In Joshua 1:8 God speaking to Joshua says,
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” (Jos 1:8)
Joshua highlights one of the main reasons we are to read and meditate on the Bible — “so that [we] may be careful to do according to all that is written in it.” As much as the Bible is an intellectual exercise, intellectual knowledge shouldn’t be the main reason we read the Bible.
Instead, one of the main reasons we are to read the Bible is so that we can live according to God’s will and bring Him glory.
Our Benefit
As you can see, there is a benefit in living according to God’s will. It allows us to be prosperous and successful. Apart from popular opinion, God is not out to punish us or to take the fun out of life. God wants us to flourish. He wants us to be successful. If we live according to God’s Word, more often than not that’s going to happen. Not necessarily in a health and wealth gospel type of way, but in a real biblical since we will be prosperous and successful.
Warning
But, I have to warn you, as you make reading, meditating, and seeking to live according to the Bible a practice in your life, you will find that: The Bible, at times, will provide the encouragement you need to keep doing what you are doing. However, at other times, you are going to find that the Bible will call you to think and live differently.
No Surprise – The Bible Will Disagree with Us
The Bible calling us to live and think differently shouldn’t be a surprise to us. When you study 2 Timothy 3, you learn that the Bible is useful for:
- Teaching
- Reproving
- Correcting
- Training in righteousness
When we come to the Bible, then, we should not only expect it to encourage and teach us, but we should also expect it to disagree with us from time to time. If you think about it, that has to be true — the Bible has to disagree with us if it’s going to teach, reprove, correct, and train us so that we mature in Christ and live as God would have us live. Honestly, if you find that God’s Word never disagrees with how you are living or thinking, you can be sure that you aren’t reading and applying it correctly.
Why Things Need to Change
The way we live and think must change because we are a people who have been deeply affected by sin. It has corrupted our mind so that we live and think in a way that’s unhelpful, that doesn’t produce human flourishing. So we need God to come in and correct and teach us so that we can live in a way that not only pleases and brings Him glory but also causes us to flourish as humans.
Question for Reflection
- How has the Bible disagreed with you this week?
Resources
Post developed from my sermon What should we do with the Bible?
Christianity Matters 