Having Faith Is a Tasteful Thing to Do

You had driven past the same restaurant countless times but never seriously thought about stopping to see what it was like. Maybe the exterior wasn’t very inviting, or the name didn’t catch your attention. Then a friend recommended it, so you decided, “Let’s give it a try.” To your surprise, the food tasted great, the service at the restaurant was excellent, and you wondered, “Why didn’t we try this place years ago?”

 

Or you’ve always avoided eating a certain kind of food. Not because you didn’t like it – because you had never even tried it. It just didn’t seem like something that would appeal to your palate. Then someone you were dining with ordered that food and insisted you try it. “Just a taste. You don’t know what you’re missing.” With a shrug you agreed, and instantly your tastebuds started doing a happy dance. After resisting even to try it, you were scratching your head thinking, “I should have tried this long ago!”

 

This was the case for us some years back. We’d driven by a certain pizza place many times but had never made the right turn to sample their menu. We already had a go-to pizza restaurant, so why bother going somewhere else? One day we couldn’t agree on where to eat, so we opted to go there. A friend had often said the food was really good. To our surprise, their salads were excellent and the pies were better than any we’d had anywhere else in town. It quickly became our favorite.

 

Maybe you’ve seen an infant initially balk at opening her mouth and trying a spoonful of new food, but mommy finally successfully gets some in despite tightened lips. Baby’s eyes suddenly get wide with excitement and she’s opening her mouth, eager for another bite.

 

In each case, initial reluctance was overcome by just a taste, a little sampling. That’s all it takes. I’ve experienced this spiritually as well. I’d gone to church for most of my life but had kept my “relationship” with God at an arm’s length at best. Most of the time I just ignored Him altogether, except for moments of crisis when I’d send a few “flare prayers” heavenward. Once the “emergency” had passed, however, I would resume living my life as usual, with no thought of God. 

 

I’d even read the Bible front to back during my senior year of high school purely out of curiosity, but my spiritual life was like glancing as goodies through a bakery window but never going inside to buy anything. Then I started attending a church where the pastor taught the Bible in a way I’d never heard before. For the first time, I took a real “taste.” 

 

The Bible talks about this. Psalm 34:8 says, “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him.” And in 1 Peter 2:3 the apostle writes, “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.”

 

Unfortunately, many people never allow themselves even the first taste. Like the little kid who turns up his nose at carrots or peas or even mashed potatoes, folks have already decided for whatever reason that giving faith in God a try isn’t something they’re going to do.

 

However, my own experience and that of countless people I’ve gotten to know over the years serve as proof such a choice is a foolish one. It’s not always easy, sometimes downright difficult. But a life of walking with Jesus Christ is infinitely better than insisting on living life without Him.

 

What does it mean to “taste that the Lord is good”? For me it means to read some of the promises in the Scriptures, truths God has revealed about Himself, and act upon them in faith. One of them for me early on was Proverbs 3:5-6, which says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” Never once has He failed to guide me, often far beyond my greatest hopes and expectations.

 

Countless books have been written and sermons beyond number given to explain what happens when people seriously “taste” what the Lord has to offer. Galatians 5:22-23 gives a brief list summarizing just some of the many benefits of having God in our lives: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control….” Who wouldn’t want those in their life?

 

Then there are grace and mercy, freely given even though we all are so undeserving. If we’re honest with ourselves and recognize how our sinfulness is so distasteful to a holy, righteous God, the assurance of receiving complete and utter forgiveness from Him is almost unbelievable. John Newton, a slave trader among other things before his encounter with Jesus Christ, captured this in his well-known hymn, “Amazing Grace.”

 

I’ve read hundreds of books over my lifetime, but none compares with the Bible. Its scope, depth, wisdom and truth surpass anything the mind of man has ever conceived. Just to sample it, giving it an honest taste, is enough to want to make it a part of your daily “diet.” As the psalmist wrote in the longest of the Psalms, “How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:103).

The idea of “tasting” God is more than a metaphor. Jesus Christ referred to it as a reality, an invitation to dine with Him in ways no kitchen or restaurant could boast. Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never hunger, and whoever believes in Me will never thirst” (John 6:35). He also said, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with Me” (Revelation 3:20). If you haven’t tried Him, don’t wait another day.

Considering the Five Senses of Faith

Human behavioral experts have concluded that whenever we make important decisions, three factors are involved in the process: our mind, our emotions, and our will. We gather the information we need, let our emotions influence how we feel about making the decision, and then initiate our will in committing to move forward with whatever the decision might be.

 

This is especially true for spiritual matters. Determining to follow Jesus Christ, for example, is typically a three-step process of engaging the mind, responding with the heart (emotions), and then willfully deciding to take the necessary step of faith. However, my thinking about this changed a bit recently while reading a devotional entry by Charles H. Spurgeon, a highly regarded British preacher during the latter half of the 19^th century.

 

In his book, Morning by Morning: Meditations for Daily Living, Spurgeon observed, “Faith in the Scriptures is spoken of as pertaining to all the senses.” How he explained this was so interesting, I’ll quote it directly and then offer some comments. He said:

“It is hearing. ‘Hear Me, that your soul may live’ (Isaiah 55:3). One of the first performances of faith is hearing. We hear the voice of God, not with the outward ear alone, but with the inward ear. We hear it as God’s Word, and believe it to be so….

“Then our mind looks on the truth as it is presented to us…we understand and perceive its meaning. This is sight. ‘Unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation’ (Hebrews 9:28).

“We begin to admire it and find how fragrant it is; that is faith in its ‘smell’…. “All Your garments smell of myrrh, aloes, and cassia’ (Psalm 45:8). Then we appropriate…faith in its ‘touch.’ By faith the woman came behind and touched the hem of Christ’s garment (Luke 8:43-44), and by this we handle the things of the good word of life.

“Faith is equally the spirit’s ‘taste.’ ‘How sweet are Thy words to my taste! Yea, sweeter than honey to my lips’… [Psalm 119:103].”

 

Spurgeon didn’t say it quite this way, but expressed in today’s vernacular, we might conclude that Jesus passes the hearing test, the eye test, the sniff test, the touch test, and the taste test.

 

All five senses are referred to numerous times in the Bible, affirming that committing one’s life to Jesus Christ isn’t a blind leap of faith as some would suggest. For example, after the Israelites had fled from slavery in Egypt, they confronted the vast expanse of the Red Sea. Never fear, their leader Moses assured them: “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again” (Exodus 14:13). For them, believing was seeing.

 

After declaring, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved,” the apostle Paul observed, “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” (Romans 10:13-14). We come to faith in Christ when we respond to what we hear.

 

Paul also referred to the role the ‘spiritual sense of smell’ plays in one coming to faith: “For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life…” (2 Corinthians 2:15-16).

 

The Gospels give many accounts of Jesus Christ healing people’s maladies by a mere touch when they came to Him in faith. For example, a man afflicted with leprosy approached to Him and said, “‘Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.’ Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ He said. ‘Be clean!’ Immediately he was cured of his leprosy” (Matthew 8:3).

 

As for the sense of taste, this is referred to several times as well. King David wrote, “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him” (Psalm 34:8). And the apostle Peter exhorted followers of Christ, “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good” (1 Peter 2:2-3).

 

However, in teaching about how our spiritual senses can prompt us to respond to God, the Scriptures also caution against ignoring what we see, hear, smell, touch and taste.

 

The prophet Isaiah, after accepting God’s call to serve as His spokesman among arrogant, unyielding peoples, was told by the Lord, “Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding, be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’… Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed” (Isaiah 6:9-10).

 

We find a similar admonition in the New Testament, warning those who have ‘sampled’ God’s truth but then choose to reject it: “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance…”(Hebrews 6:5).

In matters both temporal and eternal, there is a time when we must ‘come to our senses’ or ultimately face the consequences. 

Just a Taste, a Little Sampling

Have you ever gone to one of those ice cream stores with all the esoteric flavors? Yes, they have the traditional vanilla, chocolate and strawberry, but they entice you to experience an ice cream adventure. A trip to the wild side of frozen confections.

Some of the flavors are easy to dismiss. Like marshmallow mustard swirl, or jalapeno banana garlic delight. No thank you. Or peanut butter mushroom truffle. Uh…no. And boysenberry walnut broccoli will always rank among my least favorites.

Once we've taken a taste, we can choose
whether we're interested in having more.

But there are other flavors that are intriguing. You see the name and think, “I wonder how that tastes?” Something like chocolate coconut mint. Or strawberry orange sprinkle?

Maybe you’re a bit tired of your standard butter pecan, rocky road or mint chocolate chip, and feeling frivolous enough for something new and different. But don’t want to risk a whole cone or dish on something that might sound better than it tastes. So you request a sample, and they provide it on a tiny spoon. You know, the size that would work well for a four-week-old infant?

You take the taste and decide, “Wow, that’s great! I’ll have some more,” or conclude, “Nope. Think I’ll stick with my usual, chocolate almond.” But at least you got to try it, right? Just a sample, to see if it’s for you?

In a sense, God does that for us with everyday life experiences. Much of every day is mundane, humdrum stuff of little consequence. But once in a while we encounter something spectacular, so far out of the ordinary it practically takes our breath away. A gorgeous sunrise or sunset, for example. A flower exploding with color, or a beautiful bird perched on a nearby branch. A baby or toddler so adorable you can’t help but giggle.

At such times I can almost hear the Lord saying, “You think that’s something? You ain’t seen nothin’ yet.” (Hey, if He chooses to use bad grammar, who am I to say He can’t?)

I’ve had times like that spiritually as well. A classic hymn striking a chord in my heart, making me feel so close to God I’m afraid to move for fear of losing that sense. Or hearing someone tell what the Lord has done in their life and I want to cheer: “Yup, that’s Abba. That’s my Father!” Or reading a Bible passage that seems written just for me.

The Bible says God delights in giving us a taste of what’s to come, but just a taste – not an entire meal. For instance, Psalm 34:8 tells us, “O taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!” Elsewhere we’re told, “Like newborn babies, crave your spiritual milk, so that you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good” (1 Peter 2:2-3).

For some of us this taste, the occasional sampling God provides in our lives, is enough to make us long for more of the real thing. Jesus told His followers, “In my Father’s house there are many rooms…I am going there to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2). Especially as I get older, I figure if Jesus has prepared a place for me, I’m eager to check it out.

But like at the ice cream shop, where the taste of some flavors isn’t appealing, not all people sampling the “taste” from God want more. For whatever reason, it’s not for them. And just as the ice cream server doesn’t force us to eat a flavor we don’t want, nonbelievers aren’t forced to accept what God offers.

I’m not a theologian, but perhaps that’s why Hebrews 6:4-6 states, “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift…who have tasted the goodness of the word of God…if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance.”

God doesn’t just offer an ice cream cone, or some little treat. He presents a lavish banquet, and invites us to be His guests. But like a gracious host, He doesn’t force us to come. On the heavenly RSVP, we can check the “I will not be attending” box.

His only response is, “You don’t know what you’re missing.”