Are you a spiritual hitch-hiker?

 

According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue

2 Peter 1:3

Where is the first place we look to gain knowledge of God?

Our Bibles.

It is a mistake for believers to depend on teachers and Bible studies  for all their Bible knowledge. Yes, enjoy them and benefit from them. There is good reason our loving Creator gives the ministry gift of teachers. But this should be in addition to regular personal Bible reading and personal, independent, study—not instead of. The only way we can know if someone is teaching Truth, is if we have an extensive and first-hand knowledge for ourselves of what the Bible says. The only way to get that is by reading it through, over and over again.

Just read it.

Do not limit yourself to only one Bible teacher or to those who teach from an identical point of view. One scholar wisely said that if there is no discussion of various viewpoints, then there is no such thing as a Bible teaching ministry. 

In the multitude of counselors there is safety.   

Even with daily Bible reading and personal study, no one person will ever understand, in its fullness, everything the Bible says, but we can certainly know what it doesn’t say, and that is one point on which [with the help of the Holy Spirit] God’s people are kept safe from error. God gives called and anointed teachers…but never to replace personal reading and study. The moment we allow someone else’s teaching to replace our own personal reading and Bible study, we have already veered off into error.

Are you a spiritual hitchhiker? Via their teaching, do you ride the coattails of someone else’s relationship with the Savior by exclusively listening to the studies of others or exclusively reading the devotions of others while never or rarely feeding yourself from his eternal Word? 

Absolutely enjoy the teachings of fellow Christians. Benefit from insights he gives other believers. But to grow in your own walk with God, we must read his love-letter—the Bible—for ourselves. We must get to know him for ourselves, and that can only happen if we read his Word on a daily basis. And why wouldn’t we…when God claims to honor Word above his name?

Read your Bible every day, always picking up today where you left off yesterday.

#ExtremeDiscipleship #BibleReading #DailyDevotion #RecoverMe

 Author and speaker, Jocelyn Andersen, is an eclectic Christian writer. She is a Bible teacher who writes about many subjects including Bible prophecy and equality of the sexes. She is best known for her advocacy in domestic violence awareness. Her book, Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence, has been a staple in the library of resources on that subject.  

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