Let’s think about broccoli and the Bible. First, broccoli. It is common knowledge broccoli is a nutritional powerhouse loaded with vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants. The list of healthful benefits for those who ingest broccoli are too numerous to list, but include things like reduced blood sugar and cholesterol levels and reduced inflammation in body tissues. Some research data (not yet definitive but encouraging) suggests broccoli even contributes to protection against certain kinds of cancers. The list goes on. So here is a question to ponder – if broccoli is so good for your physical health, why do some people absolutely refuse to eat it? Former President George H. W. Bush spoke bluntly to that very issue! “I do not like broccoli,” Bush told the New York Times in 1990. He even banned broccoli aboard Air Force One! When that news leaked out, broccoli growers dispatched 10 tons of the health-giving veggie free to Washington. The feisty President dug in his heels and proclaimed, “I haven't liked broccoli since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And [now] I'm President of the United States, and I'm not going to eat any more broccoli!” Bush just didn’t like broccoli, and no amount of preaching and persuasion about its many benefits toward good health could change his mind.
Now think about the Bible. Why do many people refuse to include the Bible in their diet and “eat” it’s truths? The Bible is loved by many as the “Good Book.” John Adams spoke even more highly of the Bible when he observed, “The Bible is the best Book in the world.” Many, of course, disagree and point to extreme and egregious attitudes and actions on the part of some who misunderstand, misrepresent and misuse the Bible. Others point to sad but real-life examples of people who loudly profess faith in Christ and talk a big talk but fail miserably to walk the walk. The Bible word for such people is “hypocrites” – and their “example” helps to empower critics of God and His word (see Romans 2:21-24). Be all that as it may, the two-thousand year-old words of the apostle Paul to Timothy continue to make this high claim about the Bible: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable (‘beneficial’ [NASB] * ‘useful’ [NIV]) for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim.3:15-17). We can’t unpack those words here. But it is clear Paul is saying the Bible is not only the Good Book – it is God’s Book – and as such it is good for you and for me! I know the Bible has critics who disagree with those statements, and they offer a myriad of “reasons” why they won’t consume its teaching and recognize its authority over their lives. The Bible admittedly includes some things “hard to understand” (2 Peter 3:16). But consider this. In John 6:60, after Jesus taught “he who feeds on Me shall live because of Me” (vs 57) “many of His disciples, when they heard this said, ‘This statement is very unpleasant; who can listen to it?’ ” Verse 66 tells us, “From that time many went back and walked with Him no more.” The problem was not that what Jesus said wasn’t true and wasn’t good for them. He offered them the bread of life (6:48, 51)! The problem was they just didn’t like it, and they refused to eat it. That’s what broccoli and the Bible have in common – they are both really good for you, but some people just don’t like them! Think about it.
Dan
Gulley, Smithville, TN
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