Section 5
Then in Revelation 10 we read that the apostle John also ate the Word of God.
Jeremiah said, "Your word became to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart" (Jer. 15:16b). This is a kind of enjoyment. The Word, after being eaten, became a joy and also a rejoicing. God's Word is an enjoyment; after it is taken into us and assim ilated into our very being, it becomes joy within us and rejoicing without. David said, "How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth" (Psa. 119:103). The Word is indeed an enjoyment; it is even sweeter and more pleasant than honey to our taste.
From these verses we realize that the Word of God is not only for us to learn, but even more for us to taste, to eat, to enjoy, and to digest. The Lord Jesus even speaks of God's Word as spiri tual food: "It is written, Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out through the mouth of God" (Matt. 4:4). Every word which proceeds out of the mouth of God is spiritual food to nourish us. This is the food by which we must live.
THE ESSENCE OF GOD'S WORD
What is the substance, the essence, of God's Word? The answer is found in 2 Timothy 3:16: