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What is the difference between Bible reading and Bible meditation?
Simply put, reading is mostly an assimilation of facts without usage. When we meditate on the Word of God, we are prayerfully considering how to apply the facts to our own life.
Meditation allows our mind to become quiet so we can hear the Holy Spirit speak to us. As the apostle Paul said, all scripture is…profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16).
In other words, we should not use God's Word simply to increase our knowledge or to prepare us to win arguments, but rather to know how to do Christ's work in the world.
Our knowledge of the Bible is pointless if we don't use it to strengthen our faith and make good decisions.
As God promises in Isaiah 55:11, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please.
I'm reminded of a time from Pastor Bill Hybels, "Power of a Whisper," when he was on a plateau of spiritual restlessness. He felt like his prayers were bouncing off the ceiling and his pastoral calling was getting cloudy and dim.
When he finally recognized that he was responsible for his own spiritual development, that it was no one's job but his to find his way back, he got out his Bible.
He chose a single chapter and decided that instead of continuing to bounce along the surface of the passages, he was going to go deep. He dove into the book of Proverbs and did not come out until he felt its wisdom affecting his thoughts on a daily basis.
Rather than merely getting through the Bible, Hybels wanted the Bible to get through to him.
Years later he did the same thing with Luke 15, Acts 2 and the entire book of John. One time he spent twelve months parked in the twelfth chapter of the book of Romans.
This type of saturation and reflection, even in passages we've read hundreds of times before, gives us time to untangle from our own thoughts, and hear the Holy Spirit's directions.
Remember in Matthew 4 when Jesus was led into the desert, where he was tempted three times by Satan. Every time He answered with the Word of God in His mind and on His heart.
Even in His weakened condition, God's concrete truth held Him upright against the evil one. Jesus spent his earthy years saturated in Scripture. Satan's lies were no match for the power of God's Word.
I like the idea of being saturated in God's Word. One of the most basic and important passages in scripture is John 14:6, when Jesus said He is the only way to God the Father. And the arms of Jesus stretch wide enough for the whole world, if the whole world chooses to accept Him.
The older I get, the more I think about how there is no such thing as casual faith. The path to the Father is Jesus. The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus certainly was not casual.
When God joined His divine life to ours in Jesus, that was not a casual decision. His truth, this many years later, remains with us, not only on earth but into eternity.
Living with the Holy Spirit is not a casual thing either. When God the Father gave us His Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth (vs. 17), we have Him within us to show us a whole new way of life. Making life changes is not casual.
God revealed all we need to know about Him in the Holy Bible. Everything in it directs us to Jesus Christ. When we decide to believe in Jesus, it becomes the most precious book in the world.
Thoughts of Faith runs on Saturday. To submit a Thoughts of Faith, email jhoutman@mariettatimes.com.