Time to Dust off the Bible. Do you have any Bibles laying around that you haven’t read in a long time? Is it time to put them to use? Check out Pastor Jim’s sermon from Sunday July 20. The recording at the end of the post is from the 11:00 service. You can scroll down, start the recording, and follow along while listening…
The sermon covered 2 Kings 22:1-13. Here’s the text (using the New International Version… note that Pastor Jim read from the Life Application Bible)…
2 Kings 22
Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. His mother’s name was Jedidah daughter of Adaiah; she was from Bozkath. 2 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and walked in all the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left.
3 In the eighteenth year of his reign, King Josiah sent the secretary, Shaphan son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, to the temple of the Lord. He said: 4 “Go up to Hilkiah the high priest and have him get ready the money that has been brought into the temple of the Lord, which the doorkeepers have collected from the people. 5 Have them entrust it to the men appointed to supervise the work on the temple. And have these men pay the workers who repair the temple of the Lord— 6 the carpenters, the builders and the masons. Also have them purchase timber and dressed stone to repair the temple. 7 But they need not account for the money entrusted to them, because they are acting faithfully.” 8 Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the Lord.” He gave it to Shaphan, who read it.
9 Then Shaphan the secretary went to the king and reported to him: “Your officials have paid out the money that was in the temple of the Lord and have entrusted it to the workers and supervisors at the temple.” 10 Then Shaphan the secretary informed the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read from it in the presence of the king.
11 When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his robes. 12 He gave these orders to Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Acbor son of Micaiah, Shaphan the secretary and Asaiah the king’s attendant: 13 “Go and inquire of the Lord for me and for the people and for all Judah about what is written in this book that has been found. Great is the Lord’s anger that burns against us because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book; they have not acted in accordance with all that is written there concerning us.” NIV
Hey- Got a Bible???
Most of us own at least one Bible. In fact, most of us probably have a bunch of them laying all over the house. They mark special moments; confirmation, a wedding gift from Aunt Jane, a special missionary weekend in church, Grandmom’s big family Bible, etc. Here in the USA we don’t have any problems in getting Bibles.
But do we read them? Have we ever taken them off the shelf (blew off the dust?) and actually read one and dogeared the pages and marked it? Do we do anything with it or is it just for decoration???
Bibles Aren’t for Decoration… or Bludgeoning Either!
What’s on the inside of the pages of a Bible aren’t just words; they are God’s Words that can work in us in powerful ways. And they’re not just a list of commands either; we’re not supposed to use the Bible as a hammer to make someone feel guilty or to make ourselves look better.
The Bible is a blueprint. It helps us live an abundant life. It helps us find eternal life.
When Satan reminds you of your past,
remind him of his future!
God already knows about your past and He loves you anyway! But God will eventually win; Satan and evil and everything running against God will be destroyed.
But in order to have that hope and assurance, we need to know God’s Word (the Bible). That’s why we study the Bible- meditate on it. That’s why we meet in small groups. Acts 2:42 says that the early church, “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” NIV
But how “devoted to teaching” are WE? How well do we really know the Bible? Or, is our “knowledge” based on what we’ve come to believe or what someone has told us? Our culture has developed its own interpretation of scripture.
Is it Really in the Bible?
How well do you know the Bible. Are the following statements from the Bible???
“Money is the root of all evil.”
Answer
Actually, 1 Timothy 6:10 says: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil… “
It’s the love of money that causes the problem, not money itself. This might seem like a minor difference,but it really does put a different spin on it.
“Spare the rod and spoil the child.”
Answer
The true text of Proverbs 13:24 is:
“He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him.”
The lack of discipline doesn’t just spoil the child… it shows a lack of love from the parents. The focus here is on discipline or lack of discipline more so than the issue of corporal punishment.
“God helps those who help themselves.”
Answer
This was originally attributed to the ancient Greeks and then quoted by Benjamin Franklin.
Paul does advise in 2 Thes. 3:10 that we should work and make use of the abilities God has given us in order to earn our way. But the basic thrust of the Gospel is that we can’t earn our salvation; we are completely dependent on God for everything:
Check out Ephesians 2:3-10… 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions — it is by grace you have been saved.
6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. NIV If you read the Bible, you’ll see that the following “quote” would be more true:
“God helps those who CAN’T help themselves…”
What are You Following?
GPS’s are great things; they can prevent us from getting lost. But the one annoying thing about them is that they keep talking to us (cue the Harry Nilsson song!). They want us to change our thoughts and follow their directions. If we’re lost and headed in the wrong direction, maybe we don’t really know better. Just like that voice in the GPS, God often calls us to get up and go to something totally different and better.
What GPS are you using? Are you using the wisdom of the world? Or are you using the Wisdom of God? If we want to grow, we need to adjust our thinking to God.
We’re Gonna Read the Bible!
Here’s an example of some different thinking; take the familiar and allow God to replace it with something that draws us towards His way of doing things instead of towards Our way. He can take our sins and failures and make our lives something new… Wouldn’t it be cool if we could put a new spin on on “classical music”?
Billy Joel! What if Billy Joel’s 1989 song “We Didn’t Start the Fire” had Christian lyrics on it?
(note: This song was part of the sermon but isn’t in the recording. It would appear at the 17:30 mark).
What if… What If God used His Word to change our lives so that we live in ways that are completely devoted to Him?
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When studying God’s word, there are three things we need to keep in mind in order for for us to get INTO the Bible so that God can use His words to draw us to Himself…
1- Scriptures Require Openness…
We must expect to hear from God. We should be hungry to hear from God when we read the Bible. We’ve got to do the prep work and put some effort into studying the Word if we’re going to get the full effect from the Holy Spirit. We can’t hold any preconceived ideas and look for ways that the Bible can confirm our plans. We must be open and ready for what the Bible will tell us. And on the other extreme, we can’t just flip a coin, look at a few verses out of context and expect them to relate what God want to tell us. Just slipping a Bible under the pillow and expecting some kind of Divine Insight through osmosis isn’t going to work.
With the reward he got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out.
He didn’t like that answer, so he thought he’d try it again. This time his finger landed on Luke 10:37:
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
Finding understanding of God’s word is like seeking treasure. We need the guidance of the Holy Spirit and to be open to go wherever the Holy Spirit leads us.
Prov 2:1-6
My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.
For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
NIV
2- Scriptures Require Study & Reflection in a Community…
There’s no such thing as a “Lone Ranger Christian.” We need each other. One of the first things Josiah did after hearing the Word was to call the people together. Let’s reflect on this and see what God is really telling us. They didn’t take a vote or poll. They realized that they were in the same boat and they got together to “reason together” to understand God’s Word and to have a conversation about where the Holy Spirit was leading them. And they also encouraged each other to get on board and to commit to obeying what God wanted them to do.
3- Scriptures Require a Personal and Community Response…
Josiah’s immediate response was to tear his clothes as a sign of deep remorse. God’s Word should change us. We must act on scripture. Chapter 23 describes a long series of campaigns Josiah undertook to rid Israel of all of the idols, pagan altars and pagan priests which had driven them from God. He didn’t just hear the word and then turn away without changing course.
Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it — he will be blessed in what he does. NIV
In our personal walks and in our walks together as members of our church, we need to “look intently” into the Word of God and to respond to it.
Do you need to dust off your Bible?
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Recording…
Click the Play button to listen to a recording of the sermon.
