Jeremiah 1:1-3; 2 Peter 1:16-21 || Bible doubters (like some Christians) assume God could only speak through a fully correct, consistent Bible. But the prophet Jeremiah said his “words” bore God’s “word” (i.e. message). The apostle Peter said the Holy Spirit led, but men and women did the actual speaking. Pastor Hamilton wrote, “Many Christians today believe that God influenced the choice of every word and every idea, so that the words written were literally the words of God. That is not taught in the Bible; it was not in the creeds of the early church.” Finding the writers’ culture or sporadic factual errors in the Bible shouldn’t trouble us. God didn’t make Bible writers robots. Scholar Craig Keener wrote, “Ancient thinkers often viewed prophetic inspiration as a divine possession that temporarily displaced the prophet’s own mind. The styles of different prophets shows this view oversimplifies the matter; inspiration used human faculties and vocabulary.” How can a focus on the central message, rather than on lesser details, deepen and enrich your Bible study? Peter compared the prophetic writing to “a lamp shining in a dark place.” He drew on images from his Bible—the Hebrew Scriptures or “Old Testament” (cf. Psalm 84:11, 119:105, Malachi 4:2). As you have read the Bible, asking God’s help (Psalm 119:9-18) models a lovely prayer to pray as you read the Bible), have you ever had this sense of a lamp shining on some dark question you faced?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, as I read my Bible, shine into my heart through its message so your kingdom of love, joy, and peace will shine out of me. Amen.

== Where in your life are you still making laps instead of stepping into what God has promised?

Leviticus 24:18-20; Matthew 5:38-45 || Students of ancient history see a world in which revenge often went beyond the original injury (e.g. “you hurt me, I’ll kill your whole family”). The law in Leviticus 24, Exodus 21, Deuteronomy 19) made revenge proportional—“an eye for an eye”—and averted massive retaliation. Israel’s law of proportional revenge was more merciful than most. But Jesus didn’t feel bound to be “consistent” with that. He said his kingdom led his followers into more radical, difficult territory: “Love your enemies.” The Bible is more than just a big book of inspirational verses and some do’s and don’ts. It’s a story. And like any story, it requires proper context. The Bible we hold today has been translated into multiple languages and was written in a culture much different than ours. Without proper context, you ultimately read the Bible out of context. How can you learn to better relate all the Bible’s “pieces” to the big story it tells about God and God’s ways? We think of ourselves as more enlightened than the ancient world. But we still sell T-shirts and bumper stickers saying things like “I don’t get mad—I get even.” How does replacing a wish for revenge with an ideal of mutual love and service alter human relationships for the better? In what ways does Jesus’ teaching speak to the spirit in which you deal with others?

Prayer: Lord God, phrases like “massive retaliation” and “force is the only language they understand” still tempt me. Please keep leading me into the quality of love that Jesus taught. Amen.

== What would it look like for you to consecrate yourself today for something God may do tomorrow?

Genesis 17:9-14; Acts 15:4-19; Galatians 5:1-6 || Christians have wrestled with parts of the Bible throughout history. In the first century, some thought it was wrong to accept uncircumcised Gentile men into the faith. They quote Genesis 17:9-14 to say any uncircumcised male was outside God’s covenant. But Peter, Paul and James didn’t believe that settled the matter. God, they said (based on texts like Amos 9:11-12, and Jesus’ example), was leading differently in their day, pouring out the Holy Spirit on all who showed faith in Jesus. These readings are a useful case study because few Christians today demand circumcision. After the Christian Pharisees (Acts 15:5) urged a circumcision requirement, James quoted the prophet Amos, who’d said God aimed to reach all nations. Based on the apostles’ evidence that God accepted Gentiles who had faith, the apostles agreed it was better to follow Amos than Genesis in this case. What can we learn from their example about how to apply the Bible? Paul passionately urged the Galatian Christians not to give up their freedom in Christ. No one today is trying to force Christian men to be circumcised. But what are other ways you’ve seen “rules” pressed as crucial to salvation? How can living in Christian freedom produce “faith working in love”? When have you honestly thought you were right on a point, but let it go out of love rather than pressing it on other believers?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, like all your children, I miss the mark at times. I’m so thankful you died to set me free from guilt, and that you empower me to keep living into your love in the freedom you offer. Amen.

== Is there a “river” in front of you that requires you to step in before you see the water move? What is it? What is the step you need to take?

John 5:35-40; Hebrews 1:1-4 || Bible study groups are: “The Word of God is Jesus Christ, and the words of the Bible tell us about that Word. Therefore, when we study the words of the Bible we always look behind, in, and through the words for God’s Word—Jesus Christ.” A word for one Christian attitude is “Bibliolatry.” That means worshipping the Bible more than the God of the Bible. Jesus challenged the “bibliolatry” of some Hebrew Scripture experts. Many of them memorized huge sections of the Bible. Yet Jesus said they missed the focal point of the Bible’s story—they wouldn’t recognize him as God among them. They “knew” the Bible (their view of it) so well they couldn’t accept God in the flesh. Scholar Scot McKnight said some Christians “read the Bible as a collection of sanctified morsels of truth.” But the Bible isn’t just a set of short verses, all equally true and making the same point. That’s why the writer of Hebrews said although God had spoken through the prophets “in many times and many ways,” God’s ultimate word was not a book, but a person: the Son, Jesus. How has (or can) the Bible, above all else, draw you to know and love Jesus? A pastor wrote that reading the Bible wisely calls for a principle like “a kitchen colander or strainer, holding the important things while the less desirable are rinsed off.” He said the best “strainer” is “What is the heart, character, and will of God that Jesus reveals? It is Jesus who serves as the final Word by which other words of scripture are to be judged.” In what ways can making Jesus the standard of truth cast clearer light on the Bible’s difficult parts?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, lead my mind and heart beyond theories, abstractions and rigid ideas. Meet me as I come to the Bible, and speak your life-giving word into my heart. Amen.

== How does remembering that you belong to God change the way you pursue what He has promised?

Matthew 7:1-5; Romans 2:11-16 || Some Christians sow doubt about their faith by saying God only saves those whose faith is just like theirs. One pastor wrote, “Most mainline Protestants, Roman Catholics, and a sizable number of evangelicals reject Christian exclusivism in favor of Christian inclusivism. This view [says] Jesus is the only Savior of the world [but] insists that Jesus’ saving grace can be given to whomever God chooses based upon the criteria God chooses. This does not mean everyone will be ‘saved.’ But it appears in Scripture many who sought to know and love God, but did not know Christ, will in the end receive the gift of his saving grace.” After years working mainly with “Gentiles” (Greek and Roman pagans), Paul wrote about people outside the “right” faith who “instinctively do what the Law requires,” who “show the proof of the Law written on their hearts” (verses 14-15). He had seen that there were (and are) honest people outside the Judeo-Christian faith who love and respond to God. Are you able to believe that God’s grace can extend to people like that? Many “religious” people condemned Jesus for befriending “tax collectors” (who collected taxes for the occupying Romans) and “sinners” (who did not fully follow the many laws or customs religious leaders demanded). Who in your world might be classed as “tax collectors and sinners” in 2022? How do you believe Jesus would treat such people? Do you agree with Paul that only God (not us) can “judge the hidden truth about human beings”?

Prayer: Creator God, you came to save every member of your human family who is willing to trust you. Give me a heart that knows you yearn to redeem everyone, and rejoices in all who respond. Amen.

== A powerful statement from Joshua 1:16, "Wherever you send us, we will go. Whatever you command us, we will do." Is that true for you? Why or why not?

2 Timothy 3:10-17 || Methodists believe “that God speaks to us through the Bible and that it contains all things necessary for salvation. This authority derives from three sources: We hold that the writers of the Bible were inspired by God, that they were filled with God’s Spirit as they wrote the truth to the best of their knowledge. We hold God was at work in the process of canonization, during which only the most faithful and useful books were adopted as Scripture. We hold that the Holy Spirit works today in our thoughtful study of the Scriptures, especially as we study them together, seeking to relate the old words to life’s present realities. The Bible’s authority is, therefore, nothing magical. For example, we do not open the text at random to discover God’s will. The authority of Scripture derives from the movement of God’s Spirit in times past and in our reading of it today.” Some details, facts and even ideas in the Bible don’t match each other perfectly. But the point of the Bible’s deep story is God’s loving work to redeem lost humanity. Every inspired Scripture is part of a story aimed at bringing people into a vibrant, life-changing relationship with God. The Bible shows people who want to respond to God how to live a life reflecting God’s redemption and love. When you read the Bible, how often do some of the details distract you from the larger story? How can the GPS, sermons and other times of personal Bible reading and study help you view each individual section in the framework of the larger story, the “meta-narrative,” the Bible has told God’s people for centuries? How do you open your heart and mind to let God’s Spirit, who guided the Bible’s writers, also guide you to let the Bible authoritatively shape your life?

Prayer: O God, master and guide, I need your help and wisdom today and every day. As I read the Bible, use it to equip me more and more to daily be your physical presence in my world. Amen.

Scripture: 2 Peter 3:1-10 || Download