Embracing the Bible: A Year of Transformation

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If the Bible indeed offers us heavenly riches and honor and joy and that and eternal life and life of unutterable joy, then why don't I spend more time in it? Why don't I spend more time reading this book and studying it? Why don't I treasure it more? [00:45:41] (29 seconds)


What does Paul tell Timothy? Well, first, that this book is inspired by God. This is not just merely thoughts from a human man. This is what God wants to communicate to us. Secondly, he says, it's profitable for teaching. It's profitable for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness. In other words, this book should show us how to live. It should guide and it should refine our lives. [00:48:06] (39 seconds)


I believe that we live in an age where we know both too little of God's word and too much of it. I believe the church in America is suffering as a result of this dichotomy. We have two sides of the same coin, if you will. On the one side, we're becoming more biblically illiterate as followers of Jesus, as a church in America. [00:49:04] (28 seconds)


Numerous pastors and professors have, like John Maxwell, Mark Batterson, J .R. Briggs, have all said this. They say that most Christians are educated far beyond their level of obedience. And while I truly believe that... As a church, we're becoming more and more biblically illiterate. The reality is that we're far more educated than our level of obedience. [00:51:35] (25 seconds)


The psalmist says in Psalm 119, 105, your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path. I like the way the NET translation says it. He says, your word is a lamp to walk by and a light to illumine my path. Have you ever been in a place that was so dark that you literally couldn't see your hand in front of you? [00:55:24] (27 seconds)


What James is saying here is that God's Word acts like a mirror for us. And what does a mirror do? It provides reflection. It allows us to see what we really look like. So for instance, now if you're under 50, this may not apply to you yet. But one day, I promise you that it will. [00:59:34] (24 seconds)


The writer of Hebrews is talking to the believers and he's saying, some of you should be here on solid food, but you're still on milk over here. Because you haven't matured enough yet. But here's the thing, regardless of whether it's milk or solid food, the nourishment comes from here. For those who are young in their faith and older in their faith. [01:04:06] (29 seconds)


The point is that God's word is what provides the nourishment for us. And here's the thing though, right? So often we like deliberately starve ourselves spiritually. We would never go for days, weeks, months without eating food. Our bodies don't work that way. They can't work that way. We need to take in food. But somehow, we fall into the rut of not feeding ourselves spiritually. [01:04:32] (34 seconds)


The rest of the armor provides a passive protection against the evil day. And then in verse 17, he talks about the sword of protection for us. This is the one piece of armor that provides active protection. It's our offensive weapon. No one wins a war or a battle with just a bulletproof vest on. They're helpful. They're vital. You want to have one on. [01:06:35] (28 seconds)


In each of these attacks, notice how Jesus responds. He defends himself against each attack by attacking back with the sword of the spirit, the word of God. He quotes scripture. It's his weapon against the schemes of Satan. And he combats each of those temptations in the end. In the areas of appetites or lust of the eyes, in the area of pride or power, in the area of security, in each of those areas, he attacks back by quoting God's word. [01:09:18] (37 seconds)


And the only way that we're going to win is to put on the armor of God. And the one offensive weapon that we have, the only one we can attack back with, is God's word. It's scripture. We need to know it. And to know it, we need to open our hearts. We need to open our Bibles. [01:10:54] (19 seconds)


So let's commit as a church family this year to opening our Bibles because opening your Bible provides you a clear direction, reflection, nourishment, and protection. And I would encourage you to take advantage of one, two, maybe even all three of these tools to help you launch yourself into 2025. Opening your Bible. [01:18:42] (22 seconds)


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