Today Pastor Choi talks about the importance of getting into God’s Word daily.  He expounds on 2 Timothy 3:16-17 and Joshua 1:8 followed by his challenge for the congregation, that is, to finish reading the entire Bible in a year.  Several people took up this challenge today.

 Live the New Life (3)

Following is a summary of the sermon:

Live the New Life (3)    2 Timothy 3:16-17, Joshua 1:8

• 2 Timothy 3:16-17
• New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
• ¹⁶ All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, ¹⁷ so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.
• Joshua 1:8
• New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
• ⁸ This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth; you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to act in accordance with all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall be successful.

Introduction

• Story: A youth group leader, in front of the youth group one night, threw a Bible on the ground saying, “This Bible is useless, unless you use it!”
• None of us would throw the Bible to the ground; most of us would get offended with the way the youth leader treated the Bible even for the sake of illustrating his point, but it surely makes us think about the way we treat our Bible.
• What is the Bible to you?  I believe all of us have a healthy dose of respect for the Bible:  we readily acknowledge that it is more important than any other ordinary book.  We also know that it is the best-selling book in human history.  No book ever broke that record or will.  Some of us are even proud to have family heirloom–antique bibles that dated 200 years back, printed in the 19^th century, so and so on.
• However, when it comes down to using it, to many of us, it is a useless book since it is a closed book.  I heard about some churches in the medieval times that literally locked the bible in chains so that no one would dare to steal or open it, but today doesn’t seem much different from those times: the Bible is rarely opened, although it is never kept in chains.  The Word of God rarely gets our attention except on Sunday morning services; except on weddings and funerals; except at Sunday school.  To be painfully honest with yourself, when was the last time that you actually opened it for the sheer joy of reading it, studying it, and finding God’s will for you?
• Someone told me this joke: a pastor once visited a family and asked them to bring a bible.  In no time, a child went in and brought out Sears-Roebuck catalogue!  Some of us spend more time in watching TV, surfing the internet, reading newspapers, magazines, and shopping catalogs than spending time with God’s word.    Welcome to the spiritual reality in America!
• I am not merely interested in pointing out how poorly we the believers do in terms of getting into God’s Word.  However, if we believe that the church is the hope of the world, if we claim that we are the agents for the transformation of the world, and if we preach that we can cure many of the societal maladies, then we must start with our own malady first.  Before we dare to fix all the problems of our society, we need to go back to our basics so that we start with a right foot.
• Do not believe in Satan’s lies: 1) The Bible is too difficult to understand.  2) The Bible is a myth.  3) The Bible is not relevant in today’s world.
• It is sad that we don’t get into the Word of God, even though Jesus said that man cannot live by bread alone but by the Word of God.
• Yes, it is equally tragic that the vast majority of the believers in America don’t even try to open the Bible of their own volition.  In my humble opinion, though, the greatest tragedy of all is that we don’t even know what we are missing in our life journey.  We are holding the Bible in our hands, yet we don’t even know the worth of the Bible in our lives: the Bible, the greatest tool God has made available for His children for their life journey.  E.g. Like a beggar holding a $100 bill in his hands not knowing what it is worth.
• So, today, as part three of my series, “Live the New Life,” I am going to focus on the importance of getting into God’s Word.  Anyone who takes his/her faith seriously also takes God’s Word, the Bible, very seriously.
•  2 Timothy 3:16-17
• New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
• ¹⁶ All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, ¹⁷ so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work. 
• Let me unpack this verse sentence by sentence.
• All scripture is inspired by God: All means everything: every scroll of the Bible.  Every passage.  Every chapter in the Bible.  From cover to cover.  Every single book in the Bible.  From Genesis to Revelation.  Every single of them was inspired by God.  The meaning of “Inspired by God” is God-breathed.”  E.g. God created Adam out of dirt [Hebrew word for dirt is ‘adama’] and “breathed” into him “life.”  That is, the Scripture is God-initiated, God-planned and God-completed.  It is not human-made or a myth.  God is the author using human hands and minds to write down His words.  The Bible is the compilation of words that God has spoken to humanity through prophets over centuries.  For your information, there are 66 books altogether (39 books in the Old Testament and 27 books in the New Testament) and over 40 authors.  It took centuries to complete, yet there’s one consistent theme underlying the Bible, that is, God’s covenantal relationship with humanity (from Genesis 2:16-17 to Revelation 21:3).  The Bible is not a book for science nor for history (although there are some elements and references to them), but it is a book about God’s salvation plan for humanity.  So, naturally, anyone who is serious about salvation also needs to take it seriously.  Let’s pay attention to the next phrase in the verse.
• useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness:
• The Bible is good for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.
• My own translation: The Word of God is useful for teaching, conviction, improvement, and learning through discipline in righteousness.
• Who doesn’t need wisdom from God?  Who doesn’t need conviction from God once in a while?  Who doesn’t need improvement in character which God is specialized in?  Who doesn’t need discipline?  For all these benefits in life, God has given us the Bible.  It is the best tool for teachers and parents, the best tool for repentance, the best tool for improvement, and the best tool for learning through discipline.
• so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work: This explains why we need God’s Word.  God has called us for good works.  He has called us to be the changing agents of the world.  And, God uses the Bible to equip us so that we may be proficient and be effective in every good work.
• Out of so many things He could’ve given us for the preparation for our life, He has chosen the Bible.  This leads us to the next verse.
• Joshua 1:8
• New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
• ⁸ This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth; you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to act in accordance with all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall be successful.
• Background information on this verse: Moses passed away after leading the congregation of Israel for 40 years in the wilderness.  Joshua was chosen to be the next leader.  This verse is a part of God’s command to Joshua.  As God commanded him to lead the congregation of Israel into the Promised Land, He commanded him to be strong and courageous –4 times in one chapter! (v. 6, 7, 9 and 18).  Be strong (firm) and be a man (Greek translation).  As God sent Joshua and Israel on the road, He promised that He would be with them (v. 9).   He commanded Joshua not to be afraid of anything but rather be careful to act on God’s Word.  Then, He gave this verse to Him.
• Have you ever wondered what makes a person strong and courageous?  It is not the muscles of Mr. Universe that make us strong (maybe physically but not spiritually).  You don’t have to be a man of steel (Superman), either, to be courageous.  What makes a person strong and courageous?  God’s Word.
• Think again.  For the great task of conquering the Promised Land, the LORD gave Joshua two things: assurance of presence, and the Word of God: not a million soldiers, not an army of angels, but the Word of God.
• What would you ask God for your life tasks that await you?  More money, more education, more technology, more troops?  Let me tell you what God would give you: His promise that He is with you and His Word—the Bible.
• Once I read a book of a man who claimed that he had been to Heaven.  One of the questions Jesus asked him in Heaven was: Have you read my Book?  I hope all of us would answer, “Yes, I have.”
• I thought about myself the reasons for knowing God’s Word.  It is always good to ask questions like “Why do I need the Word of God?”  Here’s my answer: first, I read the Bible to know God and His plan for me.  God reveals Himself to me through the Bible.  That’s why I want to read the Bible.  Next, I want to have a life fulfilled (connected, balanced, and meaningful).  God’s Word always gives me the right perspective and makes me wise.
• Challenge: Read the entire Bible from cover to cover in a year.  Then, I will record your name in my book “The Book Club” (like your names are recorded in the Book of Life in heaven).
• The Book Club: at Embury (previous congregation that I served as pastor), 27 people in 16 years completed the challenge and their names were recorded in the Book Club (hall of fame).  Can Manahawkin beat that?
• Let us pray.