The foundation of Christianity is the word of God.
If anyone is preaching to you from anything other than the bible and claims to be a Christ follower, run, fast and far.
The problem with the modern believer is that we don't know the weapons of our warfare. We claim to love God, we may even attend church faithfully, but ask us about a verse and we're clueless about where it is in the bible. I'm not speaking of legalism that mandates that you know every verse and every bible story. I'm speaking on pure willful ignorance to the written word of God. Ignorance that is either attributed to laziness, or a lack of discipline. We as Believers can no longer afford to chose ignorance when it comes to the things of God.
For perspective, think about how long it would take you to find the book of Nahum in the bible.
Did you even know the book of Nahum is in the bible?
Is it in new testament or old testament?
I don't write this in a demeaning way, nor in an effort to condemn. I write in love to convict and to stir a passion inside you.
We can not claim to love the God of the word, and not know the word of God.
Lazy Christianity relies on the pastor to teach you the bible.BUT God also endows each and every believer with the ability to read his word independently and gain understanding.
When you stand before Christ, he will not accept your excuse that 'your pastor said this' and 'your mother said this' as reasons why you failed to learn and apply his precepts.
While God sends help to teach us about his ways, the ultimate responsibility to understand is ours alone. Scripture is clear in 2 Timothy 2:15 when it says " Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
We as believers are commissioned to know the word of God for ourselves so that we can easily and quickly determine when truth is being spoken.
I do believe that the reason many Christians lack knowledge about God's word because they fail to open it.
I read a quote on instagram that said "Don't complain that God isn't answering your prayers when your bible remains closed." I had to do a praise dance after that. God's word is so full of spiritual and practical guidance and it is under utilized.We complain so much about our lives, we plead our trials and tribulations, but never open the word.
We as a generation can no longer afford to be anything but sold out for the things of God and the foundation of God is his word.
The word of God is how we learn ourselves and most importantly how we learn our God.
Practically, I know reading the bible can be daunting.
Some believe the bible is entirely 'thees' and 'thous'.
Others don't know where to start or how to start.
Some people struggle to figure out where the application comes in.
To sit here and pretend that in the span of a simple blog post I can teach you how to read the bible in entirety is belittling the greatness of the God's word.
Individuals spend their whole lives learning the bible, and a simple blog post could never do it justice.
What I do want to do is offer practical tips to start you on your own bible adventure. The word is clear that our spiritual battles are fought with the word, and that means as a believer we have to know God's word in order to be armed for battle. Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God . Ephesians 6:16,17
To start:
1: Pray for the Holy spirit to grant you revelation.
This is simply entreating the Lord for insight about his word as you read it.
2: Get a bible in a version that you can understand.
I am not a fan of the 'Message bible' I believe it contains significant inaccuracies. Please do your own research though. My recommendations for versions include: New Living Translation and New International Version, King James is always an awesome original.
3: Know your basics. The bible is split into two testaments. 'Old testament and new testament'. There are 66 books. Each book has several chapters and each chapter has several verses.
4:If you're first time bible reader, my suggestion is to begin with the book of John located in the new testament. I believe as you read, the spirit of God will make the word come alive to you.
Step 5: Create a concrete plan and follow it. Websites like Biblegateway.com offer devotional plans for reading the bible.
As you're reading the word, keep in mind the context of the text. Think: who, what where and why?. Bible concordances are great tools for studying scripture, and never hesitate to look up the meaning of unfamiliar terms or phrases.
Your bible should always be your first resource for the things of God. I hope you read this feeling enabled and impassioned to open your 'Sword'. I pray the Lord leads you through scripture and teaches you as only he can. Most importantly I pray that as you learn the word of God your spirit is strengthened to live out God's good and perfect will.
All my love,
Obioma
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