Quotes Reminding Us to Apply The Bible Rightly.

[Praxis+Theodicy]

This is one of three topics collecting quotes about the bible from Christians throughout history.

Another thread is for quotes that remind us to "Read the Bible Regularly"

Another thread is for quotes that remind us to "Study The Bible Responsibly"

This thread is for quotes that remind us to "Apply The Bible Rightly."

Please feel free to share quotes you have found! Although I will be posting many I've collected for a while now, this thread isn't just for me to post in.

Would you be willing to share more of your quotes?

That’s interesting about the variety from other authors. BTW I’d be interested in more of your quotes too.

Starting quote:

The prayerful study of the Word is not only a means of instruction, but an act of devotion wherein the transforming power of grace is often exercised, changing us into the image of Him of whom the Word is a mirror.

[Praxis+Theodicy]

God’s Word is given for a purpose

I do not think God would make known his truth to people who have no intention of living it. Jesus said “People don’t light a lamp to put it under a basket, but they put it on a lampstand that is might shine to all who are in the house.” (Matt 5:15). He says if people are not foolish enough to light lamps and put them under a basket, God is not foolish enough to light up his lamps and put them under a basket. If you want to be lighted up by the truth of God, remember that he lights it with a purpose: to shine to all who are in the house. You need not expect to get any more light until you live by that which you have already gotten.

Perhaps the strongest reason for saturating our Bible study in prayer is that we desperately need the Spirit to make our lives align with the truths we are studying. We don’t need statistics to convince us that churchgoers tend toward hypocrisy. We all know people who are passionate about the truth but don’t seem to understand the concept of practicing what they preach. What we need is the Spirit to keep us from becoming one of them. What is the value of truth if it doesn’t change us?

Our greater concern should be the ease with which we can content ourselves with learning the truth, while refusing to let God act in us with that truth as the sharp sword he intended it to be. If we want to know what we should do when we read the Bible, our answer is found in asking: “What should I do when I encounter words spoken by God - words by which he presents himself to me as a Lord to be known and trusted?”

It is helpful to read and talk about the Bible, but remember that there is something unique about reading the Bible directly. God’s Word is actually living and active (Heb 4:12). It gets inside of you; it transforms you from within. We should talk about God’s truth often. But we can’t talk about God’s Word if we are not reading it regularly. We need to be saturating ourselves in Scripture so that it naturally comes out of every area of our lives.