Taste and See that the LORD is Good

One of the Spirit’s favorite metaphors for God’s Word is food, indicating that it is tasty, nourishing and meant to be ingested and digested, not merely tasted (like gum.) In chapter 3 of his prophecy Ezekiel is instructed to “eat” a scroll of God’s Word. And John is likewise instructed to do so in Revelation 10. In Psalm 19, David describes God’s law as “sweeter also than honey and the drippings from the honeycomb.” Oh yeah…


Recently, I had the privilege of filling the pulpit at one of our sister churches, and chose to preach out of Daniel 9. There are 1189 chapters in the Bible, and unbeknownst to me, the guest preacher (who received his PhD in Hebrew from Oxford University!) the previous week had used the same chapter for his sermon text. Fortunately, this repetition was not brought my attention until after I had delivered the sermon. But from the people’s comments afterward, it was quite obvious that God’s Word is indeed food, and not merely the recitation of data. Like pizza or a Milepost 111 burger, the same texts can be enjoyed and provide nourishment over and over again.


But sometimes it is a challenge to get beyond tasting God’s Word to actually ingesting it in a way that it becomes a part of us, shaping our affections and directing our thoughts, words and deeds. I recently came across eight questions to ask of a text in order to better hear what the Holy Spirit is saying as I read a portion of God’s Word. I use the King’s Cross lectionary, so after I have read the 2-3 chapters for the day, I spend a few minutes praying back to God my answers to the questions, and then conclude with a short prayer focused on the one or two questions/answers that seem most pertinent/applicable.


These questions have helped me move from tasting to feeding upon God’s Word, but they may or may not be helpful to you. As with a sumptuous feast, there are lots of different ways to eat and enjoy at table. Here they are:


Understanding:
1. What do I learn about God?

2. What do I learn about people?

3. What do I learn about relating to God?

4. What do I learn about relating to others?

     Pray…



Application:

1. What does God want me to understand?

2. What does God want me to believe?

3. What does God want me to desire?

4. What does God want me to do?

     Pray…

GH