Reading Scripture
2 Timothy 3:16-17
Evangelist Robert L. Sumner in his book The Wonders of the Word of God tells about a man in Kansas City who was severely injured in an explosion. The victim’s face was badly disfigured, and he lost his eyesight as well as both hands. He had just become a new Christian, and one of his greatest disappointments was that he could no longer read the Bible. Then he heard about a woman in England who read Braille with her lips. Hoping to do the same, he sent for some books of the Bible in Braille. Much to his dismay, he discovered that the nerve endings in his lips had been destroyed by the explosion. One day, as he brought one of the Braille pages to his lips, his tongue happened to touch a few of the raised characters and he could feel them. Like a flash he thought, I can read the Bible using my tongue. At the time Robert Sumner wrote his book, the man had “read” through the entire Bible four times. How hungry are you to read the Word of God, to soak its message into your life?
Thus far in this series, we’ve looked at the Means of Grace of Prayer, Worship, small group Bible study and fasting as a Means of Grace. Today, we’re going to look at daily reading of Scriptures as a Means of Grace because it brings us into the Presence of Jesus Christ and the will of God for our lives. Methodist believe the Holy Scriptures "contain all things necessary to salvation" and both in this life and the life to come. This Book is indispensable to the journey of faith. John Wesley’s attitude toward Scripture is described in his own words: “I want to know one thing, the way to heaven—how to land safe on that happy shore. God himself has…descended to teach the way: for this very end he came from heaven. He (has) hath written it down in a book. O give me that book! At any price, give me the Book of God!...Here is knowledge enough for me. Let me be a person of one book!” Not a person of the Bible and “Eat, Love and Pray.” Not a person of the Bible and “the Purpose Driven Life.” But a person of one and only one book, this book, for it is Truth and contains everything we need to live.
So what is this book? An unknown writer said, Put quote on screen “This Book is the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation…Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding; its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you. It is the traveler’s map, the pilgrim’s staff, the pilot’s compass, the soldier’s sword, and the Christian’s character. Here paradise is restored, heaven opened, and the gates of hell disclosed. Christ is its grand subject, our good its design, and the glory of God its end. It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet. Read it slowly, frequently, prayerfully. It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure. Follow its precepts and it will lead you to Calvary, to the empty tomb, to a resurrected life in Christ; yes, to glory itself, for eternity.” This is why Scripture is an absolute requisite on the journey of faith.
So to approach the Bible as a Means of Grace we must read it with expectation and hope. Through the Holy Spirit, its words will guide, energize and transform us. It is to listen actively for the voice of God and His will for our lives. John Wesley called all Methodists to search the scriptures daily. Unfortunately, followers of Jesus today are becoming Biblically illiterate. Recent studies by The Barna Group and the Gallup Organization conclude that any reasonable understanding of biblical facts and truths is seriously lacking among Christians today. Picture of Barna along with quote on the screen George Barna writes, “American Christians are biblically illiterate. Although most of them contend that the Bible contains truth and is worth knowing, and most of them argue that they know all of the relevant truths and principles, our research shows otherwise. And the trend line is frightening: the younger a person is, the less they understand about the Christian faith.” If your only intake of God’s Word is during the sermon every week, you’re on a starvation diet. That’s like you only eating once a week and expecting to get through the rest of week fine. You have to read it daily. But you will get out of this book only what you put into it. A visiting preacher entered church with his young son, and dropped a coin into the offering box in the back. Not many came that Sunday, and those who did didn’t seem too excited about what was said. After the service, the preacher and son walked to the back, and he emptied the box. Out fell one coin. The young boy said, “Dad, if you’d have put more in, you’d have gotten more out!” What you put in to the reading of Scripture will dictate what you get out.
There are 3 Barriers to receiving God’s grace through Scripture. First, we equate reading with listening! Reading is just getting through the information without ever really paying attention to it and wrestling with it. Listening is interacting with the text in what it is saying or calling you to believe or do personally. Second, we read only to gain information, not to develop relationship! Eugene Peterson says, “If we read the Scriptures impersonally with an information-gathering mind, we misread them.” This is God’s love letter written for you. It’s about developing and growing your relationship with him. Third, we read for personal benefit. Tim Keller says too often we read the Bible to find personal, individualistic applications like when we need guidance in a decision or comfort during difficult times. Not that those are bad. But when it’s the only thing we do, we make the Bible about us rather than about God and His will. The Bible isn’t about us getting what we need but rather us getting into the mind and heart of God that we might join Him in His work for the Kingdom.
In the Preface to his Explanatory Notes on the Old Testament, Wesley shared five keys to reading Scripture effectively. First, schedule the time. Set apart a little time every morning and evening for that purpose. Schedule it first so that everything is scheduled around it. Second, choose a book of the Bible and read through it systematically. Wesley encouraged Methodists to read a chapter out of the Old, and one out of the New, Testament; if you cannot do this, to take a single chapter or a part of one but read through from beginning to end. Third, read to know God’s will. “Read this with a single eye, to know the whole will of God, and a fixed resolution to do it.” Did you get that? Fourth, seek God’s will in light of all Scripture. This means you must be familiar with the entire Bible and it’s “fundamental doctrines, original sin, justification by faith, the new birth, inward and outward holiness.” In other words, don’t just read the Scriptures but see how they fit into the grand story of God and the beliefs of our faith. Fifth, pray. Serious and earnest prayer should be constantly used before we read The Word asking the Spirit to guide our reading and understanding. Then, our reading should likewise be closed with prayer, that what we read may be written on our hearts.
In his sermon, “The Means of Grace,” John Wesley called Methodists to “search the Scriptures” which consisted of 4 things: First is reading. Choose a section of scripture and read it through. This is where you take a first pass. Then, carefully read the passage through a few more times. Allow yourself to listen for the still, small voice of God which is God's word for us, God's voice touching our hearts. This gentle listening is an “atunement” to the presence of God in the Scriptures. In order to hear someone speaking softly, we must learn to be silent. Psalm 46:10 encourages us to be still, and know that He is God. Get away from other voices or noise to hear the still small voice of God. This also means you need to quiet your own mind to hear God in Scripture. Read slowly, attentively, gently listening to hear a word or phrase that is God's brings to mind or highlights for you that day.
Second is meditating on the Scriptures. If reading is where you take a bite out of the Word, this is where you begin chewing on it. The analogy is of a cow quietly chewing its cud over and over again. This was used in antiquity as a symbol of the Christian pondering the Word of God. Meditation is a function of the mind and the heart. It is what we think about over and over again and it is something we each do every day. Whether we realize it or not, we all spend a large portion of our time in some form of meditation. The thing is, what we meditate on may or may not be worth while. That’s why we call it worry. In fact, what we habitually think about is frequently unhealthy for our growth as Christians. That’s why we need to meditate on God’s word. Once we have found a word or a passage in the Scriptures that speaks to us in a personal way, we must take it in and reflect on it. We must take in the Word and while gently repeating it to ourselves, allow it to interact with our thoughts, our hopes, our memories, and our desires. Through meditation, we allow God's word to become His word for us, a word that touches us and affects us at our deepest levels.
Third is to hearing which is where prayer enters the practice of searching the Scriptures. Prayer is both dialogue with God as loving conversation and consecration which is our act of offering ourselves to God. In this consecration-prayer we allow the Word which we have taken in and on which we are pondering to touch and change our deepest selves experiencing His grace in our lives. Prayer enables us to interact with God as you would with one who you know loves and accepts you. And give to him what you have discovered during your experience of meditation. This is a time to pray over the word, phrase or verse God has highlighted for you and to listen for His purpose in your life and allow God to use this Scripture in your life. This is where we simply rest in the presence of the One who has used His word as a means of inviting us to accept His transforming grace. This is when we can experience his love and grace anew in our lives. Once again we practice silence, letting go of our own words; this time simply enjoying the experience of being in the presence of God and receiving His grace anew for our lives.
All this is for naught if we don’t take the fourth step which is to do the word. Put this Scripture under the fourth point James 1:22 says, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” Methodism is so much about what we believe as it is how we practice the faith. It is not just about being, it is about doing. And if we only read the Word, meditate on it and listened to it, then it is all for nothing if we don’t put it into practice. When we put the Scripture to practice in our lives then we become the incarnating Word where we represent or become the living physical presence, voice, heart and hands of Jesus today. Reading Scripture always leads to “doing” Scripture. AF Sgt. Arthur Powell told of growing up in the projects of Harlem, afraid of getting shot, gang harassment and threats from drug dealers. Dad wasn’t around much, and Mom, who wasn’t well, had her hands full raising 8 children on welfare. So Grandma Powell, a feisty woman with discerning eyes and an implicit faith in God, took me to church often. ”One Sunday morning in 1964 as we left the Abyssinian Baptist Church, she stopped on the sidewalk, lifted my chin, and, using my middle name, said, ‘Maxwell, you have got to live by the Word." She pointed back to the old stone church. "You heard what the preacher said--to pray, to ask the Lord for guidance and protection? Well, it won’t do you much good unless you...’ ”She took my arm and directed my attention to a man lolling against a lamppost. ‘See that man? He’s always bragging about his big plans, but he never has done anything. Talk is easy. It’s the doing that counts. God tell us to be doers of his Word, and not just hearers. Remember, Maxwell, Monday doing is better than Sunday talking.’" Amen and Amen.
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