Study Your Bible!

I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren. (1 Thessalonians 5:27)(KJV)

I would like to share this devotional with you from an old daily devotional book that belonged to my father. The book is entitled Beside the Still Waters. This particular devotional was written by J. B. Crichton.


Study Your Bible!


What a sound piece of advice with which to close this Epistle! Read--study your Bible! Bible study, to be profitable, however, must follow some definite pattern. The Bible lays down three fundamental rules for profitable Bible study.


First, study your Bible daily! Job testified, "I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food" (Job 23:12)(KJV). As the body requires food each day for nourishment, growth, and sustenance, so the soul requires a daily diet of the Word of God. Don't starve your soul!


Second, study your Bible directly! David wrote in the Psalms, "My meditation of him shall be sweet." To be really profitable, it must be your own personal study of the Word of God. davily devotional books, Bible commentaries, and sermons are valuable in their place. But if they are acting as substitutes for a personal, first-hand knowledge of the Bible in your life, then they are a detriment.


Third, study your Bible definitely! David wrote of the "blessed man" that "his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night" (Psalm 1:2). To be useful and fruitful, Bible study requires meditation. Griffith Thomas once said, "Meditation is attention plus intention." By that he meant that meditation was composed of two ingredients: first, giving serious thought and study to what Scripture actually says; and second, making a determined resolution that, by the grace of God, the truth of the Scripture would be put into actual daily practice.


And now let me be very practical and definite. We are urging, let's study the Bible. What are you going to do about it? Resolve to meet God alone each day in the Word and in prayer. "Study to shew thyself approved unto God..."(2 Tim. 2:15)(KJV)


Singing His Praises,
Joey Culpepper

How Can We Know If God is Pleased With Our Worship?

When you come to appear before me, who has asked this of you, this trampling of my courts? Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me. New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations--I cannot bear your evil assemblies. Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts my soul hates. They have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. (Isaiah 1:12-14)(NIV)

Do we want our worship to be pleasing to God? If so, then we need to ask ourselves every so often a few questions. Is our worship about us, about what we want, about what we can get out of it or about what we are giving? Or is it truly about God, about what He wants, about what He has done for us and about giving Him the praise that He's worthy of?

This little article below is taken from the NIV Quest Study Bible and I hope it will give you some new insight into what worship should and shouldn't be:

The temple in Isaiah's day had ample space around the altar of burnt offering for one to observe another's spirituality. Even the presiding priests might be impressed by the sacrifice of a large, costly animal.

Prophets such as Isaiah were aghast at such showy displays of worship. At times, God swiftly punished prideful, self-centered worship. For example, when King Uzziah tried to offer incense in the temple and lost his temper when priests tried to stop him (Israel was not to have pries-kings like its idolatrous neighbors), God afflicted him with leprosy.

True worship isn't showy. It does not call attention to or glorify the worshiper; it honors only God. It is not a mindless formality, either. It is an affair of the heart, characterized by the conviction of the Holy Spirit (Jn. 14:6), fervent prayer (Jms. 5:16) and open-hearted reading of God's Word (2 Tim. 3:16-17). God shows he is pleased with such worship by being present with us.

Singing His Praises,

Joey Culpepper

Worthy For Who He Is

Then the Lord said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? No one else on earth is like him, a man of perfect integrity, who fears God and turns away from evil." Satan answered the Lord, "Does Job fear God for nothing? Haven't You placed a hedge around him, his household, and everything he owns? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions are spread out in the land. But stretch out your hand and strike everything he owns, and he will surely curse You to Your face." (Job 1:8-11)(HCSB)


Have you ever heard someone use the phrase "the patience of Job"? You may have heard somebody say, "She must have the patience of Job in order to deal with that situation or set of circumstances." Well, when I read through the book of Job, I see a man who is committed to worshiping God. I'm not struck so much by his extraordinary patience as I am by his enduring praise.


In the course of one day, Job lost all his worldly possessions and all his children, and yet we see a response of praise rather than anger towards God.----He (Job) fell to the ground and worshiped, saying: Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will leave this life. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. Praise the name of the Lord. Throughout all this Job did not sin or blame God for anything. (Job 1:20b-22)(HCSB)


Wow! He didn't blame God, but praised His name instead. Now that's a tough example of worship to follow. Job continued to worship because, despite all that had happened, he understood that God is worthy no matter what. In Job 1:9-11, Satan, the accuser of the brethren, makes the accusation that the only reason Job followed God was because he received blessings for it. Job would surely stop worshiping the Lord if those rewards were taken away. Satan may have intended to turn this argument against everyone who followed after the Lord. A more up-to-date way of stating this idea might be: "A person will worship and honor God as long as it's in their best interest."


But God knew that Job would hold fast to his faith despite his suffering, because Job understood that the Lord is worthy of worship just because He is God. So let's take our cue from Job and worship God for Who He Is rather than for what He gives us. Let's be followers whose worship is an example of enduring praise both through the good times and the bad. Let's pray for the Lord to purify our motives for following Him so that if it comes down to it some day, we will be able to proclaim along with Job: The Lord gave me everything I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord! (Job 1:21b)(NLT)


Singing His Praises,
Joey Culpepper

Miriam

Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron's sister, took a tambourine and led all the women in rhythm and dance. (Exodus 15:20)




The following is a worship profile from the Praise and Worship Study Bible published by Tyndale House Publishers. I highly recommend this study bible for everyone who wishes to learn more about praise and worship.


Miriam



Miriam was almost certainly the sister who "stood at a distance, watching to see what would happen to him" (Exodus 2:4)(NLT) when Moses was hidden in the reeds along the bank of the Nile. When Pharaoh's daughter found Moses in the reeds, Miriam cleverly suggested to her that a Hebrew woman could nurse him for her. So Miriam told their mother, who then came and took care of Moses for Pharaoh's daughter. Miriam may have felt that she spent much of her life "standing at a distance" as God elevated her younger sibling among the Israelites. In the book of Numbers we read that God had to punish Miriam near the end of her life for the jealousy she expressed toward her brother: "Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? Hasn't he spoken through us, too?" (Numbers 12:2)(NLT). However, we also remember Miriam as the Bible's first female prophet, who led her nation in worship.


Miriam the Worshiper


The word prophet suggest to us a woman who has insight into God's plans for the future. But Miriam knew that she was called to focus her people's attention on what God had already done. Recalling his provision for us in times past is a fundamental part of worship.


Miriam's song reminds us of God's majesty, faithfulness, and love. She used her gift of music to lead the women of Israel in singing and dancing and in praise to God for leading them safely across the Red Sea.


Learning from Miriam


Three features of Miriam's song to the Lord can help us in our worship today. First, Miriam's song urges the Israelites to sing. Song is a good means for etching details in our mind, and it tends to be more effective than rote memorization. Second, Miriam attributes praise and majesty to God. Third, she recalls God's salvation of his people: "He has thrown both horse and rider into the sea" (Exodus 15:21)(NLT). Miriam gave God's people a lasting reminder of their miraculous rescue from certain destruction.


Following the Example


Do you have a gift, perhaps in music or poetry, or special ability in speaking or dancing that could inspire others to worship? Remember that God calls all of us to worship Him with our abilities, regardless of how prominent our gifts are among others. Choose an event from your life or from the collective life of your church, and praise God for what he did in the situation. Focus on God's greatness, and praise him for his character.


Singing His Praises,
Joey Culpepper