Knowing and Experiencing the Word of God


	Lesson Eleven Knowing and Experiencing the Word of God In this lesson, we will cover: I. Experiencing the Word of God Richly (Col. 3:16; 2 Tim. 3:16; Psa. 119) II. Knowing and Experiencing the Word of God as Our Spiritual Food A. God's Word Being Our Spiritual Food (Matt. 4:4, Jer. 15:16) B. Receiving Life Supply (John 5:39-40, 2 Cor. 3:6, 15-16, John 6:35) III. Experiencing the Word of God by Way of Eating (Psa. 119:103, Eze. 3:2-4) D.L. Moody A Student of the Bible for the Preaching of the Gospel D.L. Moody (1837-1899) was a prominent evangelist in both America and Europe during the 19th century. It was estimated that around 1,000,000 people were saved through his gospel preaching over a course of 40 years. R.A. Torrey, a close associate and friend of Moody, once commented, "If D.L. Moody had any power, and he had great power, he got it from God" (Psa. 62:11). God, however, does not give His power arbitrarily. How did Moody become such a great preacher of his generation? One reason, according to Torrey, is that Moody was a "deep and practical" student of the Word of God. Torrey remarked, "[Mr. Moody] was not even a student of theology, in the technical sense of the term; but he was a student, a profound and practical student of the one Book that is more worth studying than all other books in the world put together; he was a student of the Bible." Torrey also testified, "Every day of his life…[Mr. Moody] arose very early in the morning to study the Word of God, way down to the close of his life. Mr. Moody used to rise about four o'clock in the morning to study the Bible. He would say to me: 'If I am going to get in any study, I have got to get up before the other folks get up'; and he would shut himself up in a remote room in his house, alone with his God and his Bible." Recognizing the effect of Moody's Bible-study on his gospel preaching, Torrey advised, "Oh, men and women, if you wish to get an audience and wish to do that audience some good after you get them, study, study, STUDY the one Book, and preach, preach, PREACH the one Book, and teach, teach, TEACH the one Book, the Bible, the only Book that is God's Word, and the only Book that has power to gather and hold and bless the crowds for any great length of time." Reference: Why God Used D. L. MOODY by R. A. Torrey; The Life of Dwight L. Moody by William R. Moody Experiencing the Word of God Richly The Bible, the word of God, is a book for us to experience. According to the apostle Paul, we should let God's word "dwell in [us] richly in all wisdom" (Col. 3:16). Paul also says that we experience God's word by benefiting from its teaching, its conviction of our sinfulness and wrongdoings, its correction of our wrongs, and its instruction in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16). The result of all this is that we would become men of God who are complete and thoroughly equipped for every good work (v. 17). Of all the chapters in the Bible, Psalm 119 is perhaps the one that describes the most about experiencing God's word. Its writer truly knew the word of God experientially. For example: (1) he hid God's word in his heart in order not to sin against God - v. 11; (2) he received understanding through God's word - v. 104; (3) he was strengthened according to God's word when his heart melted from heaviness - v. 28; (4) he took the way of truth based on God's word instead of the way of lying - vv. 29-30; (5) he turned to God's word for salvation - v. 41; (6) he mused on God's word when others spoke against him - v. 23; (7) he turned his feet to God's word whenever he thought of his own ways - v. 59; (8) he tasted God's word and rejoiced in it - vv. 103, 14, 162; (9) he was enlivened in God's word and was thus comforted in his affliction - v. 50. In short, the psalmist's daily walk - that is, his living, his actions, and his being - was in God's word (vv. 1-3, 35, 45). The psalmist could experience God's word richly in his daily life because he had a healthy attitude toward it. First, he loved the word of God! Just in this one psalm he declared his love for God's word numerous times (vv. 47, 48, 97, 113, 119, 159, 163, 165, 167). He also said that he loved God's word "more than gold, yes, than fine gold" (v. 127). He considered it a "great treasure" (v. 162) and regarded it to be better than "thousands of coins of gold and silver" (v. 72). Next, the psalmist kept God's word (vv. 2, 8, 44). He kept it with his whole heart (v. 69). He took heed of whatever God's word said, letting it be a lamp to his feet and a light to his path (v. 105). He even realized that it was good for him to be afflicted so he might learn God's word (v. 71). He did not forget God's word (v. 52). Rather, he clung to it, trusted in it, and put his hope in it (vv. 31, 42-43). He believed in God's word (v. 66), and considered every word of God to be right (v. 128). Last but not least, whenever the psalmist read God's word, he sought God with his whole heart (vv. 2b, 10). His attitude was different from that of some Jews at Jesus' time. Those Jews would only study God's word according to the letters. In John 5:39-40 Jesus rebuked them, saying, "You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life." The Jews missed God's purpose for His word - to come to Jesus to have life! Eventually they even used God's word to persecute Jesus and kill Him. Today, like the psalmist, you should love the word of God. If you truly love God, you will surely keep His word. The Lord Jesus says, "If you love Me, keep My commandments" (John 14:15). When you love and keep God's word, you will experience God and realize His purpose for you. In the remainder of this lesson we will touch on a crucial key for knowing and experiencing God's word - taking it as our spiritual food. Knowing and Experiencing the Word of God as Our Spiritual Food God's Word Being Spiritual Food It has been documented that the average human being can survive only for at most a few weeks without food. Just as a person needs to eat to survive physically, as a believer in Christ you need spiritual food for spiritual survival. When you do not partake of spiritual food, your spiritual condition becomes weak. What is spiritual food? The Lord Jesus states, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Matt. 4:4). A striking point in the Lord's statement is that He considers "every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" as food for man to live on. Obviously, His words were not pointing to the physical body, but to the spiritual need. This means that bread is the physical food but God's word is the spiritual food. This was what the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah had experienced when he told God, "Your words were found, and I ate them" (Jer. 15:16a). Therefore, to grow healthily as a Christian, you should eat the word of God everyday! Receiving Life Supply There is a difference between merely reading the word of God and eating the word of God. If you find the Bible boring, it is likely that you have been merely reading or studying the word of God. Be careful not to fall into the same trap as the ancient Jews who studied God's word without coming to Jesus. The Bible, which is the word of God, is for you to come to the person of whom it testifies - Jesus Christ our Lord - so you can have life. Therefore, whenever you come to the word of God, pray that you would not come with any intention other than to be supplied and filled with God's life. At the same time, be cautioned by the word in 2 Corinthians 3:6 that says, "The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." If you come to the Bible merely to understand its letters, you will be killed by it. But, as the same verse also says, if you touch the Spirit in God's word, you will be given life! A good way to know whether or not you have life is to check how you feel after you have spent time in God's word. If you are eating God's word, you will touch life and receive its supply. You will be filled with vitality and energy to pursue Christ as well as love for your fellow Christians. In this way you'll know that you have touched the word of God properly - that is, you have come to Him to have life. Second Corinthians 3:15-16 shows one way to experience life in the word of God. These verses state, "[Even] to this day, when Moses [referring to the books of the law in the Old Testament] is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away." The secret lies in turning to the Lord! Whenever you open the Bible, turn your heart to the Lord. Do not let anything become a veil to prevent you from seeing the Lord. Learn to open your Bible with your heart turned to Him. If you do this, your face will be unveiled to behold the glory of the Lord (2 Cor. 3:18a). This means that you will have the spiritual sight to see Jesus! When you see Jesus, you will be transformed into His image from glory to glory (2 Cor. 3:18b). You will find that He is truly an exhaustless storehouse of spiritual food, just as He promised: "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger" (John 6:35a). Experiencing the Word of God by Way of Eating We can learn how God's word becomes our spiritual food by considering the way we eat our physical food. As we eat our food, we enjoy its taste - whether it is bitter, sweet, salty, or spicy. Then our stomach digests the food. Eventually, the food that we eat becomes part of our physical body. The same applies spiritually. You can eat God's word. When you eat God's word, you experience its sweet taste. "How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!" (Psalm 119:103). After you have tasted God's word, it is digested in you. Now His word does not merely exist outside of you, but it becomes part of your being. This is why Paul says, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly" (Col. 3:16a). The word dwell implies that the word of Christ lives in you as a resident and influences you for good. God's word will affect the way you think and act. It will even influence the motives that drive your daily life. The word of God that you have eaten will become the energy for you to live the holy life of a Christian. The Lord says, "As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me" (John 6:57). In addition the word of God strengthens you to speak for Him. Ezekiel 3:2-4 says, "So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that scroll. And He said to me, 'Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you.' So I ate, and it was in my mouth like honey in sweetness. Then He said to me: 'Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them." Notice the order in these verses. First, you open your mouth to eat and taste the sweet word of God (the scroll). Next, the word of God fills you inwardly- "fill your stomach with this scroll." Finally, God sends you to speak His word to others. This sending of God is in fact an evidence that you have eaten and digested God's word. In 1 Timothy 4:6 Paul told Timothy, his close coworker and traveling companion, to be a good minister of Jesus Christ. A minister is a servant of God who instructs others with God's word. Paul reminded Timothy that a good minister must firstly be "nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed." This means that Timothy must first be nourished before he could become a good minister. To be nourished means to be fed with spiritual food necessary for life and growth. The spiritual food that Paul was speaking of was "the words of faith and of the good doctrine," which refer to the entire Bible. This is God's way - eat, be filled, and then speak. The more you eat, the more you are filled with His word. The more you are filled, the more you speak for Him. Discussion Questions 1. What does this fact - the word of God is our food - mean to you? 2. What is the difference between reading and eating the word of God? How would you change your present way of reading the Bible from reading to eating the word of God? 3. Have you ever experienced the word of God becoming a part of your person? Describe a thought, action, or motive that was shaped by the Bible. Practical Tips Turn to God in prayer before opening your Bible. When reading the Bible, it is easy to go straight into a study mode and forget to come to the Lord. It therefore helps if you would say a simple prayer before opening up your Bible. Pray something like this, "Lord, thank you for Your Word. Do speak to me as I read. I want to know You better." Pray until you sense that your heart is turned to Him. Slow down your reading. We tend to speed-read. If you speed-read the Bible, you will find it more difficult to sense the Lord speaking to you. Your mind may not be processing all the words that you have read. Slow down by reading each and every word. Allow time for the divine words to register in your mind. Look for God's speaking. While reading the Bible, pay attention to your inward feeling. When you sense appreciation for one or more words that you have just read, go back and read them over again. Also, pray over those words and use them to pray for yourself and for others. Use also those words to repent, thank, and praise the Lord. By so doing, your appreciation for those words will grow stronger. This is one way God can speak to you through your reading of His word.