Discipline--Bible Intake
Today I'm talking about Bible intake. I don't assume any of us are great about our time in the Word. Some of us spend more time on Twitter or Bookface than we do in God's word. Some of us read for the wrong reasons. Some of us just don't know how to read. I am guilty of all that. For those of us who struggle reading, there may be many reasons we don't read scripture.We are functional atheists (We live as if we don't need God...we act as if we are in control).
We have comfort idols (Comfort has the throne in our hearts. We love TV, sleep and other comforts more than we love God).
I am guilty of all that.
From a leadership perspective, this is about self-leadership. If you can't lead yourself spiritually, how will you expect to lead others?
Back to Psalm 119. We forget the shaping function of God's word--the inside-out working of it. David knows this. He says God's word is "stored up" in his heart. It's in there so that he won't sin against God. He may not know how it happens, but he knows that if it's inside him, it will begin to change him. He understands there's something cumulative about God's Word that works in him. It's not just a daily look in the Bible for the nugget of truth that will help you make the decision you need to make that day. In other words, David memorizes scripture so its always with him. I need that kind of discipline in my life. More than that, I need that kind of desire. David also knows God--he doesn't just know about Him. He says "With my whole heart I seek YOU." I don't think knowing about God and knowing Him are so mutually exclusive. But there is a question of motive. David loves to be in God's presence. He writes about it all the time. God and his word aren't a tool for him to preach well. David wants intimacy with God. He wrote in Psalm 27:8, "You have said, 'Seek my face.' My heart says to you, 'Your face, Lord, do I seek.'" This is different from Paul's charge to Timothy...that "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work." Paul is making a different point than David. I'm not saying one is right over the other. I'm saying that as pastors we like to focus on Paul's words and not David's. We make Bible intake about equipping the saints, and not about enjoying God himself. David says he delights in God. It's also a "lamp to his feet" in verse 105. What this implies is that David knows he is in darkness. He can't see where to step without God's guidance. Do you operate in that mindset? Or the opposite mindset, acting like functional atheists who don't need God? Do you see the Bible as light for others but not yourself? These are questions I'm asking myself as I work on being more disciplined in Bible intake. Here are some tools to help you in daily bible reading, courtesy of the ESV online. I personally like their subscription for calendars. I created a calendar in my Google calendar with their daily reading plan. It has a link to click on. When I click on it, the page has a passage from the OT, a Psalm, and a NT passage all on the same page. It can't get any easier.Click here for that.
The same thing is available through an RSS feed
Get a verse daily from Twitter.
If you live in your email, they'll email a passage to you.If you struggle with finding time like me, you need to get up earlier. You need to subtract time on twitter, blogs, and discussion boards. Subtract time in front of TV. If you love TV too much, read during commercials and repent of your laziness. Keep your bible with you all the time. Put it on your phone. Check out Laridian or Logos for Bible software, both of which have iPhone apps. If you struggle with how to read the Bible, check out this book How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth.
If you need a Bible, email me and I'll send you one.I'll be writing a post later about how to get ready for the day, how to order it and how to maintain the Sabbath.Much love,
Josh
