later in the evening, after getting home and having dinner, you accidentally stump your toe on a piece of furniture and yell at your spouse. Think about it in both sets of shoes: the one that’s hurting and the one that’s being hurt in the moment. We’ve likely been in both places at some point: the hurting person that lashes out, and the party that receives the tongue lashing.

It will certainly be debated and discussed for months and months, but that’s part of what we’re seeing happening right now with all of these senseless killings. In fact, according to the reports that I read, that’s precisely why the Tulsa, OK shooter killed his doctors and a staff worker – because he was physically hurting. I’m not condoning that, in any manner, but it confirms that hurting people, hurt people.

But notice that Peter isn’t writing to gunmen intent on senseless killing. He’s writing to the Church. He’s writing to people like us, and he makes this connection, that’s the reason for the “therefore,” and he says (look back at verses 22-23), “[you’ve] purified your souls by your obedience to the truth… you’ve been born again…” consequently, you have to get rid of these things in your life. And just in case you’re thinking, “Well, pastor, I just don’t know if I can do that.” Listen, God never tells us to do something or not do something that He doesn’t give us the wherewithal and ability to achieve it. What does Paul say in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” For God to give us a command or instructions, and then not give us the ability to achieve it would make Him a liar. We can, and we must seek to get rid of all malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander.

The word “malice” means “evil.” It can be translated as “wickedness” and even “vicious disposition.” It’s the underlying and inherent evil that is present but not outwardly expressed. Now most of us say, “Ah, come on pastor, I’m not evil. I’m not wicked. I don’t have a vicious disposition.” That’s because, in our society, we’ve been conditioned to think of evil in terms of a select few: Hitler, Manson, McVeigh, and indeed they were. But the Bible uses this word in the widest sense. Essentially, Peter says, “You’ve got to put meanness and unkindness out of your life.” Ah, now we see ourselves in the mirror, don’t we?

Then he comes to the next word, “deceit.” It’s the Greek word dolos (not to be confused with doulos – a servant, a slave). Fishermen and hunters know this word. It means “bait, decoy, hook, trickery.” Every time I go fishing that’s what I’m doing – I’m tying on a lure that I’m hoping to use to deceive the fish into eating. And let me tell you, there’s no lack in the bait at Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s. Their website offers over 2,700 different lures. It’s okay to do that to the fish (especially if you catch and release), but it’s not okay to do it to one another.

Then he gives one more, and it’s “envy.” You say, “Hold on, pastor, you skipped hypocrisy and slander.” No, I’m going to come back to them. The reason I skipped to envy is because these three: malice, deceit and envy are internal. The other two are external; it’s how we express these three internal qualities. So, the third one is “envy,” and we normally think of envy as “He has a Ferrari and I want a Ferrari, and all I think about is getting his Ferrari.” That’s not the New Testament’s understanding and presentation of envy.

Envy is not that I want what you have, it’s that I don’t want you to have what you have. And truth be told, rarely does envy have to do with a physical object. Most of the time we envy someone’s position, someone’s giftedness, someone’s charisma, someone’s winsome personality. In essence what we’re saying is NOT that I want your position or giftedness or charisma or personality, but that I don’t want you to have it. That’s the darkness of envy. Peter says, “You gotta get rid of this.”

Next, he comes and he says you have to get rid of “hypocrisy.” Last week I told you that word means “phony, acting, pretending.” There’s an image from the Greek period that actually gives nuance to what’s being said here. In fact, the word hypocrisy actually comes from Greek theatre. The image is the Greek mask. We’re all familiar with the Greek masks of tragedy and comedy. This word “hypocrisy” is actually a word that describes an actor holding a mask over their face and although the mask indicates they’re laughing, the actor is actually mad. Or if the mask conveys tragedy, the actor is actually happy. See, the mask is covering up the real actor’s face and the real actor’s emotions. That’s what hypocrisy is. The outside is saying the opposite of the inside.

The last one is “slander.” It’s the Greek word katalalia. That’s fun. You give it a go. Ka-ta-la-lia. It’s a word that’s onomatopoetic. Do you remember that from grammar class? An onomatopoeia is a word that resembles the sound that it describes. So, all of you remember the 1960’s Batman TV show. The fight scenes were all onomatopoetic: POW, BANG, ZIP, CRASH. Well, that’s what katalalia is in Greek. Sometimes you hear somebody say, “yada yada yada yada.” Well, the Greeks would say, “lalalalalalal.” Kata means “down” and laleo means “talkative.” So, literally it’s talking down to someone.

Peter says that we have to get rid of these things because when they’re evident in our lives it kills our hope. It makes you miserable. And it stunts your spiritual growth. You’ll never hunger for the Word of God. You’ll never do what’s in verse 2, if those things are in your life. Now listen, you let the Word of God be a mirror. Let the Word of God speak to you. Let it have its way. Let the Holy Spirit use the Word of God to convict you, to encourage you, to challenge you.

We must put away . . . that we might grow . . .

That We Might Grow Up…

If you want to grow hope and grow spiritually and gain assurance in your salvation, for those days when things get tough, for those moments in life that seem like they could just overwhelm you, for those situations in life where you need confidence, then you have to hunger for the Word of God. You have to crave it. You have to do what the Psalmist does in Psalm 42:1-2, “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.” He was hungry. He was craving. He was longing for God.

But perhaps the richest and most generous portion of Scripture describing this kind of delight in the Word is too long for us to read. It’s Psalm 119, with all 176 verses expressing the Psalmist’s love for divine truth. You need to read Psalm 119 and remember that in the middle of it, he says, “Oh how I love Thy law.” Repeatedly, in that Psalm, the Psalmist expresses his delight in the law of the Lord.

So, we’re talking here about a passion. We’re talking here about a longing, a driving, a craving, something that’s strong and intense. It’s obvious that we all crave things. That’s why we did that silly little exercise earlier. We understand passion. We understand longing. We understand what it is to be thirsty. Perhaps we don’t understand it as much as the one lost in the desert wilderness being baked in the middle of the midday sun, but we understand what it is to be thirsty. We understand what it is to be hungry. Perhaps we don’t understand what it’s like to go without any food for several weeks. Nevertheless, we know the cravings that we feel toward the things in life that are not only good, but the things that are bad. We have longings for love and affection. We have longings for companionship. We have longings for information and understanding. And we have longings that are illicit and impure.

Peter says, “With all of those longings, this is one you need to have – an intense, passionate, overwhelming, insatiable craving for the Word.” And he defines it as the pure milk of the word; pure, a word meaning “uncontaminated.” It’s a pure substance in the midst of a world of corruptible, contaminated, polluted things. And he uses the marvelous, beautiful analogy and imagery of a little baby who longs for the uncorrupted, unpolluted, unadulterated milk of its mother. And what milk is it that Peter calls us to that’s analogous to that? It’s the milk of the Word of God.

If there’s anything that I want say to you this morning, it’s to ask you the question, “Do you have that craving? Do you have a real desire for the Word of God?” I ran across this quote from John MacArthur this week. Listen to what he said:

“We have desperate need for the Word in the church today. We have weak Christians, weak churches, rampant spiritual malnutrition reflecting the rejection of the true spiritual milk. We have defective antibodies in the body of Christ today, very little discernment, a seriously deficient immune system, a kind of spiritual AIDS that makes the church vulnerable to all kinds of infection from error because it’s not been appropriately nourished. You’d better recognize how desperate your need is.

Don’t read the Bible traditionally because your parents read it. Don’t read it superstitiously as if it’s gonna deliver some religious charm. Don’t read it educationally to know the facts. Don’t read it professionally for material in your lesson or your sermon. Don’t read it inquisitively just so you can bring out the latest biblical trivia and appear to be a scholar. Read it because it’s nourishment. Read it because you can’t live without it, and you’ll be exposed to terrible danger if you don’t.”

It’s been 17 years since Melissa and I had a true infant in the house. For some of you it’s been 2-3 times as long, but you’ve had grandbabies or great-grandbabies. Generally speaking, there are really only a few things that an infant baby will cry about: eating and pooping, and perhaps later on, teething. They don’t cry for 80” flat-panel TV’s. They don’t cry over the latest luxury car or pickup truck. No, they just want milk.

Have you ever noticed a family with a 3-4-year-old and they also have an infant? The baby starts to cry and the 3-year-old offers them a potato chip, or tries to spoon-feed them some of their Mayfield ice cream. All they want is momma’s milk. They can’t say it. They can’t spell it. They can’t Google it. But you put them in the arms of their mother and they’re perfectly fine. It’s a very natural and normal thing for a baby to cry out to be fed. And, the sad reality is this, most Christians have to be coddled and motivated and exhorted to do what ought to come most naturally for the child of God.

That’s what Peter says in verse 2, “Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation.” You will grow your hope, you will grow faith, and you will grow your confidence in the goodness of God when you’re in His Word.

We must put away . . . that we might grow . . . to prove God’s goodness.

And Prove God’s Goodness…

Look at verse 3, “if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.” Now that word “if” causes us some problems, because we hear and read “if” as a conditional particle. But, in the Greek, when the word “if” is followed by a verb it expresses a condition that’s thought of as real, or denotes an assumption. In other words, the better way of translating verse 3 is this, “because you have tasted that the Lord is good.”

Because you have. You’ve tasted that the Lord is gracious. That word literally means “good” and “kind.” You’ve seen His goodness. You’ve seen His kindness. You’ve been the recipient of numerous answered prayers. You’ve seen His salvation and blessing in your life. You’ve seen His providence in His protection. You’ve seen His grace to your spouse and to your children, to your friends, and relatives and family. You’ve seen Him work in your life in meeting the needs, the deep cries of your heart. You’ve seen Him bring joy into your sorrow. You’ve seen Him bring comfort to your pain. You’ve experienced “His mercies which are new every morning, great is His faithfulness” (Lamentation 3:22-23, paraphrased). You’ve been “blessed with all spiritual blessings in the heavenlies” (Ephesians 1:3). All of those things should be right at the top of your memory. Survey those blessings. They all came to you through the Word.

In closing, anorexia nervosa is a disease of men/women (primarily women) who starve themselves, sometimes to death. The symptoms include: 1.) occasional binges, followed by vomiting or enemas to eliminate the food; 2.) hyperactivity, excessive exercise to prove oneself competent and healthy; 3.) depression, an inability to deal with issues in life; and 4.) social isolation, fear of getting too close to people that they might find out your true condition.

That’s analogous to spiritual malnutrition, too. Spiritual malnutrition is characterized by occasional overdoses of exposure to the Word of God – truth that’s generally eliminated without the benefit of any application or nourishment. Spiritual malnutrition is characterized by hyperactivity, where church activity replaces true spiritual growth. It’s also characterized by spiritual depression, because there’s no victory over sin. And by spiritual isolation, because such a person flees intimate fellowship with believers, less they be exposed.

Now, if you or someone you love has ever struggled with this, please understand that I’m not trying to diminish the real difficulties of this disease. This is simply an analogy. But there’s a prescription that a doctor can write for somebody with anorexia nervosa. You just take out your paper and write, “Eat.” Peter gives us a prescription for spiritual malnutrition, “Eat.” As babies desire the pure milk of their mothers, we should desire the truth of God and His Word that we might grow in our salvation.

“Our God and our Father, thank You for this time this morning. Thank You for the reminder of the foundation of all spiritual growth, which is craving the Bible. Create that desire in every heart, O God. Give us a strong desire, borne of the Spirit, for the rich, boundless wonders of Your Word. And as we come, now, to Your Table, we ask that this spiritual food would nourish us for the coming week. In Christ’s name we ask these things, Amen.”