A few years ago, I went through a period of really doubting God and my faith. I had a lot of questions about what I believed. One of the biggest ones was: How do I know the Bible is reliable and real?
I’ve included a few resources on the bottom of this post
that were very helpful to me in helping me gain a understanding and trust in
God’s Word. But to be honest, the biggest way I’ve gained faith in God’s Word
is by diving into it and studying it for myself! I remember two years ago, I hardly had any desire or hunger for God’s Word. I’d grown up reading it, but
I did this more out of duty and because my parents told me too.
Two years ago, when I started walking in the light (See my
last post), I was a part of a small group led by a man with a passion and
knowledge of God’s Word that I so desperately wanted. Tonight as I write this,
I can say with 100% honesty that God has been faithful in giving me that
passion for His Word.
The other night in a small group I was leading, one of the
guys in my group asked the following question, “Can a person be a believer and not
read God’s Word?”
This of course started a pretty long conversation with a lot of
thoughts that were thrown out. But I truly believe this question can be answered by realizing who we have become when we place our faith in Christ's death and resurrection. If God has cleansed us with Jesus’ blood, if we are living in the good
of what He has done for us, we are going to have some type of desire for God’s
Word. Even when I didn’t have a complete hunger, desire and awe for God’s Word,
I knew that God’s Word was written for my good and I recognized that I needed it
more.
Ezekiel 36:25-27 says, “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and
you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will
cleanse you. And I will give you a
new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart
of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you,
and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”(ESV)
When this was written, it was a promise of what was to come. It was a foreshadowing of when Jesus was going to die on
the cross and atone for our sins. It's saying when we put our faith in the blood of Jesus, we are then cleansed. Then look at what it says God will do, “I will remove the heart
of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.” You literally are getting a new
heart at conversion. This new heart knows what is from God and has discernment as to what is from the world. Not only do we receive a new heart, we now have a new spirit that causes us to
walk in God’s ways. So to answer the question, “Can we a believer and not read
God’s Word?”
Yes and no. Yes, if you have no access to it. A lot of believers
don’t have God’s Word in their languages, but they would give a
lot to get it. But no, if you do have access to it. Because you are going to have some sort of desire
for it. You may not have a deep burning passion to study it for hours each day, but you’ve been given a new heart. Therefore you know that the Word of
God is one of the biggest means for you as a believer to know Him.
I want to challenge you. Don’t take God’s Word for granted. Most of us have 5 copies in 5 different translations on our
shelves and read it because it’s what a believer is suppose to do. That's what I did for a long time.
When I saw my small group leader’s passion and desire for God’s Word and was
jealous of it. I started praying every morning for that same kind of passion
and desire. I cried out to Him every morning to give me a hunger, to show me
new things, to make me fall in love with His Word. And after about two weeks of
doing this every morning, God answered that prayer. The last two years, God has
taught me so much through His Word and I can’t go a day without opening it and
God revealing Himself to me.
If you currently have no desire or hunger for God’s Word, if
you currently look at it as a check box on your daily list of things to do.
Stop for a second and consider what you are holding in your hands. It is the
Word of God. God has revealed himself to us and we now have access to growing
in our understanding and knowledge of Him.
I think the most important thing we need
to understand is that the Word of God is one of the most vital ways for us as believers to deepen
our relationship with God. It is the key for us as believers to be able to
understand how God has called us to live in this life. It is the way we as
believers can understand and gain a greater image of just how great the God we
really are serving. Dive into God’s Word and find satisfaction that is not
found in this world.
A couple resources that have served me immensely in doubting God's Word a couple years ago:
1) “The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable?” by F.F.
Bruce.
http://www.amazon.com/The-New-Testament-Documents-Reliable/dp/0802822193/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1348004806&sr=8-1&keywords=are+the+new+testament+documents+reliable
2) MP3 “Can We Trust Our Bibles?” by Peter Williams
http://sgm.edgeboss.net/download/sgm/next/2011/next2011.s3-williams.mp3
