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How Important is Bible Study |
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Contributed by Phil Spadaro
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Thursday, 11 December 2008 |
 Brothers and Sisters,
How important are prayer and Bible study? Can we accomplish much for God without them? Do they feed the Spirit of God within us?
Bible study and prayer are important. I have been lax in my prayer
life, but more and more sense the need to pray - being forced to my
knees by realizing their is no other answer. My concern for myself, our
family group and are fellowship at large is Bible study. As we (as a
church) begin to see growth, church plantings and missionary work, we
can easily be lulled into a false sense of security. "We are doing well
spiritually, because we are growing", will be the reasoning. However
Matthew 23:15 tells us this is not a valid argument...
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You
travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes
one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.
The Pharisees were zealous, spreading their ideology around the globe. After the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD, Pharisaical Rabbinical Judaism was the paradigm which survived. Jesus does not lift them up for their zeal, but condemns them for hypocrisy.
John 5 gives us a clue as to the importance of Bible study.
39You diligently study[a] the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, 40yet you refuse to come to me to have life.
"You diligently study" may also be "Study diligently" (imperative - command). Either way, the scriptures connect us with Christ but require us to have receptive heart, "...yet you refuse to come to me..." Bible study alone will not save us, God requires us to have minds and hearts soft and ready for transformation.
At this time we are very privileged. Not one of us is lacking a Bible. We have access to resources our ancient brethren would have been overjoyed to have - online concordances, multiple translations of the Bible, access to teachers and preachers around the world, archeology, historical records and more. Are we squandering the great gifts God has provided with spoon fed 5 minute devotionals from a book or website? Are we serving the Lord with all (Luke 10:27) our mind as we engage in reading His word? Do we sense the Bible as God's words to me? The Creator is talking to me!
Typically lack of Bible study is not identified by the phrase, "I am not doing well spiritually because I am not reading my Bible." More often the following phrases are heard...
* I am not close to my spouse
* I am not close to other brothers and sisters
* My spouse and I argue often
* My children are out of control
* My finances are out of control
* I am burnt out
* I am frustrated
* I am overwhelmed
* I don't have any time
If the Bible really is the vehicle for the words of the Creator of the universe, wouldn't make sense to hear and faithfully obey what He has to say? Why suffer in our marriages, relationships, outreach, service, finances, life when the answer to many of our woes sits on shelf in our home?
Please consider the following scriptures, with some commentary.
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The need for Bible Study
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Job 34: 35 'Job speaks without knowledge;
his words lack insight.'
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Job 38:2 "Who is this that darkens my counsel
with words without knowledge?
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The book of Job is a demonstration of the need for understanding
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Who God is
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How does God expect me to relate to Him
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Only the Bible can give us definite answers
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Ps 119 – Bible study is not a dutiful necessity, but a wondrous privilege
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9 How can a young man keep his way pure?
By living according to your word.
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11 I have hidden your word in my heart
that I might not sin against you.
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16 I delight in your decrees;
I will not neglect your word.
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20 My soul is consumed with longing
for your laws at all times.
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24 Your statutes are my delight;
they are my counselors.
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32 I run in the path of your commands,
for you have set my heart free.
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35 Direct me in the path of your commands,
for there I find delight.
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40 How I long for your precepts!
Preserve my life in your righteousness.
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Freedom
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Joy
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Protection
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Describe your attitude toward Bible study
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Describe the attitude toward Bible study in the fellowship
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The consequences of lack of Bible Study and How it happens
Hosea 4
The Charge Against Israel
1 Hear the word of the LORD, you Israelites,
because the LORD has a charge to bring
against you who live in the land:
"There is no faithfulness, no love,
no acknowledgment of God in the land.
2 There is only cursing, [a] lying and murder,
stealing and adultery;
they break all bounds,
and bloodshed follows bloodshed.
3 Because of this the land mourns, [b]
and all who live in it waste away;
the beasts of the field and the birds of the air
and the fish of the sea are dying.
4 "But let no man bring a charge,
let no man accuse another,
for your people are like those
who bring charges against a priest.
5 You stumble day and night,
and the prophets stumble with you.
So I will destroy your mother-
6 my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.
"Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also reject you as my priests;
because you have ignored the law of your God,
I also will ignore your children.
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Actively Ignoring God's Word in Hosea
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How severe are the consequences for their ignorance?
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2 Kings 22:8 Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, "I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the LORD." He gave it to Shaphan, who read it
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God's word slipped into obscurity in 2 Kings
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How does God's word slip into disuse?
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Consequences for not knowing / obeying the word
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1 Chronicles 13: 7 They moved the ark of God from Abinadab's house on a new cart, with Uzzah and Ahio guiding it. 8 David and all the Israelites were celebrating with all their might before God, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, cymbals and trumpets. 9 When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. 10 The LORD's anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God.
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1 Chronicles 15 2 Then David said, "No one but the Levites may carry the ark of God, because the LORD chose them to carry the ark of the LORD and to minister before him forever."
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1 Chronicles 15 15 And the Levites carried the ark of God with the poles on their shoulders, as Moses had commanded in accordance with the word of the LORD.
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Ex 25:14 – carry by poles
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Only Levites
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May not touch the Ark
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Uzzah may not have been aware of the details if he was not a Levite
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Why did no one address the issues with transporting the ark?
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Some concerns
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Lack of Bible study in the fellowship
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Lack of deep Bible study in the fellowship
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relying on devotional books
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relying on online study series only
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not applying the Bible to real life situations
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Marriage
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Finances
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Children
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Outreach
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Dating
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Purity
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The rewards for Bible Study
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1 Timothy 4:16 Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
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Salvation for self and hearers
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Why persevere in them? Can we get weary of studying the scriptures? What should that tell us?
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John 5:39You diligently study[a] the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, 40yet you refuse to come to me to have life.
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Must have receptive attitude when studying word (Heb 4:12)
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 11 December 2008 )
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Bible Study 
