Read: Psalm 119:97-103
I enjoy watching basketball and baseball. I have an infatuation with the written word. Cheesesteaks, US coins, and Polish pottery are also on my list of passions. To get to know a person, try asking them what they cherish. To get to know my first graders better, I asked them what they love. They said they love me as their substitute (of course!)
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PREFERENCE AND LOVE
We may often say we love things, but they are often just our preferences. The students preferred me rather than the other substitute, whom they nicknamed the “Wicked Witch of the West”. Our relationship was not deep enough to venture into love. It was a preference, not love.
FULL THROTTLE LOVE
Remember when you first became a Christian and learned there were three words for love in the Bible? The highest form is “agape”, which signifies our love for Jesus. It’s the kind of love that causes us to worship Him and to sacrifice our lives for Him. This type of love means Jesus is not just a preference (like a Heinz 57 variety among gods). This is full-throttle sacrificial love.
LOVING JESUS = LOVING HIS WORD
What else are we supposed to love as believers? John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God”. If we love Jesus, Who is the Word, doesn’t that mean we are also to love the Word of God? When you read His Word, is it just a preference or because of a deep, enduring love? Does loving His Word change your life? Paul says in Colossians 3:16, “Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” If we love His Word, we learn, grow, teach each other, and are filled with gratitude. This can only happen when we understand the words of the Bible and how they relate to our everyday lives.
By studying the Bible, we begin to see the Word of Christ dwelling in us. God wants us to experience the richness that comes with loving and obeying His Word. How did Jesus regard God’s words? New Testament scholar Scott McNight observes: “Whereas the Pharisees taught a love for the Torah, Jesus taught a Torah of love”.
3 INGREDIENTS TO UNDERSTANDING HIS WORD
How can we best understand and love the words of God? There are 3 key ingredients in understanding the Bible. The first ingredient is Observation. This involves reading the book several times and then asking some simple questions. Who wrote this? What was he trying to accomplish? Who is his audience? What was his theme? Just get a sense of what this book is about and love your time discovering it.
The next step is Interpretation. Ask, what does this mean for today? How does this relate to the other books of the Bible? What doctrines are presented in this passage? What is God saying and teaching you about Himself?
And finally, the third step is Application. How should I respond to this text? How can my love for Jesus grow through the application of this passage to my life? For example, Ephesians says we should “speak the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15). When we take the time to study the Word of God, we will be able to speak the truth and do so in love!
Again, you may have preferences for a lot of earthy things, but until you love God and His Word, you will be missing the greatest love of them all. Truly loving God and His Word will transform your own life and the lives of those around you.
Suggested reading: Seven Things I Wish Christians Knew about the Bible by Michael F. Bird