The Bible isn’t your typical book. It’s not just a book of words or a book of knowledge, but a book of life. The Bible doesn’t fill you with doctrines that fade in your memory over time; it nourishes you with Christ and it dwells in you richly. The realization that the Bible isn’t simply a book impacted my Christian life and provided a way for me to grow spiritually. One of the most significant realizations I’ve had as a Christian is that the Bible is not simply a book of doctrine, but the basis for my Christian growth.
Growth requires nourishment. As I’ve continued in my Christian walk, I’ve realized my need to grow spiritually and that the Bible is my provision for this growth. The Bible reveals itself as our spiritual food. 1 Peter 2:2-3 tells us that the word is guileless milk and that by it we may grow unto salvation. Matthew 4:4 says, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out through the mouth of God”. These two verses show that the word of God is our spiritual food. But what is the implication of having spiritual food from God? The implication is that we need to eat. God has given us the Bible so that we can eat of it! Just as we need to eat physical food to grow physically, we need to eat spiritual food to grow spiritually. Jeremiah 15:16 says, “Your words were found and I ate them”. Our response to finding spiritual food in the word is to eat.
How then do we eat God’s word, and what does this look like? In my experience, I’ve found that eating the word can be done through pray-reading—taking a verse you enjoyed and praying it back to the Lord. I’ve found that pray-reading is almost like a form of “chewing” and by doing it, the verse I prayed becomes my spiritual sustenance and dwells in me richly (Col. 3:16). Furthermore, I’ve also found that as it continue to “eat” the word, it becomes sweet to my taste (Psa. 119:103).
As we continue to eat our spiritual food in the word, we will continue to grow. However, the key is to continue. The Bible tells us that we need to be like newborn babes that long for the milk of the word (1 Peter 2:2). This is the part where I struggle. Sometimes I want to grow without coming to my Bible buffet. However, growth is impossible without nourishment. It is during these times that I ask the Lord to increase my appetite and longing for His word. It is during these times that I simply pray to Him, “Lord, thank You that Your word is my spiritual food. Lord, increase my appetite for Your word, that by it I may grow”.
By: S. Chen
- L.O.V.E. and Moving On - June 8, 2016
- Burdened and Burdening - April 1, 2016
- And Peter—A Lesson in God’s Heart For Us - February 26, 2016
Agreed, “continue” is important. The Lord gave us such a great picture with physical food and physical eating, and we usually eat/snack physically well more than 3x/day. Lord, make our spiritual eating the same!
Amen! We would never go a long period of time without eating. It is the same spiritually we need to “chew” on the Word of God throughout our day. I find that the portion of the Word that I muse on in the morning often returns to me throughout the day for my continual “rechewing”.