Archive for the ‘Bible’ Category
God’s Word is Like . . .
People often ask me if I have a life verse.
If I do, it is Jeremiah 15:16, “Your words were found and I ate them, and your words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart.” It’s kind of my testimony. I was going nowhere in a hurry and I found this book God wrote and began to feast on it like a soldier devouring his last meal. When the Word of God is absent from my life my heart is hungry. When I feast on the Bread of Life, my heart overflows with joy.
I love the vivid pictures with which the Bible describes itself.
FIRE
“Therefore, thus says the LORD, the God of Hosts, ‘Because you have spoken this word, behold, I am making my words in your mouth fire and this people wood, and it will consume them’” (Jeremiah 5:14).
I experience the reality of that Scripture on a weekly basis. I have the privilege of standing before thousands of people with God’s Word in my mouth and seeing the incredible impact that it makes. I see the truth penetrate their hearts, grip their minds, move their emotions, and, best of all, engage their wills toward transformation. God’s Word is like fire; it consumes people’s hearts.
SWORD
“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than and double edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).
Not a knife or dagger, but God’s Word is a sword, the weapon of hand-to-hand combat. The sword of God’s Word cuts to the heart of the matter. Ephesians 6:17 says, “And take . . . the sword of the spirit, which is the Word of God.” When Satan is trying to tempt us or discourage us, it’s the Word of God we use to defeat him. Amazingly, Jesus Christ Himself used the Word of God as a sword to deflect the temptations of the enemy (Matthew 4:1-11). Can we afford to do less?
HAMMER
“Is not my word like . . . a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?” (Jeremiah 23:29).
If God can’t get to you with the fire or the sword, guess what? The hammer’s going to fall. Many of those whose lives have been changed by the Word of God reference a time when their hearts were very hard and God had to break them. And it was painful. Nobody wants to meet the hammer of conviction and change. That is why the Scripture exhorts us, “Today, if you would hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” (Psalm 95:7-8).
SEED
“Having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever” (1 Peter 1:23 NKJV). In one of His parables Jesus said, “The seed is the word of God” (Luke 8:11 NKJV)
A seed starts so small and takes time to grow. Similarly the Word of God starts to work in our hearts, but it takes time. Sometimes we have to hear the same thing several times before it really starts to connect. In the same way, God’s Word planted in the human heart will bear much fruit over time, but it requires a willingness to plant the seed by faith and wait.
MILK
“Like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow” (1 Peter 2:2).
We were born with our mouths open. What mother’s milk is to little babies, so the Word of God is in the life of a sincere person of faith. I don’t see adults crying because they haven’t been physically fed, but how many are filled by anxiety, fear, and discouragement because they have neglected God’s only provision for their spiritual nourishment?
MEAT
“For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word or righteousness” (Hebrews 5:12-14).
If you’ve known Christ for any amount of time at all, you find yourself saying, “Isn’t there more?” The answer is yes! There is more–the meat of God’s Word. Milk is like the elementary or basic things of the Bible. “But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice, have their senses trained to discern good and evil” (v. 15).
LIGHT
“Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105).
Here’s the great thing about light. If you’re walking around in the dark, you will stumble over stuff and hurt yourself. The Word of God works in our lives so that we don’t walk down dark alleys anymore. We don’t make dumb mistakes. If you know what it is to be perplexed about an important decision hanging over your head, then you understand the value of having God’s Word light your path.
MIRROR
“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror, for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effective doer, this man will be blessed in what he does” (James 1:23-25).
God’s Word shows us ourselves! It confronts us with truth and convicts us about our true need. If I have a blob of mustard on my face and, after looking in the mirror, forget to rub it off, how silly would that make me? So the real power then is not in the words exclusively but in my doing what the Word of God says.
I can personally testify to the power of God’s Word when I’ve invited it to drill down into my heart, driving indifference and complacency from my soul. Long before I proclaim God’s Word in our church service, I sit alone in my study with His Word and invite God to change me, to hammer the reality of what God is saying into my soul. I ask Him to fill my heart with faith as I focus on His words and to accomplish His purpose in me as Isaiah 55:10 promises.
God is faithful to His Word and we who place ourselves in the flow of that unceasing work are the continual benefactors.
How to Study the Bible: Interpretive Principle 7
Principle 7: The Interpretation Should Fit within the Overall Context of the Broader Passage.
When interpreting a passage of Scripture, it is essential that your interpretation be in harmony with the context in which it is found. Failure to consider the context of your primary passage may result in an interpretation that runs counter to the intent of the author. Remember, most books of the Bible were written to be read as a whole, not in a disjointed fashion as though each verse was an independent thought. Though it is often helpful (and necessary) to quote a single verse without referencing its context, we must be careful when we use Scripture in this way. Likewise, we must be discerning when we hear a verse quoted apart from its context. If we are not familiar with the verse and how it fits into its literary context, we cannot know with certainty that it is being used properly. Only in a few of the biblical books (such as Proverbs and portions of Ecclesiastes) were individual verses intended to be read independent of the context.
For instance Mormon missionaries might try to convince you from the Bible that there are many “gods”—that the God of the Bible is not unique. To prove their point they will quote from 1 Corinthians 8:5 which states, “as indeed there are many gods and many lords.” How does looking at the context of this passage show their interpretation to be incorrect?
The context of this passage makes it clear that Paul is discussing the issue of eating meat that has been sacrificed to pagan gods (and then resold in the meat market). Thus the “gods and lords” that Paul is talking about in verse 8 are actually false gods—the gods and lords that comprise the Roman religious system. That he does not intend to be teaching that there are multiple gods is clearly seen in verse 4 where he states “there is no God but one.” So his point in verse 5 is that even if the world recognizes other gods and lords (and indeed for the world there are many gods and lords) the Church only rightly recognizes one God and one Lord—the Lord Jesus Christ. This is but one example of why it is important to interpret a verse in relation to its context.
Previous posts in this series…
- Principle 1: Seek to Understand the Authorial Intent
- Principle 2: Understand What a Term or Event Meant to the Original Audience
- Principle 3: Expect to See Unity Throughout the Scriptures
- Principle 4: Use Scripture to Interpret Scripture
- Principle 5: Move from the Clear to the Unclear
- Principle 6: Attempt to resolve contradictory or difficult statements, but be willing to accept that human limitations may render a solution presently impossible.
How to Study the Bible: Interpretive Principle 6
Principle 6: Attempt to Resolve Contradictory or Difficult Statements, But Be Willing to Accept that Human Limitations May Render a Solution Presently Impossible.
As we seek to make sense of the Scriptures, we will often encounter passages that defy our best efforts to understand them. And though the bulk of Scripture can be understood if we exert a little effort, even the most experienced Bible scholars are not always able to arrive at a satisfactory interpretation of a text. Passages such as 1 Corinthians 15:29, where Paul speaks of “baptizing on behalf of the dead,” have been historically difficult to understand and have stymied many of the best Bible interpreters for centuries. Even the Apostle Peter acknowledges that some of Paul’s writings are “hard to understand” (2 Peter 3:15-16). What a comfort to know that we are not alone when we find it difficult to comprehend the meaning of a particular passage!
When confronted by texts that we just can’t seem to get our minds around, the best thing to do is to acknowledge temporary defeat and move on. Often moving past a difficult text and on to other portions of Scripture will introduce new information that will then shed light on the previously difficult passage of Scripture. Once again, the key to understanding the Bible is to read it. The more we read the Bible, the more information we add to our Scriptural knowledge base and thus have more information for addressing particularly difficult passages of Scripture.
Previous posts in this series…
- Principle 1: Seek to Understand the Authorial Intent
- Principle 2: Understand What a Term or Event Meant to the Original Audience
- Principle 3: Expect to See Unity Throughout the Scriptures
- Principle 4: Use Scripture to Interpret Scripture
- Principle 5: Move from the Clear to the Unclear
How to Study the Bible: Interpretive Principles 4 and 5
Principle 4: Scripture Should be Used to Interpret Scripture.
There is no better commentary on Scripture than Scripture itself. Most major subjects that are addressed in the Bible are addressed more than once. Theological subjects such as sanctification, justification, and regeneration are common themes throughout the Bible. Even historical events such as the death and resurrection of Christ, the reign of King David and the ministry of the disciples are addressed multiple times. The fact that the Bible often addresses the same topic from multiple perspectives is a valuable resource in personal Bible study. As we encounter certain passages of Scripture that touch upon these repeated themes, it is important to cross-reference our primary passage of study with the other passages in Scripture that speak to the same issue. Looking at the whole of Scripture in this way will give us a fuller understanding of the Scripture’s broad teaching on a given subject.
Principle 5: Work from the Clear to the Unclear.
This principle closely follows the one above. Certain passages of Scripture will often mention a doctrine in passing without developing it in detail. However, this doctrine may be covered more directly and clearly in another portion of Scripture. In such instances, it is always best to allow the clearer and more developed passage to serve as an interpretive guide for the shorter and less clear passage.
For instance, Paul’s comment in 2 Corinthians 5:21 that God “made him [Christ] to be sin who knew no sin” raises an important theological question: Did Christ ever sin? Taken alone, Paul’s comment might be interpreted that way. Yet Hebrews 4:15 act as an interpretive guide for this passage. In 2 Corinthians 5, Paul is discussing the atonement—how one comes to be a new creation in Christ. His main topic is about our salvation, not the moral state of Christ. The context of the Hebrews passage, however, is about the moral superiority of Christ over and above that of the fallible Jewish priests. The author of Hebrews is specifically addressing at length the subject of Christ’s moral perfection. Thus Hebrews should be used to interpret Paul’s comments in 2 Corinthians 5:21, and not vice versa. 2 Corinthians 5:21 should be interpreted to mean that Christ took upon Himself the guilt and consequences of our sin, so that we could experience the blessings of God’s salvation. Such a reading fits neatly with the context and is in harmony with the rest of the Scripture’s teaching on Christ’s moral perfection.
Previous posts in this series…
- Principle 1: Seek to Understand the Authorial Intent
- Principle 2: Understand What a Term or Event Meant to the Original Audience
- Principle 3: Expect to See Unity Throughout the Scriptures
How to Study the Bible: Interpretive Principle 3
Principle 3: Expect to See Unity Throughout the Scriptures.
Though the Bible was written by numerous authors over the course of many centuries, it nonetheless comprises a unity in its message. Just as it is necessary to take into account the Bible’s diversity, it is also necessary to keep in mind its unity. God, not man, is the ultimate voice behind the Scriptures. Of course, this is not a presupposition granted by all Bible scholars — especially secular Bible scholars — but such an understanding of Scripture reflects the Church’s historic perspective regarding the Bible.
Therefore, when interpreting a passage of Scripture, it is important to interpret it in such a way that it fits harmoniously with the other portions of Scripture. Thus we should expect to see certain themes (such as the New Covenant, the Abrahamic Covenant, God’s unconditional grace, etc.) occur in harmony throughout the Bible. Similarly, when we encounter texts that seem to pull against each other, we should look for ways to harmonize them rather than assume they are teaching contradictory truths. We need not conclude—as some do—that Paul believed in eternal security while the author of Hebrews believed a Christian could lose his salvation! Though many of our attempts at harmonizing difficult passages of Scripture will be unsatisfactory at first, as we grow in our understanding of God’s Word, we will gain an increasing ability to fit the Scriptures together as a unified whole.
For instance, harmonizing Romans 4:1-3 and James 2:20-24 may seem difficult at first, but when we look at the context for each passage we realize that Paul and James are talking about two sides of the same coin. The broad message of the Bible teaches that we are saved by faith and not by our works. Nonetheless, true faith will always produce good works. The key to understanding the relationship between these two passages is to realize that Paul and James are using the term “justified” in a slightly different manner. In the Romans passage, Paul uses the term “justified” as synonymous with “saved” and thus he teaches rightly that “justification is by faith apart from works.” But James uses the term “justified” as synonymous with “vindication” and thus rightly teaches that it is through our works that our faith is “vindicated” or “shown to be real.” It is our commitment to the principle of unity that enables us to arrive at such a harmony.
A caveat is in order here, however. Often despite our best efforts we will not be able to harmonize every portion of Scripture. Whether due to a lack of understanding, lack of knowledge, or a need for further study, there will be times when we just won’t be able to make sense of certain passages. And that’s OK. Be content to live within the tension until further light becomes available. There’s no use forcing things and coming up with a half-baked explanation.
Principle 1: Seek to Understand the Authorial Intent
Principle 2: Understand What a Term or Event Meant to the Original Audience
How to Study the Bible: Interpretive Principle 2
Principle 2: Understand What a Term or Event Meant to the Original Audience.
Different cultures have different ways of interpreting the same data. When interpreting the data of another culture, it is necessary that we understand the data in relation to the culture in which it is found. For example, the expression, “a bag of fruit” in Australia is slang for a man’s suit. Thus, if we were to overhear two Australians talking about their friend’s “bag of fruit,” we would need to interpret the expression according to its Australian meaning if we were to understand it properly.
In the same way, the Bible was written in the context of a different culture and must be understood in relation to that culture. This will take intentional thought on our part, lest we mistakenly impose our own cultural understanding onto the text. This is true of more than just words or phrases; we must also understand events and circumstances from within their biblical cultural perspective as well. For instance, to the contemporary North American mindset, practices such as slavery and polygamy are highly foreign and offensive. Yet to the people of the biblical world, such practices were not viewed as inherent injustices, but rather simple facts of life—perhaps much like we would view having to work at a job we didn’t particularly care for. We must not therefore, presume that Jacob’s two wives, Rachel and Leah, would have viewed their marital situation from the same perspective as a North American woman of the 21st-century.
So before we quickly interpret a passage from within our own 21st-century context, we need to understand what the passage would have meant to its original audience. Much of our ability to do this will be dependent upon our continued exposure to the ancient world of the Bible. As we come to understand the world of the Bible more and more, we will have a better ability to think from within its cultural context. This in turn will give us a better understanding of the authorial intent.
So for instance, in Colossians 1:15, Jesus is called the “firstborn of all creation.” Many deviate Christian sects such as the Jehovah Witnesses use this verse to argue against the eternality of Christ, claiming that this verse teaches that Jesus is a created being. But in the ancient culture, the term “firstborn” did not necessarily apply to birth order, but rather to prestige or preeminence. In Psalm 89:27, David is referred to as God’s firstborn in reference to his being chosen King of Israel (even though David was the youngest of his brothers). Understanding how this term was understood in the ancient culture helps us to correctly interpret the passage in a way that is consistent with the author’s message. The point that Paul is making in Colossians 1:15 is not that Jesus is a created being (which doesn’t fit the context at all) but rather that Jesus is the rightful Head and Lord of all creation.
Principle 1: Seek to Understand the Authorial Intent
How to Study the Bible: Interpretive Principle 1
Awhile back Harvest’s Adult Ministries department put together a “How to Study the Bible” workbook. It turned out really well, I think. The workbook can be used as a self-study aid, or as a small group curriculum. We also use it to teach one of our adult education classes. Over the next weeks I’ll be posting excerpts from the study.
The workbook follows a basic Observe, Interpret, and Apply format. Each sub-section contains a brief statement of the main principle, followed by an example from Scripture and a follow-up question or two. The following excerpt comes from Chapter five, “Understanding Eight Principles of Interpretation.”
Principle 1: Grasp the Original Intent of the Author.
The goal behind all interpretation is to discover the “authorial intent” of a passage—the message that the author intended to communicate to his audience. It is not enough to interpret a passage according to strict grammatical principles. We must look beyond the grammar in an attempt to discover what the author meant. For example, if a person said, “That movie was bad,” we could legitimately interpret him to mean, “That movie was poorly made and not enjoyable to watch,” or, in quite the opposite vein, we could interpret the term “bad” as a euphemism for “good” (as it is sometimes used today) and thus interpret the person to mean, “That movie was fantastic!” Both interpretations of the statement would be grammatically/culturally justified. And yet the person issuing such a statement would intend to communicate only one meaning. So though both interpretations might be grammatically/culturally legitimate, only one interpretation would be consistent with the “authorial intent” of the person making the statement.
It is the same with interpreting the Bible; the goal of interpretation is not to discover what a text could mean, but rather to discover what the author intended to mean. We must always ask ourselves, “What did the biblical author mean by that? What concept or idea was he intending to communicate with this statement?”
The intent of this series is not to sell anything, but if your church or adult education class is looking for a curriculum, and like the sound of this, you can contact Joel Johnson at jsjohnson [at] harvestbiblechapel.org. We don’t ship small orders, but if you have a need for 25 or more, he’d be happy to hook you up.
This is my Bible
Happy New Year! I just preached the first message of 2010 from Exodus 16. I challenged our church family to make a plan and spend time in God’s Word every day this year. I made a commitment to read through the whole Bible this year. And by God’s grace, I will!
We need God’s Word in our hearts, minds, and lives every day. Why? Here’s a resource that I have shared with our church family. I hope it’s helpful to you as we start 2010.
This is my Bible.
I am who it says I am. Matthew 5:16
I can do what it says I can do. Philippians 4:13
I am going where it says I will go. John 14:3
God’s Word is milk for my soul. 1 Peter 2:2
God’s Word is seed for my faith. Luke 8:11
God’s Word is light for my path. Psalm 119:105
God’s Word is power for my victory. Hebrews 4:12
God’s Word is freedom for my life. John 8:32
When I read God’s Word it brings me joy. Jeremiah 15:16
When I study God’s Word, it keeps me from shame. 2 Timothy 2:15
When I memorize God’s Word, it purifies my heart. Psalm 119:11
When I quote God’s Word, it defeats my enemies. Ephesians 6:10, 17
When I meditate on God’s Word, it brings me success. Joshua 1:8
When I abide in God’s Word, it gives me confidence. John 15:7
I am a Bible-believing follower of Jesus Christ!
P.S. There are many ways to read through the Bible—many of them are online. One source is esv.org/biblereadingplans. Let me encourage you to check it out.
Repentance is a Good Thing
I got to teach God’s Word to about 2,000 college students and faculty as part of the Campus Crusade conference, Wrecked into Redemption on December 28-30. On Tuesday night, I gave a message on repentance called “Self in the Dirt” from the series Downpour: He Will Come to Us Like the Rain. Here’s an overview of some of the content.
As you finish 2009, please examine yourself before God. Loved ones, I so much want you to be in a place of agreement with God’s Word and the Lord Himself. Please take some time today to get your heart aligned with God’s. Happy New Year!
How to Benefit from the Bible
Last week, I got some great questions about how I mark my Bible. Before I tell you more about that, I want us to think about how to benefit from the Bible by starting with my favorite verse from God’s Word, Jeremiah 15:16 which says, “Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart.” What food is to our bodies, Scripture is to our souls. Here are five things you need to do if you want to eat God’s Word and feed your soul.
Read It
If you pick it up and size it up but don’t read it, well, what a waste, right? So open it, and begin to read. You should say, “Dude, it has hundreds of pages. Where should I start?” I hear that so often that I decided to check the Bibles I own. They average around 1,400 pages. So think of the Bible as two big books or four to five regular-sized books. Studies indicate that the Bible takes about 70 hours to read out loud. Most people read a little faster than that, but the Bible is not a book you want to read quickly anyway. It’s sort of like your favorite dessert—take a bite or two and put the spoon down—a good way to make sure you are comprehending the power of what you are reading. If you read it for 12 minutes per day, or one and a half hours per week, you would have no problem finishing the Bible in a year, and you’d be so incredibly blessed you would want to start all over again the next year. Reading the Bible is really not as intimidating as most people make it.
As for where to start, I have always recommended that people begin in the gospel of John, which is the fourth book in the New Testament, the fourth eyewitness account of the life of Jesus. As you read slowly through this gospel, stop to underline the word believe every time you see it and ask yourself: Believe what? Or believe whom? Then go to 1, 2, and 3 John. Then look at another gospel. That’ll keep you busy for a while. Have a brief word of prayer before you begin to read. Ask the Lord to open you mind and heart to His truth and then believe that He will. Also, don’t lie down when you read the Bible. It’s not a magazine or a novel. Remember, it’s God’s Word, and if you give it the respect it deserves, it will “rock your world” in an incredible way. If you use serious posture, you’ll get serious results. Read it. I suggest taking at least 15 minutes to go through two or three chapters at a time.
Here’s a second thing. Don’t just read it:
Question It
Because you’re just starting out, I’ll suggest some questions, and over time you can develop your own.
- “What portion of my reading stands out to me?” You’ll read two or three chapters, and you’ll feel drawn to a certain part. Go back to that part and ask the following questions.
- “Why does this part have my attention?” What is it about this that has caught my attention? To help you answer that question, use the remaining questions.
- “Is there an example for me to follow?” I can’t tell you how many times God’s Word has impacted my life just from saying these simple words: “Is there an example for me to follow?” All of a sudden it’s like—BOOM! It jumps right off the page: “James, you should be more like that!” I love it when God’s Word speaks to me in this way and calls me to be more of what the Lord requires.
- “Is there an error for me to avoid?” It’s very comforting to know that if I have unknowingly stepped in a wrong direction or made an unwise decision, God’s Word can reveal that to me. It’s easy to see the mistakes others make, but much harder to see our own mistakes. This is where the Word of God becomes that “mirror” we talked about earlier. Is there an error for me to avoid?
- “Is there a duty for me to perform?” Is there an action that God’s Word is calling me to take? Is there some matter of importance that I am neglecting in my home or office or in my personal life? If so, I want to know what it is so I can work on it. God’s Word will often reveal a duty we need to perform.
- “Is there any promise for me to claim?” So often God’s Word brings strength and encouragement. As you study the Bible, you will hear the Lord committing Himself to certain things or to act in certain ways. As you come to those promises, you might just acknowledge, “Yes, God! You are like this, and You’ve promised to be this way for all my life, and I trust You.” Your heart will be thrilled as you learn and review the promises of God.
- “Is there a sin for me to confess?” This I suppose is obvious in some respects. You won’t read the Bible long until you come across passages that reveal to you the “error of your ways.” But one of the promises that helps with that is 1 John 1:9, which says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Now as you begin to question God’s Word, you’re ready to do this third thing.
Plan It
This is absolutely essential if you are going to benefit from the Bible as much as you could for the rest of your life. Make a plan of action regarding how you will implement what you are learning. Have a journal open beside your Bible and write some notes. Write some thoughts in the margin of your Bible. When the Word convicts you about anger or deceit or selfishness, have a strategy to deal with those sins. Make your plan specific and measurable. The results you begin to see will amaze you. Read it. Question it. Plan it.
Pray It
So often people are unsure of what to say in personal prayer. When you are praying back the truths of God’s own Word, you can be confident you are praying as God would have you do. You can also be confident that God will respond to what you are asking if the direction truly comes from His Word. That’s what it means to pray according to God’s will. How I wish I had read a book this specific and practical 20 years ago. It would have helped me so much. Instead, I banged around for a long time before I figured all this stuff out. Anyway, at least you can learn from my mistakes. There is an incredible power when you pray God’s Word back to Him. When you open the passage and say, “God, You’re this way, and you’ve promised to always be this way.” Wow! So read it. Question it. Plan it. Pray it.
Share It
When you’ve learned something from God’s Word, you have to share it with somebody else. Take time to relay something about your study to your spouse or your roommate or to a friend at school. Maybe you could share with a co-worker or someone at your church. Hebrews 10:24 says that we are supposed to “consider how to stir up one another to love and good works.” That is what happens when you share what you are getting out of God’s Word. People who hear me preach and see my enthusiasm think, Man, that guy really loves to preach. But I don’t. I hardly care about preaching at all—at least not as an end in itself. What fires me up is hearing about the difference that God’s Word makes in people’s lives. If I got up each Sunday and preached knowing nobody would apply it, I wouldn’t even show. That’s the truth. The reason we share God’s Word is not for ourselves; it’s for others. Then, as a by-product, we get the incredible blessing of seeing Almighty God use it.
The Scripture says in Isaiah 40:8, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” Someday when your television and your car and your house are on the garbage heap, the truth in this Book will still be alive. Now let’s invest ourselves in the one thing that lasts. I want to say it again: God wrote a Book. May God forgive us for not making better use of it in our lives.
I LOVE the Truth!!!!!!! I Looooveeee!!!!!!!! It :)
I LOVE the truth!!!!! I looooveeee!!!!!! it 
My life verse is Jeremiah 15:16: Your words were found unto me and I did eat them, and they became in me the joy and rejoicing of my heart. Outside my home and church office this verse is prominently displayed and summarizes what my life is all about. Here’s how it all began:
A large burgundy, Scofield reference Bible. I purchased it at a bookstore I can’t remember the name of at a mall I can’t remember the name of about a mile from the house I lived in for my first 19 years. I walked to the store, took out my very own hard-earned, and somewhat scarce cash and plunked it down so the cashier would release me to leave with my very own Bible. I took it home and sat at a table in a quiet corner of an upstairs bedroom and began to pour over the pages. I had NEVER done it before–not like that, not for myself, to feed my soul and satisfy my longing. I love God’s Word. I love the truth I find there. Truth ( I am fond of saying) that has satisfied the greatest minds in human history. Truth that has stood the test of time.
The older I get the more laid back I get about more things, but not about the truth, not about the Scriptures, not about the Bible. I am more and more casual about people and politics. I really have no idea who should win any election or how to fix the economy. I am increasingly laid back about sports teams and other meaningless allegiances. I’m so much more easy going when my kids see smaller things differently, or I can’t make it work, or I don’t get my way, etc.
But MORE AND MORE AND MORE, I have no patience for people who distort and deny God’s Word. I just can’t take it. I can sit back and smile about a lot of things, but I can’t take preachers, or practitioners, who think they are somehow helping the kingdom of God by distancing themselves from or diluting the explicit statements of Scripture. I hate it when I hear it because I love the truth. Here’s a quote from an article I wrote some time ago as a blog post written for Leadership Journal’s “Out of Ur” blog.
We are expected to obey our Master and to accept His Word without equivocation. Cavalier questioning of the explicit statements of Scripture regarding the necessity of the new birth, the priority of biblical proclamation or eternal destination of the lost, or any other thing the Bible proclaims with clarity cannot build a stronger, more Christ-honoring church no matter how sincere the messengers. Critiquing the church is good; disregarding or diminishing the revealed truth of our Founder is not good, no matter how ‘nice’ the people are who do it.
I love the truth of God’s Word, and so should you! Even when I don’t fully understand it, even when I fail to live it, even when I foolishly seek another source of soul satisfaction . . . Not for long, God’s Spirit always brings me back. He loves God’s Word too!
John 16:13 “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak.”
It’s God’s Word – more and more, I LOOOOOOVEEEEE IT!!!!!!
James
Jesus: the New Wine Tasting!
Ok, here’s the truth. Wine people really bug me; not the ones who drink it, but you know, the ones who are so into it. And NO! It’s not because I am a total abstainer. Fine, have your glass of wine. Glory in your liberty if you must. I really am not bothered by that. What bugs me is all this connoisseur crap. You know all the vintage, and bouquet and swirling and smelling. Ohhh please. It’s a beverage, get over yourself. You like it, congratulations! Is it really better than fruit juice or Kool-Aid? I mean, I was thirsty, I drank something that quenched my thirst and I liked it, big deal! “Ohh this new G2 grape Gatorade, it’s toootallly out of this world, bottled in July of ‘08, you have to breath this in, look at the way it sparkles in the glass” Ooohhh puuulllleeasssse!
Ok, that’s not what really bugs me. What truly sets me back is the growing number of people who seem to be doing that with Jesus. Sampling and smelling the parts of his nature that appeal to them and ignoring the things they find less to their taste. Getting together in little huddles around a candle and consuming the comforting while ignoring so much much of what is compelling and commanding. “Ohhh, let’s crack open a bottle of the ‘middle ages Jesus,” as if we really have any substantive clue about what Christ was doing in people and how they followed him, in say, 1147AD. “Can’t you sense His melancholy walking through this damp castle calling out in the corridor to people hiding in the shadows of biblical illiteracy?” Ah no, no I’m not sensing anything at all.
In my observation all these connoisseurs of Jesus are really just the spiritual children of the Jesus marketers. Libraries have been filled with speculations about the dangers and negative impact on the gospel from the Jesus diluters. Much damage has been done trying to make the Lord palatable to our perceptions of what pagans/want/need. I doubt He appreciates all this apologizing for who He has revealed himself to be. Examples abound of how this is happening and who is actually doing it, but all of us who claim to love the Lord must make the effort to esteem others as better than ourselves (Phil 2:3) and not to be wise in our own eyes (Prov. 3:7).
We all need the same thing. We desperately need to journey away from our prejudicial/familial view of Jesus Christ. We need to come back to the biblical center, where He is known in all His fullness without bias or historical blockage. Down with Eastern Orthodox Jesus, down with Emerging Jesus, down with western world anti-supernatural dead bible church Jesus, down with mainline watered down secular pseudo scholarly sentimental Jesus, down with Roman Catholic pomp and circumstance we have him and you don’t Jesus, and down with heartless self-interested felt need corporate mega church Jesus. Down with gospel Jesus and OT prophecy Jesus, and Pauline Jesus, as partial sketches of the total biblical Christ. God help all of us to stop tasting and sampling and swirling Jesus in the glass of our own preferences. Only the light of total biblical revelation is bright enough to expose the darkness of our own stagnant thinking about a Christ who is caricatured by what we find most pleasing to our own perspectives.
God give me a renewed passion to drink deeply from the only pure water that reveals Jesus Christ. God help me to embrace with my whole heart every page, every verse, every word of Scripture as it reveals the person and the work of Jesus Christ the Lord. Help me to see and savor all that He is… all of His compassion, all of His holiness and purity, all of His righteous anger over injustice, all of his renunciation of the temporal and superficial, and all of His passionate pursuit of people lost in darkness without the light only He can bring. My mom taught a little chorus to a basement full of after-school kids who came from the neighborhood to her bible club; the song says it so well.
“The Bible is the written word of God, It tells about the living word of God, On every page, on every line you’ll find the Son of God divine, If you want to learn to know the King of Kings, if you want to learn of all the heavenly things, read the book! Learn the book! Let the book teach you.”
That’s what I’m going for!
