I was in a ministers’ meeting recently where we were asked the versions of the Bible that we have. When it got to the turn of one of the minsters, he said he only had one version or so. His excuse was that he’s a music minister, so there’s no need for many versions of the Bible. His response got me thinking about the way some ministers treat the Bible.
Friend, you need the ministry of the word no matter who you are or what you do. The word of God is the foundation for everything we do in the Kingdom. Ministers of the gospel are first preachers and/or teachers of the word. It is from this basic that other manifestations flow. Once you cannot flow from the Word of God, you would be open to errors and struggles. You cannot get into Revelation until you start from Genesis (John 1:1).
The Apostles made a resolution to stick to the basics; prayers and the ministry of the word (Acts 6:4). These are two core courses you would never graduate from, no matter how long you have been saved. Be careful of people who disparage these basics with statements like “I don’t waste time on the word, I just flow as led.” “When I still used to pray to hear from God.” They are very dangerous to your faith.
You should begin your pursuit of God’s knowledge from the Bible, not from the spirit (John 5:39). Until you know the Word, you cannot safely know the Spirit or spirits as the case may be. The word of God remains the judge and the gauge of every spiritual operation (1 John 4:1). If you can stay with the word, you are already made. The voice of God is upon the waters of the word (Psalms 29:3, Ephesians 5:26).
While you must not be under pressure to finish the Bible in one year or one month, you must desire to finish the Bible and have a well-rounded knowledge of scriptures. Incomplete knowledge can be more dangerous than ignorance (Acts 18:24-28). You cannot fully understand some parts of scriptures if you don’t have a general knowledge of the entire Bible (Colossians 2:17, Hebrews 10:1).
No matter your area of ministry or the kind of church you attend, the word of God must be your foundation. Every pastor must know how to teach at a level (1 Timothy 3:2). He may not be able to teach the body of Christ, but he should be able to teach the flock under his care (Jeremiah 3:15, 1 Timothy 3:15). As a Christian, you don’t have to be in pulpit ministry to have a sound knowledge of the Bible. You need it for life and destiny (Deuteronomy 32:44-47, Proverbs 4:13, 20-22). You need to embrace the ministry of the word.
‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria