How well do you know your Bible? Does it make a difference in your daily reading, if you know who Benjamin is or what the Thummin and Urim are? Do you care to know?
I’m reading through the Bible again this year with the help of a Bible app on my phone. It’s a wonderful tool. Sometimes I just let the guy with the British accent read it. Other times, I need to read it a bit more slowly to get God’s message for me!
I often tell my piano students that theory is like knowing that “cat” is a noun. It may not help you read better, but it makes more sense. To know that “C-E-G” makes a C chord may not help you to play better, but it makes more sense; and in the end, I really believe that it will help you to play better.
So, will I understand the Bible better if I know who Benjamin is, or what the Thummin and Urim are? Will it make a difference if I know that Galatia is an area and not a city? Will it help my understanding of the Bible to understand Jewish traditions? For example, Paul probably found Lydia and the Philippian believers meeting at the river side because Jewish law required ten men to form a congregation! Now I see a small group. I understand the faithfulness of those women to gather even though they had little male leadership. It comforts me, as a woman, to know that even if our congregation has a lot of women, it’s okay! We can still accomplish God’s plan.(even if men aren’t available or willing to lead, God still works with women.)
Do you study the Bible? Are you taking time to understand it better? Will that understanding help you to apply it more effectively to your life? I think so.
We have so many Bible helps at our fingertips. We have pastors that are faithfully preaching and teaching us the Bible. Are you taking advantage of all those opportunities?
When our children were in Christian school, everyone had to take Physics. Our daughter really struggled with it, and, night after night, her father would sit at the kitchen table helping her with her homework. It frustrated me because her piano practicing often was put on hold because of Physics. Which subject do you think she uses more today as she plays the piano every Sunday for church? Struggling with Physics taught her diligence and perseverance, but the example I’d like to share is this: What subject is taking your time away from studying the Bible? Are you an expert cook, clothing designer, bargain shopper, sports enthusiast, chauffeur for the kids, TV show fanatic, party attender? Does time for your favorite or necessary interest overshadow the greater need?
As my husband often says, “What will matter the most one hundred years from now?” That statement has a way of putting everything into perspective!
O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep… Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God… They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing. Psalm 92:5,13,14
Beyond Common Sense 