A Thought For The Week Of May 12

Martin Luther wrote that "you may as well quit reading and hearing God's Word, and give it to the Devil, if you do not desire to live according to it." For all his faults, and they were many, Martin Luther understood the basic importance of the Word of God. To read it or hear it but not want to live by it seems contradictory at best and hypocritical at worst. Why bother with the Word of God if one isn't going to at least have the desire to live by it, to put it into practice. I think there's a basic truth being illustrated by Luther's words here. Even something as good and as powerful as the Word of God can become an idol. Even the Bible can draw us away from God rather than to God if we start to think that knowing the Bible can be a substitute for truly knowing God. If a person reads the Bible (or hears it) and thinks that just by reading or hearing it they've accomplished something, then the Bible has become an idol - because if we don't allow it to transform us, then we've emptied it of any real power and turned it into a god unto itself. But the Bible - the Word of God - can never replace God. It's sole purpose is to reveal God, to point us to God. As we are both comforted and challenged by the Bible this week, let's seek to also put what comforts and challenges us into practice. Have a great week!