2 Chronicles 17:7-9 - In the third year of his reign he sent
his officials Ben-Hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel and Micaiah to teach in the towns of Judah. With
them were certain Levites--Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah,
Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah and Tob-Adonijah--and the
priests Elishama and Jehoram. They
taught throughout Judah, taking with them the Book of the Law of
the LORD; they went around to all the towns of Judah and taught the people.
Asa’s son Jehoshaphat became king of Judah after his father
died. He remembered the love his father
had for God in his early years …and purged the land of the idols that had
become a part of the people’s lives. He realized in the third year of his reign
…that purging the land of idols… was not enough to develop a passion for God in
their lives. So he began a program of
Bible study…and taught the people the laws that God had given Moses.
No wonder the people were so hard to convert back to God….my
Life Application Bible said they had become Bible illiterate. They were totally oblivious of the importance
of Bible study in their lives. They had completely forgotten God’s words from Deuteronomy
6:6-9… “These commandments that I give
you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about
them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down
and when you get up. Tie them as symbols
on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses
and on your gates.”
It must have been a problem again later in history…when Paul
was preaching. He said in 2 Timothy
3:14-17, "But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have
become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how
from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you
wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed
and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,
so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."
We might as well be talking about Christians today. And yes…I
googled to see if there were any stats on the subject. According to an 2012 article in Christianity
Today….a survey that targeted
the amount of "Bible engagement" asked more than 2,900 Protestant
churchgoers about their study habits and found that while 90 percent
"desire to please and honor Jesus in all I do," only 19 percent personally
read the Bible every day.
Even in my sleepy and sometimes drowsy state…most working
mornings at 5 am….God fills my heart with courage …and hope when I am
completely broken. He gives me direction
for each new day. He tells me what I am doing wrong when I get off his planned
route for my life…and humbles me when I get a little too confident. I encourage
you to be one of the 19% that talk with God each day…by reading the great guide
book he left for us. Maybe if we
encourage others to read it too….we can increase that 19% to a much greater
number.
Father…I thank you for the many hours you must have poured
your word into the many writers you chose to record the Bible for you. Help me to renew my passion to study it daily…and
never become complacent…or allow it to become just a routine. Show me ways to
share it with others…like Jehosaphat…so they will see the strength and power it
can bring to their lives. Help me to
follow the commands you recorded in Deuteronomy…and place them forever in my
heart…and talk about them with everyone I meet.
Amen.
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