In Loving God and Knowing Him 1, we discussed the first step in knowing God which is by accepting the Lord Jesus as our Lord and personal savior so that by faith we become the children of God. John 1:12 (NIV) ; Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.
And as children of God, we want to know more about God our father, the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit and the importance of our relationship with them through reading the Bible which is the divinely inspired authoritative word of God that reveals who God is. By spending time reading the word of God, we learn more about God. The Bible in 2nd Timothy 3:16 teaches us that; ” All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; 17 That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly equipped unto all good works. And we are encouraged in 2nd Timothy 2:15 to “Study to shew yourself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.â€
It is important to read and meditate on the word of God and pray daily before leaving the house. However, depending on your job hours, we need to have a plan of studying the word of God by setting aside personal time each day to read the bible. This is not rushing through the bible to show that we have read it from Genesis to Revelation but taking time to prayerfully understand the content of the verse and chapter that we are reading and learn applicable lessons from them. We cannot grow in the faith without knowing the word of God and many false preachers prey on Christians and deceive them with distorted view of the Bible because we do not take time to study the bible. The Holy Spirit will help us understand The Word once we ask him for help. Most of the time we complain that we do not have time to do it but the time we spend on Social media and watching TVs, movies can be channeled into studying the word of God and I am not saying that these things are bad in themselves, but as children of God, we have to set our priorities right and use our time wisely. Setting aside time to consistently study the Bible requires discipline but is very beneficial in the long run.
We set aside time, have a Bible translation that is easier to understand like New International Version of the Bible(NIV), New American Standard Bible (NASB), English Standard Bible.(ESV), have a notepad and pen and preferably sit on a desk and chair if available.
Start from the Gospel of John and when you read, pay attention to the passage and what it is teaching you about:
God our father in heaven, The Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit
Understand the intent of the passage and Scriptural principles to learn and apply.
About yourself in light of the passage like things the Bible prohibits, encourages and how to deepen your relationship with God, the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
How to act towards believer’s in church,
How to act towards unbelievers
If there is a promise for a child of God to claim and conditions precedent before claiming the promise.
Write these down and pray for Grace from the Holy Spirit for application of the word and you start applying the word of God from the first opportunity that presents itself. You note areas of challenges in applying the word of God and you continually pray for the assistance of the Holly Spirit to enable you do it. For example, the Lord Jesus in Luke 6: 27-28 says that we should love our enemies, do good to those who hate us and pray for those that mistreat us. (27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. ) You read this verses this morning and get to work, and a coworker that you know that hates you, had a problem and you are in a position to help her. Previously, you would have wished her the evil but now as a Christian, you wish and pray that God will use your Godly deed to help her and also touch her heart to seek God. You did not do this for her to like you but that God’s name will be glorified. if we as Christians do good deeds for man’s approval, we will be very disappointed and distracted because we are not called to please man but God. You are looking to love our father and please Him by keeping His words and the Holy Spirit will give us wisdom in such situations. Truly loving God therefore involves our commitment to consistently obey what we read in the Bible, the word of God. However, if you experience failure, do not be discouraged but always be determined sincerely that you will do what God wants you to do and God will supply the Grace for that.
We will close with this passage from the epistle of James:
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it-he will be blessed in what he does. (James 1:22-25, NIV)
May God our father, and our Lord Jesus Christ help us and give us the grace to love and live for him. Amen.
