There are a lot of times in your life when following the crowd is wrong. If you don't believe me, look back at your high school yearbook and look at the clothes you wore. Think back to the music you listened to. Clearly, the group-think of your youth led you astray. At the same time, there are times when following the crowd is the right call. For years, I have heard/read pastors and authors tell me over and over again, "Don't study the Bible without a pen in your hand!" Or they've said, "Do you expect to hear from God when you read the Word? If you do, why aren't you ready to write down what He tells you?" Now, I can't tell you to turn to a specific passage in the Word that says, "Thou shalt not study My Word without writing things down." Nope. Can't do it. However, I can show you places where everyone from Martin Luther to Charles Spurgeon to Rick Warren to David Platt to Gene Wood has written and challenged believers to approach the Word of God EXPECTING to hear from the Voice of God. In this instance, I think it's more than acceptable to "follow the crowd."
Even with that being the case, until a month ago, I had never studied the Word with a pen in hand. Finally, and I don't remember what the catalyst was, I bought a journal and began to write down a few thoughts after each chapter that I read. Guys. Lemme tell you. That has made ALL the difference in the world in my morning quiet times. It has been, hands down, the best month of Bible study that I have ever had. Think about it-that book that you hold in your hand is the inspired, perfect Word of the Living God. If you approach it as part of your routine or a Christian duty, then you will get out of it exactly what you put into it: not a whole lot. If, however, you come to the Word humbly, eagerly, and prepared to hear and obey your King, you will get out of it SO much more than you put in.
If you will allow me, I would like to give you all an example of what I mean. As some of you know, I spent a few months memorizing the first eight chapters of the book of Romans. My memorization technique is simple: repetition. I would read and say out loud each verse over and over and over and over and over again. The reason I'm telling you is because I want you to understand this: Before this past week, I had read Romans 3:1-2 LITERALLY hundreds of time. I have said these words, "Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? 2 Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God," so many times that I can see them on the page. If you think you've read a passage many times, trust me, when it comes to Romans 1-8, I've got you beat. It wasn't until this week, however, that I SAW those words for the first time.
So, what in the world is Paul talking about when he asks this rhetorical question? Well, Paul spends time in Romans 1:18-2:16 outlining all the ways that the Gentile is guilty before God. Then, from verses 2:17-29, Paul shows how every Jew is guilty as well. No one is off the hook before this Holy God. Knowing that his readers would bring up the Jews as God's chosen people, Paul answers their objection before they can even voice it. What he says is truly stunning. When it comes to God's redemptive arc, do the Jews have an advantage over the rest of the world? Absolutely. They do, but it's not what we think it is.
"To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God." In other words, remember that time when God visited all the plagues on the Egyptians and spared the Israelites? Not as beneficial to their salvation as the Word of God. Remember that time that God parted the Red Sea for the Israelites and then drowned the Egyptians? No as beneficial to their salvation as the Word of God. Remember that time that God hovered over their camp as a pillar of cloud and fire? Not as beneficial to their salvation as the Word of God. Remember Jericho? And when God made the day last longer? And when God delivered them from vastly superior enemies again and again and again? None of them were as beneficial to their salvation as the Word of God. What Paul is claiming is that, when it comes to being saved, there is more power in the charge to not boil a goat in it's mother's milk than in the miracles we see in the Old Testament.
I am so thankful for that message right now, because I am trying (and failing) to be more active and more bold in evangelism than ever before. I, like I think many of us do, tend to approach evangelism with an "eyes shut" mentality. In other words, when evangelizing, I shut my eyes and hope for the best. I don't REALLY expect God to save that person or this person because I don't think I've got enough to do the job. Well, I don't, but He does. He has given me His Word to share with the lost people around me. I have His Word- which is perfect and full of His power and His authority. I speak THAT Word and people WILL get saved. Maybe not everyone and maybe not every time, but when I am armed with the Word of God, I have more power and authority than I would possess even if I carried a whole truck load of frogs and gnats on me. I have read that passage over and over, but it wasn't until I read it EXPECTING to be taught something that I finally was. I can't wait to read it again and see what He shows me next.
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