12 Sep Book it! (Because a Bible that is falling apart indicates a life that isn’t!) Part 5
About a year ago I was serving in one of our community outreaches. We were feeding people with our 24-foot mobile kitchen. I was kneeling down and talking with one of the people we were ministering to, while he was eating. It was clear that he needed Jesus in his life. I asked him if I could share a few things from the Bible concerning his spiritual condition. He kindly agreed, so I pulled out a little Bible that I have had for over three decades.
When I opened up my Bible, one of the volunteers from our church was positioned right behind me. He gasped and started laughing because my little Bible was a mess! It had pages falling out and was tremendously marked up! That day I had the privilege of leading that man to Jesus! You see, I believe when a Bible is falling apart…it indicates a life that isn’t!
Two months ago, we began our series and I shared with you my three-pronged goal:
- To love the Word!
- To learn the Word!
- To live the Word!
We then shared with you “Two Biblical Beholdings”:
- If you want to know God you must know the Bible
- Prayer is talking to God. The Bible is God talking to us.
We then began to share with you “Four Awesome Assignments to Assist you with the Word”:
- Activate the Word
Last time we began giving you three ways to activate God’s Word:
1.) Faith activates the Word (Heb. 4:2)
2.) Revelation activates faith (Eph. 1:18)
This month let’s continue…..
3.) Meditation activates revelation (Joshua 1:8).
Joshua 1:8 says, “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous and then thou shalt have good success.”
First, let’s examine the word “meditate”. When an American mind hears this word ‘meditate’ right away we think of some sort of eastern meditation. A guru in the lotus posture chanting. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Hebrew word “meditate” denotes a “slowing down to ponder”. It means to mutter to oneself over and over.
It is not referring to some mindless chant but meditating on the Word of God! “Meditation” is connoting the idea of a “ruminant” animal. A ruminant animal is one that chews its food, partially digests it and then spits it up again and then continues to chew on it. That’s exactly what this verse is telling us to do. Chew on the Word and if you don’t fully get it you may spit it up. However, don’t give up…chew on it some more and then swallow.
Join us next week as we share how to meditate on God’s Word…