by Pastor Mark Chin

Could we live without words, be they spoken, written, or signed? Words are more than just pieces of information. At the end of the day, words are about relationships. They represent and share the person who gives them. Without words, real relationships cease to exist. All we are left with is silence.

Sadly, we live in a time where words are plentiful and cheap. Is it any surprise that our relationships are frequently the same – including our relationships with God and the people of God?

Quality and meaningful time in the Word begins with a transformed heart that appreciates by faith the value, meaning, and significance of the words being spoken to us as we read the Scriptures.

The overwhelming temptation of the flesh is to view the Bible as just another book – a difficult textbook filled with an abundance of words, just like all the words of any other book. The result, when we give in to such a temptation, is to reduce our devotional time to a check box on our to-do list, like purchasing groceries or reading through a health insurance manual. Is it any surprise that our time in the Word is dry and feels like reading an old telephone book that has been lying around the house when we approach Scripture in this way?

In John 15, Jesus draws a connection between abiding in Him, abiding in His Word, and obeying His commandments. A living relationship with Christ is directly related to a living relationship with His Word – a relationship where His Word is more than just something we read. It is lived.

For the men of Scripture, especially our Lord and Savior, the words of Scripture were exciting, compelling, living, and life-changing because they were, for them, the very words of God Himself, made alive by the Spirit of God.

Heb. 4:12 says “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

What is evident as we read the words of Scripture is that the men whom God used to write these words genuinely appreciated and treasured, by faith, the person, the relationship, and the gift these words represented. Do we?

One of the essential ingredients for a fruitful Bible reading plan or daily devotional is a heart that, by faith, truly appreciates God’s words for what they are – His words – and approaches them as such. This is something only God can give and so, it is something we need to pray for – desperately. Without the help of His Holy Spirit, our daily devotionals will be just like reading a telephone book.

So lets pray consistently for ourselves – and one another – that the Lord would give the members of our church a heart to know and love Christ by knowing and loving His precious words to us.