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Morning Thoughts |
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Morning Thoughts |
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I Timothy 4:13, "Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine." This morning, we fill our time with different things, quite possibly for different reasons. There are things we do out of habit - when we eat, when we sleep, etc. - which constitute much of our daily routine. There are other things we do out of necessity - work, maintenance, etc. - which constitute fulfilling certain needs in our lives. Other things we do out of pleasure or desire - taking a vacation, engaging in leisure activities with the family, etc. - which show our hobbies or interests in our lives. However, there is a form of activity that is generally thought of in a bad light that we can engage in when we do things because of addiction. People today generally associate the term "addiction" with things like drugs and alcohol, but the Bible speaks of a healthy and Godly form of addiction that we need to have in our lives. (I Corinthians 16:15) Paul gives Timothy a list of things to be up and doing, and he utilizes the term "give attendance," which can literally be rendered as "addicted to," "given to," or "devotion of thought and effort." These things that Timothy was to be filling his time with are things that he should be so immersed in that they are addictive in his life. Looking at the negative of this subject for a moment, one can easily see that a drug or alcohol addict eventually sees their addiction flood every aspect of their lives. The need becomes so great that every facet of their existence is invaded by the addiction. Transitioning back to our positive thought, Timothy's life should be invaded on every corner by these things as they impact his existence both generally and specifically. Another thing that comes with addiction is that the individual will always "find the time" for his addiction. Other things in life may suffer, but the addiction and craving will be answered. So also, Timothy was to always have time for these things to answer the craving that he had for them. As we investigate these things, we will focus primarily on the first in the list as that will lead to a more healthy focus of the other two. The first thing that Timothy was to give attendance to (be addicted to) was reading. While we can read many different things in our lives, I believe the Scriptures bear out that Paul was specifically minded in his instruction to Timothy. In his second epistle to the young minister, his words over and over went back to the word and the Scriptures. (II Timothy 2:15, 3:14-17, 4:2) If Timothy was to preach the word, exhorting in all longsuffering and doctrine, then it stands to reason that his reading was to be primarily from the same word that he was to preach. If Timothy then - and us today - are to be given to, addicted to, and immersed in, the reading of God's word, we need to be found daily in that activity. There is a disturbing trend today of less and less people reading the Bible. I have even been shocked to the point of silence to hear ministers say, "I haven't read all of the Bible." If I am able to recover my speech, my first question is, "How do you know some portion of it that you haven't read doesn't contradict what you preach and believe?" There is a great blessing in the reading of God's word, so much so, that Christ proclaimed as much to John at the opening of Revelation. (Revelation 1:3) When this topic comes up, generally speaking, I get questions like this, "Well is it ok to read other theological books? Should I not read them at all, just reading only the Bible?" Obviously, if one is even reading this segment I am writing, then you are reading other theological writings besides the Bible, but there are some good rules to follow that I have been taught by my fathers in the faith and ministry. Reading the Bible should involve more of our time, effort, energy, and devotion than reading other writings. The simple reason is clear: what we read the most of will dominate the other things we read. For the Bible to be our filter by which all other writings are judged, it must dominate our thinking. Hence, we must be more acquainted with it than anything else, and the only way to accomplish that is to read it more than anything else. We also need to choose what we read wisely as just a simple perusal of a writing affects us more (perhaps subconsciously) than we realize. If people ask me of good books to read, one thing I generally do is recommend books that have much meat and little bones. Every writing of man, outside of the Holy Scriptures, has some bone (profitless material) that we should spit out rather than swallow. It is safer for the sheep to be recommended meaty books rather than skinny-fowled reading. One must take special caution when reading the writings of men who are professors of a different faith and order, as their doctrine and exhortation will have some ill-rooted ideas that must be sifted quite carefully. If one is not a grounded student in the Bible, I generally recommend against reading theological material from men of other orders of people and recommend books written by our forefathers in the faith (if I recommend anything at all). Still, the dominant reading and certainly the addiction should be to the Bible itself as that is where the LORD has opened a well of deep riches for us as we journey here. Our reading of it should be consistent and perpetual, as every single pass through its pages unearths more of that richness than we saw on the last pass. Without simple, quiet, and grounded reading, our exhortations will be dry and unfounded, and our doctrine will be cheap and meaningless. If we say what we believe without being able to show where and why we believe it (coming from reading), we look no different than anyone else giving their opinion on the matter. One of the many excuses that I hear (and quite often use myself) is, "I just don't have the time." While I so often pull that well-used statement from my barrel full of excuses, there is much time that runs to waste in my life. Unfortunately, when a day goes by without attendance being given to reading, my honest answer has to be, "Something else was more addictive today." May our daily craving be that God would enrich us through the reading of His word. Job esteemed it higher than even his natural sustenance. (Job 21:12) David desired to hide it in his heart to prevent sinning against his God. (Psalm 119:11) And may it be so thick in our life that its words, thoughts, etc flow into our speech, walk, activity, and foremost thought. If we are given to the reading as we should, we are more apt to receive good exhortation as our mind readily understands that the exhortation is sound, balanced, and profitable. If we are given to the reading as we should, we are more apt to receive the doctrinal instruction as we readily understand that the principle is rooted in that same thing that we read so often. On the other hand, if we are tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine and ungrounded exhortation due to the reading and heeding of other writings, then we more readily reject good teaching when we hear it. Ministers always have a heightened joy when preaching to well-read congregations as their ground is broken up by daily reading to receive the good seed sown in the gospel discourse. There is much joy when the minister hears, "You were preaching right where I have been reading and studying this week." May we seize upon our daily opportunity to read God's word and glean from its pages the rich truths contained therein. As noisy as life becomes, may we crave those quiet moments in contemplation and perusal of the hallowed pages of Scriptures. In so doing, we will look for more opportunities to read than we have before. As the addiction grows, we will discover its effects as it floods our lives with its teachings and concepts. Whenever people ask me how they should read, what course of reading to take, how much to read, etc., my honest response is, "More." May we read it more often so that this week brings more reading than last week, and this year more often than last year. When a plant is young, a little water does much good. As the plant grows, it needs more water, and may we be well-watered, mature plants growing up unto the Lord as trees of righteousness that are given to the reading of His word as faithful stewards of the mystery of God. In Hope,  Bro Philip |