Biblical Illiteracy

biblical-illiteracyYesterday at a company picnic another brother-in-Christ and I were having a wonderful theological discussion and we began discussing Christians’ reading habits when it comes to the Bible. He shared that an astonishing low number of Christians read their Bibles regularly. LifeWay Research found that only one in five churchgoers read their Bibles daily. One out of four read their Bibles a few times a week. I imagine the numbers would be lower if they had polled self-described Christians. Remember, these were “churchgoers.”

So what does that mean when it comes to Christianity’s influence on American culture? It means the church is raising a generation of Bible illiterates. We don’t need to get too tied up in the percentages because consistent Bible study is what is important, not putting a checkmark in the “I read my Bible today” box. I go to the Word of God so it can bring clarity to my life and grow me as a Christian. The benefits of the Bible are countless. Do you need to straighten out your life?

    “How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word.” (Psalm 119:9)

Do you know that I cannot remember how many times I have read that verse and its power and significance to my life just dawned on me? Can there be any simpler remedy or advice to give a young man than that? The Bible cuts throw all the stinking thinking I have allowed in my life. Whenever I give more authority to my opinion on an issue than I do the Word of God, it won’t be long before I find myself in a confused and tangled mess:

    “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

As a Christian if you are not consistently feeding on the Word of God, then you are starving yourself and stunting your growth as a believer. If you have no real desire to read your Bible, there may be a good reason for that:

    “Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 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 2:1-3)

As Christians who are politically conservative, many of us are frustrated by the illogical thinking of liberal politicians and theologians who seemingly cannot connect the dots to even the simplest of concepts. Hypocrisy and inconsistency in their beliefs are also great sources of frustration for us. Perhaps the Lord Jesus Christ experiences the same frustration with us?

    “I hate the double-minded, but I love Your law.” (Psalm 119:113)

Do I love God’s Word? Do I desire to live by God’s standards? Do I embrace the Biblical truth and apply it to my daily decision-making process? Those are three very important questions that Christians need to answer. It is the difference between Biblical literacy and illiteracy; the difference between holy living or hellish living.

In the day of broken promises there is one place we can turn to and know the promises we find will be kept: the promises of God.

    “My covenant I will not break, nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips.” (Psalm 89:34)

Our nations woes are not economical or political; they are spiritual. This is because we have raised a generation of Biblical illiterates who have no idea how to apply Biblical truth to their daily lives, and we are reaping what we have sowed:

    “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.” (Hosea 4:6)

If we are going to overcome our spiritual bankruptcy, then we must first deal with Biblical illiteracy.

There is no other way.

In Christ
Dave
Ps. 37:4

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    Copyright © 2014 David Jeffers

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