EXPLORING THE WORD

Jonathan Munson, Executive Director

“If you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding and if you look for it as silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.”
Proverbs 2:3-5 

“Never Stop Exploring.”

This is the slogan of the outdoor apparel company, The North Face. You typically see it written over picturesque scenes of snow-covered mountains or evergreen wilderness. Ironically, most of us only wear The North Face brand when doing crazy, adventurous things like traversing the aisles of Target or driving around suburbia in our SUVs. But I digress…

I bring this up because I think it’s a perfect slogan, not just for clothes but also for reading the Bible.  

Here’s a question: What if you applied ‘Never Stop Exploring’ to how you’ll approach God’s Word in the coming year? I bet it would significantly impact your life. 

Think about an explorer for a moment. An explorer is on a never-ending search to discover something new.  They possess an insatiable hunger, a relentless persistence, and an unquenchable curiosity. Explorers pursue the unfamiliar, seeking fresh adventure, but they also re-examine the old, hoping to discover unnoticed details.  

Like an explorer, Solomon encourages his son to pursue wisdom as if he’s searching for “hidden treasure.” Have you ever seen anyone look for treasure halfheartedly? I haven’t. To the contrary, they are focused, committed, and enthusiastic. Treasure hunters diligently search high and low until they find the buried fortune. In other words, they embrace a ‘Never Stop Exploring’ mentality.  

Here’s how this applies to you and me. 

For believers, God’s Word is our primary source of wisdom. It’s filled with countless soul-enriching treasures. Page after page points us to “the fear of the Lord” and the “knowledge of God.” It helps us lay hold of the “unsearchable riches” we have in Christ (Ephesians 3:8). Yet if we never dig in and explore its pages, we’ll miss out on its treasures.  

In this specific instance, Solomon says we’ll miss out on wisdom. Chances are, you’d probably love to have some wisdom for some area of your life right now.  Well, wisdom comes in two ways:  1. “God grants wisdom” (Proverbs 2:6).  2. Wisdom comes as a result of effort. 

You see, God gives wisdom to those earnestly exploring His Word. I’m not saying we’ll always find an answer to every situation we face. The Bible is not a magical book of answers. However, consistently getting into His Word will inevitably get His Word into us. As it takes root in our souls, we’ll walk in wisdom more and more.     

The goal of walking in wisdom, of course, isn’t just acquiring more information. The goal is a transformed life.  After all, the world doesn’t need men and women who know a bunch of Bible facts. The world needs to see people who’ve been changed by spending time in Scripture. The world needs to see ‘explorers’ of God’s Word who live out what they’ve discovered in their daily lives. 

Recently, I saw a powerful example of such a person when I attended the funeral of a wonderful Christian man. During the service, a speaker referenced how this man’s Bible was marked, underlined, and highlighted from cover to cover. Clearly, he had never stopped exploring the wisdom in the Word of God. As I listened to the eulogy, I kept hearing the words of D.L. Moody in my mind, “I never saw a useful Christian who was not a student of the Bible.” 

When we’re dead and gone, I pray that it will be evident to our family and friends that we were diligent students of the Word of God.

Never stop exploring the Bible, my friends, for there’s always more to find!

“The vigor of your spiritual life will be in exact proportion to the place held by the Bible in your life and thoughts.” -George Muller

DIG DEEPER
Ideas To Help You Explore His Word

• YouVersion – Download the YouVersion Bible App. Not only does it contain multiple translations of the Bible, but there is a daily verse and a short video devotional. Click Here. 

• Enduring Word.com – This is a free, online Bible commentary with a verse-by-verse explanation. Click Here. 

• Dwell – Listen to the Bible on your phone. You can select the voice, background music, etc. The app also groups Scriptures together by subject, such as anxiety, hope, joy, fear, etc. Check out Dwell.

• Bible Gateway – Compare numerous free translations of the Bible. Or, for just $3.99 a month, you can access a variety of Bible commentaries, study Bibles, etc. Click Here. 

• E100 Reading Plan – This reading plan follows 100 carefully selected Bible passages- 50 from the Old Testament and 50 from the New- helping you better understand the big picture of the Bible.
Click Here.