PSALM 138:1-2 – I give you thanks, O LORD, with my whole heart; before the gods I sing your praise; I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word.

THEME OF THE DAY: FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE. Were you tempted to finish the theme of the day with these words . . . “His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16)?  And well you should as that is God’s Word.  However, I want to expand upon this to include another biblical truth and to give you food for thought and that is “For God so loved the world that He gave” His Holy Word to know His Son.

If possible, right now, grab your Bible. Hold it with both hands, maybe even clutch it close to your chest.  Now think what is near your heart and filling your hands – the holy, inspired, inerrant Word of God. What a treasure!  What a wonderful gift from our God. Okay, lay your Bible down, and shift your thinking this way with these three probing questions.

First, is the easy access I have to the Bible tempting me to take it for granted? Next, am I allowing busyness and my lack of self-discipline to produce in my life a neglect of the Bible? And thirdly, are the things and pleasures of the world quenching my thirst and appetite for the Bible, leading me to ignore it?  If we answer “yes” to any of these, we are answering yes to all and we have serious spiritual issues that must be addressed – quickly.

God places great importance on His Word.  Go back and read today’s scripture, and we will see just how important.  He exalts above all things His name and His Word.

It is of the highest concern of God that His name is honored, and His Word held in the highest esteem.  And how do we likewise esteem His Word?  We commit to reading it, studying it, praying it, hearing it preached and taught, and above all of those, so loving God’s Word we will not neglect it, but place it deep in our hearts and minds so it produces a life of obeying it.

So, maybe, we have grown complacent toward the Word of God.  Perhaps the busyness of life and worldly distractions have been allowed to “curb our appetite” for the Bible and quenched our thirst for the living water from the Word.  If so, don’t despair.  God wants to reignite our zeal for Him and His Word.  Ask Him for it. Even beg Him.  After all . . . “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son” and He so loved the world that He gave His Holy Word to know His Son.

PRAYER: “Father, forgive me when I allow busyness and worldliness to lead me to neglecting Your Word.”

QUOTE: “God so loved the world He gave us His Son, the Living Word, and His written Word to know His Son.”