Apply God's Word 2

 

Hello everybody, my name is Dean Davis and this is “Multiply,” the podcast that provides a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters. We have been talking about the three steps to Bible study: Observation, Interpretation, and Application. All three steps are important and so must be done well. But Bible study is always incomplete until we have made application.  A fundamental principle of the Village Church Planting ministry is to be practical, be doers of the word of God, not merely hearers.

But how will we know what to do until we have observed what the Bible says and have interpreted it accurately?  You’re right.  We won’t know what God wants us to do until we have studied his word through careful observation and honest interpretation. Then we are in a position to prayerfully identify practical steps of obedience. We must each take steps, in our own context, to put into practice what God’s word teaches us to do.

So often we are satisfied with good observation and sound interpretation.  We love to learn new ideas.  We feel strong when we have understood new concepts. These are attitudes we have acquired from school.  The world honors us when we demonstrate a powerful intellect and the ability to speak about new ideas with clarity.  This is all good, as far as it goes.  But this is not what God is looking for. God is looking for men and women, boys and girls who both understand his word and apply it in the context where they live.

So, when you study God’s word, don’t quit until you have determined at least one practical action step that you yourself can take.  Sometimes our application is monumental in scale. For example, you understood the Great Commission from your study of Matthew 28. Then you said yes to Jesus when he called you to plant churches in order to fulfill the Great Commission. That was a big decision with life-long implications.  But sometimes the steps we take to apply God’s word are seemingly small.  Let me share an example.  

One time I was studying Luke 19:1 – 9 with a group of friends.  You know the story. It is about the time Jesus was in the town of Jericho and went to stay at Zacchaeus’ house.  The first verse says, “Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through.” As I was praying about how I would follow Jesus example of noticing people and ministering to new people, the Lord prompted me to take a prayer walk in a certain neighborhood near my church.  My wife and I went with another couple to walk and pray. We prayed for persons of peace.  It was a very cold day and everyone was inside their house… except one family.  That family stopped and talked with us and invited me to visit them the following week.  Through this prayer walk, I found a person of peace in the town of Greenwood just as Jesus found a man of peace in Jericho.  I’m sure I wouldn’t have gone on a prayer walk that day if I hadn’t been studying God’s word with a commitment to apply it in a practical way.  It is so clear to me that the blessing of finding a man of peace in this instance came directly from intentional application of God’s word.  And my obedience was not monumental. I went for a short walk. The prayer walk only lasted for 90 minutes at most. But lives were changed because of it.

So when you read or hear God’s word, don’t stop with observation and interpretation. In prayer ask God how you can put into practice what His word teaches. Then, without delay, apply the teaching of the Bible to your own life, context, and sphere of influence.  As you obey the Word of God, the Lord will meet you, strengthen you, and give you abiding fruit.

This has been “Multiply.” And I’m Dean Davis asking, “Who will you share this encouraging word with today?

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