“What is Expected of a Church Member: Study God’s Word”
Introduction:
Perhaps one of the things that there is the most confusion among people claiming to be Christians is church membership. Many people assume that since their name is on the church role book or because they go to church on occasion that they are saved, but that is not what the Bible teaches. So the question arises, what exactly is expected of a church member? The eldership at Oak Grove does not set any requirements of what you must do in order to maintain your membership or to be a member of the church. Oak Grove has not revoked memberships, but when you become a member of the church what do we expect of you? The answer in short is we do not expect any more of you than God does. There are some things that God lays forth in His Word that He expects all Christians to do. For so many people they want to do the minimal expectations. I want to suggest rather that we as Christians should hunger for righteousness and strive to the best that we can. Many Christians are just perfectly content living a lukewarm faith that does not go beyond shallow Christianity. I believe God has called us to more.
Last week we talked about how God expects members of the church to worship regularly, and this week I want to talk about an expectation that is equally as important and that is Studying God’s Word. God expects His people to study His Word.
Babies in third world countries that are starving actually begin to loose their appetites due to malnourishment. A lack of appetite indicates a serious illness. A lot of times when relief workers will go over to these places and bring food to those that are starving and malnourished they have to force the people because they have lost their appetites.
There are many Christians that are seriously spiritually malnourished and they have lost their appetites for the Word of God. The Bible is our source of spiritual nourishment. We cannot expect to grow and stay strong in our faith apart from a regular diet of the Word of God. We as a church obviously cannot force-feed you, but we want to inspire a desire within you to desire and crave the word of God.
The Word of God was written for a purpose, and it wasn’t just because God thought it would be a neat thing to do, he wrote it so His people could know him better and know what He expects.
Text: I Peter 1:23-2:3
I. Study God’s Word Together
Here at Oak Grove we have many different opportunities for you to study God’s Word in a group. We have Sunday School classes, we have Sunday evening small group classes now, we have Wednesday Night Bible studies, all aimed at trying to equip God’s people with the knowledge and the tools necessary to stand strong in their faith. While it is important that you study God’s Word on your own, and you can understand many aspects of God’s Word on your own, there is something special when a group of people meet together for the study of God’s Word. Though it is not a requirement for membership, I really want to encourage each member of Oak Grove to try their best to be a part of one of those classes each week. I believe you will find that you are blessed through that and you will be a blessing to others. There are several reasons that I feel that it is important to study God’s Word together…
A. Teachers Can Reveal New Information
As you read through the Bible some concepts you can catch and understand on your own, the Bible wasn’t intended to be incredibly complex and hard to understand. But sometimes you may need the help and understanding of someone who is gifted as a teacher.
Ephesians 4:11-12
There are some people that God has gifted with the ability to get great incite out of a passage. Also, though you may have read a passage or story countless times we can always learn and grow from people. The Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts 8 has been in Jerusalem worshipping, and he probably had heard some things about Jesus, and he was reading from Isaiah 53 about the suffering servant. He could not understand that Scripture on his own, he needed some help. Phillip explained to him that the passage was talking about Jesus. There are times we can learn simple truth all over again or something that is taught may give us new incite into a particular passage.
The basic stuff is important and can nourish us spiritually; it doesn’t have to be a deep and new teaching for us to grow from it. Sometimes we simply need to be reminded of great Bible truths that we may be familiar with. Some people feel that they have no need for the basic stuff, or they feel once they have read the Bible some they have read it enough. Imagine if one day you came home and you had been working all day long, and you were starving. You asked what was for dinner, and you heard you were having the same meal you had 2 weeks ago. It is highly unlikely you would refuse that meal for that reasons. You still enjoy the basic foods that you eat
B. Others Can Benefit From Our experiences
Maybe you are a new Christian and think that you cannot bring much to a study, but your questions and incite helps others to see God’s word more clearly and drives people to study. I have learned that every person has some great incite, every person has a different background, and different experiences that they can bring to the table. When we meet and study, a class is better when we all share our incite. Your incite may not seem like much to you, but what you say and share can greatly benefit and encourage others that are present. We all are at different points in our lives; we are at different points in our Christian walks. Some people have not been Christians long; some have been for a long while. We have different experiences which makes us who we are. We have all been through different trials and different roads. Our experiences pooled together in a study can help a whole group grow and learn something they otherwise wouldn’t have learned. I want to encourage you if you don’t regularly attend a group study here at Oak Grove, make every effort to do that because others can grow, benefit, and be blessed by your incite and experiences even if it may not seem like much to you.
C. It Makes You Accountable For…
i. Having Godly Attitude
Hopefully all of us want to be the best people that we can possibly be. Hopefully we all want to please God in everything that we do. When we examine ourselves we see clearly that we fall short. We always need to be in the process of checking ourselves, and we should value the times when it is revealed to us that we are doing something wrong. When we meet together and Study God’s Word in community sometimes our shortcomings are revealed to us. God’s Word reveals things about our attitudes that may need to change. The Spirit works through the Word and other people sometimes to help us see right from wrong. Do you remember how David benefited from the accountability he received from other people? David’s sin with Bathsheba was not pleasing to God. The prophet Nathan came to David and confronted him about his ungodly action and that confrontation lead to repentance. It was hard for David to accept the fact that he had messed up, but in the end it leads him to a closer relationship with God. We do not like learning that we are wrong about something. We may even get angry or frustrated, but in the end when we learn our faults it can lead to positive changes. Studying God’s Word together holds us accountable for having a godly attitude.
ii. Regular Study and Attendance
Last week we talked about how important your attendance is in worship, but not only is your attendance at church important because it is an opportunity to worship God, it is also important because it is an opportunity for you to learn from the Word of God. When you are part of a Bible Study group or Sunday school class you are held accountable for your attendance and your regular study. If you miss class, people may say, “Where were you?” or “we missed you” and those things hold us accountable to being there and to reading and studying the Scriptures on a regular basis. Sometimes being at church and coming to Bible studies is inconvenient and difficult. It may be tough for you because you have a busy schedule, because you have a lot going on, but I think studying God’s Word together with a group of people is a blessing to our faith. I believe God expects His people to study His Word. Coming to Sunday School or another Bible study group is not a burden that we have, but it is an opportunity. The early Christians were always eager to meet together and study together. Studying God’s Word together holds us accountable to being faithful in attendance and faithful in our daily Bible study times.
iii. Sound Doctrine
Studying God’s Word can also help us to be held accountable for our doctrine. Despite what many say, it really does matter what we believe, and there are many false teachers who would like to deceive you.
2 Peter 2:1-3
There is a reason Paul told Timothy to watch his life and doctrine closely. Perhaps you could be listening to a preacher and hear them say something of how Proverbs says that if your are generous you will surely prosper. You may fall into believing that, but if you are part of a group that studies God’s Word someone may remind you that it may be talking about spiritual prosperity. If you have a group of people most likely there are people that understand different concepts and have retained different knowledge. When you pool knowledge together it may be easier to hold you accountable for what you believe. Ultimately what it comes down to is the Word of God is our measure of right and wrong and our measure of what Truth is. If we do not search the Scriptures regularly and together we are subject to fall into a false teaching.
Acts 17:11
Being part of a group study holds us accountable to what we believe.
D. Develops Strong Relationships
You read in the book of Acts about groups of people who were incredibly close and had deep strong relationships. There is a reason for that…
Acts 2:42
We can do things together all day long, but studying God’s Word builds strong relationships faster than anything you can do. Another reason why you should study together is because of the bonds and the relationships that are formed through those studies. I have seen in small group studies how barriers can be broken, and relationships can be formed as people study God’s Word together.
II. Study God’s Word Privately
If you attend one hour of worship a week, I think you can grow and learn some Bible, but I think that you are missing out on something great. People that do that are settling for a mediocre Christian life, when Jesus offers them so much more. There is no such thing as a healthy Christian spiritual life apart from a regular diet of the Word of God. We cannot get enough spiritual nourishment by hearing one sermon a week. However, a USA Today Poll reported that 11% of American read the Bible every day. The Barna research group reports that among those claiming to be Christians only 18% read the Bible every day and 23% admit that they never read the Bible.
I Timothy 4:7-8
As we mature in Christ our appetites may change, we start to desire solid food instead of milk. That is what it means to grow in our faith. We need realize there is more to our faith than juts being saved; there is a lifestyle that glorifies God and brings joy to us.
Bible Study never grows old and no matter how long we have been Christians God’s Word is still relevant because God’s Word discusses many things we need it discusses addiction, building relationships, preparing for the second coming, handling our finances, how we are to live and how we can know God.
II Timothy 2:15
People after hurricanes read and reread their insurance policies to see if they are covered and to see what help they can get. They want to know if their homes were covered if the things inside their homes were covered, if their hotel stays were covered. They do that to make sure that they do not fail to claim something that the insurance would pay, they don’t want to miss out on something
How much more vital is the word of God though? It is through the Word of God that we see and can claim promises that God offers us, it is in the Word of God that we read what God expects of us, yet so many people are living their lives based on how they feel God is and will be at judgment. Sadly, many of those thoughts are based on preconceived ideas rather than the Truth of the Word of God.
Perhaps occasionally we need to ask ourselves some painful questions like: if your growth in Christ were measured by your amount of Bible intake where would you stand? If you come to the conclusion that you have neglected the Word of God, then you need to determine what you are going to do to fix the problem? I think it begins by making intentional steps to read the Word. I can make this promise to you…if you read God’s Word regularly for an extended period of time with an open mind and heart it will change your life for the better. Always remember though, that there is no one that is above the need to be in the Word of God.
God invited us to come and know Him better, and he has revealed himself in his Word, let us make the most of that opportunity so that we do not miss out on something that he has to offer, that is why God expects members of His Church to read the Word.
