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" All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, t hat the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”
— 2 Timothy 3:16-17
“How can one come to possess great faith? Now listen, here is the answer to that: First, the blade, then the ear, then the full corn in the ear. Faith must grow by soil, moisture, and exercise.”
—Smith Wigglesworth
Nothing can take the place of reading, meditating on, and committing to memory scripture. Spending time with the God of Ages, asking Him to open the eyes of our hearts. For He says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways” (James 1:5-8 ESV).
As we begin to dive in, spending sweet intimate time with the one who breathed out the very words we read, we allow the Holy Spirit to do what no other person, place or thing can do, we allow Him to open our eyes to the mysteries within. As our eyes begin to see truth, our lives begin to change. And how can they not, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12 ESV). His word begins to dissect our very being. As we study it, it studies us and begins to form everything we do.
In Deuteronomy, God instructs the Israelites “…these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates” (Deuteronomy 6:6-9 ESV). His commands are to be ever present, on their hearts, on their lips, in their homes, on their streets, in their beds, on their hands, between their eyes, on their doorposts, and on their gates. As Richard Foster states in his book, Celebration of Discipline, “The purpose of this instruction is to direct the mind repeatedly and regularly toward certain modes of thought about God and human relationships.”
As we begin to fill all that we do with God’s word, our faith is strengthened, our eyes are opened, and our lives are formed. One cannot begin to believe in God’s word until they begin to open it and allow God’s spirit to open their eyes to its truths.
Additional Resources:
- The Well Community Church “He Is” series
- Biblically Formed (Brad Bell, The Well Community Church)
- Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster
- The Gospel Coalition on Biblical Authority