Knowable Word

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Psalm 121 and the Help of the Gospel

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I appreciate Megan Taylor’s piece at Reformation21, where she observes the help offered in Psalm 121, considers the disconnect between such promises and real life, and finds satisfying answers in the gospel of Jesus Christ. This brief devotional piece is worth your time.

How can the believer reconcile the suffering, trials, and persecution they are guaranteed with the astounding assurance in Psalm 121 that the Lord will keep them from all evil? Some might misinterpret this passage and claim a false gospel of health and wealth. Others may question God’s wisdom when they look at the tragedies befalling Christians throughout the world. Often we simply view this psalm as a platitude. We turn to it when we feel uneasy or anxious, but stop short of the solace it offers once our fears are momentarily assuaged. We are satisfied with momentary relief when we are promised comfort forevermore.

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Questions About the Psalms

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Douglas Sean O’Donnell asks and answers some key questions to provide background to a study of the Psalms:

  1. What is the purpose of the psalms?
  2. When were the one hundred fifty psalms compiled, and why does it matter when this happened?
  3. Why is poetry employed to express these themes?
  4. What are some tips for reading biblical poetry?
  5. How should Christian churches use the psalms in corporate worship?

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Why Read the Bible When So Many Teachers are Available Online?

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John Piper was recently asked this question, and his answer is fantastic.

1. Do you believe Psalm 119:99?
2. How will you test the reliability of your teachers by the word of God?
3. Why do you want to avoid the immediate, authentic experience of savoring your love letter by asking someone else to read it for you?

Of course, this is only the summary. His full answer is worth your consideration.

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Wrestling with Application

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I really appreciate this reflection from Lola Olukogbon on 1 Peter 3:4, which she calls “the most terrifying verse in the Bible.” While that label may be a bit exaggerated, Ms. Olukogbon models how to penetrate to the meaning of a text and pursue obedient application. I am grateful to TGC Africa for publishing such a thoughtful piece.

Here is a taste:

The picture of a “biblical woman” that we are often presented with is that of a woman who is timid and subdued. Verses like 1 Peter 3:4 seem to contribute to this unappealing image. We can skirt around the issue and say that this text is addressed only to wives or to women in a specific ancient context, or we can roll up our sleeves and confront the text. We are often guilty of reading the Bible with our own presuppositions. Thus, this text has filled me with dismay, because I saw gentleness and quietness to mean dormancy, timidity and suppression. But it doesn’t.

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The Difference Between Meaning and Application

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Here is a helpful devotional showcasing the difference between meaning and application. The author looks at Elisha’s “death in the pot” story in 2 Kings 4:38-41 to show how to both interpret (arriving at the author’s main point) and apply (connecting that truth to our own lives).

How many meanings does a passage of Scripture have? Sometimes we read a text and our minds race all over the Scripture with seemingly related texts and many possible meanings. Two of the challenges we can sometimes bring to our reading, interpretation, and subsequent understanding of Scripture are: 1) forgetting what Scripture principally teaches; and 2) confusing a text’s meaning with its application.

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When Our Study Bibles Get in the Way of our Bible Study

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A few years ago, Desiring God interviewed Glenn Paauw on his book Saving the Bible from Ourselves: Learning to Read and Live the Bible Well. We shared that interview on this blog, but it is important enough that it warrants sharing once again.

And this time, I’ll share it along with Kevin Halloran’s notes. So if you prefer not to listen to the entire interview, you can catch the key points in Kevin’s excellent summary.

The major takeaway is that your study Bibles are laid out and designed to prevent you from studying the Bible yourself. They presume little to no knowledge of the Bible, and they draw far more attention to the “helps” than to the text, leaving the text nearly untouched by most people. Please be aware of this trap, promote awareness of it, and form good habits of studying the text in context.

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Why Christians Replace Bible Reading with Other Resources

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Micah Colbert offers some helpful reflections on what he sees as a dangerous trend:

With the rise of the internet, there’s been a trend that, if continued, will sap the church’s spiritual vibrancy. Sadly, more and more Christians are replacing personal time in the Bible with time spent reading books, blogs, devotionals, and/or articles written by gifted teachers about the Bible.

He suggests three reasons why honest Christians might do this:

  1. They’re overwhelmed by the Bible
  2. They’re bored with the Bible
  3. They don’t have a God-exalting approach to / mindset about Bible reading

Of course, there is nothing new in these reasons, or this trend. The internet simply makes it easier than ever to bail on fatty nutrition in favor of sugary substitutes. Colbert’s exhortations are well worth taking to heart.

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Our Famine By Choice

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I’m grateful to Tom Ascol for reminding us that one of God’s threatened judgments in the prophets is that he might stop speaking to the people (Amos 8:11-12). And yet today, so many of us choose this state of affairs for ourselves by neglecting the nutritious word of God, which is so abundantly available to us.

In that vein, Ascol shared this quote from J.C. Ryle:

There are many today, who believe the Bible, yet read it very little. Does your conscience tell you that you are one of these persons?

If so, you are the man that is likely to get little help from the Bible in time of need. Trial is a sifting experience….Your store of Bible consolations may one day run very low.

If so, you are the man that is unlikely to become established in the truth. I shall not be surprised to hear that you are troubled with doubts and questions about assurance, grace, faith, perseverance, etc. The devil is an old and cunning enemy. He can quote Scripture readily enough when he pleases. Now you are not sufficiently ready with your weapons to fight a good fight with him….Your sword is held loosely in your hand.

If so, you are the man that is likely to make mistakes in life. I shall not wonder if I am told that you have problems in your marriage, problems with your children, problems about the conduct of your family and about the company you keep. The world you steer through is full of rocks, shoals and sandbanks. You are not sufficiently familiar either with lighthouses or charts.

If so, you are the man who is likely to be carried away by some false teacher for a time. It will not surprise me if I hear that one of these clever eloquent men who can make a convincing presentation is leading you into error. You are in need of ballast (truth); no wonder if you are tossed to and fro like a cork on the waves.

All these are uncomfortable situations. I want you to escape them all. Take the advice I offer you today. Do not merely read your Bible a little—but read it a great deal….Remember your many enemies. Be armed!

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Bible Study Tips from Seasoned Teachers

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Bible Study Magazine has interviewed quite a few Bible teachers over the years, and this post collects some of the most pointed pieces of advice they’ve accumulated. I especially appreciate numbers 7 and 8, regarding doing our study together in communities and families, but all of them are worth considering.

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Give Them a Deeper Bible Study

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I love Mike Leake’s reflection on what people really want when they ask for a deeper Bible study. Perhaps you’ve experienced the dynamic, where a folks express a holy dissatisfaction with superficial Bible study. They ask for more. You labor to deliver it to them. And then…

One of two things seems to happen. What often happens is that nobody shows up for our super deep Bible study. Or they show up and they get bored and they drop out. And so we conclude that they didn’t actually want deeper Bible study. Or, secondly, people do show up, they devour the Bible study, they really learn their Bibles, they get deeply educated but something is still missing. Sometimes it seems as if knowledge isn’t translating into lifestyle. But more often than not, what is happening is that these folks who are devouring the word studies are still asking for something deeper.

This is because when people say they want deeper Bible study they do not mean they want to go deeper into the Word but what they are really desiring (and what I believe the Spirit of God is prompting) is for the Word to go deeper into them. This is what they mean when they say that but we’ve often heard this request the wrong way.

Leake then shows how Hebrews 4:12 expects exactly this sort of “deeper” Bible study. His post is well worth a few minutes of your time.

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