BIBLICAL BRIEFS 143
To “eat” God’s word is a metaphor. The logos word of God is seed (Luke 8:11) and it will bring a harvest forth if it is handled correctly. The seed of the Word must be planted in us, “watered” (by the water of the Holy Spirit – John 7: 38-39) and God will make it grow (1Cor. 3:6) – it’s a spiritual law. Because God, through the Holy Spirit, makes the word of God work within you, Spirit-guided transformation takes place, such as 1Thess. 2:13 (Rotherham) beautifully describes: “the word of God, which is indeed at work in you”. However, many believers do not know how to practically eat the Word. In the commentary on Ezek. 3: 1-3, this metaphor is explained in the Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge, paraphrasing it as follows: “Receive My word into thy mind, let it enter into they soul; digest it, let it be thy nourishment, thy meat and thy drink, to do the will of the Father that is in heaven. The same idea is repeated throughout the Scriptures, as if Father would like to remind us that there is power in the Word of God and that it is not only human words about Him, but that the whole Bible contains the enlightened life that is in Jesus Christ (Deut. 6:6-9; Ps.1:2; 37:31; 40:8; 119:11 & 97; Luke 2:19; John 8:31-32; Col. 3:16; 1Joh. 2:14). Please note – it is not a legal, mechanistic, matristic repetition of Scriptures that offers “this life” (Acts 5:20). You must internalize, reflect on, and overthink the Word under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. It should literally be like 2Sam. 23: 2: “The Spirit of the Lord spoke by me, And His word was on my tongue.” Word and Spirit must always agree, for they are One (1Joh.5:7). Paul explains this as follows in 1Thess. 1:5 – “because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake”. Always remember the warning of Jesus in John. 5:38-40: “and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.” The way the Pharisees only knew the Scriptures and constantly quoted it, is wrong. Scripture is the blood of life of whom the Divinity is; life is not in the literal letters of the Word – we know Paul’s warning in 2Cor. 3:6 – “He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” It is also necessary to know important Scriptures “so that you may know how to answer everyone” (Col. 4: 6). Do not only know Joh. 3:16, also know Gal. 3:16 and 2Tim. 3:16. You must know where the Word talks about rebirth, who is a true Jew, the importance of baptism, baptism in Christ, the gospel of glory, and so forth. If you are struggling to provide Word correlates with the topics mentioned here, it is a call that now is a good time for the Word to begin living in you. Eat the Word.
Dr Tom Gouws
