our complacency towards Scripture is solved by...

"In the beginning was the Word..."

Christ, the magnificent word of God.

The complacency towards Scripture in the church is unsettling to me (actually, it is frightening) and that small snippet of the Word (about the Word) makes my case.

The Bible is the written word of God, recorded for us so that we can know God to the fullest extent possible on this side of eternity. And yet, we spend so little time with it. We spend so little time reading and meditating and praying through it that our vision of Christ cannot be a very big one.

I lump myself in this mess. It scares me how little I cherish my time in the Scriptures. And it makes me nervous that the Word doesn't make me tremble in awe more often.

When people saw a vision of God, as recorded in the Bible, they were terrified. They were awestruck. And yet, here we sit with a perfect portrait of Christ in our little, sinful hands and we barely even glimpse at it.

What is the solution? What is the answer to our dilemma?

The most obvious is to read and study and pray the Word more often. But me saying that doesn't do as much as me quoting this:

The law of the LORD is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
The precepts of the LORD are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever.
The decrees of the LORD are firm,
and all of them are righteous.

They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the honeycomb.
By them your servant is warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
But who can discern their own errors?
Forgive my hidden faults.
Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then I will be blameless,
innocent of great transgression.

May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight,
LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

The answer is more than simply telling ourselves (and others) to read more. Much of the answer lies in our speaking the Word into each others lives. So, this week, make it a goal to speak Scripture to each other.

It doesn't even matter how much you know. You might only know a tiny part of John 3:16 or the 23rd Psalm. You know what? Those are part of the definition of God. Speak them. Speak them often.

And, hopefully, our speaking the Word, which pierces to the soul and spirit, will do more for us than any amount of do-better-ism that we can muster.

And so, I urge you to consider how you can urge one another on toward love and good deeds by speaking the living and active Word (which is Christ in written form) to one another.

In Christ who sustains,

-joe