Being a Student of the Spirit

Excerpt from my new book "The Invitation" available on my website at www.shawnadiehl.com. I will also be available on Amazon after May 29, 2013.

I was not exactly the shining example of a student in my teenage years.  In fact, my parent’s heard from more than one of my teachers that I had so much potential if I would just apply myself. As I look back I see that the problem wasn’t aptitude or even interest in the subject. How I did in a class had more to do with whether or not I connected with the teacher than anything else. If I felt like the teacher was invested in me personally and believed in me then I was motivated to study and do well in the class. Who doesn’t like being the teacher’s pet?

From Milk to Meat

This dynamic affected my interaction with the Bible as well. As a young person there was a passage here and there (mostly the Psalms) which ministered to me, but a majority of the Bible seemed dry and irrelevant. This was partly because I was still immature in my spirituality and could only handle the milk of the Word (I Corinthians 3:2, Hebrews 5:12-13). It was also because I did not understand the culture of the people in the Bible, and so found it hard to relate to them. Gaining some knowledge of the historic setting of the Bible has helped me to understand and relate to it. However, the reason I’m passionate for God’s Word is that I love the teacher!

As I’ve grown in my relationship with the Holy Spirit I’ve found that the more connected I am to him the more I desire to have his words written on my heart, and the more the Bible has meaning for me. In the beginning of the process I still needed the milk of the Word because I still lacked understanding.  However, what was different was that I was beginning to desire the milk of the Word. 1 Peter 2:2 tells us that we should “like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation.” Without the desire for the milk of the Word we will never grow up enough to be able to eat solid food; as Paul told the Corinthians, “But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready” (I Corinthians 3:1-2). The New International Version uses the word “worldly” to describe the Corinthians who were more interested in position and getting their way, than in maturing in Christ.

Once I had a steady diet of the milk of the Word I began to mature. The writer of Hebrews tells us that “solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil. Therefore, let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity” (Hebrews 5:14-6:1). Sometimes Christians refer to the meat of the Word, which Paul calls a “message of wisdom… a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began” (I Corinthians 2:6-7). Paul is not referring here to new truth, but to a greater understanding of the eternal truth. The meat of the Word goes deeper and has greater meaning for those who have a history of relationship with the Lord.

Studying is never an end in itself, and the main goal is not to acquire knowledge. If it were, I would not be passionate about it.  The goal is maturity in our walk with the Lord so that he can trust us with greater revelation of his thoughts. Where I used to avoid studying, now I am excited and eager to explore the depths of God’s Word so that I can know his thoughts.

Guess what? You are the teacher’s pet! There is no one who loves you and is invested in you more than the Holy Spirit. John 10:3-4 promises that we, as sheep of the Good Shepherd, can hear God’s voice. The more you engage the Spirit of God in conversation, the more your relationship with him will grow. The more you grow in your relationship with him, the more you will desire to have him teach you through the Word of God. The more he speaks to you through the Scripture the more you’ll desire to know him. It’s a beautiful cycle filled with the amazing experience of joy and love found in knowing the Holy Spirit.