Digging Deep: Seeking And Applying God’s Word

How do we help others learn about God’s Word, when we ourselves are far from perfect? Stephanie Nickel discusses honouring Him by blessing others, while seeking and applying God’s Word to our own lives.

Unpacking God’s Word

Matthew 15:3-9 says, “Why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,” he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God. You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”

You may have heard the term “unpacking” when it comes to examining a passage of scripture, and there certainly is a lot to unpack here. Let’s go through this portion of God’s Word step by step and see how it applies to us and our families.

Seeking And Applying God’s Word

The scribes and Pharisees had asked Jesus a question about ritualistic handwashing, but instead of answering directly, He used it as an opportunity to ask them a question and teach some important truths.

It’s far easier to point fingers, judge, and criticize than it is to examine our own heart and actions. However, when we come to the Bible, it’s always important to ask ourselves 1) if we understand what God would have us do and 2) if we’re seeking, with His help, to walk in obedience. We can’t very well help others learn what God requires if we don’t, first, seek to apply it to our own life.

Consider Matthew 7:5, which says, “First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.”

Does this mean we have to be perfect before we can help anyone else know God and His Word better? Of course not. But they will soon see if we’re living a “do as I say, not as I do” lifestyle—especially our children.

For His Glory And The Good Of Others

And before we’re too quick to judge these religious leaders, let’s think about it for a minute. Isn’t it a good thing to dedicate our energy and resources to the Lord and His work? Absolutely! But remember what we talked about a while back. I referred to the spirit of the Law as well as the letter of the Law. The spirit of the Law is what’s at the heart of God’s commandments and directives, what motivated Him to make the Law, and what motivates us to obey it.

What God requires of us is for His glory and the good of others. These leaders were neglecting the clear directive to honour their father and mother—which means so much more than simply obeying them when we’re children, though that, too, is important. The Pharisees and scribes neglected their parents and, instead, gave their resources to “God’s work,” we can assume, in order to look spiritual to onlookers. We learn from the first 18 verses of Matthew 6 that they liked to do things publically in order to be praised for their good works.

Honouring God By Blessing Others

This is a balancing act and requires prayerful consideration. As I said, it is right to give of our time, talents, and resources to the Lord’s work. In fact, we are called to do so. And yet, we are never to neglect those around us, those God wants to bless through us. After all, 1 John 4:20 says, “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar.” This and many other passages clearly show that we have a responsibility to care for others. We must prayerfully seek to do so and teach our children how to honour God by blessing others.

Verse 8 of today’s passage is powerful and we should meditate on it and ask God if we are guilty of the same behaviour. It says, “This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.”

Walking The Talk

Do we talk a good talk but harbour ungodly thoughts and motives in our heart? Before you’re quick to answer that question, let me say I think we’re all guilty of this from time to time. I think that is one of the reasons I highly value authenticity and transparency. We may as well be honest. After all, God knows our deepest darkest secrets, and who we really are will eventually be apparent to others as well.

When people are asked if they want the good news or the bad news first, they often go with the good news. I, however, prefer to get the bad news out of the way. If the Bible was only filled with commands we could never hope to obey and chastisement for not obeying them, there would be no point to me preparing these devotionals.

But there is good news. If we surrender our lives to the Lord and accept what Jesus accomplished for us on the cross, where He died for our sins, we can share in the unfathomable joy of victory over sin and death. Sure, we will still stumble and fall. And most of us will experience physical death, though Jesus may come before this is the case for all of us. Even so, that unfathomable joy begins here and now—and will be infinitely deeper and all-encompassing when we get to heaven.

Teaching And Applying God’s Word

Are we teaching our children what the Word of God says and how it applies to their lives? Are we seeking to apply it to our own lives? Does our walk line up with our talk? Do we do what we do in order to appear spiritual in other people’s sight or are we diligently asking the Lord to help us not only obey but also see beyond what seems like obedience to the heart of His directives, to the spirit of the Law?

Let’s love and care for others while not neglecting our other responsibilities before the Lord. And let’s trust Him to show us how as well as give us the ability to walk in obedience. And let’s teach our children to do the same.

Who do you care for? We would love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.