Peter admonished “newborn babes” in Christ to lay aside all hypocrisies. It is a natural battle that every babe in Christ must face. A new believer might have an inappropriate longing to please the one who led him to the Lord rather than giving the Lord preeminence. He might perform actions in hopes that his spiritual mentor will take notice. Eventually, this fault blossoms to the point where he begins to see problems in others while failing to realize the same problems exist in his own life. He might work hard to obey the strictest of commands while missing the overall desire of the Lord in his own life. Even as a babe in Christ, he must work to lay aside hypocrisy. Until he does, he will never grow into the mature believer the Lord wants him to be.
The Bible repeatedly referred to Christ's meekness during His interaction with others. Meekness implies a gentle response toward those who attack. Jesus Christ demonstrated meekness to its perfection on the cross of Calvary when He said, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34). Peter emphasized this point when he said of Christ, “Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously” (1 Peter 2:23). Isaiah prophesied of Christ, “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth” (Isaiah 53:7). The Bible says that Jesus was mocked, spit on, and struck by His accusers, yet He displayed incomprehensible meekness.
