Come to God hungry
It is almost too good to be true that God not only saves us from the eternal punishment we deserve for our sin, but he also satisfies us forever with himself. And this is the very joy for which we were made. God is not the cosmic killjoy many of us may have feared in our youth. Rather, he is the God who, in Christ, stretches out his arms to us, saying, “Come, all who are thirsty!”
But how do we “come to the waters” day in and day out in the Christian life? How do we “eat what is good” and delight ourselves in rich food for our souls? How do I practically seek my joy in him?
The answer begins with the vital truth that God gives us means. He gives us the dignity of participating in the process, of availing ourselves of the specific channels he has built for us. And he works in us to cultivate and take up various “habits of grace,” based on his revealed means of grace, in our pursuit of joy in him.
The very words of God himself, through his apostles and prophets in the Scriptures, are the first and foremost means of his grace to us. The God who is is a speaking God. He speaks first. He, as Creator, takes the initiative to address us as his creatures. And he, as our Savior, takes the initiative to tell us about our rescue. His own Son is the climactic expression of his Word (John 1:1; Hebrews 1:1–2), and he has filled for us — from Genesis to Revelation — a Book of his external, objective words about himself, our race, our world, and our redemption.
Through his word, he extends to us the particular joy of being led, of receiving the initiative he takes toward us. And he is glorified in our joy through Scripture in many ways. First, he is honoured that we come to him (and not elsewhere) and treat his words as truth — that we say to him, as Peter did to Jesus, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68). Also when we come to him honours (or dishonours) him, in terms of frequency and priority. Do we come to him regularly or irregularly, and do we prioritize his word over other influences and other activities?
How we come to him is also vital. God means for us to come hungry to his word. To come eagerly. To come hedonistically, consciously seeking to satisfy our souls in him, longing for him like newborns who “long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation” (1 Peter 2:2). God means for us to approach him, through his word, as “the fountain of living waters” (Jeremiah 2:13); to come humbly, and welcome his words (James 1:21) — even when they seem strange and startling to us — and seek to obey them, not just hearing his words, but actually doing them (James 1:22).
God is glorified not only through our coming hungrily, but also as we enjoy the feast, as we experience his words as “my delight” (Psalm 1:2; 119:16), as “the joy of my heart” (Psalm 119:111), as “the delight of my heart” (Jeremiah 15:16), as kindling for the fires of our joy. God is honoured when we approach his words as David did in Psalm 19: as words that revive the soul (verse 7) and rejoice the heart (verse 8), more to be desired than gold (verse 10), sweeter than honey (verse 10) and greatly rewarding (verse 11).
To come to God’s word is to come to God himself. He breathes out his words to us as initiatives, invitations, and instruction in order that we might know him. How we treat his words is how we treat God himself. And as we enjoy his speaking to us in his word, he also invites us to speak back.
