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Continue Daily - 7.28.24 Bulletin
Continue Daily
You may have heard me in the past say something to the effect of "There's 168 hours in the week, and church only requires a maximum of 4. 2 hours Sunday morning, 1 hour Sunday afternoon, and 1 hour Wednesday evening." That's already not very much, especially considering that a single day of work or school is usually at least 8 hours. Then, consider the fact that church takes place across 3 services on 2 days. Could you imagine only engaging in your favorite hobby or pastimes only 2 days a week, 4 hours maximum? I think a lot of people would balk at the idea, but when it comes to attending every worship service, it's just too hard or too inconvenient for some people. They can't be bothered to wake up early on Sunday, they just don't feel like going out again Sunday afternoon, and they're sure the Lord understands being so tired Wednesday evening that He won't fault them for not attending.
Yet may I be so bold as to say that even if you do attend church services every time the doors are open, that's still not very much. Hence the need for us to study daily, and constantly keep ourselves sharp in God's Word. Studying the Scriptures is how you feed your soul. Imagine if you only physically ate 3 times a week! Yet that's what so many people will do as regards feeding themselves spiritually. Even in the Church, you might be surprised if you ask people if they read their Bible everyday. They might make excuses, or say "Ohh yeah, I need to get on with that", and yet never do. Yet engaging in spiritual matters daily, including actual study (not just reading the Bible to "Get it done"), prayer, meditating on the Word and other methods are how we keep our spiritual sword arm strong.
In our day and age, you are considered devout if you attend church regularly. If you attend everytime the doors are open, usually 4 times a week, you are considered especially devout. Yet the 1st century Christians met daily in each other's houses to study and worship, while under active persecution by the Jews and later by the Romans. I suspect they might look on us and say "They only meet 4 times a week? They're not even being persecuted and they have Bibles on their smartphones! Why don't they study more?" The Bible won't change, so we don't study daily to ensure nothing has changed. We study daily to keep it constantly fresh and sharp in our minds, and so we can spot error when we see or hear it. Biblical illiteracy is at an all time high, to the point that some people actually believe Noah's wife was Joan of Arc. I wish I was kidding, but it just goes to show what a lack of diligent and constant study can do.
In the Bible itself we read of what happens when the people and the rulers forget their studies. In 2 Kings 22:8, during the reign of Josiah, the high priest Hilkiah found the Book of the Law of the Lord in the temple, and when the king read it, he tore his robes. He realized just how badly Judah had been neglecting God's divine commandments, and he was truly remorseful for it. Josiah was one of the good kings and enacted reforms to bring the nation back to God, and his repentance delayed (not cancelled; see 2 Kings 23:26) God's judgment on Judah. But what is shocking is how they had to rediscover the Book of the Law of the Lord, in the temple of all places. Somehow, they misplaced God's Command in His own temple. Imagine losing a Bible in a church building. Do you think Israel and Judah just suddenly forgot the law one day? Or, could it be that it was a slow boil over centuries of not engaging in the "ritual of reading", or not praying daily to the One True God that made them forget?
And we should never think that cannot happen to us too. Some preachers pose the saying that "We are only ever 1 generation away from apostasy", but I would take it a step further and say that any generation could be the generation of apostasy. It won't happen through some sudden falling away, but it's a slow process of people being "too busy" to read daily, or "too tired" to go to church. Maybe even when they are at church, they don't see the importance of cracking open the Bible and reading it for themself, and instead trust that the preacher got it right. While it is true that preachers have a greater responsibility to ensure they are preaching the Truth and nothing but the Truth, each individual Christians has the individual responsibility to study daily for themself and to sharpen their own knowledge. Let us never forget that awesome responsibility we owe to God and to ourselves.
DY
- Glad_Tidings_7.28.2024_PDF.pdf (4.07 MB)
