"Salvation is a Feast"

In reading The Prodigal God with a friend of mine, these words brought me to tears this morning:

"Jesus's salvation is a feast, and therefore when we believe in and rest in his work for us, through the Holy Spirit he becomes real to our hearts. His love is like honey, or like wine. Rather than only believing that he is loving, we can sense the reality, the beauty, and the power of his love. His love can become more real to you than the love of anyone else. It can delight, galvanize, and console you. That will lift you up and free you from fear like nothing else.

This makes all the difference. If you are filled with shame and guilt, you do not merely need to believe in the abstract concept of God's mercy. You must sense, on the palate of the heart, as it were, the sweetness of his mercy. Then you will know you are accepted. If you are filled with worry and anxiety, you do not only need to believe that God is in control of history. You must see, with the eyes of the heart, his dazzling majesty. Then you will know he has things in hand." [Emphasis mine]

Tim Keller, The Prodigal God, pages 121-122

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!
Psalm 34:8