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Volume. XVIII, No. 30 The Word of God“Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”
– James 1:22 The Lord leads Christians through His Word. When a Christian asks, “How can I know God’s will for my life?”, he should first of all go to the Word of God and pray, “Lord, ‘Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law’” (Psalm 119:18). Charles Dickens said, “The New Testament is the very best book that ever was or ever will be known in the world.” The Bible is a wonderful book, given by inspiration of God. Let us note the seven wonders of the Word of God. 1. The wonder of its formation — the way in which it grew is one of the mysteries of time. 2. The wonder of its unification — a library of 66 books, yet one book. 3. The wonder of its age — most ancient of all books. 4. The wonder of its sale — best-seller of all time and of any other book. 5. The wonder of its interest — only book in the world read by all classes of people. 6. The wonder of its language — written largely by uneducated men, yet the best book from a literary standpoint. 7. The wonder of its preservation — the most hated of all books, yet it continues to exist. The Word of God is “quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). Thank God for His Word that has guided believers ever since it was written. Here are some thoughts as to how the Bible is to be read. God’s Word should be read: 1. Prayerfully — ask the Spirit of God to meet your heart’s need as you read. 2. Thoughtfully — think about the meaning and implications of what you are reading. 3. Carefully — take careful note not only of the words that are used but also of how they relate to one another. 4. Repeatedly — it may be of great help to read the same portion over daily for a month’s time. This is a good way for its words to take root in your heart. If you are reading a short book, read it every day. Divide longer books into manageable portions of two or three chapters and read that portion through every day. 5. Extensively — sometimes it is of great help to read large portions of the Word of God through at one sitting. If you do this, do it at a time when you are alert and not likely to be disturbed during your reading. 6. Regularly — it is good to have a particular time every day when you habitually give yourself to the reading of the Word of God. 7. Faithfully — inevitably there will be days when you will fail to read the Bible. Do not let your momentary lapse discourage you. Faithfully resume your practice of reading God’s Word. 8. Obediently — because the Bible is God’s Word written to you, it is essential to obey it. The last point is by no means the least. As a matter of fact, it is probably the most important, for it makes no sense to read the Bible prayerfully, thoughtfully, carefully, etc., if we don’t obey it. As James put it, “Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22). Let us, therefore, put God’s Word into practice in our daily lives that God may be glorified in all we do. With love in Christ and prayers, Rev. Edward Paauwe |
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