There is a strange little moment in the book of Revelation where the Apostle John was instructed by an angel to eat a scroll. John was told the scroll would taste as sweet as honey, but it would upset his stomach. (The scroll must have had gluten in it. ????)

But this wasn't the only time in Scripture someone ate God's Word:

• In Jeremiah 15:16, we hear the prophet say to God, “Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart.”
• The prophet Ezekiel was instructed by God, “Feed your belly with this scroll that I give you and fill your stomach with it.” (Ezekiel 3:1-3)
• No wonder Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 when tempted by Satan in the wilderness to turn stone into bread: ”Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)

This is why for the next several weeks, we are going to consider several different ways to "consume Scripture." My hope is that you will let God's Word get into you, because I know that God's Word will change you from the inside out.

Preparing for a Feast

To get the most out of this new blog series, here are a couple of things you need to do:

1. Get a Bible

This is rather obvious, but in order to consume Scripture, you have to have a copy of the Scriptures.

Almost every time I teach at Riverwood, you've heard me invite everyone to open their Bibles, and if they don't have one, to either take one from the Resource Table, or download one to their phone. (Now they can use the new "pew" Bibles we recently got.)

If for some reason you don't have a Bible yet—get one! Find the Bible sitting on your bookshelf and put it on your end table so you’ll pick it up every day. If you don't have a physical paper copy of the Bible, then take one this Sunday off the Resource Table and make it yours. Or go digital and download a Bible app to your phone or tablet.

2. Plan to Eat

Next, if you want to be filled with Scripture, you have to have a plan to come to the Scriptures.

First, you need a time plan. You might need to:

• Schedule a daily time to read.
• Make a rule for yourself that you can't open Instagram or watch Netflix until you've spent time in the Word.
• Ask someone to read with you to help you make time for God's Word.

The point is that you will need to discipline yourself to actually open your Bible and consume it.

Second, you need a reading plan. Sure, you can just open up to whatever, but your "feasting" will be richer if you have a Bible Reading plan. The YouVersion Bible app has hundreds of reading plans, or you can choose one of the plans on the Freebies page of our website.

3. Be Humble

Lastly, as you come to the Bible to consume it, don't simply read with your preconceived ideas.

If you were to put on glasses with colored lenses, everything you would see would carry the hue of the spectacles. Sadly, many people read the Bible with "colored" lenses. They see the words only through their own preferences, culture, or past.

But as I've heard it said, "Don't just read the Bible, let the Bible read you." No matter which Bible study method you employ, always take a moment to pray and ask God to lead and guide you as you "eat" His Word.

After all, the goal in Bible study isn't just Bible knowledge or to check off a task on your spiritual to-do list. The goal is to let God make us more like Jesus. So stay open to God's work in your life as you read, even if it makes you uncomfortable.