What a blessing it is to have the Word of God in our lives. Paul reminded the Jews of such in Romans 3. After telling them that they were sinners, just like the Gentiles were (Romans 2), he anticipated that they would ask, “Then what advantage has the Jew” (Romans 3:1). He was always prepared to give an answer. “Much every way,” he said (Romans 3:2). Now, notice the primary reason Paul states for their advantage. He said, “To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God.” The great advantage the Jews had over the Gentiles in Paul’s day was that they had access to God’s Word. That is still a great advantage for the people of God today. This week I want us to focus on the value of God’s Word, and I hope that we will be encouraged to study it as often as we can.

The first thing I want to emphasize is spiritual growth. If we will spend time in the Word, we will grow stronger in Christ all the time. Peter said, “Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation” (1 Peter 2:2). Notice a couple of things here. First, it is very important that we desire the Word of God. I like the ESV translation here because it reveals the strength of the desire that we should have for the Word of God. It is not a casual desire for something that we can take or leave. It is craving for something. The word for “long for” here is the same word that Paul used when he spoke of the Christian’s desire for the glorified body that he will have in heaven (2 Corinthians 5:2). Is heaven, and the glorious body we will have there, something we can take or leave? Of course not. Our lives are built around pleasing God and going to heaven to live for eternity. It is the strongest of cravings. The illustration that Peter gives is that of a baby yearning for milk. When a baby wants his milk, what will satisfy him other than the milk that he craves? The answer is nothing, and nothing should be able to take the place of the Word of God in our lives either. We must desire it with all our hearts. That is the only way that we will study and meditate upon it like we should.

Second, Peter writes about, not only growing, but growing into salvation. Salvation is the end of growing in Christ. A Christian, who is growing and getting stronger spiritually, knows that he is on the right track towards heaven. Are you growing spiritually? That is a very important question. We should all be stronger now than when we first obeyed the gospel. Now, do not just answer that question without consideration. It is easy to overlook our own flaws, and even ignore it when we are growing weak spiritually. The Christians at Laodicea were convinced that they were in great shape spiritually, but Jesus told them that they were, “wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked.” Wow! They really missed their self-analysis. We can do the same thing if we do not examine ourselves truthfully. So, be honest with yourself. Are you growing in Christ? I can almost guarantee that if you do not desire the Word to the point where you are studying it on a regular basis, you are not growing. If that is the case, you should make plans to study the Word of God more often just as soon as you can. It will give you an advantage in your striving for salvation. There are not too many things that we have access to that can help us grow as much as the Word of God. Remember, faith comes by hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17).

There are some people who live in places where the Bible is either not legal to possess, or not available in their language. We are blessed in this country to have such easy access to the Word of God. The question is, will we take advantage of our advantage? You will never regret making a habit of studying God’s Word. The end result will be spiritual growth, and you will find yourself in a place where your relationship with God is stronger and your soul is more secure than you ever thought possible. So, study the Word of God and watch how far it can take you.

As you wind down for the night, think on these things.