When Scripture Becomes the Appetizer
A Call to Restore the Word to Its Rightful Place
When Scripture Becomes the Appetizer
A Call to Restore the Word to Its Rightful Place
Why do we skim over Bible verses like they are filler content? When did God's word become the warm-up act instead of the main message?
In pulpits, blog posts, podcasts, and devotionals, a verse is quoted—sometimes paraphrased—and then quickly brushed aside in favor of a long explanation or personal story. The passage becomes a hook, a footnote, or a prelude to what the speaker really wants to say.
Scripture becomes the appetizer. The commentary becomes the meal.
But Scripture is not seasoning for man’s message. It is the message. It is not filler—it is the feast.
The moment we treat the word of God as something secondary, we betray both our priorities and our reverence. The Bible is not background noise. It is the voice of God. And when we rush past it to get to a human voice, we are no longer handling sacred things properly.
The Word Must Be Central, Not Supplemental
Paul instructed Timothy, “Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine” (1 Timothy 4:13). Reading came first. The public reading of Scripture was not optional, and it was not ornamental. It was essential.
Nehemiah 8:8 gives the model: “So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.” First, the reading. Then, the explanation. The people did not gather for stories or entertainment. They gathered to hear God’s law.
Today, it is often reversed. Commentary dominates. The verse is quoted briefly, then buried beneath stories and speculation. Sometimes it's treated like the obligatory fine print before the real content begins.
Stop doing that. Read the word with purpose. Teach from it. Not around it.
The Word Is Living and Active
Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword.” The word is alive. It does not need polish or props. It cuts. It convicts. It discerns the heart.
Jesus said, “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). The power is in the words. Not the personality. Not the performance.
Paul didn’t use “excellency of speech or of wisdom” (1 Corinthians 2:1). He preached Christ and Him crucified because he knew the gospel itself carries the power to save (Romans 1:16). Isaiah said God’s word would not return void (Isaiah 55:11). It accomplishes what God intends.
Let it speak.
Familiarity Does Not Diminish Authority
Sometimes we ignore Scripture because we think we’ve already heard it. Familiarity becomes a muzzle. A passage quoted too often is treated like old wallpaper—still there, but invisible.
That mindset is dangerous.
In Luke 4, Jesus read from Isaiah in the synagogue and applied the prophecy to Himself. Those listening had heard the passage before. But once the words were truly understood, they were enraged (Luke 4:16–28). The problem wasn’t the text—it was the hardened hearts.
Do not assume you’ve mined everything out of a familiar passage. You haven’t. A verse read a thousand times may be the very one that breaks your heart wide open on the thousand-and-first.
Read it again. And then again.
Scripture Is Sufficient
Some sideline Scripture because they do not truly believe it is enough. But Peter says God “hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). Paul wrote, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).
That covers it. Nothing lacking.
If we preach, we preach the word (2 Timothy 4:2). If we teach, we teach what God has revealed. Anything else is fluff.
Faith comes by hearing the word of God (Romans 10:17). And yet many are trying to build faith by substituting human opinion for divine instruction. That is a recipe for weak churches and confused Christians.
Return to the book. Let it speak first. Let it speak loudest.
A Return to Reverence
When Jesus was tempted, He quoted Scripture (Matthew 4:1–11). When the apostles preached, they quoted Scripture (Acts 2:16–36). When Paul wrote, he reasoned from Scripture (Romans 4:3; Galatians 3:6–14). They did not decorate it or dilute it. They trusted it.
So must we.
We are not innovators. We are messengers. And our message must be Scripture.
Honor the word. Exalt the word. Stop brushing past it like it's the opening act.
A Necessary Acknowledgment
It is not lost on me that even in making this point, I have used more commentary than Scripture. That is the nature of the medium. An article is not a scroll of the law, and a post is not a public reading from the synagogue. But my aim here is not to replace the word with my voice, but to call attention to the way we often do, including myself. The goal is to stir the reader to revere the word and to return to it, not to center myself as the authority.
Final Thoughts
Scripture is not the appetizer. It is the meal.
Read it distinctly. Speak it plainly. Handle it with care.
Let us return to the old paths. Let us read the word of God slowly, reverently, and often. Let us put it back in the center—where it belongs.
Thank you. One of the things I appreciate about liturgical worship is the small role of sermons. They can be great or dumb, short or long, but none of that makes the liturgy what it is. From beginning to end, we are immersed in scripture—the epistle reading, the holy gospel, the psalms, the words of institution, and so on. And the Word is lifted up for us as something, as you say, alive, something filled with the Holy Spirit, something we can enter into and allow to change us.
Thank you for this reminder of the primacy and beauty and singularity of God’s word.