AFFECTION The prerequisite to receiving benefit from the Bible is to love it. Assessment leads to affection. People are affectionate toward that which they have assessed to be of great value. You would not love and cherish a piece of trash that you found on the side of the road, but you would certainly love and cherish an old photograph of your grandparents or some other family heirloom. What makes the difference? The assessment. When something is perceived to be very valuable, it is only natural to love and honor that object. Again, notice the words of the Psalmist in verses 163 and 167: “…thy law do I love. My soul hath kept thy testimonies; and I love them exceedingly.” Love is predominantly shown by the giving of time. If a person says he loves the Bible but never reads it, would you believe him? What about a person who never wants to study the Bible, listen to God’s Word preached, or memorize a verse? That kind of love is not a very convincing love. When we truly love someone, we will desire to spend time with him. Not as little as we can possibly get away with, but every last moment we can possibly squeeze in. It is the same with the Word of God. Those who love it will want to be in its presence as much as possible (Psalm 119:97). When it is preached, they will want to hear it. When there are no preaching services, they will still set aside time to read it on their own. And since they cannot literally carry their Bible everywhere they go in life, they will want to hide it in their heart through memorization so they will never be without it.
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 13:29:29 +0000
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