It's an Acquired Taste

“‘Do not preach’—thus they preach—‘one should not preach of such things; disgrace will not overtake us.’ Should this be said, O house of Jacob? … Do not my words do good to him who walks uprightly?” (Micah 2:6-7)

Are you ready to taste whatever God wants to serve?

The people in Micah’s day had become picky. As they grew addicted to sin, they lost their appetite for divine counsel. Because they had pushed away the plate of prophecy, Micah sarcastically suggests they consider a sommelier for a preacher:

“If a man should go about and utter wind and lies, saying ‘I will preach to you of wine and strong drink,’ he would be the preacher for this people!” (Micah 2:11)

The proud come to the Bible picky. They spit out the Scriptures that don’t fit their personal preference. Loving the sweetness of their sin, they abstain from the Word of correction. Refusing to eat the scroll that tastes bitter at first, they miss out on the satisfying aftertaste of the Spirit’s conviction.

We are tempted to come picky to the Word because the full counsel of God’s Word is an acquired taste for sinners in the process of redemption. It is only when we expose ourselves to the whole Word that the Spirit transforms our cravings over time.

The psalmist cries out with a different appetite than the Israelites in Micah’s day—one trained by the law of the Lord:

“How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:103)

“My soul is consumed with longing for your rules at all times.” (Psalm 119:20)

“I open my mouth and pant, because I long for your commandments.” (Psalm 119:131)

When we expose ourselves to the full Word with an open heart and a hunger to obey, God changes the taste buds of our heart to align with his. The hard Word that tasted bitter turns sweet. The passages we once pushed away become our pleasure. 

Over time, the Spirit sets the pure righteousness of the Scriptures as the new standard of our palate. We acquire a heavenly appetite trained by the Master of the Feast himself—an overwhelming craving, growling from the center of our soul, that nothing will satiate besides the Word of God.

The Host reserves the choicest wine for the humble who come eager to drink whatever he serves (Mark 4:20).