January 27, 2008
Spiritual Discipline: Bible Reading (EVE)
Tonight I want to get as practical as I can. I want to try to answer some of the questions you may have which you have not asked, and maybe are uncomfortable asking, because if we were to be really honest, we don’t want many people to know we don’t read the Bible or just don’t know how to.
Theologian R.C. Sproul once said we don’t read Scripture “not so much because it is difficult to understand, not so much because it is dull and boring, but because it is work. Our problem is not a lack of intelligence or a lack of passion. Our problem is that we are lazy.” Yikes!!! That’s quite an indictment, I think partly true, but I really think another aspect is what I just mentioned, we just don’t know how to read the Bible, and when we don’t know how to do something it is kind of scary.
Let me give you an example. I am petrified of putting things together. I am not overly mechanical. I have lots of tools in the garage, and I know how to use most of them, the problem is, I get a little anxious and nervous, even on simple jobs. And let me tell you, when you feel that way, you tend to find the safest avenue . . . and that is to do absolutely nothing . . . or you can call a friend or call in an expert and pay someone else to do it. Last weekend I finally put together my Christmas present. It was sitting in the garage for the past 3 weeks before I had the nerve to do it. And wouldn’t you know it, I picked the coldest day of the year to go into the garage and start this project. And wouldn’t you know it, I had absolutely no problems putting it together, and in the end I felt great that I did it. By the way, my present was a punching bag, speed bag and punching bag stand. . . just call me Rocky for now on.
We go through some of that same fear when it comes to reading the Bible, so when we are fearful, or just uncertain, we don’t do it, and we ask the pastor to teach us all we need to know to live our lives and lead us to draw closer to Christ. So, I’m going to tell you one of my pet peeves about one comment church people make, and fortunately, I have not heard it here. But people will leave a church saying, “I’m not getting fed.” WHOA!!! You’re not getting fed? Let me tell you, you are only in worship for about 1 hour per week, you have 167 other hours in the week to feed yourself.
This is why the writer of Hebrews is so angry about what is going on in the church. In Hebrews 5:11-14, we read,
11 We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. 12 In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! 13 Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14 But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
According to the writer, the people should be eating solid food. They should be teachers and chomping on meat, however, they are still drinking milk and not as advanced in understanding the Word as they should be. “Constant use of spiritual teeth makes it possible for us to masticate the solid meat of the Word, the deep things of God.” The image I gain is what it means to eat beef jerky. (TAKE A BITE) Beef jerky is good, but you need to have strong teeth to take a bite out of it. In the same way, as we grow in Christ, we develop spiritual teeth which helps us grow from milk drinkers to solid food eaters.
Sticking with the food motif, as he was battling cancer, David Watson wrote,
As I spent time chewing over the endless assurances and promises to be found in the Bible, so my faith in the living God grew stronger and held me safe in His hands. God’s word to us, especially His word spoken by His Spirit through the Bible, is the very ingredient that feeds our faith. If we feed our souls regularly on God’s word, several times each day, we should become robust spiritually just as we feed on ordinary food several times each day, and become robust physically. Nothing is more important than hearing and obeying the word of God.
Isn’t it true, as much as we eat to remain physically healthy and strong, we need to take in the Word of God, read the Bible, so we become spiritually strong.
Okay, now let’s get into the very practical section of this sermon, and I will tell you what I do, but my way isn’t the only way. It just works for me.
Which version of the Bible should you read? Do I have a preference for you?
Firstly, I want you to read the Bible, know what is in God’s Word. When my sister was alive, I gave her and my brother in law the Old Testament, because we were raised Jewish, and she remained Jewish, I wanted her to have a better understanding of God and what God wanted from her in her life. Simply put, open up the Bible. But the question which keeps coming back is what version. After all, there are scads of versions and which is best.
While we are trying to do away with inserts, I felt it was important to have the insert in your bulletin which gives details about the different versions of the Bible you can read.
The only comments I want to make on that chart, which I think is pretty self-explanatory is you should pick a version you will feel comfortable with, one which is understandable to you at your reading level. The first Bible I tried to read was the KJV, I was in a hotel in Tulsa, Oklahoma and I read Genesis and Exodus and had very little understanding. Choose what works best for you.
You see, it depends if you are looking to just gain an understanding of what is in the Bible or if you are looking to go deeper. If you want a basic understanding, I would suggest the ones which are noted as “functional equivalency.” This means the translators attempted to translate the original language into one that most people understand, without worrying about a word for word translation. Their hope was that you would gain a better understanding because the Bible was more understandable.
Another type of translation is called a “formal equivalency.” This means the translators wanted to translate the Bible in a word for word manner. However, that means the ability to understand the Bible becomes a little more difficult. That is the trade off.
There is also the paraphrase version, which means the translators did not consider the word for word translation or the functional equivalency so much as wanting to give you a different perspective of reading the Bible.
The 2 Bibles I use are the NKJV and the NIV. They are very different. The NKJV is a little more difficult to read and understand, but it gives me a little flavor of the intent of the original language, while the NIV, which gives me a very good meaning is not designed to be a literal translation.
What does it mean to choose a John Maxwell or Charles Stanley, John MacArthur, Joyce Meyer or any other person’s study Bible?
These Bibles simply have notes by these authors. Look at the packaging and you will find the proper version.
Where do I begin and how do I continue?
This is one of the big questions. Where to start. Because if we aren’t sure, we just don’t. There are many, many answers to this question.
If you are searching to find more about who Jesus is and what the church is supposed to be about, I would start with the gospel of Mark. Mark is the most action oriented of the 4 gospels. He skips the birth story and gets right into the action. Also, 95 % of what is in Mark is found in Matthew. Matthew is longer, but Mark will give you much of the same understanding. After Mark, I would jump to John. John will give you a different perspective of Jesus and tell many different stories from His life. John also speaks much more about the role of the Holy Spirit. Then I would read the book of Acts, which comes immediately after John, and is the story of the beginning of the church. Next I would read James, since it is one of the more practical and application oriented books in the Bible.
If you have read the Bible many times before and you are wondering where to begin, there are many answers. Some people prefer to start with reading from Genesis, then a passage from Psalms, then a passage from the minor prophets, then a passage from the New Testament. I have always struggled with that system. I prefer to read straight through from Genesis to Revelation. But that is because of my personality and preference; if your preference is different that is fine.
The point is to read the Bible for understanding. As John Ortberg said, “the goal is not for us to get through the Scriptures. The goal is to get the Scriptures through us.”
WOW!! I feel like I have just barely touched the tip of the iceberg. There is about another 2 hours to tell you and then I would still be scratching the surface. I want to touch on some questions to ask ourselves which may help open the Word to become a little more real to us.
As you read the Bible you can ask yourself the following questions ~
What is the subject or topic?
Is there something unusual in that passage?
Is the passage a poem, a dialogue, a parable, a point of history, biographical or autobiographical, a lament, a confession, instruction, etc.
Who is the author and who is the audience?
What is the setting? Where does the passage take place?
What is the mood? Happy or sad; grief or joy; peace or anxiety, etc.
What just occurred prior to this passage?
Ask yourself the “SO WHAT” question. Ask so what, what does God want me to take from this passage? This is the application point of Scripture.
As the interrogatives.
WHO?
WHY?
WHERE?
WHAT?
WHEN?
HOW?
What is the point of what you just read?
Now, let’s move into a BIBLE STUDY Section
Most of us do not read the Bible with any emotion. We just read it as if it were a chore, an old ancient archaic book. But it is a love story, a love letter from God to you, so read it with emotion. For example look at these next 2 scriptures, look at how the Bible describes the speakers voice.
Were they quiet and whispering? NO, they were shouting. (Demonstrate the voice which may have been used.)
Ezekiel 11:13 ~ Now as I was prophesying, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. Then I fell facedown and CRIED OUT IN A LOUD VOICE, "Ah, Sovereign LORD! Will you completely destroy the remnant of Israel?"
1 Samuel 28:12 ~ When the woman saw Samuel, she CRIED AT THE TOP OF HER VOICE and said to Saul, "Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!"
In the next passage, Romans 8:1, look at the words being used, remember to catch when the writer uses words such as, ’therefore, and, but, if.
I took the people through what this passage is getting at, phrase by phrase to help bring the Bible to life.
Romans 8:1 ~ THEREFORE, there is NOW NO condemnation for those who are IN Christ Jesus,
Now we are going to spend a few minutes on this final passage and break it apart for it is rich in meaning.
Ephesians 5 ~ 17THEREFORE do not be foolish, BUT understand what the Lord’s will is.
18DO NOT get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. INSTEAD, be FILLED with the Spirit.
19SPEAK to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. SING and MAKE MUSIC in your heart to the Lord,
20ALWAYS giving THANKS to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
21SUBMIT to one another out of reverence for Christ.
COMMENTS
The phrase “BE FILLED” is crucial. There are 3 points about this phrase:
1. It is a command!
2. It is in the present tense and that means according to Greek, it is not a once for all filling of the Spirit, instead we are to be refilled on an ongoing basis by the Spirit.
3. The verb “BE FILLED” is in the passive voice, which means we don’t do the work, the Spirit does the filling.
After this there are 5 participles which are virtually commands - -
we are to speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.
We are to sing
we are to make music
we are to give thanks
we are to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
We are to focus our attention on Christ and His presence in us, to open ourselves to the continual transforming work of the Spirit so that the presence of Christ empowers and shapes our lives. The Spirit is the dominating influence for Christians.
