How to Make The Bible YOUR Feed: “Sheep Food:” (1/2)

Sheep Food: Part 1

1^st Peter 2:2; Jeremiah 15:16;

Introduction:

We read in Acts 20:28 that the elders are to feed the flock. In John 21:15-17, Jesus commanded Peter (three times) to “feed the flock. But God commanded the flock to “feed” itself as well…and that the Sheep food is specifically the Word of God. So, we need to consider how that feeding should happen, and when, and by whom, etc.

Supernatural Hunger

In 1^st Peter 2:2, Peter tells the newborn believers to hunger for the “milk” of God’s Word…to feed upon it and so, to Grow thereby. But in Hebrews 5:12-14, the writer complains that the believers to whom he was writing should have graduated from “milk.” They should now be consuming solid food…and it is still referring to the Word of God.

And notice: in 1^st Peter 2:2, it says that the result of feeding on God’s word is that we should “grow, thereby.” Are you growing? If not, ask yourself: “Am I feeding on God’s Word?”

In Jeremiah 15:16, the prophet says he ate (fed on) God’s Word, and that God’s Word was the joy and the rejoicing of his heart. Why? Because God had made him part of the family of God…and called him by God’s name.

This sort of passages lay out the normal life for believers: God calls us to feed on His Word. And it should become a joy to our hearts simply because, as believers, we are His children. God Calls us to Grow! He calls us to grow stronger in the Word, so that we move on from baby food. He calls us to joyfully feed on the tougher things of the Bible, while not forgetting the foundation He laid in the simple truths of the Gospel.

What Does “Feed on” God’s Word Mean?

Do we simply read it? Is hearing it on the radio enough? Do we have to attend Bible College? Do we have to memorize the Bible? What does it mean when the Psalmist says he “meditated” on God’s Word? Do you have to sit with your legs contorted, and your eyes closed while you think about the Bible?

I would like to suggest, as a starter, that there are at least five ways the Scripture tells us to feed upon the Word of God:

Hear
Read
Study
Memorize, and
Meditate

Probably that list actually is an ascending order, each attaining a deeper, stronger grasp of the Word. Let’s look at each of them and see how they apply to us as believers.

Hear the Word

Deuteronomy 6:4 begins with the words, “Hear O Israel…” This passage is well-known to all orthodox Jews…it is called “the Shamaah”, because the word “hear” is translated from the Hebrew word “shamaah”.

Over and over, Jesus said, “He that hath an ear to hear, let him hear.” The willing reception of the spoken Word of God is what is in view. Hearing it has an impact all by itself, without study, without comment, without further reflection, even: God’s Word does not return to Him void. It always has an effect.

The Effect of Hearing

Bear in mind that the sun, shining on potter’s clay, has the reverse effect of the same sunlight warming wax. One grows harder, while the other grows softer. The difference is in the character of the material. Jesus said, “He that hath an ear to hear” will change in a positive way by receiving God’s Word. One who only receives the Word because of a sense of social responsibility or, worse, to look good among his peers, may find that he gradually inoculated himself against the influence of the Word, because he has privately, habitually rejected its teaching. God gradually gives such a person over to a reprobate mind, so that he becomes blinded to the truth of God’s Word, and deaf to the pleading of God’s Spirit.

Luke 8:18 says, “Take heed therefore how ye hear….” Hearing the word is important, and how we hear it is important. We need to hear it with a willing heart, and look for ways to apply it to our lives…not dismiss it or critique it as if it were the writings of men. It is the Word of God. Take heed how you hear. Apply your heart to the Word as you hear it. Hunger for it. Allow it to cleanse you, and purge you.

Read the Word To Feed

It is interesting and instructive, to see that long before a king sat on a throne in Israel, God commanded (Deuteronomy 17:18-20) that that future king was to write for himself a copy of the Law of God, out of the scrolls possessed by the Levites, and that he was to read that copy all the days of his life! That means every day, as long as he lives!

God calls us, in the Church age, as believers, “kings and priests.” How does that Old Testament command apply to us? I doubt we are called to personally write out our own copy (the printing press and movable type seem to have freed us from that.) But I do think we might be admonished to be in the Word on a “steady-diet” basis, rather than a “once-in-a-while nibble.” The results God predicted for those kings are interesting, too.

Five results are listed:

That he may learn to fear the LORD his God, and
To keep all the words of this Law, and these statutes, to do them,
That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and
That he turn not aside from the commandments, to the right hand or to the left;
To the end (result) that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children, in the midst of Israel.

Now, I am not an earthly king, especially not a king of Israel, but I can see from the rest of the Word of God that those predicted results apply to all who apply God’s Word to their lives. The Psalm 119:105 states that the Word “is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” Psalm 119:9 states that a man can only cleanse his way “by taking heed thereto according to God’s Word”. Simply reading the Word daily, as a steady diet, providing constant contact, will have eternal results.

Study the Word, to Feed

This one is a little harder, but the word “study” in Old English, and in Greek, means to “apply oneself diligently.” So, when Paul says (2^nd Timothy 2:15) “study to show thyself approved unto God…”, it means “make this a priority, and apply yourself diligently to that end.” But; the rest of the verse says “…a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” So, “applying oneself diligently” to “learning to rightly divide God’s Word” would be what we call “study,” today, would it not? Paul also exhorted Timothy (1^st Timothy 4:13) to give himself to reading, to exhortation, and to doctrine. This meant not only the public reading of the scriptures, but a constant ministry of encouraging others and teaching them (feed others) to understand and obey God’s Word. That requires study, too.

The Bereans were commended (in Acts 17:11) as being “more noble than those in Thessalonica”, because they “received the Word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether these things were so.” That is study, folks! Searching the scriptures, comparing scripture with scripture, looking for understanding. That is study!

What About Conventional “Study” To Feed?

Could it mean going off to school “to feed” and applying yourself to nothing but study for a period of time? Certainly, it could, but that is by no means necessary. Bear in mind that Paul was trained by one of the most famous educators of his time, but considered that whole experience to be rubbish. Paul did not rest upon his credentials. He rested upon the credentials of Christ. He rested upon the truth of God’s Word.

But we are exhorted to apply ourselves to the goal of understanding the Word of God. As we feed on His Word, the result is to be the collective maturity and stability of the church. The result is that we believers will not be easily swept away by every novel doctrine that comes along. And finally, so that we will be well-equipped ministers of God’s Grace, and so that we are able to build up the body of Christ in the Love of God. (Ephesians 4:12-16) These are all the result of absorbing God’s Word, through hearing, reading and studying. What else can we do?

Next Week we will look at MemorizationLord Jesus, please create in each of us an abiding hunger for Your Word, and Your Person, so that Your Spirit can mature us in Your Grace. Teach us to feed upon Your Word with Joy.