A Call to Master the Word of God in a Lifetime (or Sooner)

God gave us his Word. Amazing! Most believers grasp the importance of the Scriptures, at least as a matter of truth. Yet, how often do Christians contemplate the old famous saying: “three things are eternal: God, his Word, and the souls of men”? In light of the high view of Scripture that it authoritatively demands, I humbly propose that God means for each individual in the body of Christ to attempt to master the Bible during their lifetime. While the post-modern culture’s grasp of absolute truth and biblical literacy continues to decline, there are few matters more pressing for the church today than diving once more into the foundation of our faith, the very Word of God. Given the weight of the Bible’s content, it could be that the body of Christ is often paying lip service to the Master’s Word when, by nature, it demands a whole-hearted devotion. Our speech may reflect a grasp of the weightiness of Scripture, but all too often our habits seem to lag behind.

The Apostle Peter urges us to seek spiritual milk so that we can grow up into a fuller experience of salvation (1 Pet. 2:2) and a fuller satisfaction in Christ as a result. As his children, we want to please the Father through our work, but often our desire to do things for God can cause us to forget his top priority for us, our sanctification (1 Thes. 4:3). The Word is crucial to sanctification (Jn. 17:17). Yet, when taking into consideration what many Christians fleeting hours are devoted to, one can only come to the conclusion that the Bible is not receiving the honor it is due. As a people united with Christ and destined to be raised to glorious new life with him, Christians ought to be devoted students of the Word, yielding more and more to its divine influence.

Doing the Bible Justice

This is not a call for everyone in Christ to become a full-time scholar, though scholars certainly play a valuable role in the body of Christ. The point from Scripture is this: our interaction with God’s word should look more like work than a hobby. Hobbies only get time when we have a little extra to spare. Hobbies do not often engage our minds and spirits. Most hobbies do not last your whole life. Does your pursuit of the Word appear like a hobby? Treating your Bible time like anything less than serious business is not doing the Bible justice. Consider the Louvre, perhaps the most famous art museum on Earth. Imagine the once-in-a-lifetime experience of beholding centuries of the world’s finest art. How foolish it would be to rush through the whole thing, not taking a moment to absorb and appreciate a single piece!

If this is true of human work, how much more should we behold the treasure trove of truth we have in Scripture! God in his love employed creativity and complexity to carefully craft and bring together each book in his Word over thousands of years, all for us! It is only fitting that we take the time to fully appreciate all God has to offer us through his Word, doing every piece of Scriptural art the justice it deserves. However, when studying and reading, we must keep in mind that both the Old and New Testaments were written by some of the most brilliant Israelite Jews, whose culture was steeped in literary genius and also far different from our own. The meaning and purpose of a passage is not often clear right away, which is okay. God absolutely intended this.

So, what is your plan to master every book of the Bible before you die? Even if you never master every book, how much better off would you be for attempting such a task! Would God not be honored and glorified at the weightiness of His Word in your life?

A Few Tips

So where to begin? It is good to learn about the context of what was written, and pairing this with a more reflective approach can be very helpful. Reflection is not asking what does this text mean to me? Reflection instead is meant to reveal God’s character or the meta-narrative of the redemption Jesus offers, helping the reader understand how a passage fits in with the rest Scripture that they have studied.

Putting in effort to understand is absolutely necessary for appreciating and growing through Scripture. However, our attempt to master the Bible does not minimize the crucial role of the Holy Spirit. Striving for knowledge is to be accompanied by dependence on God himself to reveal his truth. As Proverbs 2:6 says, “the Lord gives wisdom”. Humility must be the lens through which we take in Scripture. As Jesus himself said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children” (Matt. 11:25). May each of us aim to be masters of Scripture, growing our knowledge like scholars. Would the Lord be so generous as to clothe us in humility, that we may have the heart of a little child.

Eric Fulwider is on staff at USC - Aiken. Eric graduated from Augusta university and has been on staff for one year. He lives in Aiken SC with his wife Sydney