| DO YOU WANT "MILK" OR "MEAT?" Since most readers of this web page are presumed to be fairly well grounded in the Scriptures, most of the articles are written assuming a certain amount of prior Scriptural knowledge and understanding. But many of you may be what Paul called, "Babes in Messiah," (1Cor. 3:1-3) meaning that, for one reason or another, you may not have been exposed to much in the way of real Biblical doctrine. Paul said such ones should be fed "milk," and not "meat" until the basics of salvation are learned. The writer of Hebrews (5:11-14) said the ones he was writing to were dull of hearing (lacked understanding), "For when the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of Yahweh; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that uses milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongs to those that are of full age, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil." Most if not all the main-line Christian churches never delve into the deeper doctrinal matters of the Bible. They content themselves for the most part with a mixture of Biblical subjects which are heavily laced with pagan beliefs not supported in Scripture. These beliefs crept into the Roman church and hence into Protestantism over a period of many years. They have become so deeply entrenched in Christianity that nowadays, even when faced with Scriptures that plainly and obviously show them to be in error, most people will still argue and protest to uphold their prior beliefs, often appealing to Scriptures that have nothing to do with the subject under discussion. For example, the term Paul used in Romans 10:4, "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth," has been used by the no-law teachers for years to "prove" that the law has been "done away." They say, "See, Christ is the END of the law. He did away with it, nailing it to the cross, and we don't have to obey it." But this is not what Paul meant. The Greek word used here is "TELOS," #5056 in Strong's Greek dictionary, and means "purpose." The Messiah is the PURPOSE of the Law for righteousness to everyone that believeth.. Let's look at two more places where this same word is used. James 5:11, "Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the END of "the Lord" (Yahweh); that Yahweh is very pitiful and of tender mercy." 1 Peter 1:9, "Receiving the END of your faith, even the salvation of your souls."(cont. P2) Now, if we apply the same criteria to these two usages as the "no-law" people do to Romans 10:4, not only is the law done away, but so is "the Lord," (Yahweh), and so is our faith. But any reasonable person knows this is not so. Yahweh, our Heavenly Father, is eternal in the heavens; He will never end, and He changes not (Malachi 3:6). His "end" or purpose to usward is to have pity and mercy on us, and to eventually give us eternal life. I Peter 1:9 is, if anything, even clearer. The "end" or purpose of our faith is "the sal-vation of our souls." Without faith it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6). And He even supplies this faith, Eph 2:8. We must be consistent, and resist the temptation to seek Scriptural support where none exists. So, we hope to write more articles on basic subjects. This will not only be informative to the new readers, but will also allow for refreshing of our own knowledge. Hebrews 2:1-2, tells us that we ought to give earnest heed to the things we have heard (been taught), lest at any time we should let them slip (drift away). Deuteronomy 4:9 says, "--- take heed to thyself, lest you forget---." We need to constantly be reviewing, studying, re-examining and re-affirming the things we believe. If we find we are in error, then we need to repent and change. ~ Frank Brown |