The Joy of Equipping
I have been about this task – that is a harsh term, it is more of a delight – of equipping people to study the Bible for themselves for about 40 years. I think what drives me has been my experience with the Word since the early days of my walk with Christ.
The Power of the Word
What I am learning is that what the Bible says about itself is true. Hebrews 4:12, tells us that is living, active, and piercing. 1 Peter 2:1 – 2, tells us that it is required for growth. 2 Timothy 3:14 – 17 tells us that it makes us adequate. There is much more but the kicker, in my opinion is John 16:13. There we read that the ultimate author is committed to leading us as we study what He inspired. Wow.
It Happened Yet Again
This morning that was validated yet again. A group of us were working on an overview of 1 John. We started last week with this outline. We did the second reading this morning. I had the men skim through the book in about 20 minutes. Then share the answers to the questions.
It was a spirited exchange. They all were eager to share what they had seen. Their observations were rich and spot on.
I Do Not Share What I Know – Who Cares Anyway?
I know 1 John. I have studied and written about that letter. I have translated it from Greek to English. I can parse all of the verbs, I can unfold the structure of the book, at least what I understand about it at this point in my walk. But what I know does not matter. What I know does not equip the men in the study to dig out the truth for themselves.
My Job
My job is to give them guidance on what to look for as they read and get the heck out of the way. Then my job is to get over the top excited about what they see. Not hard because I get really excited about what they see. Why? Because, maybe for the first time in their experience they have seen something that is really significant and they know it.
My job is to let the Holy Spirit do His. He always does.
I have been about this task – that is a harsh term, it is more of a delight – of equipping people to study the Bible for themselves for about 40 years. I think what drives me has been my experience with the Word since the early days of my walk with Christ.
What I am learning is that what the Bible says about itself is true. Hebrews 4:12, tells us that is living, active, and piercing. 1 Peter 2:1 – 2, tells us that it is required for growth. 2 Timothy 3:14 – 17 tells us that it makes us adequate. There is much more but the kicker, in my opinion is John 16:13. There we read that the ultimate author is committed to leading us as we study what He inspired. Wow.
It Happened Yet Again
This morning that was validated yet again. A group of us were working on an overview of 1 John. We started last week with this outline. We did the second reading this morning. I had the men skim through the book in about 20 minutes. Then share the answers to the questions.
It was a spirited exchange. They all were eager to share what they had seen. Their observations were rich and spot on.
I Do Not Share What I Know – Who Cares Anyway?
I know 1 John. I have studied and written about that letter. I have translated it from Greek to English. I can parse all of the verbs, I can unfold the structure of the book, at least what I understand about it at this point in my walk. But what I know does not matter. What I know does not equip the men in the study to dig out the truth for themselves.
My Job
My job is to give them guidance on what to look for as they read and get the heck out of the way. Then my job is to get over the top excited about what they see. Not hard because I get really excited about what they see. Why? Because, maybe for the first time in their experience they have seen something that is really significant and they know it.
My job is to let the Holy Spirit do His. He always does.
Excellent comments on a blessed "task," Mike! Implicit in your next to last paragraph is the reality that the Word of God has life in itself, and that in the final analysis the Holy Spirit is the teacher.
ReplyDeleteThis is not to deny the great importance of the leader/facilitator, but it is amazing, really miraculous, when we lay out a few accessible tools to eager men and stay out of the way except to stimulate what the Spirit shows them.
Yep, and it is always a privilege and honor to be present. I always feel like Doc Brown in the first Back to the Future when he connects the cable the lightning bolt has just hit. It is a bit of a charge.
Delete