Maybe you have a Bible sitting somewhere around the house. But you’re not sure exactly what to do with it. Well, we can help with that.
Jesus tells us how to handle a Bible. And his instructions are relatively easy to follow:
1. We should listen to it.
In today’s world there are so many ways to accomplish this first one. You can go to church. You can listen to a message online. You can attend a growth group or Bible study. You could begin to subscribe to a daily devotional from biblegateway.com or Bible.com. You could sign up to this daily blog and read along with us.
2. We should accept it.
Jesus honors the faith of little children, because they are trusting and accept the claims of others at face value. We can do the same with the Bible. It’s easy to be skeptical in today’s world. But Jesus says that we can take the Bible at face value. It is what it says it is: the word of God. It has a lot of wisdom in it. It’s useful wisdom for this life. And it’s eternally-saving wisdom.
3. We should produce based on the Bible’s wisdom.
Faith will make us more productive people. Even better, it will make us productive in all the right ways. When we read the Bible and trust it’s words, we begin to produce “fruit” from the faith in Jesus that takes root in our hearts. Our words and our actions will be transformed by Jesus’ love and forgiveness. And when that occurs — who knows what might happen next?!
“Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown” (Mark 4:20, NIV).
Lord, when I open my Bible, help me to really listen to what I am reading and studying there. And then, give me trusting eyes and ears. Remove the scales of skepticism from my eyes. Finally, change me from a person who acts with a selfish heart into a person who acts with your selfless heart.
Our Bible reading for Wednesday, February 18, is Exodus 23:1 – 24:18, Mark 3:31 – 4:29 and Psalm 22:22-31.
Header image based on "The Bible" by Yarzab, CC By 2.0
pastorjeffgunn 
Our Bible reading for Wednesday, February 18, is Exodus 23:1 – 24:18, Mark 3:31 – 4:29 and Psalm 22:22-31.
Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.” (Exodus 24:8 NIV)
He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables so that, “ ‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’ ” (Mark 4:11-12 NIV)
For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. (Mark 4:22 NIV)
Heavenly Father, you have made promises to man throughout history. In your righteousness you have kept those promises. We are the ones that have failed. We are the ones that will continue to fail. We are sinners, we are men. Please open my mind, open my heart to your word. Show me all its facts, show me all its secrets. Help me to understand all that you offer. Help me to share this with others. From my home, to the small community where I live, to anyone who is willing to hear. Let us praise you together for all you do, for your promises, for you Son our Savior!
All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him,
They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn: He has done it! (Psalm 22:27, 31 NIV)
~Paul Montenieri
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