We shall return to these Psalms shown above later on to put together a candid view and ultimate understanding of God’s purpose in us as individuals, and more profoundly, we as the apple of his eye, the sheep of his pasture, and members of His body, redeemed at Calvary with God’s own blood. Acts 20: 28. But let us consider the aspect of tasting in one’s everyday life. A wise man invited us on this wise! "O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him." Psalm 34:8. Already, this single verse tells the whole story. What is the full aspect in "tasting"? Every person who stands behind the stove to prepare a delectable dish, engages in "tasting" during the whole process. Tasting in the true sense of the word, is a prelude to having a full meal. Some years ago, I was conducting a three-day weekend series of meetings at the Ambassador Hotel in Washington, DC. It just so happened that the late Franklin Hall, from Phoenix, AZ was also holding meetings and his room was on the same floor as mine. Walking by on one occasion, I peaked in and saw everyone licking their lips. The idea was for them to actually taste Jesus in a literal sense. Be that as it may, tasting is meant to lead to a full meal: if it is tasty, go on to a full meal—all you can eat.

When on a cruise to Mexico, the Caribbean, Norway, Sweden or other ports of Europe, at ports of call, there are always establishments that conduct "wine tasting opportunity" for passengers that take a land tour by luxury coaches. On the return from any of those wine tasting events, passengers return with several bottles of wine. That is the whole idea behind "wine tasting" in the first place. The same concept holds true in tasting the Lord! The statement is conclusive in itself and leaves no room to speculate in wonderment. We are told in no uncertain terms that in tasting the Lord, we shall discover that HE IS GOOD, and as the recent craze was, all over America, since it is "ALL YOU CAN EAT" make as many trips to the buffet as you wish. As the Psalmist assures us, "blessed is the man that trusteth in him." The entire concept is saturated with blessings.

Years ago, while living in London, England, I began to seek the Lord with all my heart. My hunger was triggered by a "Deeper Life Crusade" in London by the late Morris Cerullo from San Diego. I walked two miles to and from work so I could use the time to pray. One morning in my prayers, the Lord said to me regarding my need to grow in Christ daily, the Lord said to me, I must learn to feed myself daily. I cannot grow daily simply by feeding on what I get in church on Sunday and Wednesday night. He explained that if my natural body requires to be fed at least three times a day, my spiritual body cannot grow on two meals a week. It did not take me long to learn to put in practice what the Lord instructed me to do.

Taking a quick trip to John’s visions on the Isle of Patmos we read: "I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely." Revelation 22:16, 17. That open invitation is given in the last chapter of the last book in the bible, as if not wanting to leave us guessing, or by some ignorance, fail to learn of this river of water of life that is being offered by the Holy Spirit absolutely free.

Since God will not leave himself without a witness, and out of the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be stablished, an ancient prophet spoke on the same subject. Like a mighty trumpet he heralded the good news: "Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk, without money and without price." Isaiah 55: 1.

We should not fail to see how generous God is, in providing full supplies of needed sustenance for our very survival. Let us not forget that Christ came to a world that was wicked; and although he worked miracles, raised the dead, fed the multitudes; wicked hands were still determined to hang him to a tree.

Let us look at another example of Jesus Christ publishing his gospel of love and forgiveness. He had gone up to Jerusalem to attend the great feast. Among that great crowd, if you had merchandise for sale, you would get there early and would set up your stall at a vantage point where it remains visible, and you would not fail to announce your merchandise. Look what Jesus did and how he missed cashing in on the crowd. "In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. (But Lord, these people have been eating, drinking and reveling for days now) He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." Jesus waited until it came to the end, but what he had to offer would out-class—and out last all other products on the scene throughout the entire feats. "But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified." John 7: 37,38. There is another aspect to the Lord giving, and us receiving of his blessings. What is our assessment of what we receive and how do we respond to the Lord no matter what the facts are? Do we complain or are we thankful for what we received?

We will now consider the case of David the king! He had done something terribly wrong, and is now a story that is well known. The prophet Samuel came to him with a parable that featured the very sin that David had committed in the eyes of the Lord. After hearing the parable, we read: "And David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die: And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity. David had his say, and now, it was God’s turn to open up the big picture before the king, so he could take a look at himself being the real culprit.

And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee King over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; And I gave thee thy master’s house, and thy master’s wives into thy bosom and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah: (here is the part that grabs me in the stomach) and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things. Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight? 2^nd Samuel 12:5-9. Think of this solemnly! It is outlined above in this lesson that if we think that what God has blessed us with is a little below our expectation, we can go back to God and ask for more. This is my personal belief and based upon this aspect of this study, we are within the limits of what God allows or will accept. For the most part, it really is not what we ask for or even desire: rather, it is the motives of our heart.

This is quite a stretch but allow me to insert it at this juncture! In the case of Simon in the book of Acts, when he saw that by laying on of hands the Holy Ghost is given, he asked to buy of that same power. And Peter responded to his request. "Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right with God. Repent ye therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee." Acts 8:20-22. These several lessons are not to be taken lightly as if to "fill in the gaps." The whole picture enjoins the big salvation landscape. It is not until you enter adulthood, advance into middle age, or even until you approach early retirement. This is for your entire lifetime no matter how many years are allotted to you.

This study has the undergirding and validation of many scriptures, which we will bring to the fore as the study moves forward. There is another scripture that fits in well at this juncture as voiced by the prophet who prophesied in about the year B.C.712. He joined other contributors in scripture, and at this point in time, he joined John as he wrote his vision by the revelation of the Holy Spirit on the Isle of Patmos. He wrote: "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come buy wine and milk, without money and without price." Isaiah 55:1. God’s invitation could not be made any plainer. The prophet has used terms and a language that can reach into the mind of the ordinary person leading a normal life. It can also reach the person of higher intelligence or one who has vastly great ambition that possibly exceeds that of many ordinary people.

The Spirit of God working through this prophet, appeals to the basic desires and needs of people in general and people at large. Picturing people living in bible lands where water is scarce and the land is usually parched from the heat of the sun, an invitation to come and eat, and buy water without money and without price, is an invitation that can hardly be ignored or treated lightly. This universal call made by the Lord himself, should grab the attention of every person.

The beauty in this case, is that the invitation given some time back in B.C. 712, is still valid and still fresh in the mind of God as if those words were spoken a week ago, a month ago, or even many years ago. God’s word and his promises remain fresh and current, because his word will not return unto him void or empty. Listen to the terms God has placed upon his word. "For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall my word be that goeth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereunto I sent it." Isaiah 55:10,11.

With this in mind, we can scan the pages of scripture in our study of God’s promises given since time began, and as we see the authenticity, power, and authority of His might, we can appropriate unto ourselves the pending victory as set in place for his children—and every heart that will reach out in sincerity and in truth. The Spirit is still saying: "If you are thirsty, come and obtain water—come buy water without money and without price.

I have said many times in live sermons from the pulpit, that salvation is free to obtain, but it costs much to keep or to maintain. A rich young man whom Jesus loved when he first saw him, wanted to know what he must do to inherit eternal life. Christ’s reply was short, and to the point: Just sell all that you have and give to the poor, then come and follow me. The young man went away sorrowful because he was very rich. At times, the simple things that God requires of us turn out to be most difficult for us to do. In this young man’s case, he had kept the law from his youth up. But Jesus reached into his soul and toughed that which was most important to this man. "Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell all that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come and follow me. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions. Jesus made note of this to his disciples! Then Jesus said unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly (not altogether impossible—but hardly) enter into the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 19:21-24.

Realistically, in an honest evaluation of the path that leads to unity with God, and to become a true believer in him, requires an honest assessment of where we put our values. What is most important to us, should be what material we are sending to glory, to build the mansions that we sing about in church. As we take a passing glance of how we lived, and what we accomplished in 2021, as it pertains to our diet, we must now consider seriously if we need to make some drastic changes.

For many years I have paid keen attention to what I eat and drink. In the area where I live there are several grocery stores that specialize in wholistic foods. what we eat and digest during the upcoming year. The verse that has become my daily mantra is featured above: "He satisfies our mouth with good things, so that our youth (not merely our inner man—not even our spirit) but our youth be renewed like the eagles. When an eagle reaches a certain age, it uses his beak to pluck out the old feathers, and its body becomes young again. As the new feathers begin to grow anew, the entire body of the bird becomes new and young again, and the bird is ready for another (renewed) life span.

Beloved hearts, from my head to my toes, I believe this truth and every time I stand before the mirror to shave, I keep looking at all wrinkles, and spots, and signs of aging. It is not about fearing death! I have been in 16 countries, ministered to thousands of people, and deep within, I feel as if I have walked the path that Christ ordered for me before I was born. Have I done my best over the years? My honest answer is that I wish I had done better. But my labor is not in vain, and when in the past I asked the Lord to release me from the ministry and give it to another, he answered personally and bluntly "none other shall do it but you, for before your mother knew what she would have I called you to this ministry and set my mark upon you, and you shall go to all that I shall send you."

Eating good things as the Psalmist just referred to, when taken in the light of spiritual matters, we quickly see how important it is to be careful of what diet we are feeding on. I remember some years ago, in San Diego, I met a dear sister who loved the Lord and wanted so badly to please him and to be in the center of his will. The problem was that in her search for truth, she was ready to eat at just about any table in the name of Jesus. The result was that she became unstable and uncertain which way to go, because she was listening to too many voices. She never lost her charm and love for Christ and the people of God. But I think that in the process, it took her much longer to arrive at the place in God that she so fervently desired. It should not be taken lightly the effect religious teachings can have upon individuals who try to be noble students. Think of countries that came under the rule of dictators. Reflect up Hitler, Stalin, Chairman Mao and many across Europe! What process did they use to put the people into subjection and servitude? They used words—that became doctrine. Each dictator produces his own doctrine and saturate his country with his doctrine. Part of his doctrine is severe punishment and even death for breaking the doctrine.

Preaching and teaching the gospel is all about words, and words are meant to be creative. God spoke and it was done, and we are given that same power in what we say. The words and doctrine that we accept from religious leaders form the basic foundation upon which we build our lives. That is why it is so important for us to embrace sound doctrine, because doctrine is the foundation upon which empires are built. Tell me what a man believes, and I will tell you what he is capable of. God wants for us to fill out mouths with good things that are healthy for our spirit, soul, and body. Make sure that you are dinning at God’s table that is full with "good things."