How To Saturate Yourself In The Word Of God Series

“The Bible- banned, burned, beloved. More widely read, more frequently attacked than any other book in history. Generations of intellectuals have attempted to discredit it; dictators of every age have outlawed it and executed those who read it. Yet soldiers carry it into battle believing it is more powerful than their weapons. Fragments of it smuggled into solitary prison cells have transformed ruthless killers into gentle saints. Pieced together scraps of Scripture have converted whole whole villages of pagan Indians.”

? Charles Colson

What is every Christian in the entire universe told to do constantly? Three words: Read your Bible.

That is a good thing to tell a believer to do. Read that Bible. Read it and reread it!

You see many believers who spend a year going through the entire bible. Again this is a good thing.

But we’re going to talk about how to go deeper with your Bible reading time. We will really not be talking about simply reading the Bible. We will be talking about absorbing the Bible. Making the Bible part of your mind. Putting the Bible in your heart and letting it change your heart.

I think many times when we read the Bible we go at it like a sprint. I’m going to cover as much ground as humanly possible! I’m going to get as far as I can and say, "Alright I read that entire chapter." But did I really absorb it?

So we’re going to look at three ways to do more than just read the Bible, but absorb what it says and embrace what it says and live what it says.

1. Putting yourself in the Moment – Not every scripture will allow us to be in the moment with the people involved because much of it is song or letter. But, for passages from the life of Jesus, or Acts or the Old testament histories, we can put ourselves in the place.

What did it feel like to be there? What did it smell like? What were the people feeling in that moment?

One example, the resurrection of Jesus. What did it feel like to be there? What was it like for the women at Jesus’ tomb to feel the earthquake, to see the angel, and to be filled with both fear and joy?

Let’s take a look at that moment, it says, Matthew 28:1-7, “After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.””

What was it like to be there? Picture yourself in that moment. What would you feel? Would you be shocked or terrified? Was it a sunny morning? Was there still dew on the ground? Immerse yourself in the moment.

It's one thing to read it. It’s another thing to put yourself in those events and consider what it must’ve felt like.

Powerful! It will make the scripture more meaningful to you. More close to your heart. More real to you.

2. Reciting the Scriptures - Second, reciting the scripture to yourself. This is again an extremely powerful way of taking the scripture from the page and bringing it into life.

Jesus said blessed are those who receive my word and put it into practice. Not just receive it. But apply it.

One that you know that I recite in prayer every day is the armor of God from Ephesians 6:10-18, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.