|
About Jesus - Steve (Stephen) Sweetman I've
Been Primed Yes, I have been primed.
No, I am not talking about the $11.29 we spend each month for
Amazon Prime videos, now with commercials, and free Amazon deliveries.
I am talking about me being Biblically primed.
The process of being
primed is the process whereby someone or something is being prepared to
accomplish a certain task. The
process of being Biblically primed, then, is the process whereby we are
being Biblically prepared to accomplish God's tasks in our lives.
For me, this process is a continuous process that has lasted for
more than a half a century. It
involves me studying the Bible to the point that many Bible verses are
embedded into my brain sufficiently enough that they naturally and
immediately come to my attention at various times and for various reasons.
A friend, for example,
told me that he recently filed a Workman's Compensation claim on behalf of
his wife who injured herself at work.
He meticulously worded her defence in a way that would win her
case, much like a lawyer would do in court.
My response to my friend was immediate.
"Be wise as serpents and harmless as doves" (Matthew
10:16 KJV). When I first heard Mike
and the Mechanics 1988 hit song "The Living Years" with its
lyrics "you can listen as well as you hear," it happened.
James 1:19 naturally and immediately came to my mind.
Such Scriptural recollections are a common occurrence for me. Within the context of
human relationships James 1:19 tells us to be quick to listen, slow to
speak, and slow to anger. James
then switched the context and told us to listen to God. Effective
listening to what God has told us in the Bible requires our serious
undivided attention, but there's more.
It requires its text to be "planted" (James 1:21) within
us so we can "do what it says" (James 1:22).
The word "planted" suggests that we bury God's Word as a
seed within us so it will sprout into God's will in our lives.
We are to digest it into our hungry souls.
Remember, we don't live on bread alone but by every word that
proceeds from God (Matthew 4:4). God's
Word (His mind from Greek logos) must be planted within us so it
accomplishes its intended purpose in our lives.
It's what Hebrews 4:12 means.
"For the word of
God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it
penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges
the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Whatever form God's Word
comes to our listening ears, it is meant to penetrate the very fabric of
who we are. It prepares or
primes us to accomplish the tasks God has called us to do. You could say it's meant to program us with the
mind of God. Some people ask
"what would Jesus do?" I
ask, "What does the Bible say?"
Obviously, asking what would Jesus do presupposes you have actually
asked what does the Bible say Jesus did.
That doesn't cost $11.29 a month, but it does cost a lot of time
and effort, but isn't Jesus worth it?
|