Develop a Consuming Desire for God’s Word

Scripture: 1 Peter 2:2–3, NIV

“Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.” (1 Peter 2:2-3, NIV)

Once a baby has tasted its mother’s milk, the focus of that baby’s life is to cry, “More! More!”

The cry for more milk becomes the overriding desire of the baby’s life. The milk tastes good! The baby needs the milk if it is to survive and grow into a child and then an adult.

Peter uses this metaphor to illustrate our consuming desire for the Word of God. The only way we will be able to grow up into mature believers is if we consume God’s Word. The Word of God must saturate our inner person if we are to be effective witnesses for him. By ingesting our “spiritual M&M’s”—memorizing and meditating on the Word of God—we can grow in him.

When we begin to uncover the riches in the Word of God, we become hooked. “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age” (Hebrews 6:4–5, NIV).

Think of the key words in this passage.

We are enlightened by the gospel bringing to light life and immortality. We have tasted the heavenly gift of salvation, and actually have shared in the Holy Spirit by being partakers of the divine nature. Furthermore, we have tasted the goodness of God’s Word, like the baby has tasted the mother’s milk of life. Finally, we have tasted and been touched by the powers of the coming age.

Such exposure leads to a “spiritual addiction.” The Lord tastes good! The Lord increases our appetite for wanting “More! More!” Such a desire places us in a position where the Lord, subject to his sovereignty, can reveal more of himself to us in his way and time.

Today, ask yourself:

How would I define my desire for God’s Word—lukewarm, indifferent, strong, or intense? Am I in the process of tasting it, consuming it, and beginning to experience the “power of the coming age?”