The child grew and was weaned, and Abraham held a great feast on the day Isaac was weaned. Genesis 21:8 HCSB
In today’s culture it is common for a mother to nurse her child for the first year while transitioning to pureed solid foods after six months of age. There is a debate about the benefits of nursing versus giving a child formula, but most people agree that a mother’s milk has all that a child needs to grow and be healthy. Some mothers are unable to nurse for a variety of reasons and formula is certainly a good alternative.
In Biblical times it was common to nurse a child until he was two or three and in some cultures, children were nursed until they were five years old. Abraham had a great feast to celebrate Isaac being weaned. It was a way of saying that Isaac was living proof that God keeps his promises and that Isaac would be the inheritance of God’s covenant with Abraham. Isaac’s birth to an elderly couple was evidence of God’s blessing in Abraham’s life. During the celebration Isaac would have received his birthright, a robe symbolizing his connection to his father, and then would have eaten some meat. Even today there are cultures in the East that celebrate when a child is weaned; it seems to be a rite of passage.
Challenge: As believers we should celebrate our passage from death to life because of our faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We should be growing as disciples of Christ, being weaned from the milk (basic of Christianity) to more solid foods (becoming more like Christ and leading others to Christ). Are you still drinking milk or are you eating meat in your spiritual life? (Read 1 Corinthians 3:2-6 and Hebrews 5:11-14)