A Spiritual Sweet Tooth

A Spiritual Sweet Tooth

The laws of the LORD are true; each one is fair.

They are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold.

They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb.

Psalm 19:9-10

When I discovered your words, I devoured them. They are my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God of Heaven’s Armies.

Jeremiah 15:16

My child, eat honey, for it is good, and the honeycomb is sweet to the taste. In the same way, wisdom is sweet to your soul. If you find it, you will have a bright future, and your hopes will not be cut short.

Proverbs 24:13-14

What is the sweetest thing you can think of? Your favorite kind of ice cream? Your favorite candy? Or maybe a rich chocolate cake?

In the time before there was refined sugar, honey was the sweetest taste people ever enjoyed. So when the psalmist was looking for a metaphor that would describe how good the Word of God is, he reached for the best example of sweetness that people knew at that time: honey.

He was saying that the Word of God tastes like the sweetest thing he’d ever tasted.

The Bible is not meant to be drudgery you force-feed yourself because you know it’s good for you (maybe like brussels sprouts!). God intends for his Word to be an invigorating taste sensation, a treat. But we so easily turn what he has given as a delightful gift into a guilt-inducing demand.

If you find that the Word of God often seems tasteless or unenjoyable, perhaps you want to ask God to give you a spiritual sweet tooth. He can give you that desire . . . and he can fulfill it.

DISCUSSION STARTERS

What is your favorite sweet food?

Do you really believe you could get as much pleasure from the Bible as you get from your favorite dessert? How?

How do you think you will know if God answers your prayer for a spiritual sweet tooth?