Tag: read the Bible

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The Purpose of the Bible

Purpose of the Bible

Explore the Reasons Why We Should Read Scripture

I write a lot about the Bible. And I advocate that people read and study the Bible. I encourage them to explore Scripture daily. But why? What is the purpose of the Bible? Without knowing why we’re doing something, it’s hard to persist in it and turn it into a habit. But that’s precisely what we must do.

Reasons to Read the Bible

The Bible is the most popular book ever written. It has lasted through the centuries. It’s been translated into many languages; I suspect more than any other book. People have given their lives to preserve the Bible so that we can read it today.

Many households have at least one copy of it. They may even read it. But why?

Here are some common reasons why people read the Bible. They read Scripture to:

  • Avoid feeling guilty if they don’t read it.
  • Obey what they’ve been told they should do.
  • Embrace a daily discipline.
  • Experience classic literature.
  • Read epic stories.
  • Guide them in right living (righteousness).
  • Discover spiritual truth.
  • Learn about God.

These are all reasons to read the Bible. Some of them are even good ones. But they’re not the best. What then, is the ultimate purpose of the Bible?

The Real Purpose of the Bible

The Bible provides the foundation for my faith. I need a basis for what I believe that is greater than me. I need something that transcends me and precedes me. The Bible provides a greater authority for my faith in spiritual practices. That’s why I love the Bible.

Yet it’s popular these days for people to pick what spiritual practices they want to follow. They take a little bit of one religion, mix in a bit of another, and add what seems right in their own eyes (Judges 17:6).

When they do this, they’re making up their own religion. More to the point, they’re making God into their image, not the other way around (Genesis 1:26).

A manmade religion may make them feel good, but it will do nothing more. It can’t save them. Only Jesus can do that (Acts 16:31).

The Point of the Bible

My friend Luke says, “The point of the Bible is to point us to Jesus.” He’s so right. His succinct, pithy one liner captures the essence of the Bible and gives us the real reason to read it.

The Old Testament of the Bible anticipates Jesus.

The New Testament of the Bible reveals Jesus to us.

First, we have the four gospels. These biographies of Jesus (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) tell us about Jesus’s life and ministry.

The rest of the New Testament (Acts through Revelation) tells us about his followers. It reveals their reaction to what he did when he died as a human sacrifice to cover all the things we did wrong—and will do wrong. In this way he makes us right with Father God and prepares us for eternal life.

This is why it’s important that we study the Bible, because it points us to Jesus.

As we follow Jesus and become his disciple (Luke 9:23), we should make what the Bible says about him a priority. We must study the Bible, and we don’t need someone to teach us. We can study it ourselves. As we do this, we must read it with an open mind.

This is because the point of the Bible is to point us to Jesus. And nothing else matters.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”
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The Five Most Overlooked Books in the New Testament

Most Overlooked Books in the New Testament

Discover These Significant Epistles of the Bible

The New Testament of the Bible opens with the historic books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Acts. It ends with the prophetic book of Revelation. Between them are twenty-one letters, also called epistles.

Five of them, which seem tacked onto the end of the section, are the five most overlooked books in the New Testament. They are also significant.

These books are James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1 John, and Jude.

When it comes to the epistles in the Bible, all the ones written by Paul come first. His letters to churches make up the first group. They appear in order of their length, going from longest to shortest.

Though we know what Paul wrote to them, we don’t know what triggered his words. Did they have specific questions they asked? Did someone report on problems they were having?

We don’t know the answers to these questions. We just know Paul’s response. As we read these letters, it’s like hearing half a conversation.

Without knowing the context, it’s hard to rightly apply what he wrote. We’re left to struggle wondering if what he told them to do—or not do—applied just to them or to everyone.

Next are Paul’s letters to individuals, also listed from longest to shortest. Again, we don’t know to what extent his words apply just to the recipients and which apply to us today. After that we have the book of Hebrews, whose author is unknown.

After these many letters come everyone else’s, again listed by length: James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2, and 3 John, and Jude. We treat these others, which are mired at the end of the New Testament almost as afterthoughts, as trivial or even inconsequential. This is unfortunate.

James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1 John, and Jude

Aside from 2 and 3 John, which are personal letters, the other five are general correspondences written to all Christians.

Of all the epistles in the New Testament, these are the ones most readily applicable to us and our situation today—and they comprise the most overlooked books in the New Testament. As such we need to pay much more attention to them than we have been.

Again, these letters are James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1 John, and Jude. When is the last time you read them? Or heard a minister preach from them? Are any of them your go-to books? I suspect not. And this is unfortunate.

I’ll focus on these oft-overlooked books in the New Testament in upcoming books in my Dear Theophilus series of devotional Bible studies. One devotional Bible study will cover 1 and 2 Peter, and another will address James and Jude.

But first up is Love One Another, which focuses on 1 John (and wraps up with 2 and 3 John).

One John is a most amazing book. The themes and content of 1 John closely follow the gospel of John, both written by the apostle John. If you connect with the book of John, you’re sure to resonate with John’s first letter too.

I encourage everyone to delve into these five most overlooked books in the New Testament, James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1 John, and Jude.

You can start with 1 John.

Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”
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Christians and the Bible

know more about the Bible than what they put into practice

Most Christians Already Know More About the Bible Than What They Put into Practice

I’ve already written that most Christians don’t let the Bible get in the way of what they believe. In short, they believe things that aren’t biblical. It’s true. A related thought is that most Christians already know more about the Bible than what they put into practice.

I’ll say it again, most Christians already know more about the Bible than what they put into practice.

Does the Bible Matter?

Many people dismiss what the Bible says, even Christians. They don’t care what it reveals, not really. They assume it’s out of date or think it’s irrelevant in today’s world. Depending on what they want, they may be right. Yet, if someone wants to know the God of the Bible, the Bible is the best way to get there.

Too many people make up their own religion, doing what feels good to them or what makes sense, but a man-made religion won’t save them. It may make them feel self-satisfied, but that temporal pursuit has no eternal value.

To discover truth, they need to look beyond themselves. They need a greater authority. For me, it’s the Bible.

If you want a relationship with the God of Scripture, then Scripture is the means to get there. Nothing else will do; nothing else matters. Then we need to put into practice what the Bible says and not just stuff more knowledge into our brain.

Should We Not Study the Bible?

If we already know more about the Bible than what we put into practice, does that mean we should stop studying it? No. On the contrary.

We need to continue to read, study, and meditate on the Bible. But there’s one more step. We then need to add action. We need to put into practice what we read about in the Bible.

That’s why what the Bible says is so important. Without Scripture, we wouldn’t know what we should do, what’s important, and what matters.

Amassing knowledge about the Bible isn’t the goal of Bible study. Learning how to live, such as to love one another, is. The Bible teaches us that, saying eleven times that we’re to love one another.

Bible study for the sake of learning isn’t the goal. Bible study to reform our thinking and inform our lives should be our intent. Otherwise, our heads will be full of knowledge, but that will be all.

Paul writes that knowledge puffs up, but love builds up (1 Corinthians 8:1). Too many people who read the Bible are puffed up, but they don’t build up anyone.

As James writes, faith without action is dead (James 2:14-26). Therefore, as we study the Bible, it can—and should—spur us to action, making our lives come alive in tangible ways.

We shouldn’t read the Bible to learn as much as we should read the Bible to let its words produce action. Then we won’t be a Christian that knows more about the Bible than we put into practice.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”
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​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

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Are You Reading the Bible or a Secondary Source?

books about the bible

Be Careful When You Study Books about the Bible

I recently heard about a minister who said that none of his seminary classes studied the Bible. Instead, each professor had students study books about the Bible. Though this minister learned theology, he knew the Bible from a distance in a sterile, formal manner. He didn’t know Scripture in an up close and personal way.

I wonder how widespread this is. I fear that it may be. Thinking back to the thousands of sermons I’ve heard, I’d call some of these messages Bible lite or Bible basic. A few didn’t even mention Scripture. It’s a sad reflection on seminary degrees, on the overall failure of advanced education to produce practical application.

This is why I don’t study theology as an intellectual pursuit.

My College Experience

Yet I get this practice. In college I took an elective class on C. S. Lewis. I was most excited about what I’d learn—until I read the syllabus.

During the semester, we only read one book by Lewis. The rest of our time—most of the class—we spent reading about Lewis. These scholarly tomes—authored by academics who had spent their career studying Lewis—left me bored and “none the richer” when it came to Lewis’s writing and his wisdom.

Aside from reading Mere Christianity, that class did little else to enhance my appreciation for the work of C S Lewis. (I’d already read The Great Divorce, The Screwtape Letters, and several other of his books.)

Books about the Bible

Am I saying we shouldn’t read books about the Bible? No.

But we must be careful in how many we read. If we only read books about the Bible and never actually read the Bible itself, something is out of balance.

Books about Scripture that help us to better read, study, and understand the Bible are ideal resources. This is the goal of every book I write about the Bible, including me Dear Theophilus Bible studies, Christian devotionals, and Bible resources. My books are not the end but the means to move into a deeper understanding of Scripture.

Though I occasionally consult resources as I study Scripture, it’s not often. But I’m grateful for those books and the authors who wrote them. Mostly, however, I rely on the Holy Spirit to teach me and help me better understand a text.

As I move forward in studying Scripture, I find I use books less and the Holy Spirit more. This is as it should be.

Scripture Points Us to God

The point of the Bible, of course, is to point us to God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—and deepen our connection with him. Learning about Scripture for the sake of learning is a shallow pursuit that offers no eternal value. Yet too many fall into this trap, including, I fear, some seminaries.

This is why I encourage daily Bible reading and studying. It’s become a lifelong habit for me, and I pray that it becomes one for you too.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”
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Hold on to Every Thought

every thought

Make Our Thoughts Obedient to Jesus

Paul tells the church in Corinth to capture every thought and make it obedient to Jesus. Likewise, Proverbs advises us to guard our thoughts (Proverbs 4:23). (Some translations say to guard our hearts, putting a different twist on the same concept).

This is often hard to do—but not impossible.

Though I’m still working on it, my solution is to distract myself from wayward thoughts. When I remember to do this, they usually dissipate quickly. My distractions take two forms:

Quote the Bible

The first verse that comes to mind is in James: “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7). This is good advice to follow, but when I cite it, I end up focusing on what I’m trying to escape. It doesn’t help me control my every thought.

Instead, my go to verse is from Revelation: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come” (Revelation 4:8). This passage places my focus on God, praising him, worshiping him, and acknowledging his eternal existence.” The enemy doesn’t like that.

I end up reciting this verse just about every day, often multiple times.

Pray

Another way I distract myself from wrong thinking is to pray. The enemy doesn’t like that either. However, I don’t pray that I’ll stop thinking wrong thoughts or for strength to hold them captive; that also focuses my attention on what I’m trying to escape. Instead I pray for someone else.

Just as I have one predetermined verse, I have one predetermined person who I will automatically pray for when wrong thoughts beckon. This keeps me from wasting time, trying to determine who I should pray for and gets me to the praying part quickly.

Capturing every thought and subjecting it to Jesus is usually quite easy when I remember to cite scripture or pray. The key is remembering to do so.

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is 2 Corinthians 10-13, and today’s post is on 2 Corinthians 10:5.]

Read more in Peter’s book, Love is Patient (book 7 in the Dear Theophilus series).

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”
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​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

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7 Tips to Form a Bible Reading Habit

Bible reading habit

Be Intentional About Spending Time in God’s Word Each Day

I read Scripture every day and have for most of my adult life. I’ve formed a Bible reading habit. It’s become an essential part of my life, just like eating and sleeping.

Reading God’s Word has become natural and normal for me. And I encourage everyone to develop a daily Bible reading habit too. Yet I understand this is a struggle for many. A friend recently asked for any suggestions I might have to help form a Bible reading habit.

Here are my seven Bible reading tips:

1. Select a Time

Pick what time of day will work best for you to read the Bible. For many people this is first thing in the morning, as a start to their day. Others like to end their day by reading Scripture. Or there may be another time that works best for you.

As you figure out what time each day you give to God to read Scripture, be sure to give him your best time slot. Don’t give him what’s leftover. Avoid trying to squeeze Bible reading between other aspects of your life. Just as God desires for you to make him a priority in your life, the same applies to when you read his Word.

The important thing is to decide on a time to read the Bible each day. Then do it.

2. Start Small

Don’t make a grandiose plan. Start small. Just as it would be foolish for a runner who only runs short distances sporadically to decide they’re going to run a marathon the next day, the same applies to Bible reading. Don’t commit to reading the entire Bible in one year if you scarcely read it at all now.

Set a low goal that will be easy for you to achieve. This will allow you to find quick success and encourage you to press forward.

If you’re just starting out, I suggest you commit to read one verse a day. Just one. It will only take a few seconds.

I recommend that you read from your favorite book in the Bible. Make it easy to do, keep it simple, and make sure it’s enjoyable.

3. Set a One-Month Goal

Read one verse every day for at least a month. This will establish a habit of regular Bible reading. Though one month is often enough to form a regular routine, it could take two or three months for a good habit to develop.

The goal is to get to a point where you automatically read your Bible at the time you picked each day. The intent is for Bible reading to become an essential part of your daily practices.

Just as we would never forget to eat a meal or skip sleep, reading the Bible deserves the same perspective.

4. Keep the Momentum Going

After one month, build upon your success and keep the momentum going.

If keeping a streak will help motivate you, make a chart to track each day you read your Bible. The goal is an unbroken chain of daily Bible reading. Keep your streak going.

Or if you can motivate yourself through rewards, set a small prize for yourself each week. Do this on a specific day. Pick an incentive that means something to you and will motivate you. Then choose a larger reward for the end of each month.

5. Expand Your Practice

Once you’ve established a habit of daily Bible reading, you can then consider reading more than one verse each day. You might want to move from one verse to one paragraph.

Later you might want to move from one paragraph to one section. Just as most Bibles put the text in paragraph form, they often group similar related paragraphs together in the section, often with a subheading.

6. Consider Setting an Annual Goal.

Once you’ve done this for a full year. You’ll have surely formed a regular Bible reading habit. It’s perfectly acceptable to continue what you been doing over the past year into the future.

Yet if you want to read more, consider reading a chapter a day. Here are some ideas to guide you in this, such as monthly reading options, reading the New Testament in one year, and reading the Old Testament in one year.

I encourage everyone to at some point read the entire Bible in one year. This is a commitment which will take 12 to 15 minutes every day, so don’t start with this right away.

It would be like trying to run a marathon before you trained, so build up your Bible reading skills, just as a runner would build up to a marathon.

7. Pursue Balance in Your Bible Reading

Regardless of how much of the Bible you decide to read each day, remember that it’s not about the number of verses you read (quantity) but the impact your reading has on you (quality).

May God bless you as you read his Word and form a Bible reading habit.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”
​
​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

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How to Meditate on God’s Word

meditate on God's word

Discover How to Get More from Your Time Spent with Scripture

Reading and studying the Bible is a great start to better understanding Scripture and the truth in holds. I highly recommend daily Bible reading and encourage everyone to do so—both those who follow Jesus and those who are curious about him. But to get even more from a passage, the key is to meditate on God’s Word.

Though I read the Bible every day and study Scripture most every day, I don’t meditate on it as often as I should or as often as I’d like to. But when I do, the insights I get are profound.

That’s why I wish I’d spend more time to meditate on God’s Word. Emphasize the word time. It takes time to meditate on Scripture.

Though I schedule time to read the Bible—and relish my investment in learning more about God and myself, meditating on the passage requires more time and—though the reward is sweeter—the results aren’t as vast, just deeper.

Here are my tips to achieve the best outcomes when we meditate on God’s word:

Read Slowly

The first key is to slow down. I learned this when studying the gospel of John while researching and writing my book Living Water. To grasp meaning from John’s poetic writing required that I slowed down from my regular reading pace to allow the words to sink in.

Decreasing our speed is even more important when we meditate on God’s Word. We must slow down and be deliberate. Focus on each phrase of each sentence, even each word.

Consider its significance and what its presence may teach. This is how we get insight we’d normally miss reading at our normal pace.

Read Over and Over

The second key is repetition. This is not a rote reading to log a certain number of reps but an intentional rereading to get more from the text.

Though when reading slowly, I sometimes reread a sentence to make sure I haven’t missed something, this rereading is different. It’s examining the same passage on multiple days, with each pass revealing more insight into the text.

Some people recommend rereading the same text seven times, one day each week. Yet seven isn’t a magic number when we meditate on God’s Word. It’s more of a guideline.

Sometimes new truths emerge on my fourth or fifth read, while other times I gain a deeper understanding on my tenth pass.

This requires patience, which may be the reason few people invest the time to meditate on God’s Word.

Pause to Reflect

Next, don’t rush from one phrase or sentence to the next. Instead, pause to consider the words. Yes, we may have already determined our primary understanding of the text, but consider a fresh perspective, a secondary meaning, or a deeper truth.

The Bible is multilayered with significance buried within, but it takes digging to find it. This is why we must be willing to pause from our reading and consider carefully what we’ve just read.

Write Observations

Record the insights we uncover as we meditate on God’s Word. This may be in a journal or computer file. Having spent several decades immersing myself into Scripture, I have a computer document for each book of the Bible and have notes for each chapter of each book.

Don’t let my lifetime of results, however, intimidate you from beginning. Remember, I once started with nothing.

Instead, let my outcome encourage you to envision what you can achieve if you commit yourself to meditating on a regular basis.

Seek Holy Spirit Guidance

My parting tip is not the final one but instead an overarching principle. Each step for meditating on God’s Word requires seeking Holy Spirit guidance if we are to achieve the best results.

Yes, these first four tips do produce results if we rely on our own intellect, but when we seek direction from the Holy Spirit, our insights become much greater.

Whether we’re reading, studying, or meditating on God’s Word, the Holy Spirit can amplify what we’re doing. Jesus told his disciples that the Father would send them an Advocate, the Holy Spirit, to teach them all things (John 14:26).

Just as the Holy Spirit taught Jesus’s followers 2,000 years ago, he can teach us today. All we need to do is ask him to speak to us and guide us when we meditate on God’s Word.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”
​
​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

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Quantity Bible Reading versus Quality Bible Reading

Quantity Bible Reading versus Quality Bible Reading

Two Options for Daily Scripture Consumption

I’m a huge advocate of daily Bible reading. I encourage people to develop the habit of regularly reading God’s Word. It’s as important as eating. Just as we wouldn’t go a day without eating (unless we’re fasting), we shouldn’t go a day without reading Scripture. The question is quantity Bible reading or quality Bible reading.

Quantity Bible Reading

We offer resources to guide Bible readers into doing just that. There’s a plan to read the New Testament in the year, read the Old Testament in a year, and read the entire Bible in the year.

For those who aren’t ready to commit to a long term-plan, there are also monthly reading guides to help people ease into developing the practice of regularly reading God’s Word. A benefit of the monthly reading plans is that you can easily start anytime you want to throughout the year.

Each of these approaches involves reading at least one chapter a day up to about three or four, depending on the guide. The goal is to cover a lot of Scripture each month and each year. This is a quantity Bible reading approach.

The quantity perspective of reading God’s Word has much value, allowing readers to encounter large swaths of Scripture. This is ideal for giving an overview and methodically covering large sections of the Bible. It’s a great practice to pursue.

Yet this pace makes in-depth studying a challenge. For that reason, I switch back and forth between this quantity Bible reading approach to a quality mindset.

Quality Bible Reading

With a quality approach to reading the Bible, the emphasis changes from how much Scripture we cover to how well it’s internalized. To read for quality requires slowing down. It means immersing ourselves in a passage or even a verse. In doing so, we seek to gain as much insight as possible without feeling a need to rush on to what follows it.

In this way we take time to meditate on what the Bible says and internalize it to make it part of our lives. (Check out this post for some ideas for how to meditate on God’s Word.)

Balance

Neither approach to reading the Bible is superior to the other. Both have their merits, and both have their limitations. The key is to use whichever method works best for us for the season of life we’re in.

We may want to spend a year pursuing quantity Bible reading to absorb as much Scripture as possible. Then we may switch to a quality Bible reading approach to dig deep and mine truths buried within.

The goal is to know which approach is right for us at any given time and to have the freedom to pursue it. This means that if we’re going for quantity, we don’t feel guilty about missing nuances. Likewise, it means if we’re going for quality, we don’t feel guilty about not covering a lot of ground.

God honors both methods and both have merit. May we wisely choose the best approach for us at any given time.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”
​
​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

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Meditating on God’s Word

Meditating on God’s Word

Our Actions Are Birthed Through Our Thoughts

It’s essential to read the Bible, but beyond that we should also study Scripture. Even more important, however, is meditating on God’s Word. This is because when we meditate on what the Bible says, it changes what we think about, which affects what we do.

Read the Bible

As followers of Jesus, we learn more about him and how to be his disciples through Scripture. By reading the Bible we get a glimpse into the life of Jesus to see what he said and what he did. Then we can emulate his actions and obey his teachings to become more Christlike.

Study Scripture

Reading the Bible is a great start. I do it every day and encourage everyone to do with as well. Yet beyond reading God’s holy word is to examine it. We should study Scripture.

In the Old Testament we see Ezra devoting himself to studying the law, that is the Jewish Scripture—the Old Testament of the Bible—specifically the Torah, the first five books of the Bible (Ezra 7:10).

In the New Testament, Jesus commends the Jews for their diligent study of the scriptures, which testify about him (John 5:39). Today we have both the Old and New Testaments for us to read and study so we can learn more about Jesus—and about God.

Meditate on God’s Word

Studying scripture is a rewarding endeavor, but we must make sure we don’t do it to amass knowledge but to inform our understanding of God. Paul warns the church in Corinth to pursue love over knowledge, saying that knowledge puffs up (1 Corinthians 8:1).

Though the context of Paul’s instruction is about food sacrificed to idols, his warning to not allow ourselves to become proud over our knowledge is a warning we should all heed. We don’t want to take pride in our knowledge about the Bible, to become puffed up by what we know.

Instead, we should take the next step and meditate on it. We should hide God’s Word in our hearts (Psalm 119:11). We do this as we read, study, and meditate on the Bible.

Studying Scripture puts the Bible’s words in our minds; meditating on God’s Word puts it in our hearts. This is where it needs to be; this is where it must be if we are to apply what we read in the Bible to what we do and say.

Drive Our Actions

As we meditate on the Bible—as we hide God’s Word in our hearts—the desired outcome is that we won’t sin against God (Psalm 119:11). Though meditating on God’s Word won’t make us sinless, it will help us to sin less.

This is because what we put into our minds influences what comes out of our mouths and what our body does. Meditating on God’s Word changes what we think about, which affects what we do.

The old computer saying is GIGO—garbage in garbage out. What we enter into a computer is what we can expect to get out of it.

The same is true in our lives. If we fill our minds with junk—with the thoughts of the world, evil, and ideas contrary to the Word of God—that’s what we can expect our minds and our bodies to produce.

Yet if we fill our mind with the thoughts of God, by meditating on God’s Word, we can expect a positive and God-honoring result.

May it be so.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

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Categories
Christian Living

Start Each Day with God

start each day with God

Make Spending Time with the Almighty a Priority

God deserves our best, not whatever’s left over at the end of the day—if anything. This may be why he told the Israelites to give to him their first fruits, the first of their harvest (Exodus 23:16). That’s why we should start each day with God, with a focus on our Lord.

Here are some ideas to start each day with God.

Seek Him Before You Get Up

Before I leave my bed each morning, I turn my focus to God. I thank him for what happened yesterday, for the sleep that rejuvenated me, and the potential of the day ahead. I begin my day with a focus on him, which sets the foundation for what happens next.

Give Him Your Day and Invite Him into It

Before I arise, I thrust my arms into the air in a physical display of worship, giving the Almighty my day and inviting him into it. And the days when this feels the most difficult to do are the days when I need it the most.

Thoughts of trying to navigate the day without my Lord’s help are foolish.

Morning Prayers

At this point I’ve thanked God and prayed for my day. I’m up and have used the mindless task of shaving to shake the slumber from my soul. I’ve done some basic exercises and am (mostly) alert.

I now ask for God’s blessings on my family, for future generations of my family, and those closest to me. This prepares me for what follows.

Read and Study His Word

Next, I spent time reading and studying his Word. Sometimes this is part of a regular Bible reading plan. I often make notes about key insights the Holy Spirit reveals to me from that passage.

Though most people do this in a journal, I do it on my computer, organizing my observations by book, chapter, and verse. This way I can merge my thoughts for the day with observations from prior readings.

Other times my Bible reading and studying is in preparation for the book I’ll be working on that day. If I intend to write about a certain passage, I want to first fix my thoughts on it and meditate on it.

I’ve been doing morning Bible reading the longest and it’s ingrained into my day. It’s a lifelong habit that I formed. Only rarely do events distract me from it. I invest about fifteen minutes—though sometimes more—each morning focusing on Scripture.

This action is essential for me to best start my day with God.

Then Take Him Throughout Your Day

With these prerequisites complete, I feel ready to move into my plans for the day. But when I skimp on them, it’s not the best way to start each day with God.

End Your Day with Reflection and Thanksgiving

Though the focus of this post is about how we start each day with God, in some respects this effort begins the night before on how we end each day.

As I snuggle into bed my goal is to thank God for the day and what he enabled me to do. I pray for his blessing on my sleep and that even in my dreams I will hold every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5).

This is what I struggle with the most. This isn’t because of a lack of will, but because some nights I fall asleep before I can take this step, or I slip into slumber halfway through.

In case I missed doing this or fell short, that’s why I try to begin the next day by thanking God for the prior one.

Start Each Day with God

We should start each day with God and give him our best. He deserves nothing less and there’s nothing we need more. Though I don’t always do this as fully as I’d like to, this is how I try to start each day with God.

I pray that you have a regular rhythm for your day that begins with and focuses on our Lord. And if not, use these ideas to encourage you to move forward and place your focus on the Almighty as you begin each day.

Do you like this post? Want to read more? Check out Peter’s book, Bridging the Sacred-Secular Divide: Discovering the Spirituality of Every Day Life, available wherever books are sold.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.