The Quiet Time Series

Part 7
 

The Bible And

The Quiet Time (C)

The Word of God is central to your Christian maturity. However, it is not just the intellectual understanding of the Word that you need, you need to apply it to your daily life. James said, "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves" (James 1:22).     He says we deceive ourselves if we are not doers of the Word.

In the previous Posts on "The Bible And The Quiet Time" we pointed out that there are three major aspects to Bible Study.      1) Observation: What does it say? 2) Interpretation: What Does It Mean? 2) Application: How Does It Apply?

The reality is that in your regular daily Quiet Time you most likely don’t have time to do any kind of real in depth study.     So, though it is always important that you understand what the passage is really saying and what it really means; in your Quiet Time you’re really looking at the Application aspect.      You want to know how does it apply to your life today.

Your daily QT doesn’t have to be complicated so let me share with you a simple Acrostic that you can use to help apply any verse or passage of Scripture to your life.     It’s called SPECS? and it involves a few simple questions you ask yourself about the passage and your life.
　

•    S Are There Any Sins To Forsake

•   P  Are There Any Promises To Claim

•    E  Are There Any Examples To Follow

•   C  Are There Any Commands To Obey

•    S  Are There Any Stumbling Blocks To Avoid

•    ?  What Should I Do Now.

You won’t necessarily have an answer to every one of these but they will help you dig the application out of the passage.     For example, you may read 1 Thessalonians 4:3, "For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality."     You will want to examine your own life to see if any form of sexual immorality is seeping into your life.     What are you watching? What web sites are you visiting?     Are you getting too friendly to someone who is not your spouse?     Be very specific about the sin you need to forsake and then in your note book record your action plan.     For instance "I will install a net nanny on my computer" or "I need to eliminate some of the novels I’ve been reading. Remember, be specific.

Sometimes the application is not quite so obvious.     Suppose you’ve been reading the story of Judas’ betrayal of Jesus.     Okay, so you haven’t gone and sold Him out but as you think about Judas’ life you may realize he is not a very good role model.     As you think about it you realize that perhaps Judas had stronger allegiance for money then he did for the Lord. So you begin to think about where your allegiances are.      Is there anything more important to you than the Lord?     Write it down in your note book and then write down what you are going to do about it.      "My love for _____________ seems to be drawing me away from Christ."     Maybe you need to adjust your schedule.     Perhaps you need to limit or eliminate something from your life.

Remember, be very specific in answering the SPECS? questions and be very specific about what you are going to do about it.    Also remember that you cannot live the Christian life on your own and you can not transform your own life.     This is not about self improvement.     You need the power of the Holy Spirit to enable you so be sure you acknowledge that.     Ask the Holy Spirit to help you apply the Scriptures to your life and for Him to transform you after the image of Christ.

I don’t what you to forget what we talked about in the previous Posts about "The Bible And The Quiet Time" but you can use the SPECS? very consistently in your daily QT.      In fact for many years my QT Journal had SPECS down the side of the page and I’d use it every morning in my QT.

As you use your SPECS? Your QT will be something you look forward to as you see God transforming your life, not instantaneously, but little by little, deeper and deeper, almost without realizing it, as you apply the Word of God, God will be transforming your life after the image of Christ and bringing you to spiritual maturity.     God bless you my friend.

If you have any questions about the QT or if you have any comments or suggestions that others might like to hear,  please click on the "Comment" section and share them.   There are people from around the world who read  Pastor Rick's Study who might benefit from what you've learned or have the same kinds of questions that you have.    My purpose in spending so many Posts on the Quiet Time is because I believe it is the single most important thing you can do for your spiritual growth and I also know it is the single greatest area where Satan will attack you.     So leave your comments below and lets help each other.



(In the next two Posts we’ll finish off the "Quiet Time Series" with a look at " Prayer And The Quiet Time).