(I’ve been writing for and finding articles for the church bulletin now almost 2 years, and it takes up a lot of time. Another reason why I’m not doing my prose blog. Here’s an article I wrote, adapting it from a business blog-article written by Seth Godin “For Those Unwilling to Think Deeply…”)
Maybe you don’t want to spend the energy in learning how to use Greek or Hebrew Bible dictionaries and interlinear Bibles to get the full word meanings within the scriptures. Possibly you don’t want to learn how to use a concordance to find all the scriptures on interesting spiritual topics. You might not fancy putting in the emotional labor of getting spiritually smart by reading God’s word.
If these things are true for you, here are some options: use the Bible without understanding it; copy others without realizing where they’re going; or follow religious instructions without questioning them. If this works for you, there’s no need to change. But…
Wondering about spiritual things or blindly following what others think is not what God wants from us. Job and his friends found this out when God personally told them off. After one of Job’s friends finished his last comment to Job, a whirlwind appeared and God said, “Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me” (Job 38:1-3).
The honorable men of Berea (Acts 17:10-12) didn’t waste time in guesswork or following every wind of teaching, because when Paul talked religion they searched the scriptures to see if Paul spoke truth. They converted to Jesus Christ because they knew the gospel came from the God of Abraham. Not studying the word of God results in being told off like the Hebrew writer did in Hebrews 5:11-14. “You need to be re-taught the basics of God’s teachings; as if you’re still a baby drinking only milk and not eating solid food! Solid food or the whole word of God belongs to those who exercise their senses to recognize both good and evil” (my paraphrase).
You have to dig in, study and do some research to be skilled and knowledgeable in any subject. Don’t make God say this about you, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea. 4:6).
