Godly Pleasure

Ants do not bear the image of God because they have no sense of higher purpose, nor do they have any desire for ultimate good. I was reminded of this just after giving my cat a few nibbles for evening snack (meeting his demands like the good staff that I am), when I walked back through the door and noticed movement on the floor. It was a trail of ants scurrying toward an object of desire in our pantry. I got closer and followed the trail of hurried hexapods. The line was advancing up the edge of a shelf, across the top, under the toaster oven, and bingo! —up a five-pound jug of honey with the top slightly open. That is when I discovered an ant tragedy. They were drawn to the sweet, sticky fluid, crawled in the opened lid, and were overcome by what they consumed. That was their end. There on the shelf in our pantry sits a large jug with hundreds of ants drowned in an ocean of delicious honey.

The Bible uses honey metaphorically as something that is sweet (attractive) and nutritional (good for my sustenance), such as God’s commands (Psalm 19:10). Honey also symbolizes luxury and abundance, such as God’s description of the promised land as flowing with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8). God is the giver of all good things, and they are given for our enjoyment. It is a godly thing to experience pleasure, and that pleasure is designed to direct our attention to God. Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God (Ecclesiastes 5:19).

As Israel was forewarned before entering the promised land, to enjoy pleasure and ignore or forget Who it came from and why, is to, in the end, be consumed by that pleasure (Deuteronomy 8). Is that not the sad story of humanity? C.S. Lewis would agree. He said, human history is the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.

God is the only pleasure source of which you cannot get too much. He will not consume you when you find your pleasure in Him. If His created substances become your consuming passion, then you diminish your humanity, becoming more like the creatures and ending up being consumed by material that cannot satisfy. If, on the other hand, you pursue the pleasure that is found in Him, then you will progress to the height of humanity, for You make known to me the path of life; in Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11). The more you delight yourself in the Lord, the more His created things will direct you to Him. So feast on the abundance of His presence and drink deep from the river of His delights (Psalm 36:8).


Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!
Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints,
for those who fear Him have no lack!
The young lions suffer want and hunger,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

Psalm 34:8-10

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