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Episode #48 "Christian Cows"
Transcript
Job said, “I have not departed from the commands of (God’s) lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my daily bread.” (Job 23:12) In last week’s podcast I said that we need to learn to delight in God’s Word. We need to say as David did, “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth.” (Psalm 119:103)
The pressing question we have to address here is this: How do I get to that point? What must I do in order to experience true delight in God’s Word? How does a person learn to actually treasure God’s Word more than anything else?
Welcome to The Point of Purity Podcast. I’m your host, Steve Etner, Author, National Speaker, and Purity Coach for The Pure Man Ministry. Welcome to episode #48 as we continue our mini-series on How to live FOR Christ. Today’s podcast is entitled “Christian Cows!”
Truly delighting in God’s Word begins with a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The unsaved don’t care for the God of the Word, so it only makes sense that they won’t care about the Word of God. They don’t see the need for it. They don’t understand it, simply because they can’t. Until they have a personal relationship with Christ, they never will. You see, “People who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means.” (1 Corinthians 2:14 NLT)
Before we can truly delight in God’s Word, we must understand that the Bible is not just another book.
- It’s not some sci-fi story you pull off the shelf and read all the way through in a weekend—although it does tell accounts of out-of-this-world experiences.
- It’s not a storybook that you read just before bedtime—although it does tell the story of God’s redemption of mankind.
- It’s not a romance novel that you read while curled up by the fire on a cold winter’s day—although it does share how God demonstrated His amazing love for man by sacrificing Himself on our behalf.
- It’s not a history textbook that you teach to a class of bored students—although it does tell the history of mankind from creation to his eternal destination.
- It’s not a how-to book for do-it-yourselfers that you read when you want to fix something—although it does show us how to repair our broken relationship with God and how to live a life that brings glory to our Heavenly Father.
The Bible is God’s inspired word written to you and me to show us who God is and who we are before Him. It shows our need for a Savior, and how God provided for that need through the person of Jesus Christ.
In the Bible, you discover God’s desire to have a personal relationship with you—and within its pages He shows you exactly how you can know Him, not just as your Creator and Judge, but as your Savior, Father, and eternal Friend.
The Bible teaches you how to live a life that is holy and pure. It shows you how to say no to sin and yield your life in full and complete surrender to God—living a life that in every way glorifies Him. What an amazing book!
The Bible is God speaking directly to you—to help you cope with every issue in life you will ever face. As you listen to the Holy Spirit and choose to yield to His leadership in your life, He helps you face your temptations, handle all of life’s trials, and teaches you how to find peace, happiness, and contentment through an intimate relationship with your Heavenly Father.
The Bible is the instrument God uses to provide you with power and strength, knowledge, understanding, wisdom, and hope. Within its pages you will find life and food for your soul. Can you begin to understand why you need to delight in God’s Word?
- Do you want to live a life that glorifies God? Live according to the Word of God. Psalm 119:9 asks: “How can a man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.”
- Do you want to live a sin-free life? Hide God’s Word in your heart. Psalm 119:11 says, “I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”
- Do you need to find strength and encouragement during times of stress, suffering, and sorrow? Read your Bible and let it uplift you. Psalm 119:28 tells us that God’s word strengthens and encourages us, and verse 50 says it comforts me in all my troubles.
- Do you feel lost and need a sense of direction? Open the Scriptures and let God guide you. In Psalm 119:105 we see that “(God’s) word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.
- Are you looking for hope? You’ll find it within the pages of your Bible. David says, “You are my hiding place and my shield; your word is my source of hope.” (Psalm 119:114)
When you begin to see God’s Word in this light, you can say with the Psalmist, “Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.” (Psalm 119:147)
In Psalm 1:2 David says that the one who is “blessed” is the one who delights so much in God’s Word that he meditates on it day and night. Not only does that person long to read God’s Word, he thinks about what he read throughout the day. He is seriously contemplating what God has said to him and how he can apply it to his life.
When you are truly delighting in God’s Word, you are going to do more than just read it—you’re going to meditate on it. You are going to ask God to show you how to apply its truths and principles to your daily living.
By the way, the word “meditate” in Psalm 1:2 is written in the imperfect tense. It’s what I call a perfectly imperfect word. You see, the meditation David is talking about is an action that is not yet completed—it’s imperfect. It is something that must be repeated over and over again. Listening to God’s Word isn’t enough. Reading it doesn’t suffice. You just can’t get enough of what God has to say. You find yourself thinking about it throughout your day.
So I have four questions to ask you here – questions geared to put you on the spot.
- Did you read your Bible today?
- What did you read? Do you remember what it said?
- Have you been thinking about how it applies to you?
- Have you been asking God to show you how to live it out in everything you think, say, and do today?
That is meditating on God’s Word.
Meditation is not some mystical, Eastern religion-based activity. It’s not about sitting cross-legged on the floor with eyes closed, fingertips barely touching while you quietly hum.
In Scripture, the verb “meditate” refers to breaking something down into small, chewable pieces. Meditating makes it easier to digest what you’ve eaten so that you can draw strength and nourishment from it, similar to a cow chewing her cud.
Did you know that before a cow can chew its cud, she first has to eat some grass? If there’s no grass in her stomach, there will be no cud to chew later on. In a similar way, it’s impossible for you to meditate on God’s Word if you are not first feeding upon it. You must read, study, and even memorize the Word before you can ever begin to meditate upon it.
Now, I’m not a cow guy. In fact, I know very little about cows other than they eat grass, say moo, and give milk. So, I had to do some research. Here’s what I’ve learned: after sufficiently chewing the grass, ‘Ol Bessie swallows it, sending it into the first of four chambers in her stomach. A little while later, she regurgitates that chewed-up grass and begins chewing it again. As she chews, she is breaking down the grass further. She then swallows it again, sending it into the second chamber of her stomach. Later she will bring it up again and chew on it some more. Each time she chews on it, she is breaking it down more to enable proper digestion.
That is a great example of meditation. Every time you open your Bible and read it, every time you dig into and study it, every time you commit a verse to memory, you are feeding upon the Word of God. You are chewing on it and then swallowing it, taking it into storage for later use.
Then, periodically throughout the day, you bring it back to mind and think about it; evaluating, scrutinizing, seeking to know and understand just what God is saying, and how it applies to you. You then “swallow” it down again, storing it for later.
You keep your heart open to the leading of the Holy Spirit throughout the day. You’re asking Him to guide you into a deeper understanding of what you’ve learned. As the day goes on, you again bring it up and chew on it some more, thinking about the principle God is teaching you and how you can apply it to your life.
Here’s the cool thing—God will give you practical opportunities throughout the day to apply what you’ve learned. For example, you’ve read some Scripture during breakfast—you fed upon God’s Word. As you progress through the morning you begin to think about what you read. You think about what it means, about how it applies to your life, and how you should adjust your choices and actions accordingly.
During your lunch break, you sit there eating your leftover ham between two dry slices of bread while thinking more about that text of Scripture you read this morning. You are definitely seeing that God is showing you an area of your life that needs attention. You utter a quick prayer, asking your Father to reveal to you what He wants you to do, and to give you the strength to apply it to your life.
That evening someone makes a comment that upsets you. Immediately that verse of Scripture you’ve been meditating on all day pops into your mind. Smiling, you reply with a Biblical, loving response instead of the sharp retort you would have given yesterday. That is the process of meditation.
If you are going to grow spiritually, you must feed daily on God’s word and meditate on it.
“Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.” (Psalm 119:97)
David shouted from the top of his lungs, “I love feeding upon God’s Word!” Did you catch that? He loved it! He enjoyed it so much that he had a deep craving for it. He wasn’t happy—he wasn’t satisfied—until he was able to sit down and consume it. Then, throughout the day he kept thinking about what God had spoken to him. He clung to every word he read—it was his lifeblood.
Do you feel that way about God’s Word? Do you enjoy being in the word so much that you have a deep craving for it?
Here are two questions I want you to consider carefully:
- Every time you open your Bible, what are you doing with what God reveals to you?
- Are you considering God’s Word during the day? When you encounter an unplanned-for situation, what are your first thoughts? When a boss is demanding, or a client is frustrating you; when the children aren’t obeying, or the car breaks down in the middle of rush hour, what goes racing through your mind?
Before I wrap up today’s episode, I have a request of you. If you’re a subscriber to this podcast, then you know that I very rarely mention this. So, please understand that the fact that I am talking about this indicates it’s vital importance.
Our time here on earth is running out – of that I am most certain. All too soon God’s trumpet is going to sound and our Heavenly Father is going to call His children home. And as His child, I feel the irresistible urge, the undeniable draw to make these last days ones that are completely and unreservedly focused on glorifying God in every aspect of my life. I am firmly persuaded that God has given me a very specific focus – a for-the-rest-of-my-life assignment.
In Acts 20:22, 24 the Apostle Paul says “I am bound by the Spirit ... I don’t know what awaits me, But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.”
For me (Steve Etner) I am bound by the Spirit to the task of pointing men and women toward the power of Christ and the impact that God’s Word can have in their everyday lives. I am compelled to show them from Scripture how to live in victory and freedom ... specifically, from the lure of lust, the pull of porn and the magnet of masturbation.
You see, I was under that bondage for over 30 years of my life. God set me free, and now - for the last 10 years - I’ve had the distinct privilege and honor of daily meeting with men literally all over the globe – teaching, counseling, and coaching them in how to be men of purity, men of integrity, and men of godliness ... and I am doing this primarily thru our ministry known as The Pure Man Ministry - aka The Purity Coach.
I don’t know how many more years God is going to give me – but I am committed to dedicating every one of those years to this ministry ... and I’m asking for your help.
Tuesday, November 30th 2021 - is a day known across the globe as Giving Tuesday. Its purpose is to encourage individuals and churches to support a specific cause or ministry they believe in.
If you share our desire to see men walk in integrity and live in purity – I am personally inviting you to join our team of ministry partners! We have set the goal of raising $42,000 on Giving Tuesday (November 30th) to cover our cost of ministry for 2022. This will take a group effort to get there – but the impact YOUR donation will have to this ministry is incredible!
Through your financial gifts – The Pure Man Ministry is able to pour into the hearts of both men and women, investing in their lives, their marriages, their homes and even their churches - training them from God's Word how they can live free from addiction to porn, lust and masturbation ... all to the glory of God.
Without compromise The Pure Man Ministry shows men and women how to have a continuous relationship with Jesus that is real and personal. To that end we are asking for your financial assistance to partner with us in providing hope and helping men win their personal battles. Help us raise $42,000 .
Your gifts to this ministry are deeply appreciated - and are tax deductible!
You certainly don’t have to wait until November 30th to give! You can visit our website at www.thepuritycoach.com and click on the “Donate” button in the upper right corner to give your tax deductible donation today - and help us reach our goal so we can reach the world with the message of hope. THANK YOU!
And if you have not yet subscribed to this podcast, let me encourage you to do so today so you won’t miss any of our upcoming episodes!
So, until next time this is Author, Speaker, and Purity Coach Steve Etner reminding you that if you are going to glorify God in your everyday living, He must first be glorified in your every moment thinking.