What does it mean when I tell you, “The Bible is my Source”?
At Deeper it’s one of the four pillars that our student ministry is built on. This pillar is the one that concerns me the most. I believe that our first pillar, “Every Student” is a rallying cry that all of us can get behind. We are a generation that needs a cause, and reaching every student for the sake of Jesus Christ is a great cause to rally behind. White students, Black students, Brown students. Every Student is welcome at Deeper. Frankly I don’t want to be part of a group that doesn’t look like heaven, and heaven is a multi-ethnic place full of Christ-followers with all different talents and gifts that make each of us unique. I want that to be Deeper, I want us to represent every part of humanity that we possibly can!
We talked about this last week, and you’ll see this theme in almost every message, blog & podcast that we do. Every Student!
This pillar on the other hand is one that often times goes by the wayside. When I tell you that the Bible is my source, it goes beyond, “It’s my source for preaching material”, beyond, “Its the source of my favorite bible verse that gets me through a tough time.” All the way to, “I need the words in this book in the same way I need the oxygen I breathe” Without oxygen, the body dies and with out the word, our spiritual life dies.
We go blind to our morals without the Word of God.
So let me ask you a really tough question, do you need the words in this book like the air that you breathe?
Does a day that goes by without time in your word negatively affect your day, or is it not that big of a deal, i’ll just double up tomorrow.
Frankly if this is the case, the Bible isn’t your source, its just a vitamin, something that helps, but if the rest of your diet is junk, isn’t going to help you all that much.
I want us to take a deep dive into Joshua 1:6-9, 6 “Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. 7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. 8 Study this Book of Instruction continually.
Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. 9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Now this period in time the Israelites had just left Egypt and had been in the wilderness for 40 years. Most of the Bible we have today hadn’t been written yet, but it was Moses that wrote the law, and the Pentateuch (first 5 books of the Bible) so we can safely assume that this is the text that God is referring to.
We’re conditioned to just click a box that we’ve read the user license agreement and we can move on, but God is very firm with Joshua that in order for him to be successful in his calling, he needed to “meditate on it day and night” and “study this Book of instruction continually” and as verse 8 says, “Only then will you prosper in all you do.”
John 8:31, “31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
This Book [The Bible], is the inspired Word of God. In order to live a life in pursuit of God, we must be well read on the Bible, it must be our source.
How can I do this?
1) Get a Bible you can understand. For me, it was the New Living Translation. This is still one of my favorite translations to read, especially if you’re reading long passages at a time. It’s very readable.
2) Get on a Bible reading plan. I’ll recommend that you go chronological and go from Genesis to Revelation.
3) Download apps, “The Bible App” “Logos” “Bible Gateway” are all very good ones.
At Deeper, “The Bible Is Our Source”
Let’s live this one out!
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