Young Eagle falls. 

And falls.  

Before the ground rushes up to meet him, Mother Eagle dives below Young Eagle, slows her descent, and he settles gently on her back. She rises up, up, not to the safety of the uncomfortable nest but deep into the uncompromising sky. She turns with her wing dipped low and drops Young Eagle.  

He falls.  

He beats the sky with his unwieldy wings. He harnesses the wind for a moment, but it’s quickly torn away. He falls. Mother Eagle’s sharp eyes watch him flap and stretch until the last moment. She catches him, and they rise together.  

She drops him.  

He falls.  

Until he doesn’t. 

He flies. 

As followers of Jesus, we can easily feel like the young eagle who is ready to serve God, but we haven’t been called out of the nest. We’re fully grown followers, having moved on from the early days of being fed with milk and now filled with the solid food of God’s Word (1 Corinthians 3:2). We’re raised and ready to fly. The time for being served has grown into the time to serve. We’re ready.  

And waiting.  

And waiting. 

Why isn’t God using me? 

Why is she moving from Bible school to the mission field while I’m still living at home? 

Why is he publishing his second book and I can’t come up with one good idea for an article? 

Why does he have hundreds of listeners for his ministry call and I can’t get 20 people to sign up for my email list? 

Why did God answer her prayers for a spouse and I’m still alone? 

Why is the Holy Spirit asking me to wait? Why is God saying, “not yet”? 

What does he/she/they have that I don’t? 

God’s Word answers us when we’re feeling overlooked and under-utilized.  

In Matthew 10:29 Jesus reassured a crowd that not even a sparrow falls to the ground apart from God’s knowledge. If God knows about the sparrow, then He sees you. You are not overlooked. Jesus advised His disciples to pray that God would send workers into His harvest because many souls needed God but there were few workers to tell people about His salvation. God wants workers (Luke 10:2). You are not underutilized. 

So why are you still waiting? Where is your work in the harvest? Let this truth assure you: 

Mother Eagle isn’t pushing Young Eagle aside; she’s preparing him to fly. 

God isn’t pushing you aside; He’s preparing you. 

Jesus, too, prepared His fledgling disciples for the great work of harvesting souls. He didn’t send out the disciples untested and untrained to preach after Jesus returned to heaven. Instead, He made them practice. All four gospels record the sending of either the twelve disciples or the seventy disciples. This was the disciples’ preparation phase.  

Suggested reading: Luke 10: 1-12 & 17-20; Matthew 10:1-15 

We can learn the same ministry preparation lessons that Jesus taught the disciples when He sent them out to preach and heal on the dusty roads of Israel. 

Here is what followers of Jesus, then and now, must learn before they’re ready to serve Jesus in a larger capacity: 

Be With Him So We Can Be Like Him

Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach…

Mark 3.14

Before we are sent out, we are called to be with Him, and learn His heart and His ways so we can become like Him. Before Jesus sent out the twelve or seventy disciples, they needed to follow Him from town to town, listen to His sermons, pick through His parables, observe how He treated sinners, or responded to desperate pleas for healing. Working for Him begins by being with Him.  

Our Job Is To Prepare Lost People To Recieve Their Savior

So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.

Luke 9.6

Jesus sent the disciples ahead of Him to the towns where He would preach. Prepare the way, He instructed. We, too, are sent to the lost sheep to prepare them to receive their Savior and Shepherd. The disciples’ tasks weren’t the point; Jesus was. Our specific ministry work isn’t the point, Jesus is. We could easily be distracted by the tasks Jesus assigns us: preaching, hosting dinner for neighbors, writing books, talking about God on podcasts or on a park bench, and raising children. Jesus asks us to lift our heads from the tasks and focus on Him and what He is doing to save the lost. Tasks are important only when they fulfill the one mission all servants of Christ share: prepare lost souls to receive Jesus. 

All Power, Talent, And Skill We Use For God Comes From God

He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases.

Luke 9.1

Our abilities come from Him and are for His service. Since they are gifts, we don’t work for them, and we shouldn’t be anxious about receiving or retaining them. He who calls you equips you. Our job is to be faithful to what God has called us to do at the moment. God will give us the words and the power to reach the lost and serve others as we need them. 

Our Gifts From God Point Others To God

Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.

Matthew 10.8

Use the gifts you are given to serve others in a way that points them to God’s love. These gifts are a sign of His authority, commissioning, and presence. When we use God’s gifts to serve others, we draw attention to the source of those gifts. Power and miracles drew people to Jesus, but what they truly needed were healed souls more than healed bodies. We don’t need a sign from God or a special commission to use the gifts He’s given us. Opportunities abound in the most ordinary places. Use the evidence of His love to point the way to Jesus.  

God Provides For Us When We Are Serving Him, And We Learn To Trust Him In The Process

Provide neither gold not silver nor copper in your money belts, nor bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor staffs; for a worker is worthy of his food.

Matthew 10.9-10

God provides for those He sends. Our trust in God emboldens our ministry and encourages unbelievers to trust Him, too. When the mother eagle let the young eagle fall, the young eagle probably wasn’t encouraged to trust her. Until she caught him. Until he learned to fly. Then he understood that in her desire to prepare him to fly, she allowed him to suffer fear just long enough to trust her. Long enough to learn to fly. God will ask us to do scary things in His service. Allowing God opportunities to build trust by providing for us during our training phase will build the wings of trust that help us fly with confidence when God increases our ministry opportunities. 

Our Job Is To Faithfully Obey God And Let God Be Responsible For The Results

And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet.

Matthew 10.14

We are not responsible for the results; God is. When our kindness is rejected, when the church membership dwindles, when they unsubscribe from the email list, when they no longer need our services, we naturally turn inward and wonder what we’ve done wrong. But the apostle Paul wrote that one plants, one waters, but God gives the increase (1 Corinthians 3:6). If we believe that people are saved by our efforts, then we are giving ourselves far too much credit. Remain faithful and leave the increase to God. 

Focus On The Vine Before Rejoicing In The Fruit

Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name” … “Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”

Luke 10.17-20

Focus on what matters most: Repentance, faith, and eternal life through a relationship with Jesus Christ. The visible fruits are not more important than the source of those fruits. Jesus’ miracles drew fanfare and followers far and wide. But when He died on a cross, defeating the power of sin forever, even His own disciples considered His ministry a failure. A rising church membership, a hundred new subscribers, a promotion, a thousand gospel tracts handed out. Fruits may be evidence of a thriving ministry. They are not, however, the vine. Those fruits, lovely and ripe, cannot survive without the source of life, and that is Christ. Don’t let fruit convince you that everything is going well, but don’t let a lack of fruit lead you to believe that God isn’t working. Focus on the cross – preaching it, writing it, loving it, serving it, living its message of salvation. 

When the disciples returned from preaching and healing and casting out demons, rejoicing in their success, they still weren’t ready to go out permanently and spread the gospel. The disciples still lacked one thing… 

The Resurrection Of Jesus Christ Must Transform Us Before We Can Carry The Message To The World. 

“But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel” … “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

Luke 24.21a & Acts 2.36

The message of the cross and the empty tomb is the message that transforms the world. After Jesus’ crucifixion, two discouraged disciples walked along the road to Emmaus. Jesus, disguised from the disciples’ eyes, approached. Why are you sad? To these disciples, the Man who fed thousands from a few loaves of bread and a handful of fish, who raised the dead, who walked on water, had failed. He had not overthrown the oppressive Roman government and returned sovereignty to a weary Israel. Jesus had failed. They would wait for someone else. But after Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to His followers, after He returned to heaven and sent the Holy Spirit to His disciples, the disciples preached a single message: This Jesus who was crucified and rose again is Lord and Christ. The resurrection transformed the disciples. 

Before we are ready to serve God, the message of the cross that transforms the world must transform us, too. The disciples’ transformation from discouraged and downtrodden people to joyful and fearless evangelists is among the most convincing evidence that they had, indeed, seen the risen Christ. 

Our transformation from sin-sick slaves of death to forgiven, whole, and utterly changed followers of Jesus is our greatest evangelism tool. Let the changes Christ made in you show that world that you have, indeed, met the risen Christ. 

Now that Young Eagle can soar, he is ready to go forth into the sky. To build a nest of his own and to create new eagles like himself. To go forth into God’s harvest and make disciples in His name. Your time is coming. Until then, let Jesus teach you how to fly. 

At Ethnos360 Bible Institute, our heart is to equip followers of Christ for a life spent serving the Lord. Want more information on how you can be involved? Request your free information packet today!

I put my pan of muffins on the table and dropped my purse. This was another of the typical, unpredictable, wonderful days of fellowship at Annie and Jimmy’s home. Annie and Jimmy hosted our fellowship group and I’d been coming here on Tuesday nights for almost a year. The last year expanded my view of Christian fellowship. Fellowship, as it turned out, had more soul-shaping power than I expected.

At the beginning of 2021 I, like many people, jumped on the bandwagon of choosing a word of the year. My word for 2021 was community. After a wearying year mired in pandemic loneliness, countless people like me found themselves hyperconnected online but still empty. We needed other people, face-to-face, reading our expressions, squeezing us in a hug, laughing at our jokes, and helping the school books, board room, or doctor’s office release their grip on us for a few hours.

My idea of Christian fellowship looked something like sitting in a circle of chairs in a church hall – and if the chairs were the folding metal type, then all the more spiritual, right? Next to this, the fellowship was greeting each other and making a prayer request before delving into a formal Bible study with videos and a workbook. And then, my favorite of all – a potluck.

That kind of community has value and I wholly advocate participating in a formal study to learn the Bible and know God better.

But what I see in the Gospels is that learning God’s word took place within a personal fellowship whose primary purpose wasn’t doing but being.

Jesus called the disciples to Himself. After Jesus’ resurrection and return to heaven, these disciples were commissioned to carry the Gospel to the ends of the earth. But before the disciples became mega-missionaries,

…He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach…(Mark 3:14 NKJV emphasis mine).

Before the disciples were ready to preach, they needed to be with Him. Being with Jesus was His way of making them more like Him and preparing them for the work ahead.

Christian spiritual formation is much the same today. God uses Christian fellowship to make us more like Jesus and to comfort us during our inevitable troubles in our sin-soiled world.

Paul understood the importance of interpersonal fellowship when he wrote: For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established– that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. (Romans 1:11-12 NKJV)

A year after I came to my first fellowship evening at Annie’s and Jimmy’s, I’ve grown.

If you, too, are hungry for deep fellowship but you’re unsure where to start – maybe you’re an introvert like me or you want to be part of a group but you can’t host it yourself – then join me as I share a few tips I’ve learned from Annie and Jimmy on how to nurture a thriving fellowship.

1. Make it a Priority

The reason our fellowship group has met regularly despite everyone’s busy lives is that Annie and Jimmy prioritize fellowship.

One evening I walked into their kitchen to discover that Annie had arrived home only minutes before I came through her door. She had been shuttling her children to a learning center and then to sports practice. Now they were throwing together a quick dinner. She was visibly tired, and I remarked that if she was ever too busy or exhausted to host fellowship, then by all means let the group know. Everyone would understand. Each of us would likely cancel fellowship for the same reasons.

But she replied, “I was tired, but I said to myself, ‘God will bless it, then I told people to come.”

Annie and Jimmy are busy. They have six kids, ranging in age from 2 to 18, and the school-age children all learn at home. Most of the children are in one or more sports. The family dogs produced eight puppies last fall. Jimmy works full-time as a military officer and leads a large online ministry, preaching on a conference call and live video most nights of the week. Every year Jimmy and Annie mark the anniversary of Jimmy’s spiritual birth in Christ by hosting a pile of ministry members at their home for several days of intensive Bible study, prayer, and fellowship. One attendee slept on a recliner in the laundry room.

Fellowship happens because Annie and Jimmy know that “God will bless it.” And He has. They are obedient to God’s call on their lives and trust Him to minister to their needs.

If you are part of a fellowship, and especially if you’re the host, prioritizing regular fellowship will be a deciding factor in whether your group thrives or fades. Choose to thrive.

2. Don’t Worry About Meeting an Agenda

Fellowship doesn’t require you to have a meeting agenda or pre-determined activity. The heart of fellowship is personally sharing our celebrations and our deepest needs. A formal meeting purpose, like a Bible study, can be used within a fellowship group but should not replace informal time to simply

share your hearts and lives. Face-to-face, heart-to-heart fellowship is critical to encouragement and discipleship, and it’s why most churches urge members to attend a small group.

Focus on being available to each other and let group activities arise naturally based on members’ needs or desires. Want to play basketball rather than memorize a Bible verse? This is God’s work, too.

3. Create Intimacy by Authenticity

My friendship with Annie and Jimmy grew deep quickly over the last year. I have the same level of comfort with them as I do with friends I’ve had for many years. I attribute this to Annie and Jimmy’s willingness to be vulnerable and authentic. Not many women would invite a houseful of visitors while dinner dishes were slung across the table, the toddler’s bowl of spaghetti was overturned on the floor, and socks littered the couch. Far from irking me, the evidence of an ordinary family doing life together put me at ease. If they could let me see their dirty laundry, literally, and still welcome me, then I could trust them with the dark and painful parts of my heart. Annie and Jimmy prioritized fellowship, which meant that if clearing the dishes and scrubbing floors edged out time for fellowship, then the house would have to wait. The work eventually got done anyway, and those of us who were welcomed into their home always left feeling treasured because our hosts put God and us above their personal preferences.

Whether you’re hosting a fellowship group or a guest, be yourself. This is harder than it sounds, but it’s worth it. Be brave. When you’re tired or discouraged or in a bad mood, the most authentic thing you can do is share that. Rather than annoying others, you may secretly relieve them. They’ll feel the same way you do tomorrow, next week, or five minutes from now, and your honest admission and commitment to being real will inspire your companions to drop the mask and be honest, too. At that moment, a true connection happens.

“My problems are a better bridge than my perfection could ever be,” Annie said. That’s authenticity. A commitment to rejecting artifice means we are free to be ourselves and to be loved for, not despite, it.

4. Practice Patience and Embrace Others

As a mother with a child with autism, I’m careful who I visit. Luke, my son with autism, enjoys people but doesn’t always understand appropriate social behavior, so I limit our visits to people who are patient with Luke.

Annie and Jimmy have provided a high level of comfort for me as an autism mom because they have a high tolerance for shenanigans.

Why? Because children are as important a part of their ministry as adults.

One night, my older son, Luke, who has autism, held out a red crayon in his hand, pressed it against the wall, and ran. Jimmy and I spent a good portion of the evening scrubbing the mark, which still shows a ghostly echo to this day. Before meeting Annie and Jimmy, I would’ve felt horrified and wondered if I

should ever come back. But my hosts laughed it off. Such obnoxious behavior would occur again among all children involved.

Of course, I’m vigilant and mindful of my children’s behavior and there are consequences for deliberate disobedience and egregious disruption.

But Annie and Jimmy’s purposeful grace toward disruptive behavior allows me to relax at fellowship, which means I won’t hesitate to rush my kids into the van the following week to drive them to fellowship.

If you want to cultivate a truly welcoming atmosphere in your fellowship, then expand your tolerance for shenanigans. People with families like mine will be profoundly grateful for an open door of hospitality for children who are “differently-abled” and for kids who are being, well, kids, with all of the noise and squabbling accompanying them.

5. Decide to be a Blessing

When my sons and nephew are about to leave for fellowship, I often tell them to “be a blessing.” Coming to fellowship with the attitude and intent that we’re going to delight or comfort our friends helps me overcome my introverted tendency to assume that everyone is noticing my perceived flaws. Being a blessing to others pulls the focus from me and puts it on others. When I bless my friends and they bless me, then we are all built up into God’s spiritual house.

Walk into your fellowship group determined to be a blessing and watch your self-consciousness fade.

Conclusion

God used Annie and Jimmy to make me a fitter servant of Jesus and to encourage and comfort me through some tough life issues this year. If you want to take your relationship with the Lord to the next level, then I urge you to find, or form, a fellowship group using the principles outlined above, and study what the Bible teaches about community and fellowship to further expand your knowledge.

Cotton the Bunny was safely stowed under the airplane seat after being waved through security – “That is such a cute puppy!” – but his most recent picture shows little improvement to his coiffure.

At Ethnos360, we understand the importance of strong fellowship. Would you like to learn more about God’s desire for the Christian community expressed in Scripture? Request your free information packet today!

These are all good things, so why are they making you miserable? 

If you’re like many Christians, you’ll pray for God to make you less selfish, then you’ll make a gratitude list, head to the library and borrow a book on productivity, listen to a podcast on mindfulness practices, and download a Bible study on perseverance. 

Your “good Christian” activities give you a burst of encouragement. You’re doing something about your problems! But a few days later, you feel the weight of upholding your life pressing down on you again. You’re tired. You want to drop the tough class, lay in bed all day, quit your job, and live off-grid. The cycle never ends. 

But what if you didn’t need God to fix you or to adopt a self-help plan? What if you need…a day off? 

Break the cycle with Sabbath. God offers you a day off every week. He called that day Sabbath, and it’s your key to peace and purpose. 

But if you doubt that Sabbath-keeping can bring you peace and purpose, then you may be confused by subtle but prevalent myths about Sabbath-keeping. 

In this article, you’ll discover three myths of Sabbath rest and learn a simple four-part framework on how to observe Sabbath God’s way. 

(Note: In this article, it is assumed that you can rest on any day of the week you choose. Jews traditionally observed Sabbath from Friday evening to Saturday evening; Christians typically keep Sabbath on Sunday. Choose whatever day of the week serves you.) 

Myth 1: Sabbath rest’s purpose is to prepare you for work, and Sabbath’s primary activity is physical rest. 

‘On the tenth [day] of this seventh month, you shall have a holy convocation. You shall afflict your souls; you shall not do any work.’ Numbers 29:7 NKJV 

If you believe Sabbath’s purpose is to prepare you for more work, then you’ll wake up on Monday with a refreshed body but a weary soul. Many Christians unknowingly accept the myth of rest-so-you-can-work as truth because of American culture’s focus on productivity and the heritage of the “Puritan work ethic”.  

In God’s economy, however, physical work does not rule our lives.  

Successful Sabbath-keeping compels us to exchange the myth of rest-for-work for the truth of Sabbath-keeping as soul-care time. 

In the Bible, Sabbath days, as well as many feasts and convocations, required a cessation from work. The break from routine work wasn’t intended to prepare the Israelites to resume their chores with vigor, but to create physical time and mental space to devote themselves to spiritual work. The Feast of Tabernacles pulled the Israelites away from their fields and flocks to celebrate God’s provision for them each year. Similarly, the Day of Atonement was a time to afflict their souls, enjoining the people to repent of sin (Numbers 9:27).  

Even God rested, but not because He needed a nap. Instead, God used the seventh day to appreciate and enjoy His creation. By resting, God “indicates God’s autonomous choice not to be subject to his creation but ruler over it,” writes Diddams et al. (2004). 

Biblically, seven represents completeness (Chuck Smith, 2000). God’s work of creation, one could surmise, was not complete until He rested to appreciate and enjoy His handiwork. So we, too, are not complete without giving our souls one day in seven to totally focus on God.  

A weekly Sabbath rest reminds us that although routine work may comprise the majority of our work time, we are not ruled by our work. We are governed by our souls and our souls are ruled by our Creator. Sabbath sweeps aside the distractions of physical maintenance to declare over us one day work will end, but our souls will not. 

Sabbath invites us to nurture what lasts into eternity. 

Myth 2: There is a right way to do Sabbath. 

If you were raised in a church tradition of strict Sabbath-keeping, then you’re familiar with the myth that’s there’s a right way to do Sabbath. 

“Good Christians don’t play cards on Sunday.” 

“You can’t play an instrument and don’t go to the movies, either.” 

“You may look at your doll, but you must not play with her.” That’s what Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of Little House in the Big Woods, endured every Sunday, spurring her to dread the day. 

You’ve probably read about Sabbath laws in the Old Testament and religious leaders’ confrontations with Jesus because He “worked” on the Sabbath. With so many instructions and admonitions, it’s no wonder we believe there’s a right and wrong way to do Sabbath. 

But Jesus dispelled that notion. In Mark 2, the religious leaders reprimanded Jesus when his disciples picked heads of grain to eat on the Sabbath. His answer? 

And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27 NKJV 

The truth is, as followers of Jesus, we are not crouched under a pyramid of Sabbath rules, last on the list of considerations. 

We are at the top being supported by the solid foundation of God’s gift of Sabbath. 

Now, are there things we do or fail to do that could make or break an effective Sabbath? Absolutely. Activities that keep us physically busy or mentally knotted up will defeat the gentle work of Sabbath-keeping.  

An entire day of Christmas shopping at the mall is counterproductive. Hours writing a report for work or school is also not restful. But you’re an intelligent person. You know what helps your mind, body, and soul rest, and what nurtures your relationships.  

You also know exactly what will sabotage your rest. You decide what you will and won’t do on Sabbath. God isn’t scowling from heaven, accusing you of being a lawbreaker.  

Throw rules out of the window. Embrace guidance, like resting body, mind, and soul, meant for your good. 

This day is a gift for you.  

A gift is never meant to be a burden. 

Myth 3: I don’t have time to do everything that needs to get done before Sabbath. 

f you listed your weekly responsibilities on a job description and posted that list on a job board, no one would apply! Most people are busy. From classes to careers, commuting, caring for children, cleaning, and connecting with loved ones, our schedules are full. Productivity tools teach us how to block our time, so no minute is lost and every task that seems so important is squeezed into our saturated lives. 

It’s not surprising that so many would-be Sabbath-keepers believe the myth that you do not have time to complete your tasks without working on Sabbath, too. The truth? You have time to do everything God asks you to do. The keywords in this phrase are “God asks.” You cannot complete everything you want to do or believe you should do or what you are told to do, but only what God asks you to do.  

Keeping the activities that God expects you to perform and cutting the rest involves serious reflection and consideration. But the Sabbath wasn’t created only for those who don’t have jobs or classes or children – Sabbath is for you, too. You may have to remove tasks, rearrange your schedule, ask for help, or say “no” more often to well-meaning people who would fill up your days with volunteer work. Trimming your workload may involve a few minor tweaks or it may require a major life redesign. 

Curtailing our tasks is a commitment to obedience.  

Obedience to Sabbath-keeping rewards you with the space to seek God with an unencumbered mind and schedule. Peace and purpose are found in that space. 

Don’t let these three myths rob you of the joy of Sabbath-keeping. If you’re ready to rest on Sabbath, then let’s explore what you should do on Sabbath. Here is a four-step framework to help you start. 

What to do on Sabbath: A simple four-step framework 

rue rest encompasses body, mind, and soul, and entrance into Jesus’s rest, which was accomplished through the redemptive work of the cross.  

When planning for Sunday, you only need to “accomplish” four things: Rest, reflect, reconnect, and recline. Enjoy the freedom found in Sabbath by arranging your day however you wish with these four principles to guide you. 

1. Rest: A laid-back day for your body. Put your feet up, grab that nap, take a bath, watch a movie, or enjoy a relaxing hobby.  

2. Reflect: Get to know yourself and consider your ways. Proverbs 14:8 says, “The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way, But the folly of fools is deceit.” No one wants to live a life without purpose. Reflection on who we are, what is most important to us, and how our lives mirror those priorities is the way we craft a purposeful life. Ultimately, reflection leads us to seek God, and seeking God sets our lives in proper order. 

3. Reconnect: Uncomplicated, sweet time with the ones you love. Talk about the things that matter, watch a movie together, take a stroll, cuddle. Nurture those relationships in a restful way. Next, and most important, is uncomplicated, sweet time with the lover of your soul. God made the seventh day holy, and you rest from your life work on that day so you can attend to the soul work of just being with God.  

4. Recline: Let your soul stop striving because Jesus is our Sabbath. He put away the works of the law and the feeble efforts we offer to save ourselves through works by fulfilling the righteous requirements of the law through His redemptive work on the cross. True rest is impossible apart from Jesus.  

Chuck Smith preached about the embodiment of the Sabbath in Jesus. “… the Sabbath days were just a shadow of things to come. They aren’t the substance. A shadow is not a substance. Substance creates a shadow. The substance is Jesus. The shadow that Jesus cast on the Old Testament was the Sabbath day, the day of rest. So that Jesus has become our Sabbath as Christians. He is our rest. We have ceased from our labors; we enter His rest. And so, Christ is our Sabbath. No longer is there a righteousness of works or of the law, but the righteousness now is by faith resting in Jesus Christ.” 

All four of these tasks are keys to a restorative Sunday that’s more than simple entertainment, but also feeds your soul. But remember, these principles are a toolbox to serve and delight you, not an obligation or a burden. Use them, add to them, or discard them as you plan your best Sunday ever. 

For a life of peace and purpose, release these myths and end the cycle of harried, hurried existence. Walk into the freedom of the Sabbath. 

References: 

Diddams, Margaret, et al. “Rediscovering models of Sabbath keeping: implications for psychological well-being.” Journal of Psychology and Theology, vol. 32, no. 1, spring 2004, pp. 3+. Gale OneFile: Psychology, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A116481813/PPPC?u=smdreglib&sid=bookmark-PPPC&xid=2a93d209. Accessed 20 Dec. 2021. 

Smith, C. “Verse by Verse Study on Genesis 2-3 (C2000) by Chuck Smith.” Blue Letter Bible. Last Modified 1 June, 2005. https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/smith_chuck/c2000_Gen/Gen_002.cfm 

Would you like to learn more about these principles and promises? Request your free information packet today!

Embedding Scripture in your mind and heart is a key step of spiritual growth for new believers and mature Christians alike.

A.W. Tozer wrote about this power in The Pursuit of God:

“The Bible is the inevitable outcome of God’s continuous speech. It is the infallible declaration of His mind for us put into our familiar human words. I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not only a book which was once spoken, but a book which is now speaking …a word of God once spoken continues to be spoken.”

The danger of studying the Bible as an academic exercise is the propensity for examining Scripture to become a chore, an intellectual activity drained of its soul-prospering power. But when you invite the Holy Spirit to guide your study, the Spirit will bring the Word to life with fresh insights and application.

In this article, you’ll learn four Bible study types and one study method applicable to most study types. Use these tools as you study the Bible in partnership with the Holy Spirit to enliven and vitalize your understanding and application of God’s Word so you can “rightly divide the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)

Induction Method

The induction method of Bible study is more of a technique than a type of study. Use the induction method as a framework to undertake any study type in this article, except for word studies. If you’re reading through the Bible using a chronological reading plan, for example, then use the induction method at every session to ensure you get the most out of your time in the Word.

The induction method starts with observation, then moves on to interpretation and application.

Observation

Although there are no specific questions you must ask in the observation stage, some questions like these are helpful and should give you an idea of how to systematically observe a biblical passage. If you’re studying for a short time, then use a few questions to guide your observations. An in-depth study? Use as many observation questions as you need and add more of your own. *

· What is happening in the passage?

· Who wrote the book or passage?

· What is the writer’s background?

· Who appears in the passage?

· What is the time in history?

· Where do events in this passage take place?

· What words appear often?

· Do any words in the passage indicate a change, reversal, or contradiction within the passage?

· Why was the passage written? Sometimes the intent of the text is stated in the passage.

Interpretation

Once you’ve noted the facts, you’ll interpret them by the help of the Holy Spirit. The following questions and exercises may be useful:

· Paraphrase the passage in a few words or sentences. You’re aiming for the clearest meaning of the passage.

· What is the cultural or historical context of the passage that could illuminate the meaning of the text?

· Is this passage referred to elsewhere in Scripture? Check cross-references.

Application

After you’ve explored the possible interpretations of a passage, you’ll do the most personal work of applying it to your life. This is a process of introspection, prayer, and partnership with the Holy Spirit. How can you apply the meaning of the passage to your walk with God?

Bible Study Types

If studying the Bible has become predictable and boring, then break up your study types using any of these four Bible study types.

Book Study

Use the induction method to study a book of the Bible.

For short books, an induction study may take a few hours or less, but for longer books, you’ll likely commit a few days or a few weeks to its study. Book studies can bring a big picture view of historical events or doctrine and help you get to know a particular writer’s style.

The time invested in a book study should deepen and broaden your understanding of biblical concepts and your personal relationship with God as the Holy Spirit leads you through the book.

Character Study

Character studies – the close scrutiny of a single person everywhere he or she appears in the Bible – is an opportunity to learn from one person’s relationship with God, whether good or evil. If their story was included in the Bible, then you can find encouragement and warning from their lives. Character studies

can be long and involved, such as studying the life and activity of King David, or completed in a single session, such as studying Tabitha or Jonah.

Topic Study

Topic studies take you on a journey through the Bible on the back of a single subject. It can help link together seemingly disparate topics into a story.

Take fasting, for example. As you explore the topic of fasting, you’ll be swept from Moses abstaining from food and drink while on God’s holy mountain receiving the Ten Commandments; along to Job in his mourning; David in his petitions and repentance; the wicked inhabitants of Nineveh changing their ways; Esther preparing to save her people; Daniel reminding God of His promise to bring Israel home; Jesus preparing for ministry; and to Paul reeling from his new commission as an apostle.

If a question is tugging at your heart or teasing your curiosity, then a topical Bible study may be the right choice.

Word Study

Word studies can cause a plain passage to teem with hidden life under closer inspection.

Hebrew, the language of the Old Testament, has only about 8,000 words, which means that many words had to have more than one meaning; indeed, some words have numerous meanings, such as the word used to describe Adam’s rib, from which God made the first woman.

Translation from Hebrew to English, or Greek to Latin to English, often meant losing rich meaning in words that lack cultural context or don’t have a strong equivalent in English. Focusing on a meaningful, confusing, or prevalent word within a passage can shed light and context on a word that you might otherwise take for granted in its English translation.

Returning to the Hebrew word for rib (tsêlâ), Dr. Grady McMurtry, Christian apologist, and regent and adjunct professor at the School of Theology, Columbus, Georgia, teaches that tsêlâ has at least eight meanings, including the keel of a boat, an object with a rib-shaped curve, and “that which gives strength.” Eve, Adam’s helpmate and life partner, is made from that which gives strength.

Word studies offer insights into the nuances of language that open avenues to a fresh, yet ancient, view of God’s intentions in His Word.

Tool: Concordances and lexicons are available online at Bible study sites. Blueletterbible.org is one option.

Studying the Bible is an endeavor in growing intimacy with the Lord. Use these study types and methods, through prayer and guidance by the Holy Spirit, to bring new life to your examination of the Scriptures.

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