THE WORD OF GOD COMPARED TO STRONG MEAT

By Benjamin Keach

"But Stong Meat belongeth to them that are of age," &c. Hebrews 5:14

As the Word of God is called Milk, so it is also Strong Meat.  By Strong Meat, is meant the more profound, perfect, and mysterious doctrine of the Gospel, which is to feed strong Christians

Metaphor

Parallel

I. Strong Meat is not meet or convenient food for babes; if they could eat it, yet they want strength to digest it.

I.  There is something contained in the Word of God, that young Christians, who are like new-born babes, cannot receive it, so as to understand it; it is not proper for them.  The Milk of the Word, (such things as are easily taken in) is for them; Strong Meat belongs to strong Christians, men of experience, Hebrews 5:12, 13,14

II. If children, after they are grown up, and arrived to years of maturity, refuse strong meat, and cannot feed upon any thing but milk, there may be cause to fear they are some way defective or diseased.

II. So if Christians, who have been a great while converted, and in the profession of the Gospel, and yet cannot take in, nor feed upon any thing but the milk of the Word, Strong Meat being offensive to them, it argues some great defect in their understanding, or that they are spiritually distempered

III. Strong Meat yieldeth strong and perfect nourishment; such as can feed upon, and well digest it, are more able and capable for business, than those that only feed or live upon milk.

III. So those Christians that can feed upon the Strong Meat of the Word, who in their understandings can in some measure relish and digest the mysteries of the Gospel, or those deep things of God, get most spiritual strength, and are more fit for business than the weak, who only live upon milk (1Corinthians 2:10)