Ministers are not the only people who are called to study God’s Word. It is a duty that is required of every Christian. The Scriptures exhort us to do our best to present ourselves approved unto God, and we are to be capable of rightly dividing the word of truth (2 Tim 2:15). Many people have the false impression, however, that the Bible is a book of secret texts that only the seminarian is capable of properly exegeting. But that is not the case. Due diligence in studying God’s Word combined with the working of the Holy Spirit will enlighten the serious minded, enabling one to be prepared to give a defense for the faith that is in him (cf. 1 Pet 3:15). Paul affirms this promise when he wrote of the efficacy of the Holy Spirit:

"These things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God" (1 Cor 2:10–12).

So, since we have the promise that we can know more about God through diligent studies, we should all long for the truth that He has revealed. One of my favorite biblical characters that illustrate the insatiable hunger every Christian should have for the things of the Lord is the apostle Peter. Constant tension between the flesh and the spirit only served to heighten his sense that he needed to grow in grace and truth. We see this aspect of Peter throughout the gospel narratives—the spiritually inquisitive side that yearned to know more about his Master. That we see Peter constantly speaking for the group and asking difficult questions of Jesus gives rise to the belief that he was concerned for the truth. Peter was not complacent with his status as being part of the inner circle of Christ nor was he overly satisfied with his current breadth of knowledge. We find Peter constantly searching for answers because of his inquisitiveness. It was he who asked the Lord to explain the parables and difficult sayings (cf. Matt 15:15, Luke 12:41). Peter was the one who asked Jesus how many times he should forgive another (Matt 18:21) and asked questions of the risen Christ (John 21:20-22). And when he was not asking questions, he was at the forefront answering questions as illustrated by Peter pointing out the withered fig tree on which Jesus had pronounced his curse (Mark 11:21). Peter understood the importance of maturing in the knowledge of Christ.  

The bitter reality, however, is that many do not have a spiritual hunger reminiscent of Peter’s. All too often, Christians are content to remain in their ignorance of Christ. They do not care about variety, flavor, or quality of spiritual food—they just want what tastes pleasing. Instead, we must be like Peter who later in his life declared that we should be like newborn infants, longing for the spiritual milk that will help us to grow (1 Pet 2:2). That is to say, we should desire the purity of God’s Word so that we will be nourished.

If we surrendered to our natural desires to eat only what we want then our growth will be hindered severely. We will stunt our spiritual growth if we do not feed our appetites with thorough biblical study. A good appetite that enjoys a well–balanced meal is one sign of good health. If a believer does not have an appetite for the whole counsel of God, then he becomes emaciated and his soul goes unnourished—or at least undernourished. The only antidote to malnutrition is to eat regularly and in a healthy manner. May we all have the spiritual hunger that Peter possessed and be filled with the only sustenance will satisfy our desires—the Word of God.