Replied to: learn.liberty.edu

Hi Isaac, Thanks for a well thought out thread. You talked about how “God in fact did leave us the Bible so that we may learn and study more”. I think an important aspect of that is the time spent in the Bible. While studying deeply through using study bibles and looking up word definitions can be beneficial, the best way is time. The more time spent, the more we know God. Psalm 119:11 says “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sign against you” (NIV). This is important because something gets in our heart and we know it the best because of time. The things in our hearts are the songs that come to our mind as we drive down the road, or the words of the movie that we can recite line for line. These things happen not just because we thought deeply about it for a short period of time but that we spent extended time listening, watching, reading over and over again. I believe that’s the best way to grow closer to God. This is a practice that is challenging to me and that I have a hard time with, but I believe in the value of it. Here is a quote I really appreciate from a book I’m reading on the topic: “At the end of the day, there is simply no replacement for finding a regular time and place, blocking out distractions, putting your nose in the text, and letting your mind and heart be led and captured and thrilled by God himself communicating to us in his objective written words” (Mathis, 2016, Loc 563). If we can all embrace and engage God’s word like described above, I think we can all have deep relationships with God.

References Mathis, D. (2016). Habits of grace: Enjoying jesus through the spiritual disciplines. Wheaton, IL: Crossway. Kindle Edition.