Hunger for the Word
It's no secret that the Bible is a big book. But however intimidating or foreign it seems to us at times, if God has drawn us to himself through Christ, we will be drawn to its life-giving pages.
Don't read on until you read what I just said. Without exception, if you're a Christian, you will long for the Word (1 Peter 2:2-3). Again and again and again believers will return to the Bible to learn more about who God is and what he has done to save us through the Gospel for the exaltation of his holy name. We will return even if we don't understand half of what we read. Some things we learn quickly, others over a lifetime. So don't give up reading. Always pray for the Spirit to open your eyes to understand what you read (Psalm 119:18).
If we stay away from the Bible, the voice of our Shepherd gently calls us to return. If we persist, his call turns to a loving shout! Jesus knows that we do not live by bread alone but need a steady diet of Scripture for life. He didn't just tell us that, he lived it out in dependence on the Spirit (Matthew 4:4; Luke 4:1).
God the Father first gave us new life through his Word (1 Peter 1:23) and continues to sanctify us through his Word (John 17:17). We fend off sin (Psalm 119:11) and the devil (Ephesians 6:17-18) with the Word. And note this: every member of the church (not just a pastor or missionary) is charged to teach the word of Christ to others (Matthew 28:20; Colossians 3:17).
There's no cul-de-sac of Christianity, no dead end to the godsend of the Gospel. The Bible must seep into you, save you, shape you, saturate you, and be shared by you. We ALL participate in discipleship as one Body. And our overarching goal in discipleship, including everything from Evangelizing the Sinner to Equipping the Saint, is the Exaltation of our Savior!
Beloved, here's my charge to you: to effectively work together in our discipleship mission, every person in this church needs to be able to know these 4 things (when nobody else is around to help)!
1. What is the Gospel?
2. What do Christians believe? (The Essentials Class is designed to help you know this and have a resource to share with someone else.)
3. What are the 66 books of the Bible in order?
4. How would you summarize the Bible's storyline from cover to cover?
Can you answer these questions right now? My prayer is that, this year, we will all take up this challenge together so that, with God's grace to glorify his greatness, we can confidently say yes! I am actively preparing resources to lead us through this process. I want your prayerful commitment to join me in the journey. For now, keep reading through the OT, asking God's blessing on his most holy Word.
May Christ's name be exalted in all the earth!
