Taste and See: The Spiritual Nourishment of Scripture
By Elizabeth Prata
SYNOPSIS
The article discusses how the Bible engages our five senses to connect us with God’s nature and teachings. It emphasizes the importance of hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting, and eating in spiritual life, illustrating that just as physical sustenance is vital, spiritual nourishment from scripture is essential for believers’ growth and fulfillment.
The Bible uses all 5 senses for us. God is spirit but He is perfectly knowledgeable about His creation, and He uses the senses He instilled in us to engage us.
We read in the Bible that we must have ears to hear. This refrain is consistently given to the Revelation churches (and by extension to us now), The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches (Revelation 2:7).
Mark 8:18 picks up the following verse from Jeremiah 5:21 and Ezekiel 12:2–
Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember,
The sense of smell is utilized also. Aromas are mentioned frequently. Here is just one example,
But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us reveals the fragrance of the knowledge of Him in every place. (2 Corinthians 2:14).
God even uses smell for himself, even though He is spirit and presumably without a nose or an olfactory sense,
And you shall offer up in smoke the whole ram on the altar; it is a burnt offering to the Lord: it is a soothing aroma, an offering by fire to the Lord. (Exodus 29:18).
Eating and taste are mentioned as well.
Taste and see that the Lord is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! (Psalm 34:8)
The entire wilderness wandering where the Jews ate manna is a miracle to be pondered. The manna was food directly from heaven. It must have tasted great! The manna was unknown to the Jews and simply called it “what is it?” AKA manna. Its deliverance daily (except for Sabbath) was a test of obedience for them, and trust in the LORD to provide. It also represented spiritual hunger. It meant that all they needed was God and His word in order to be filled and satisfied.
like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation, if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord. (1 Peter 2:2-3).
How sweet are Your words to my taste! Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth! (Psalm 119:103).
and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, (Hebrews 6:5)
Taking that concept further, Jesus said He is the bread of life. He and He alone is the fountain of spiritual sustenance. Here is the verse:
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; the one who comes to Me will not be hungry, and the one who believes in Me will never be thirsty.” (John 6:35).
Bread is basic. It’s a staple pantry item. I mean, when a storm is coming what do people speed to the grocery store to buy? Bread and milk. When Jesus says that those who come to Him will never be hungry or thirsty, we act like the Woman at the Well who said, where can I get this living water so I won’t have to come all the way to this well every day?
Jesus wasn’t meaning literally that we won’t be hungry or thirsty. The Jews to whom Jesus told He was the Living Bread also thought it was literal. (John 6:34, 41-42).
Bread is a staple, wheat and barley are even mentioned in Revelation as one of the items people needed during a time of famine to make bread (Revelation 6:6). Staples are essential to life. As bread is a must for life, thus, Jesus as bread is also a must for spiritual life.
So, we need to eat our Bibles to taste and see that the LORD is good. We need, I say again NEED, the spiritual sustenance it gives us. To that end, Pastor Nate Pickowicz wrote a book called How to Eat Your Bible: A Simple Approach to Learning and Loving the Word of God. In it, he says the concepts and an included Bible plan will help you cultivate an appetite for life-long study of God’s Word.
Perhaps the widespread availability of Bibles here in America has caused us to take God’s word for granted. We treat it casually, even sluggishly. When our husband says he’s taking us to that fancy restaurant for our birthday, don’t we anticipate eating the wonderful meal? On Thanksgiving don’t we anticipate, and even long for, mama’s mashed potatoes or daddy’s brisket? When we sit in our study nook and get ready to read our Bible, do we anticipate it as much as those other foods? Let us treat God’s word like the culinary treasure it is.
