Numbers 21:5 “And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.”

What was the “worthless food” the Israelites were “loathing” here? Manna. God’s supernatural provision for their lives in the wilderness. Manna. The Old Testament shadow of the Bread of Life – the Word of God. But in flesh, and in breathed-out Scripture.

So let me ask you – are there parts of God’s Word, where you would say with the Jews, “I loathe this worthless food?” Or indeed, do you find virtually none of the Bible truly relevant to what you want to do and who you are? Then you have adopted a worldview and life direction that has nothing to do with God’s plans and purposes, and thus you are right – for those ends, the Word of God is truly worthless.

The Word is only beneficial to those seeking Christ. To those seeking to grow in the knowledge of Jesus. To those waging war against indwelling sin, and seeking to be freed from the bondage of this World’s values and seductions so that they might be conformed to the image of Christ.

This word will sustain you in true faith, but not mystical inventions that mimic faith. It will sustain you as you fight materialism, selfishness, lust, greed, pride, arrogance, addiction, and self-serving self-centeredness.

It will give you sight to see the lies of the World, the flesh and the Enemy. But it will not sustain you if you are looking to simply better your life; add the “spiritual dimension”; coddle you in your sin; justify you in self-rule or self-promotion. For those purposes, no matter how much you consume it – you will starve to death.

But if you are hungry for holiness; desperate for intimacy with Christ and the maturity that prevents you from being tossed by the waves and blown about with every wind of doctrine – for coming to the goal of Christ’s likeness that God is after in your life – it contains the highest nutritional value available. And you can have as much of it as you want or need.

The Word of God is worthless for human ends, and absolutely essential for spiritual ends.

Why you partake of it – what you look for in it – will determine is efficacy.