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Discover the Book - Feb. 17, 2008
A Word Filled Life
The only way for us to have the mind of Christ is to invite His leadership
into our lives by becoming filled with His Word so His Spirit
can use those words to sanctify (John 17:17), guide (Psalm 119:105),
defend (Ephesians 6:17), encourage (Romans 15:4), and feed our
spiritual lives (Matthew 4:4). In Colossians 3:16-17, Paul equates the
necessity for filling our lives with God’s Word with the filling of the
Spirit. Compare Ephesians 5:18-20 with the Colossians 3 passage, the
lists are identical, and lead to the conclusion that the fullness of the
Spirit is equal to His Word filling our lives!
A Word filled life is
God’s way of communicating with us.
Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes,
and I shall keep it to the end (Psalm 119:33).
You can’t be sustained, nurtured, and have life the way God
intended unless it is a Word filled life. Every time you open God’s
Word, prayerfully ask Him: Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous
things from Your law (Psalm 119:18). This is like going online and
downloading fresh, new, personal e-mail from God Himself. Have
you heard from Him lately? You can, as often as you want. Just
prayerfully open your heart before the Word of God and, like a wireless
device, your soul will start getting both encouraging and challenging
“download messages” from heaven.
A Word filled life is
God’s way of recharging our batteries.
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words
that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).
We expend strength daily in the battle of “plain old life.” We need spiritual
power to go on—to receive direction, comfort, and all God wants
for us in our spiritual lives. When we stop our busy lives to get in the
Word, it quickens3 us, giving life and power through the Spirit of God.
Look at the beginning of John 6:63: “It is the Spirit who gives
life ….” Perhaps you have been going through life in your own
strength and failed to realize whatever you do in the flesh “profits
nothing”—even if you are teaching a Sunday school class, or performing
other ministries in the church. You may even be doing a
personal Bible study without first connecting with God by praying,
“I want Your Spirit to speak to me. Teach and lead me through this
Book.” If you don’t connect with Him, however, and get charged
spiritually, it all amounts to nothing because verse 63 says, “… The
words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.” Why go
through life with a dead spiritual battery and miss the vital calls
from the Lord? Read the Word daily because it is an essential, lifegiving
battery charger.
A Word filled life is
God’s way of giving us hope.
… Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us,
so that through endurance and the encouragement of the
Scriptures we might have hope (Romans 15:4 NIV).
When Paul wrote Romans (A.D. 55-58), only a handful of
New Testament books had been written (perhaps James, 1 and 2
Thessalonians, and one of the Gospels). So “everything that was written
in the past” primarily referred to the Old Testament. Have you
ever read through the Old Testament? Did you pay attention to the
type of people God used? Many had messed-up personal lives, family
lives, public lives, spiritual lives, and everything-else lives. But the
Lord changed all that.
The Word of God is the key that unlocks a Word filled life, a
constantly hope-filled life, no matter what your situation. In one of
my counseling sessions, after the person tearfully finished pouring
out the tragic details of a sinful life, I said, “You know what? The
Christian life is a series of new beginnings. Right now, you can
start over—all fresh, cleansed, and brand new with the Christ who
gives you hope!”
A Word filled life is
God’s way of cleansing us.
… He [will] sanctify and cleanse … with the
washing of water by the word (Ephesians 5:26).
Although the context of that verse is speaking of the various roles
of the Spirit-filled life, and it is a husband sanctifying and cleansing
his wife with the Word, the ultimate lesson is this: as you allow the
Word to fill your life, it will constantly sanctify, bathe, and cleanse
you. God wants this for every one of His children.
I used to work at a custom pool company where I ran a jackhammer.
If you run one of those things very long, you shake and sweat,
and get covered in crushed debris and dust. By the end of the day, the
first thing I wanted to do was take a hot shower to get clean again. So
it is spiritually. When Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, He reminded
them we all get our feet dirty as we walk through life.
As the day starts and after it ends are two great times to take
showers and physically stay fresh and clean. So it also is with staying
spiritually clean. Through the washing of water by God’s Word, He
thoroughly cleans us so we may freely come into His presence for
joy-filled fellowship.
A Word filled life is
God’s way of giving us weapons for victory.
… [Take] the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench
all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation,
and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God
(Ephesians 6:16-17).
The only offensive weapon we have in our spiritual life—the Sword
of the Spirit—is the Word of God. Is there something troubling you?
Some old habit, old fear, or old insecurity making you spiritually falter,
that keeps you wanting to go on the offensive? A Word filled life
provides you with the weapons for victory so you can … Resist the
devil and he will flee from you (James 4:7).
When you feel spiritually cold, you will know to Draw near to God
… (James 4:8). And when old shackles enslave you, you can remember
since “… the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed” (John
8:36). Should you start feeling hopeless, you can recall Romans 15:4.
God expects you to use His Word as an offensive weapon to fight the
world, the flesh, and the devil as he attacks.
A Word filled life is
God’s way of teaching us discernment.
… Solid food belongs to those who are of full age, … those who …
have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil
(Hebrews 5:14).
You exercise spiritually by daily being in the Word of God. Your
soul needs constant exercise to grow strong enough to discern
between good and evil, what is pleasing to God and what is not, the
fruitful and what will be consumed at the judgment seat of Christ.
When I was a boy, my mother, an antiques buff, used to take me
to garage sales to help her discern between the real and the fake. She
especially liked Sterling silver and pearls, but because her eyes were
not good, and her teeth not her own, she needed my assistance. She
taught me the markings (British, European, and American), so by
reading the backs of the silverware I could easily spot
pearls, Mom taught me to scrape them on my teeth to find the rough
ones—the genuine pearls. Perhaps you can spot real silver and pearls
because your senses have also been exercised, but have you exercised
your soul yet? Can you discern immediately if the direction a conversation,
relationship, or business deal is heading is not good? A Word
filled life is one in which your spiritual muscles get strengthened as
your soul receives daily exercise in the Word.
A Word filled life is
God’s way of helping us feel secure in Christ.
… Lay aside all filthiness and … wickedness, and receive with
meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls
(James 1:21).
To “lay aside” is similar in meaning to the putting aside of our
soiled clothes at the end of a hard, dirty day. Prior to receiving the
Word, you should put aside any sin that will hamper your humbly
coming to feast at the Lord’s table of fellowship. He promises: If we
confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and
to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Just as clean
garments at the end of a filthy day feel so very refreshing, so does
keeping clean accounts with God. Regular confession and cleansing
through the Word keeps our consciences clear so we can feel secure
in our fellowship and peace with Christ.
The opposite is also true, however. Sins that are not forsaken grieve
God’s Spirit and make you feel distant, then detached, and finally
feel insecure about salvation. Believers who sin act like unbelievers;
unbelievers who act like unbelievers soon feel lost and insecure.
A Word filled life is
God’s way of growing us so that we can taste God’s goodness.
As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may
grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious
(1 Peter 2:2-3).
A craving for God’s Word with the same intensity a baby craves
milk is characteristic of a Word filled life. Without that craving,
discernible spiritual growth is unlikely. If you do not have such a
desire for the Scriptures, pray 1 Peter 2:2 back to the Lord and ask
for a passion for His Word as you commit to the daily reading habit.
Then rejoice as you taste of His goodness by getting to know Him
intimately through His precious Word.
So, why live a Word filled life? It is God’s perfect way of communicating,
recharging your battery, giving hope, cleansing you, providing
weapons of victory, teaching discernment, helping you feel secure
in Christ so you can taste of God’s goodness. All those benefits of a
Word filled life can be distilled down into one verse: You will show
me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right
hand are pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11).
The Lord God of the Universe wants to lead you in His perfect
path, to fill you with joyful fellowship, and to keep you secure in
His sovereign hand at work in your life. He also wants you to rejoice
in the knowledge that He created you to accomplish some specific
works for His glory. Look at Ephesians 2:10: … [You] are His workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared
beforehand that [you] should walk in them. Are you delighting
in the fact you are Christ’s workmanship—a beautiful work of art—
designed for good works? And that He has placed you here on earth
to accomplish something in particular for Him—something unique
and wonderful? Such truth is at the heart of why you should long to
live a Word filled life!
