Why Study the Bible?

Posted on September 20, 2013 by KD Manes under God's Call

“If there is one terrible disease in the church of Christ, it is that we do not see God as great as He is. We’re too familiar with God.” – A.W. Tozer, Worship: The Missing Jewel

Growing up and regularly attending a Bible based church has truly been a blessing. But I confess, there have been times when I allowed my relationship with God to become too casual–viewing Him more as my buddy rather than the infinite, omnipotent King of Kings. A peruse of Job 38-41, however, quickly put things into proper perspective. 🙂

When we apply ourselves to Bible study we grow in knowledge, wisdom and truth (Proverbs 2:6).

The Bible–A Map to Guide Us

God knows we desperately need a map to point us in the right direction. On our own we are lost sinners. His inspired Word provides the guidance we need to acquire His perspective and principles for living (Psalm 119). No wonder King David penned, “you [Lord] have exalted above all things your name and your word” (Psalm 138:1-2).

Knowing God’s Commands

Matthew 7:1-13 records Jesus scolding the Pharisees for claiming to know God’s will in every detail of life. They created much confusion amongst the people by adding hundreds of their own petty rules and regulations to God’s laws. Jesus said, “You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men,” (vs. 8).

Engaging Our Minds

Jesus used parables to explain spiritual truth, compelling listeners to think. He doesn’t want us to park our minds in neutral and follow Him in a blind free fall. He calls us to actively engage our minds in His Word (Matthew 22:37; 1 Thessalonians 5:21; 1 John 4:1; 1 Corinthians 10:15; 1 Peter 3:15).

Other Benefits From Bible Study

Knowing Jesus Christ and God the Father: His justice and mercy
Understanding how to receive eternal life
Knowledge of the beginning and the end (Genesis, Revelation)
Training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16)
Combatting temptation and spiritual warfare (Matthew 4:1-4; Ephesians 6:10-18)
Understanding God’s purpose of spiritual gifts and the function of His church
Discernment of false teachers

The Take Away

God wants us to not only listen carefully to His instructions, but also obey (Hebrews 2:1; James 1:22-25).

When we seek God through Bible study and prayer, He will come along beside us personally each day and help us carry out His principles. He will also grow our faith and bless our obedience.

Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” – 1 Timothy 4:16

Are you currently engaged in Bible study? Does a Christian ever reach a point when he/she doesn’t need God’s Word anymore?

Coming next—“Understanding Biblical Truth.”

The B-I-B-L-E

Today’s Word

Knowing God

Back to the Basics

Posted on September 6, 2013 by KD Manes under God's Call

My chicks have flown the coop, temporarily anyway.

It’s that time of year—back to school.

Whether you have school children or not, I hope you’ve had a great summer! We have, despite my Jonny breaking his arm from a rollerblading fall on the second day of vacation. 😦 But it could have been worse.

Yes, it’s back to the basics of learning and applying fundamental academic skills: Phonics, spelling, vocabulary, comprehension, arithmetic, science, history . . . . All these foundational building blocks got me thinking of the following.

CHRISTIAN FUNDAMENTALS

Have you ever come across teaching that contained biblical truths, but contradicted another part of the Bible?

I remember being part of a women’s small group. The leader shared some great biblical truths. She was a beautiful, gifted, charismatic teacher who often recited Scripture from memory. If I hadn’t consistently read my Bible, I probably would have believed every word she said. She spoke with conviction.

But the more I listened to her teachings, the more uncomfortable I grew.

One time I asked her for Bible references to verify some of her statements. Instead of giving me a reference, she scolded me. “I’m older than you, and know more. I’ve grown beyond the basics of the Bible. I don’t need to keep studying it because the Holy Spirit is my teacher.”

Hmmm . . . .

Have you had a similar experience?

The working title for my next post is Why the Bible? I thought I would experiment with a poll. I’d appreciate your feedback. Please click on one of the following bubbles and then click vote. Thanks!

Knowing God

Posted on August 2, 2013 by KD Manes under Salvation

“Knowing about God is crucially important for the living of our lives. As it would be cruel to an Amazonian tribesmen to fly him to London, put him down without explanation in Trafalgar Square and leave him, as one who knew nothing of English or England, to fend for himself, so we are cruel to ourselves if we try to live in this world without knowing about the God whose world it is and who runs it. The world becomes a strange, mad, painful place, and life in it a disappointing and unpleasant business, for those who do not know about God. Disregard the study of God, and you sentence yourself to stumble and blunder through life blindfold, as it were, with no sense of direction, and no understanding of what surrounds you. This way you can waste your life and lose your soul.” – J.I. Packer, Knowing God

Trafalgar Square

What we believe about God and what we believe about ourselves shape how we pray (or don’t pray). Some people view God in the same vein they see their earthly father. Some see Him as an angry authoritarian. Others view Him as a disinterested bystander. Sadly, many have been hurt by a church. These people may view God as a bully, hypocrite, or suffocating perfectionist. From cosmic genie to “people are their own gods,” the list varies from person to person.

So, who is the true God?

What if our understanding of God is skewed? I know I’ve been guilty in the past of placing God in a neatly packaged box.

Hebrews 1:1-3 says:

In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His own Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word. After He provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.”

God is not whatever, whomever, or however our minds construe Him—apart from the Bible. To clearly understand God we need to get acquainted with His Son, Jesus, “the exact representation of God’s being.” God gave us the Bible, not just for the sake of knowledge, but also that we might come to Him and personally know Him.

The New Testament Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke and John—present the life and teachings of Jesus. Each book focuses on a unique facet of His character. If you have never read any of them, I recommend beginning with John. Led by the Holy Spirit, he provides clear evidence that Jesus is the Son of God and by believing in Him we may have eternal life.

How has your understanding of God been shaped by family, friends, culture, church?

Do you know the truth about God?

Do you know God?

Thirsty?

Posted on June 21, 2013 by KD Manes under Salvation

Nothing beats a cup of cold water on a hot summer day.

Just as our bodies hunger and thirst for physical food and water, our souls hunger and thirst for spiritual food and water.

One of my favorite Bible stories is Jesus talking to the woman at the well (John 4:1-26). No respectable Jewish man would be caught talking to one like her. For she was a despised Samaritan woman, a member of the mixed race that the Jews hated. She was also known to be living in sin.

I love that Jesus crossed all barriers to share the good news of the gospel with her.

In the heat of the day, Jesus stopped by the well where she was drawing water. He said to her:

Will you give me a drink?” – John 4:7

Surprised, the Samaritan woman said:

You are Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” – v. 9

Jesus answered:

If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water . . . whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” – vs. 10, 13-14

What did Jesus mean by “living water”? Several Old Testament verses speak about thirsting for God as one thirsts for water (Psalm 42:1; Isaiah 55:1; Jeremiah 2:13; Zechariah 13:1).

God is called the fountain of life (Psalm 36:9) and the spring of water (Jeremiah 17:13). Jesus was claiming to be the Messiah by forever quenching a person’s thirst for God (John 4:25-26). Only the Messiah can give this gift that satisfies the soul’s desire.

Are you spiritually thirsty? There is only One who can forever quench your thirst. His name is Jesus.

Works God Requires

Posted on June 7, 2013 by KD Manes under Service

School is out and for the summer. My kids are electrified.

Wish I felt the same. Actually, I am excited to go biking and camping with Eric and the kids, and visit relatives. With baseball season extending through June, then swim lessons and basketball camp, summer will come and go all too soon. I began planning my next posts, afraid my writing will become jumbled with my kids being home. (My desk is the kitchen table. Sigh.) So please be patient if I become more scattered—makes for a good excuse anyway! 🙂

Since I haven’t written much about “Service,” I thought I would explore there. And I am, but not sharing what I envisioned in terms of hands-on ministry ideas and examples, at least not yet. The Lord keeps reminding me of the following passage:

Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”

Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.” – John 6:28-29

In this passage, pisteuō is the Greek word for believe. It means not just to credit as real: “Even the demons believe (in one God)—and shudder,” James 2:19. But this term also means to trust; be persuaded of; place confidence in. It implies reliance upon.

God’s satisfaction with us is based on our trust in His Son, Jesus Christ, not on the works we do.

Yes, “faith without deeds is dead” (James 2:26), but our service, obedience, and following God are not substitutions for salvation or earning God’s favor. Rather, our service to God verifies our faith in Christ.

My next few posts will center on God’s saving faith through Jesus, the eternal God.

I have been blessed and challenged in sharing God’s truths here, as well as encouraged by reading several others’ posts. THANK YOU to everyone who has encouraged me in this pursuit. The Lord laid this blogging thing on my heart when my husband was sick in the hospital last winter. After some prayer, He made it clear what I should write—which I’m thankful. (Trust me, you don’t want to read about my daily tasks or what we ate for dinner.) 🙂 Anyway, I enjoy digging into God’s Word. I love how the Holy Spirit speaks personally to the sincere seeker.

Is there a topic you are interested in? What are your summer plans? Anyone planning a vacation? Camping? New job? New hobby? Old hobby? Any prayer requests? I would love to hear from you!