When my kids were little, they could be pretty picky eaters. Even though we would encourage them to try each item on their plate, they preferred to just eat their favorite foods at each meal. The macaroni and cheese, spaghetti noodles, or chicken nuggets always went first! And what remained on their plates were the vegetables.
When you look at the Bible–reading habits of most Christians today, you might say we are picky eaters too. We tend to gravitate to our favorite passages of the Bible. For some, this might be the Psalms, because they are so relatable. For others, they might prefer the Gospels, because they teach us about Christ. Or maybe you are like most Christians, who just prefer to read the New Testament.
Just like I encouraged my children to eat a balanced meal, we need to “eat” from all of the Bible. The Bible begins with God’s words about food to Adam and Eve: “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat.” (Gen. 2:16). And it ends with God’s words about food in the new heaven and the new earth with the “tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations” (Rev. 22:2).
The Bible is Food
Throughout the canon of Scripture, God’s Word itself is described with food terms as well. This reminds us of the importance of partaking and enjoying all of it daily. Just like you wouldn’t go throughout your day without eating, we don’t want to go a day without consuming God’s Word. We are to “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Ps. 34:8). By reading His Word, we can testify “how sweet are Your words to my taste. Sweeter than honey to my mouth” (Ps. 119:103). And Jesus even describes Himself as the “bread of life” (John 6:35), reminding His followers that whoever comes to Him will never be hungry again. When Jesus was being tempted in the wilderness, He quoted the Old Testament when rebuking Satan, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’” (Matt. 4:4). God’s Word is to be our daily bread.
Read the Entire Bible
It is our tendency though to only want to partake of the familiar, comfortable passages in the Bible. These might be the parts of it that we really like and can understand. But we are not to be picky eaters of God’s Word. Just like we wouldn’t eat a diet of only desserts, we need to make sure to be consuming a balanced intake of God’s Word. We are reminded to be nourished by ALL of it. Listen to the instruction of 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NKJV), paying special attention to the first word: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” Since all Scripture is from God, we are to see the value of both the Old and New Testament. We are to cherish both the easy-to-read and the hard-to-understand parts of it. All of it is helpful for our lives.
After all, it is one big story. From beginning to end, God’s Word reveals the rule and the reign of our Almighty King. And we can’t understand parts of the New Testament without knowing the Old Testament. For example, you can never fully appreciate the teachings of Jesus without first grasping the value of the law and the prophets. Hebrews will never make sense without understanding the elements of the Tabernacle, and chapter 11 particularly cannot be properly comprehended without reading about the faith of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and so many others in the Old Testament. The Book of James shares wisdom that should bring to mind the Book of Proverbs and the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew. And the prophecy of Revelation will never make sense without looking back at the plagues of the Exodus story.
So, friend, I encourage you: don’t be a picky eater of God’s Word. Enjoy and consume all of it, from Genesis to Revelation. And then we can proclaim: “Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your Word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart” (Jer. 15:16).
Tara Dew
Tara Dew is a national speaker, author, Bible teacher, and President’s Wife at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (NOBTS). She has loved Jesus for as long as she can remember, trusting Him to be her Savior at the age of five years old at a Billy Graham Crusade. She felt called to ministry in the high school youth group, where she also met her husband, Jamie. They have been married for 25 years and have been blessed with two sets of twins: Natalie & Nathan and Samuel & Samantha. Her primary ministry is to her family, as many hours of each day are spent homeschooling their four children.
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