After serving nearly seven years in the U.S. Army, I have always considered the pursuit of knowledge as one of the most important than anyone can set out to do. In April 1996, I took the first major step in my education, as I thought at the time, by enrolling in Northwestern State University of Louisiana in my efforts to increase my knowledge and prospects for future employment. Yes, I was a Christian, but I had really not devoted myself to the calling that God places before every Christian: Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth (II Timothy 2:15). Yes, I was seeking knowledge for worldly gain but when it came to studying the Bible and developing a richer faith in God, I was severely lacking. It would not be until 2006 that I would begin to apply the same diligence in studying the Bible as I had my college coursework.
Yesterday morning, I was asked by one of my former college students a question about my faith. Having had the opportunity to have him take three of my courses, he and I have had several conversations in the past that have ranged from current events, foreign policy, and even my faith. This morning as he and I were discussing the dangers of humanism, he asked me if I ever feel that I have reached the point that I have learned all that I need to as a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. I know that for many people that would be considered a strange question; however, as a Christian that teaches in a community college, I am often asked questions about my faith from the perspective of young people that simply do not know or understand the importance of having a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. I explained to him that the one thing about life is that the more I learn about the grace of God, the more I realize I do not know even half of all there is to know about Him. We then sat for about ten minutes discussing how we should study the Bible.
What is telling from the conversation was that this young man simply assumed that by me going to church on Wednesday evening, and Sunday morning for Sunday School and the a.m. service, and again for Sunday evening service, I had learned about everything I needed to know about my faith and belief in the Lord Jesus Christ. Each day I run into people professing to be Christians that do not feel the need to study the Bible for themselves. There’s no desire to follow the spiritual advice offered from the hand of Moses as he wrote, But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul (Deuteronomy 4:29). The “thence,” if we are Christians is the day we accept the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour; for the apostle Paul wrote to the Christians at Corinth, Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new (II Corinthians 5:17). Once we are saved there should be a natural desire to seek the Lord’s will for our lives – we do that through prayer and the reading of his Word. If we diligently seek him with every ounce of our being, we will find him and we will find his divine plan for our lives.
Back in 2006, when I began to pursue my Bible study as much as I did my academic pursuits, I noticed that within Psalms 119, there are seven verses that have the nearly identical wording and also carry the exact same idea – David is asking God out of the sincerity of his heart for God to teach his statues to him so he might live a life that will honor God. One particular verse, Deal with thy servant according unto thy mercy, and teach me thy statutes (Psalm 119:124), David acknowledges that God cannot teach anything unless his mercy is given to us first – this mercy is salvation from the judgment and eternal punishment that comes from not believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. Before we can learn we must first do what David had to do – But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation (Psalms 13:5). There can be no other way to open the door for learning the things of our faith of of our God than trusting in his mercy and grace and rejoicing in the gift of salvation. The apostle Paul actually reminded Christians at the church in Corinth, For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s (I Corinthians 6:20). Our redemption has already been purchased and again, the apostle Paul wrote, I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service (Romans 12:1). Our reasonable service is to open our minds and hearts to learning of the things of our faith and of our God and we do that through thoughtful and careful study of the Bible.
I choose to study the Bible because I need to be reminded daily of his love for me. We live in a world that is full of anger, bitterness, and open hostility and for me, being reminded that God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). Being reminded that God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16) reassures me and reminds me that the same God that made a way to be reconciled to him is still concerned with me. The Bible is where we, as believers, read the simple promise given us by the Lord Jesus Christ: Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows (Matthew 10:29-31).
I choose to to study the Bible because, just as the psalmist David, I do not want to willfully sin against my God: Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee (Psalms 119:11). As I spend time each day reading my Bible, I am amazed at the completeness of God. Each time I read through Psalms, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes, I remain in awe of how relevant those ancient writings are in this high-tech and modern world. It truly is a humbling experience to be reminded of God’s love for us and the simple truth that we do matter in a world that tells us that we don’t matter and asks us why bother.
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Towards the end of last week, I took a trip to Fayetteville, North Carolina. On the way back to my home on Saturday, I had reached a point that I needed to stop for gas, a soda, and something to eat. I decided to leave Interstate 40 and exit to a little town called Canton, roughly halfway between the North Carolina state line and Asheville, North Carolina. After I paid for and pumped my gas, I decided to go into the store to go to the restroom and to buy some chips and drinks to take with me on the road. Without realizing it, I was whistling the old church hymn, He Keeps Me Singing as I entered the convenience store.
