The Experience of God's Word

A powerful passage of Scripture is found in 2nd Timothy chapter 3:
16All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,17that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

We can be challenged to regard the Scriptures as more than just words on a page - well, sure, for some, that is all that God's Word is.   Words without relevancy, sentences without meaning.  How sad - and I believe that it's only because of a lack of understanding, or appreciation, or devotion.   We have to absorb the words of the Bible into our consciousness and allow the reality of His truth to permeate our very souls.  God's Word can change us, He can speak to our hearts and give us the wisdom that we so desperately need, but we have to pick up the Bible, read it carefully, and allow its living truth to operate in us.

The Bible says this about itself in Hebrews 4, and this is a description of a life that has experienced the power of the Word of God:
12For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Earlier this week, I referred to a study by the Bible Society in the United Kingdom that showed what I would regard as an astonishing lack of knowledge of the Scriptures.  A report on the Daily Mail website about the survey results said that almost one in three Britons didn’t know where the story of the birth of Jesus could be found, despite being asked just after Christmas.

This rose to 36 per cent for the tale of the Good Samaritan and 41 per cent for Samson and Delilah.
Nearly two-thirds - 59 per cent - had no idea the stories of David and Goliath and Jonah and the Whale were from the Bible.

One in ten thought the stories of King Midas and Icarus - both from classical Greek myth rather than the Bible - appeared in the Old or New Testament.

The survey of more than 5,700 adults and 804 children found a quarter of children had never heard of the Nativity or Noah’s Ark and two-fifths were completely unaware of Adam and Eve and The Crucifixion.

Two-thirds hadn’t come across the Creation story, three-quarters had never been told about Daniel in the lion’s den and more than nine in ten didn’t know about King Solomon.

Some 54 per cent of children were never read Bible stories by adults, it found.

Yet 86 per cent of parents said they had been regularly told about key passages when they were growing up.

The report points out that recent census figures have recorded a decline of more than ten per cent in just a decade in the number of people who regard themselves as Christian.

In November, former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey said the Church of England was just "one generation away from extinction."

He added: "If we do not invest in young people there is going to be no one in the future."

Parents also showed embarrassing gaps in knowledge, with 46 per cent wrongly identifying a Harry Potter plot line as coming from the Bible.

Yet nearly half of adults think Bible stories provide "good values for life" and 40 per cent say they are important to our history and culture.

Former Poet Laureate Sir Andrew Motion, who described the report as "disturbing," said: "It’s essential for us to keep these stories alive, regardless of our religious beliefs (or lack of them)...They are indispensable to our understanding of the past and the enrichment of our present."

The Bible Society said the statistics were "symptomatic of the fact that many children indicate they have never read, seen or ever heard these stories."

Bible Society chief executive James Catford added: "Our research indicates that the Bible’s brilliant and engaging stories could be lost to future generations unless people take action."  He added, "The Bible enriches life and every child should have the opportunity to experience it."

Oh, if we just had a higher view of the Scriptures!   Unfortunately, I believe the trend in society is to relegate the Bible to just a few antiquated stories with no real relevance for our culture today.  The Bible itself, and those who engage with it, offer a different view - it's called "living" and "active," and if you engage with the Word of God, it will bring life to your spirit and direction to your mind.  You can come up-close and personal with the wisdom of Almighty God by studying, meditating on, and applying God's Word.

In an age where there are numerous influences that can get us off-track in our pursuit of a satisfying and meaningful life, it is incumbent on each of us to make the quality decision to make God's Word not just a mere influence but to regard it as the primary authority to govern our lives. Also, as a significant number of people indicated in the British survey, stories from the Bible are important to our history and culture.  The Bible has not become outdated or less relevant - its principles are highly effective today, especially in an age where moral relativism and the ensuing chaos is becoming more predominant.  God's Word becomes an anchor for us, and His truth can offer the answers that we so desperately need in the world around us.