The Psalmist revealed the secret of successful Christian
living when he wrote, "I have hidden your word in my
heart that I might not sin against You" (Ps. 119:11).
Jesus expressed the same conviction when He told His
disciples, "Man does not live on bread alone, but on
every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Matt.
4:4). There's an internal hunger within everyone of us
that cries out for the Bread of life. That hunger and
thirst can only be filled when we take in God's
provision for the deepest hungers of our hearts.
Otherwise, we become spiritually weak and eventually
fall into despair and defeat. We must take the word of
God into our lives if we are to experience victory in
our daily walk with Christ.
But on a practical level, how do we do that? Over the
years of walking with Christ, I've learned five ways in
which we can take in God's word to our lives.
First, we need to read the word of God. Jesus said, "You
are already clean because of the word I have spoken to
you" (John 15:3). The word of God has a cleansing effect
upon our lives as we read it. It's important that we
read the Scriptures systematically, regularly, and
devotionally. As we read it methodically, we will begin
to see the nature of God. We'll discover what's on His
heart. We'll learn who He is and how He works. But we
need also to read it regularly. We couldn't survive if
we didn't eat physically on a regular basis. Then what
makes us think that we can survive spiritual if we don't
eat God's spiritual food on a regular basis?
Secondly, we, also need to read the Bible devotionally.
That means that we take the word of God into our lives
through meditating on the word. As we read the
Scriptures, we need to think on them. The Bible can't be
read like it's just any other book. The Bible is the
word of God. It's how God speaks to our hearts.
Therefore, we need time to assimilate what we've read
into our minds, emotions, and actions. We need to think
about what we've read and then apply it to our lives. It
helps if we begin our day by reading the Scriptures.
Then as we drive, walk, work, or study throughout the
day, we can meditate on what God has said to us.
A third way in which we can take the word of God into
our lives is by hearing the word of God. Paul wrote,
"Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message
is heard through the word of Christ" (Rom. 10: 17).
That's an amazing statement. Have you ever wondered how
you could develop more faith or grow in your faith? Paul
clearly states that such growth comes by hearing the
word of Christ.
Several years ago I was preaching in two cities in Peru.
In the first city, the sports arena was about two thirds
full. I preached a clear and simple message about God's
plan of salvation for our lives. There were about the
same number of people in attendance in the second city
as the first one, but there was one major difference.
There were many more people who responded to the message
to give their hearts to Christ in the second city than
there were in the first one. I wondered why that had
happened. In both places, people had prayed. There were
about the same number of non Christians attending the
meetings in both cities. Then, I remembered that in the
first city we had problems with the sound system. The
people in the first city couldn't hear the word of God
proclaimed nearly as clearly as in the second city.
There was a very distinct sound in the second city. At
that moment a great truth occurred to me. Faith comes
only when we hear clearly and distinctly the word of
God. How we hear the word of God determines how able we
able we are to respond in faith.
There's a fourth way in which we can take the Scriptures
into our lives - memorize the word of God. This enables
us to grow in several ways. First, when we learn by
heart the Scriptures, it enables us to more ably apply
the word of God to our lives in a moment of need. We've
tucked it into the inner recesses of our soul. Just at
the moment when we need a promise, a command, or a
testimony, God's provision through His word comes to our
mind. Thus, we are enabled to renew our minds. We can
bring every thought "captive unto the obedience of
Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5). Second, we are enabled to give an
answer upon every occasion to the questions about our
faith. Consequently, we become more courageous in
sharing our faith.
Finally, we need to study the word of God. The Apostle
Paul told young Timothy, "Do your best to present
yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not
need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of
truth" (2 Tim. 2:15). There are several ways in which we
can study the Bible. However, no matter which way we
study the Scriptures, we must always have a heart to
encounter God in them. Study, not just to get
intellectual understanding, but study to get to know God
better. One of the greatest times of personal growth in
spiritual life came from doing a character study on the
life of Moses. I met with God during that study, and He
was able to change the direction of my life. There are
other types of studies to which you can give yourself.
You can do an expository study - a verse by verse or
book by book study of the Bible. Or you can have a
topical study of the Bible, a study on the grace of God,
or prayer or some other subject. Another manner in which
you can study the Bible is a word study. Study the
original meanings of the words used in the Bible. No
matter which way you approach the study of the
Scriptures, just make sure that you're doing it with a
heart that's hungry to know God.
The Bible says that God spoke to Moses "face to face, as
a man speaks with his friend" (Ex. 33:11). God wants to
speak to you just as personally as He did with Moses.
The way He does that is through His word. If you want
God to share with you what's on His heart, then you must
take the word of God into your life. When God speaks,
you will be made clean, and you'll begin to walk in
victory.
Sammy Tippit
http://www.sammytippit.org
