AN UNDIVIDED LIFE
"This book will keep you from sin;
Sin will keep you from this book."
INTRO: Strange but true facts:
Question: Is the Bible just a good book or is it absolutely necessary for your spiritual life? In the last seven days, how did your life answer that question?
The ultimate goal of our life should be to glorify God. How do we glorify God? We do it by loving Him. We love Him by living an undivided life; we live an undivided life by knowing and living by God’s Word. If we make it our goal to love God…we cannot ignore His Word
Theodore Roosevelt once said, "A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a college education."
Charles Dickens "The New Testament is the best book the world has ever known and will know."
If we want to deepen our love for Christ:
WE MUST FIRST OF ALL RECOGNIZE THE WORD’S __POWER__ (HEB. 4:12)
Woodrow Wilson said "When you have read the Bible, you will know it is the Word of God, because you will have found in it the key to your own heart, your own happiness and your own duty."
Heb. 4:12 "For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."
God describes His Word as a seed, sword, hammer, fire
A. It brings us to __Christ__ (Rom. 1:16)
"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile."
Rom. 10:17 "Faith comes from hearing the messages, and the message is heard through the word of Christ."
1 Pet. 1:23 "For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring Word of God."
B. It __matures__ us "in Christ" (Col. 1:28-29)
Just as a baby can’t grow without food; we can’t grow spiritually…
C. It helps us _minister_ for Christ (2 Tim. 4:2)
Billy Graham’s mission statement "My one purpose in life is to help people find a personal relationship with God, which, I believe, comes through knowing Christ."
We want people to go to the Bible for answers not us
2. EMBRACE THE WORD’S __PROMISES__ (JOS. 21:45)
A. Bible contains _thousands_ of promises
B. Promises of security (Jos. 1:5)
C. Promises of future plans (Jer. 29:11)
D. Promises of God’s care and provision (Phil. 4:19)
3. APPLY THE WORD’S _PRINCIPLES_ (JA. 1:22)
A. God gave us His Word, not to increase our _knowledge_,
but to change our _lives_!
"It ain’t those parts of the Bible that I can’t understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand." Mark Twain
Gaining a grasp on the Scripture
Hand ILL
We forget 90% of what we hear (not encouraging for a speaker)
B. God’s Word changes our _minds_ and makes us think
Straight, uncovering core lies. (Rom. 12:2)
SOW REAP
thought act
act habit
habit character
character destiny
ILL- If I sow a Scriptural thought of honesty, I reap an honest act…known as an honest man who lives an honest life.
ILL- Sam "Two dogs…which one is winning…the one I feed"
4. MAKE THE WORD A __PRIORITY__ (PS 19:10)
A. Question: What’s the most important time of the day?
ILL- my poor devotional habits as a young Christian…compared myself to my brother, Jim Mosteller…
Time alone with God is the MOST important time of the day!
ILL- CA gold mine "We will never learn the deep things of God by reading a little devotional thought each day; we must seriously discipline our minds if we want to profit from Bible study. "We need to dig deeply into the Word as if it were mining for gold, in order to treasure the nuggets of His Word in our hearts."
B. How to get started
A. Schedule a __time__.
B. Find a quiet _place_.
C. Begin with a simple plan. (Ps/Prov. a day)
D. Make it a __daily__ habit.
CLOSING ILL- City Slickers Luke 10:38-42 "only one thing is needed"
The same Patrick Henry who said "Give me liberty or give me death" also said this "Here’s a book, the Bible. But it’s to my misfortune that I’ve never had time to read it."
