then our not yet able to bear the meat could possibly be that we are not yet able to bear His name.
I think you have something here.
Not being able to bear His Name, maybe not yet being able to let go of our own?
That passate, You shall not take the Name of the LORD in vain, God will not hold you guiltless if you do. People relate that to cursing and the like. I understand "take" is like "to take for one's self, to carry", and "in vain" is in an empty, meaningless way.
I find it a very interesting statement in the sense that we name the Name of Christ, calling ourself Christian, seeking forgiveness of sins. But God will not hold of guiltless if we take Christ's Name without meaning it.
Milk Doctrines are the first principles, what our salvation is, meat then is what we go on to do with our salvation, I think. Working it out.
Division, envy, and strife are NOT products of "milk doctrines", rather, milk doctrines are the only doctrines those who are in division, envy, and strife can handle. Milk doctrines are NOT intended to "keep people in division", that's absurd. That's reversing the flow of the passage.
Milk are the basic doctrines of Salvation that all believers know. This milk causes division as we see in the church today and throughout history, and this was and still is what God designed into the church so as to get them to move from milk to meat.
God's teaching is not the cause of division in the church. Fleshy Christians cause division. And fleshy Christians who reject sound teaching will continue to cause divisions.
And yes, we very much need God's discerment to tell us who is acting from envy and pride, and who is sharing God's Word. Because everybody says they are, but then say different things.
What does the Apostle tell us by way of an answer? All this divisiveness in doctrine? We're serving
together, and if you destroy God's temple (create division between believers) God will destroy
you.
Much love!