Beyond Studying: Applying God's Word

How important it is to be a hearer of God’s Word! Immersing ourselves in the Bible by establishing the discipline of a daily quiet time as well as consistent study under the leadership of a local church is vital for genuine spiritual growth.

But hearing the word of God – and yes, even pouring our minds into studying Scripture – is not the final goal. We must press on and be doers of the Word. Studying the Bible is not meant to merely increase our knowledge, but rather to prompt us to mold our lives into the image of the One who gave us those precious, life-changing Words.

For a goal-oriented person like me, this is the most difficult aspect of the Christian life. I can train myself to take time each day to talk to the Lord and listen to what He has to say through His written Word, but when I close my Bible, I find it incredibly difficult at times to live by the instructions upon which I just meditated.

I am confident I will never perfect the discipline of applying God’s Word to my life. And thankfully, I do not have to in order to have an everlasting relationship with God. He loves me always and unconditionally simply because of my faith in Him.

However, because I am a child of God’s, I have His constant presence living within me, guiding me in His truths and empowering me to obey His commands. I am permanently saved by grace, yet also able to live according to His standards as set forth in His Word, the Bible, because of the Holy Spirit working in me. Therefore I must not be content with merely hearing the Word, but should also seek to obey it.

In applying God’s Word to my life, I must guard against picking and choosing which Scriptures I will accept. I must sincerely seek to apply the whole Word of God, not just those verses that are easy to follow or make sense in the context of our current culture.

For example, I could easily deceive myself and others into believing I am a “good Christian” by helping orphans, widows, the poor, and the oppressed, while all the time harboring bitterness, anger, and hatred in my heart. I also must guard against misusing my freedom in Christ (freedom from the penalty of sin, not from obedience to God) to disregard biblical commands and justify my selfish desires.

I must commit to applying all of God’s Word to all of my life, even when it is humbling and hard.

My goal in reading and studying God’s Word should never be simply to prove I am right, to convince others of my strongly held opinions, or to justify my actions. How easy it would then be to pull verses out of context instead of looking at all of Scripture! Rather, my purpose should be to discover how to be right with the One who created me and loves me unconditionally and how to live according to His standards for His glory.

“But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” James 1:25

Beyond Belief: Studying God's Word

What a gift we, God’s creation, have been given in the Bible! What a privilege, an honor, and a testimony of God’s unfailing love and his relentless desire to have a relationship with those whom He created in His very image! To know the very thoughts of God Himself is almost incomprehensible (and perhaps why so many struggle to have faith in its unwavering truths).

Yet so often, even among well-meaning Christians, His Word is rarely examined. We have been given a great jewel, golden nuggets from God Himself, insights from our Creator and Savior. How can we not be compelled to open those precious words and hear from the One whose love surpasses all others? How can we not be drawn to the Bible much as a groom is drawn to his beautiful bride and as a small child is drawn to his mother?

I have an intense yearning to hear from God and for His voice to be louder than my own or those of the noisy world around me. This can only happen if I dig into this great gift of God’s very thoughts, His unbending perspective, His unconditional love, all of which are found in the Bible.

Through both logic and faith, I can confidently conclude that the Bible is the true, unchanging, complete, error-free Word of God. Yet if I never read and study those words, I inhibit my life from being made holy by them. Jesus prays to God, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” (John 17:17) In order for the Bible to become the living and powerful sword of the Spirit it is meant to be, it must be known.

Knowing God’s Word means faithfully studying it – in small groups, during church sermons, and by spending time daily reading and meditating upon it, sometimes with the assistance of a commentary or side notes and always in a spirit of prayer and humility, not needing to prove self- righteousness, but rather seeking to live right with the Lord.

Many temptations – sleep, work, internet, television, and even other good books - pull believers away from God’s Word. Devotional books may fill a “quiet time”, but nothing surpasses studying Scripture.

Every person can find time each day to read God’s Word. It simply must be a priority – over a nap, over Facebook, over a favorite television show, over a captivating novel, over a workout in the gym, over any task on the to-do list.

Reading the Bible each day is not a requirement of salvation or a method to earn more favor with God. Salvation is only through faith in Jesus Christ, and as a Christian, God cannot love us any more or any less than He already does. No amount of good works – including minutes or even hours each day reading the Bible – will change our status as dearly beloved children of God’s.

However, this precious gift of God’s Word should lure all believers to know our Creator better in order to honor, imitate, and glorify Him. Our faith should compel us to both study God’s Word and trust it as the best way to live our lives.

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it….” Joshua 1:8