Take Up the Book
Two weeks ago in my Sunday school class, “More than Just Tulip,” and in last week’s sermon, we spent our time talking about the sufficiency and supremacy of Scripture. This was a wonderful time for us to reflect upon the breathtaking gift God has given us in the Bible and to respond to the challenge to be men and women who are deeply committed to the Bible for the shaping and regulating of our lives. To that end I want to bring you up-to-speed on a couple of issues related to that and encourage you to make the saturation of your souls with God’s Word a reality.
Reading
of Scripture. Some time ago I was struck by Paul’s admonition to Timothy: “Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture…” (1 Tim. 4:13). This was a common element in Synagogue worship, and the Apostle Paul carries it over into the life of the church. I take this to mean that there will be times when the Scripture is read with brief or no comments attached to it. In the future my goal will be to read from the Old Testament in our morning worship and the New Testament in our evening worship and to do so systematically. By systematically I mean reading through books of the Bible. Pray that God will pierce your heart with the truths of His Word when it is read.
(1)The Public
(2)The Singing of Psalms. The Psalms are a wonderful source of Christian worship and the only song book inspired by God. I am praying for the necessary funds to come in so that we can purchase the Trinity Psalter for our pews. Until that time we will have to print them weekly and we will endeavor to learn new Psalms in the evening and then bring them into the morning worship as they become more familiar to us. This is another way to get God’s Word into our hearts.
(3)A continuing commitment of expository preaching. Couple the previous two with a continued commitment to expository preaching. Expository preaching is merely the “verse-by-verse” exposition of God’s Holy Word. This may seem tedious at times, but will reap great dividends for us individually and corporately.
(4)Reading Scripture privately in our homes. I want to encourage you to make the daily reading of God’s word a habitual practice. This will mean discipline and it will mean critical thinking, but is of great importance.
(5)Family Worship. I will say more on this in the future. But for now be encouraged to take up your Bibles in family worship. You can commit to simply reading a book of the Bible out loud, bit by bit over time. Or you may wish to take up an exposition of a particular book for your family. This is really an exhortation to dads to make Bible reading a priority and a reality in the home that God has entrusted you.
So let’s take up the Book together and let’s learn and cherish the wealth of God’s word for our sanctification and for his glory.
Delighting in his Word with you (Ps. 119:18),
Pastor Brian