{"id":6154,"date":"2018-02-27T11:27:43","date_gmt":"2018-02-27T17:27:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tampaseo.expert\/focus\/?p=6154"},"modified":"2018-02-27T11:27:43","modified_gmt":"2018-02-27T17:27:43","slug":"digesting-truth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tampaseo.expert\/focus\/2018\/02\/27\/digesting-truth\/","title":{"rendered":"Digesting Truth"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Daniel Dalton<\/strong>
\nThe stomach is an important part of the body. When we are hungry we consciously decide that we need to eat. We put the food in our mouths and then we forget about it. Most of the time, we don\u2019t even think about all of the work our stomachs\u00a0do to keep us alive…unless\u00a0it\u00a0isn\u2019t working properly. It is\u00a0the\u00a0stomach that is breaks down the food and turns it into useful energy for our bodies.\u00a0<\/span>
\nThe Word of God is referred to many times throughout the Bible as \u201cfood.\u201d Matthew 5:6 says,\u00a0\u201cBlessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.\u201d\u00a0<\/i>Jesus described Himself as the bread of life and promised that all that come to Him will never thirst (John 6:35).\u00a0<\/span>
\nAs Christians we realize the importance of the Word of God and we spend time reading His\u00a0Word. His\u00a0Word is what feeds us and keeps us growing (2 Peter 3:18). Yet we need to realize that reading His\u00a0Word without applying it is no more useful than eating food without digesting it. We must use our minds\u00a0to break down, digest, and consume His\u00a0Word. It takes a conscience effort to examine the\u00a0Scriptures and to determine how they apply to our lives. Paul\u2019s desire for the people of Colossae was that they would not only read the\u00a0Word of God, but that they would completely digest it into their lives. Colossians 1:9 reads,\u00a0\u201cFor this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that\u00a0you\u00a0might be filled with the knowledge of\u00a0His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.\u201d\u00a0<\/i>Paul here expresses his desire for them to have all three levels of studying the\u00a0Word of God.<\/i>\u00a0<\/span>
\nFirst Paul wants them to be filled with the knowledge. Knowledge is simply the ability to comprehend and recognize facts. Knowledge is being able to recite the\u00a0account\u00a0of Noah and the ark. Knowledge\u00a0is knowing\u00a0what the Bible says. Many times a Christian\u2019s study of God\u2019s\u00a0Word stops with knowledge without ever really digesting His\u00a0Word.\u00a0<\/span>
\nSecond, Paul desires that they have \u201cspiritual understanding.\u201d Understanding is the ability to comprehend\u00a0and<\/b>\u00a0to put it into your own words. It is not just reciting, but understanding the meaning contained in what is studied. This understanding is where the\u00a0Word of God becomes\u00a0more\u00a0than\u00a0a book of stories.\u00a0<\/span>
\nThird, Paul desires that they have \u201cwisdom.\u201d Wisdom is the ability to use our acquired knowledge and understanding. This is where we begin to realize that God\u2019s\u00a0Word applies to us! This is where I read the\u00a0account\u00a0of Noah,\u00a0and it encourages me to stand strong among the lost of the world and to trust and obey God without wavering.\u00a0<\/span>
\nThe thing we often forget is that digesting His\u00a0Word requires effort on our part. Digesting\u00a0His\u00a0Word requires us to think about His\u00a0Word. Digesting His\u00a0Word requires us to think about our lives and evaluate where we stand in relation to His\u00a0Word. Digesting His\u00a0Word requires us to make changes in our lives so that we are the Christians He would have us to be.\u00a0<\/span>
\nJohn was given a book in Revelation 10:8-11. He was told to eat the book and that it would be sweet in his mouth and bitter in his stomach. Sometimes the\u00a0Word of God, while it is sweet to read, should be bitter on our stomach. It should bring us discomfort and move us to change our lives. Too many times we read His\u00a0Word and taste the sweetness in our mouths, but never digest it because it makes us uncomfortable.\u00a0<\/span>
\nDigesting God\u2019s\u00a0Word into our lives is just as important for our spiritual survival as digestion is for our physical bodies. We can\u2019t survive spiritually if we don\u2019t apply God\u2019s\u00a0Word. The reality is, a four-year old can know God\u2019s\u00a0Word. We need to move beyond just knowing to the point that we understand and apply His\u00a0Word with the wisdom that He has given us and make the changes in our lives that His\u00a0Word demands (Hebrews 5:12-14).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Daniel Dalton The stomach is an important part of the body. When we are hungry we consciously decide that we need to eat. We put the food in our mouths and then we forget about it. Most of the time, we don\u2019t even think about all of the work our stomachs\u00a0do to keep us […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[59,66],"tags":[173,1395,1051,1390,110],"class_list":["post-6154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-christian-living","category-think-excerpts","tag-christian-living","tag-daniel-dalton","tag-feature","tag-july-2013","tag-truth","et-doesnt-have-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\nDigesting Truth - Focus Press<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tampaseo.expert\/focus\/2018\/02\/27\/digesting-truth\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Digesting Truth - Focus Press\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Daniel Dalton The stomach is an important part of the body. 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