I was wondering about that as of late, is it possible to love his word more than him or is his word who he really is, so if i love his word i am not making an idol out of it , i just wanted to know. Sometimes i just get sick of reading all the time, is that all their is is reading, i feel we need something deeper to close to Christ.
bible4life wrote:
I was wondering about that as of late, is it possible to love his word more than him
yes
or is his word who he really is
I think that I understand what you are saying here. Yes, His word is Him. But I am not sure if His word could be considered Him in the physical though.
so if i love his word i am not making an idol out of it , i just wanted to know.
This can be tricky. The word CAN be an idol. The Pharisee's new God's word, but did not know God. If knowing the word brings you in a closer relationship with the Lord...very good. If His word is being used to build knowledge, not very good.
Sometimes i just get sick of reading all the time, is that all their is is reading, i feel we need something deeper to close to Christ.
Very true. Sometimes its good to put the Bible down, get on your face and spend time worshipping the Lord. Knowing the Lord's word is good. Entering into His rest is better. :-)
[b]Your love for God is measured by how much you love God's Word.
[i]Jn 15:7 [color=CC3300]"If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you."[/color]
2Ti 2:15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.
Heb 4:12 For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
2Ti 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
1Pe 1:23 For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
The Word of God is at the very heart of our salvation and regeneration. There is no better way to get close to the Lord Jesus than through the Bible.
True love does not waver even when things get boring and unexciting. In the same way, feeding on the flesh of Christ (the Word became flesh), which means reading Bible, can become tiresome at times. But it is during moments like this when the truth of your love for God is revealed. Will you continue to remain in Jesus so that his words remain in you? Or will you give up because it's too boring and begin looking for excitement elsewhere?
True faith and true love is proven not when things are enjoyable and everything is going well, but when things are lousy and the going gets difficult. It is easy for everyone to "love" God when things go our way, but when things turn sour, the false believers fall away and only the faithful remain.
"I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name."
Psalm 138:2 (King James Version)
The danger I see with questions such as what this thread asks - and it is a good question, btw! - is that when you separate the word of God from the person of God, there are inevitable outcomes:
1. It undermines the authority of scripture as God's word. While Christians who do this may vocally affirm the authority of scripture, when it comes to the actual view of biblical authority the greater the gulf between God and his word, the greater the gap between God and the believer.
2. When it is suggested that the person and character of God goes beyond his word, it becomes all too easy to close your Bible and start seeking Him via alternate means. Some may object and say "You're trying to put God in a box!", but truth be told, if there are no clear boundaries established for who God is as laid out by his own revelation (as opposed to man-made theology), the inevitable result is agnosticism - an affirmation of a god, yet a denial as to whether He can be known for ho he is.
2 Timothy 3:17-17 tells us
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
The word “breathed out” (other translations will use “inspired”) is theopneustos, literally god-breathed. God did not create the scriptures, rather the revelation of scripture had it’s origin in God’s own being. Hence, it is wrong to suggest that the believer’s knowledge and experience of God is separate from the Bible, as though one can have the former without the latter. To suggest such would be to deny the authority and inspiration of scripture as defined by the very terms God himself describes.
Sometimes the distinction between the physical book in front of us and God's word can become blurred. Since God's word isn't a physical thing but immaterial, it's normal to get sick of reading all the time.
But take good courage, God doesn't look down on you because you are sick of reading all the time my friend. Men might expect you to read all the time but God doesn't.
Just know that it's more important to have His word in your heart than to wear yourself out by reading His word. If you closed the Bible and no longer had it, could you tell me the stories and the teachings in it? Could you go into detail as well?
On our deathbed, we might not have the strength to read the Bible and perhaps no one will be able to read it to us. However, we'll always be able to remember His word that's in our hearts.
"These people draw near to me with their mouth, and honour me with their lips; but their heart is far from me."
God's word in our heart will guide us to love Him.
I think there is a balance also. We should read our Bibles because it contains His word. If we never read our Bibles, we'd never know His word. So it's important to read them. I know that I want to read it more but I struggle just like you do bible4life.
I thank God for you bible4life and I pray that He'll forgive us both of our many sins and help us to do His will. In Jesus name.
thank you paul , you all our blessings in my life to and i thank God for you all to. Thank you that pretty much clarified everything for me.
hi, i have known many a man who knew the word in great detail but had no clue of having a loving,tender,living relationship with Jesus and His people. they usually are hard,legalistic and egocentric and answer all the questions with an arrogance that denies HUMILITY.jimp
What Miccah said was right on:
bible4life wrote:
I was wondering about that as of late, is it possible to love his word more than him or is his word who he really is, so if i love his word i am not making an idol out of it , i just wanted to know. Sometimes i just get sick of reading all the time, is that all their is is reading, i feel we need something deeper to close to Christ.
Sometimes its good to put the Bible down, get on your face and spend time worshipping the Lord. Knowing the Lord's word is good. Entering into His rest is better.
What Leo said holds true for us but also those in other countries who are not in possession of the paper version of God’s word: [b]Your love for God is measured by how much you love God's Word.
They don’t have the rice paper version of God’s word to take down off the shelf and hold in their hand and read with their eyes [u]but in their heart they still LOVE IT and desire it[i]. . . when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.
Why are these people willing to die for attending a meeting or being in possession of a portion of Scripture (or be sent to jail and tortured?) They are usually asked to renounce what? The written word? No, they are told to renounce Christ or be tortured or even die.
I’m not saying the paper version is not important! I would never say that, it has been my mainstay throughout the years but I think it’s more important to love the[b] W
What everyone has said is really wonderful and I think summed in paulmcg1 statement, [i]“Just know that it's more important to have His word in your heart than to wear yourself out by reading His word. [b]If you closed the Bible and no longer had it, could you tell me the stories and the teachings in it? Could you go into detail as well?
Ps 119:11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
God bless you, John!
bible4life wrote:
I was wondering about that as of late, is it possible to love his word more than him or is his word who he really is, so if i love his word i am not making an idol out of it , i just wanted to know. Sometimes i just get sick of reading all the time, is that all their is is reading, i feel we need something deeper to close to Christ.
The Word of God is God's diary. In it we discover the heartbeat of God. Yet if one had to choose between reading the diary or spending time with God, then the choice would seem obvious. If you do not "know," Jesus, with this word meaning "intimate," then the Word of God will be so much information. If I read my wife's diary then I discover something more about my wife, already "knowing," who she is. If a stranger reads my wife's diary he may discover some information about her, some of her deeper thoughts, but without knowing her it would just be so much information.
John 5:39-40 ..You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life, and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.
The following is an article entitled Bibliocentric or Christocentric.
http://scottishwarriors.wordpress.com/bibliocentric-or-christocentric/
I know in my own life that my love of God and a love for His Word go hand in hand. If I begin to set my affection on other things besides the Lord, then my time in the Word will also suffer.
Many Christians have become legalistic about reading the bible. They are doing it because this is something that they are suppose to do. Many are reading the Word to accumulate more information.
Our motive in reading the Word should be to know the Lord better, because when the Holy Spirit reveals the living word to us, He is revealing Jesus to us.
"In the beginning was the Word." (John 1:1)
"The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us." (John 1:14).
"That which was from the beginning. which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life." (1John 1:1).
appolus wrote:
The Word of God is God's diary.John 5:39-40 ..You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life, and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.
The following is an article entitled Bibliocentric or Christocentric.
http://scottishwarriors.wordpress.com/bibliocentric-or-christocentric/
I read your article and it was good... [i]If there was life in the words themselves and the knowledge of these words then the Pharisees would be men full of life. Yet what did Jesus say about these men? They were full of dead men’s bones, whitewashed tombs. They knew the word but they did not know God.
We, humans, really do need to think more logically like that!
Thanks for sharing that!
Sometimes i just get sick of reading all the time, is that all their is is reading,
When you say...I just get sick of reading all the time....are you reading just the Bible or are you labouring in other books.
In Christ
Jeff
no i am reading other christian books too,i had just spent a whole week reading scripture, watching christian movies and dvds, listening to sermons and listening to christian music and reading other christian books while my wife was gone and though it is my greatest interest i just got tired, but i believe the serving and the worshipping and praying i probably was not doing enough of.
Hi bible4life,
I advice you to take a walk and breathe some fresh air :)
daniel
If I could make a suggestion my dear friend, this:
i had just spent a whole week reading scripture, watching christian movies and dvds, listening to sermons and listening to christian music and reading other christian books
i just got tired, but i believe the serving and the worshipping and praying i probably was not doing enough of.
Mass reading and memorization will in the end only bring you knowledge and a sense of "duty fulfillment" in appeasing your conscience. If we seek to learn the Word out of the sake of personal duty, we will indeed learn - but the learning will be superficial, mental and dogmatic. Ultimately, it will not profit you nor will those who sit under you be profitted unto new, vibrant life in Christ.
We need to learn the difference between getting the Word in our head versus our heart. Allowing the Word to enter your head is natural - for that is the natural way in which we first process a verse - but we need to understand that this is to be only a temporary lodging. We then need to move the verse from our head to our [i]heart.
Rather, take a single verse - or a series of verses that complete the passage you wish to plant - into your head and ask the Holy Spirit to give you a life application of practicality regarding it. Be humbled under the mighty hand of God and always seek to apply the scripture [i]inwardly
Love for the Word of God - the true love that keeps you spiritually entralled and ingesting more and more - is a result not from dead memorization and reading the Bible back-to-back multiple times. It simply comes from beholding an inward miracle of a properly-planted seed. It comes from tasting the sweet fruit of a hidden seed in the soil of humility. The more you allow God to humble you, the more nutrient-rich the fallow ground of your heart becomes, providing the ideal greenhouse for God's Word as you seek to know His excellencies.
Brother Paul
Very timely word, Brother Paul.
:-)
We need to learn the difference between getting the Word in our head versus our heart. Allowing the Word to enter your head is natural - for that is the natural way in which we first process a verse - but we need to understand that this is to be only a temporary lodging. We then need to move the verse from our head to our heart. Only in the heart will the Word sink down and establish roots unto eventual fruit. If you keep the seed in your head only, it is the same as keeping a watermelon seed in your hand but not planting it. It will dry out. This move from the head to the heart is slow; you can't cram multiple verses into your heart. The truth is that mass ingestion of scripture never sticks.Rather, take a single verse - or a series of verses that complete the passage you wish to plant - into your head and ask the Holy Spirit to give you a life application of practicality regarding it. Be humbled under the mighty hand of God and always seek to apply the scripture inwardly and never outwardly. Never try to apply the verse to someone else. If you are to prosper in spiritual botany you must resist this inclination, as natural as it feels. I would say, don't even think about how you could use it in a sermon - for that too is thinking outwardly, focusing on the packaging of it for others rather than yourself.
Love for the Word of God - the true love that keeps you spiritually entralled and ingesting more and more - is a result not from dead memorization and reading the Bible back-to-back multiple times. It simply comes from beholding an inward miracle of a properly-planted seed. It comes from tasting the sweet fruit of a hidden seed in the soil of humility. The more you allow God to humble you, the more nutrient-rich the fallow ground of your heart becomes, providing the ideal greenhouse for God's Word as you seek to know His excellencies.
To bible4life, I would like to add:
i just got tired, but i believe the serving and the worshipping and praying i probably was not doing enough of.
Ecc 12:12\tAnd further, my son, be admonished by these. Of making many books [there is] no end, and much study [is] wearisome to the flesh.
In Christ
Jeff
All so true Brother Paul. Thank You!
Deuteronomy 4:9 Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons;
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