Finding God in His Word

Eddie and I are going through a Bible reading plan right now and we are in the ladder parts of Exodus and we are soon to be in Leviticus. Those of you that are regular Bible readers know that Leviticus through Deuteronomy can be real dry at points while reading through the old law.

Have you ever read through a passage in Scripture and asked yourself, "How does this apply to me?" I have. And sometimes I can't figure out the answer to that question for the life of me, whether I'm in Numbers, Isaiah, or Titus. Now don't get me wrong, the Bible is living and active, sharper than any two edged sword. And sometimes the Lord reveals different things to us at different times through Scripture. But I am starting to wonder if the question "how does this apply to me?" isn't the right question to ask myself while I am taking in my daily bread.

That question begins and ends with me. Which is never a good place to start or end. When I ask that question, it shows that I am just trying to be a tick on the word of God; I'm trying to suck all I can out of it and then move on when I can't get anymore. And I don't think that is the attitude that the Lord wants us to have when it comes to his word.

I think the question I should be asking when I read the word is "What does this tell me about the character of God?" Then the question centers my heart around trying to see more of God in what I am reading instead of trying to get entertainment or value from the word. And as Del Tacket would say, you can't fully understand yourself until you gaze upon the face of God. So it seems to make sense that in order to have the word apply to my life I need to first see God and his character in his word.

So my encouragement for you is the next time you are reading through the Bible and you just can't seem to get anything from the passage you are reading, don't ask how it applies to your life, ask what the passage is showing you about the character of our living God.