A Command to Crave!

 

Now may the Lord reveal His face

And teach our stammering tongues

To make His sovereign, reigning grace

The subject of our songs.


No sweeter subject can invite

A sinner’s heart to sing

Or more display the glorious right

Of our exalted King.


Grace reigns to pardon crimson sins

To melt the hardest hearts

And from the work it once begins 

It never once departs.


’Twas grace that called our souls at first

By grace thus far we’ve come

And grace will help us through the worst

And lead us safely  home. 

 


-Gospel hymn: “O God Our Help In Ages Past”

 

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“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” -I Peter 2:2-3 [KJV]

 

A believer certainly ought to desire, long after, crave the sincere, pure milk of the Word.  A true believer does in fact desire this pure milk.  He cannot be a believer without this attitude toward the Word.  Yet this is given in the form of a command.  We are commanded to desire this milk.  Yes, we should desire it.  Yes, we actually do desire it.  So why does Peter give this in the form of a command?  Because the world, the flesh, and the devil will seek to pour water upon this flame.  Our flesh will always have a tendency to depart from God and His Word.  

 

If you are a believer, do not give in to this temptation to become “dull of hearing.”  You will be constantly tempted to not read the Word.  Your flesh will find plenty of reasons to keep you and even your family from hearing the Word preached.  If you give into these temptations, it will prevent growth, or what is even worse, prove you never have really, “Tasted that the Lord is gracious.”  


We believe in the absolute predestination of God in all things!  “He worketh all things after the counsel of His own will” (Ephesians 1:11).  There is nothing that happens by chance.  But does this belief cause us to live in a kind of stoic indifference and fatalism?  Certainly not!  Paul also said to the Ephesians, after he told them about the absolute predestination of God, Be very careful how you live - not as unwise, but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil (see Ephesians 5:15-16).  He said the same thing to the Colossians in Colossians 4:5.  Yes, we believe in the absolute predestination of our God in all things. And we also believe that we are commanded to and responsible to “make the most of every opportunity.”  If your belief in predestination makes you fatalistic and indifferent, you do not believe in Biblical predestination.

 

-copied 

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