Pastor's Note - Spring 2024

Reading the Bible to Commune with God
Pastor David White

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.”

John 5:39-40

I suspect some SLPC members were taken aback when I suggested at the end of my sermon on February 18th, that some people may need to step back from Bible reading if it has become a religious duty instead of a means of communing with God.

Let me offer an extreme example. I worked with a man many years ago at my prior ministry who served as an elder in his church. He started coming to me after he was arrested for soliciting a prostitute.* Now, sadly, Christian leaders exposed as hypocrites is not a new phenomenon. But here’s the rub: he faithfully read the Bible, cover-to-cover each year, coexisting with these sinful behaviors. Obviously, something was horribly amiss. There was gross inconsistency between his life practice and this “spiritual” discipline. I challenged him to not read 3 to 4 chapters daily, but maybe just six verses and pray over every line. The goal of Bible reading is to get to know the Author! That doesn’t happen if you’re just racing through it to accomplish the task of finishing the day’s reading. Bible reading facilitates communion with God. It is the primary way He speaks into our lives.

As we approach Easter, know that the goal of the Christian life is to know Him. In fact, that’s how Jesus described eternal life in John 17:3, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” May we not be like the religious leaders who Jesus challenged in John 5:39-40 (above). They diligently studied the Scriptures, probably daily, but they missed the point. The Old Testament writings looked forward to Jesus, preparing the way for His coming, identifying what they should anticipate in their Messiah. And though He stood in their midst, performing miracles that trumpeted His identity (consider Isaiah 35:5-6), their spiritual eyes were blinded to the truth.

When you come to the Bible, you come to the very words of the Author of life, whose expressed desire is to commune with you, to have you know Him, even as you are fully known by Him. Respond to His invitation! The only thing you will take out of this world into the next is your intimacy with God. That friendship (and the good things done for His glory) will accompany you into the new heaven and earth.

At the Men’s Retreat, John Alexander challenged us, “What are you doing today that you’ll be glad you did on That Day when you see Jesus face-to-face?” You will never regret taking the time to commune with Him as you read His Word each day!

*Fortunately, there is a happy ending to this story: God did an amazing work of redemption in this man as he was exposed, and the gospel power of salvation went deeper than it ever had before. As he walked in repentance, there was healing in his relationships, including eventual reconciliation with his wife and children.