Walking with Jesus: The Practice of Scripture
Learning to hear God's voice in a world full of competing voices
Key Scripture: Matthew 4:1–11
“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” — Matthew 4:4
What if one of the biggest threats to your faith isn’t something openly hostile to Christianity, but simply the way our world distracts us?
Think about how much time we spend on our phones. From the moment we wake up until we arrive at church, we have already been exposed to countless voices, opinions, videos, news stories, and messages. Every one of them has the potential to influence how we think, what we value, and who we are becoming.
Something is forming us every day. We are becoming like something or someone, whether we realize it or not.
The question is whether we will be proactive about how we are being formed or simply react to whatever influences happen to come our way.
As followers of Jesus, we need to be intentional about allowing God's Word to shape our lives.
This isn't about religious legalism. We don't read the Bible to earn God's love or prove ourselves worthy of being Christians. We come to Jesus in repentance and receive His grace. Then we begin the lifelong journey of following Him, learning to hear His voice and becoming more like Him.
And a crucial part of that journey is regularly engaging with Scripture.
There is no Christian spiritual maturity apart from a regular engagement with God's Word.
We can have access to more biblical information than any generation in history, yet still struggle to grow in our knowledge of God. We can listen to excellent Bible teachers, read the writings of great Christian thinkers, and access incredible resources right from our phones. Yet somehow, we can still find ourselves watching cat videos instead.
And I'm a sucker for a good cat video. If you have one, send it my way. I'll probably watch it!
But we need to recognize that having access to biblical information isn't the same as allowing the Bible to transform us.
We live in a world full of competing voices, and some of those voices will even use Scripture to tell us what we want to hear. The challenge is to stop trying to make the Bible agree with us and instead allow it to shape us.
As Christians, we don't drag Jesus along to wherever we want to go. We follow Him wherever He leads.
So how do we develop a life that is shaped by Scripture?
Jesus and the Word of God
In Matthew 4:1–11, we read about Jesus being tempted by Satan in the wilderness.
After fasting for forty days and forty nights, Jesus was hungry. The devil came to Him and tempted Him to turn stones into bread. Jesus responded by quoting Scripture:
“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
— Matthew 4:4
The temptations continued. Satan challenged Jesus to test God's protection and then offered Him the kingdoms of the world in exchange for worship.
Each time, Jesus responded with the Word of God.
There's an interesting connection here with Israel's history. After leaving slavery in Egypt, the Israelites spent forty years in the wilderness. They struggled with hunger, failed to trust God, and turned toward other forms of worship. Jesus faced similar temptations, yet remained faithful.
Where Israel had failed, Jesus stood firm.
And notice how Satan even attempted to use Scripture himself, twisting its meaning to serve his purposes. Knowing a Bible verse isn't enough if we don't understand what it means or how it fits into the larger story of Scripture.
Jesus shows us why God's Word is so important in our spiritual formation.
God's Word nourishes our souls, anchors us in truth, and shapes our loyalty to Jesus.
Let's explore each of these.
1. God's Word Nourishes Our Souls
Jesus had been fasting for forty days. He was hungry, and Satan tempted Him to satisfy that hunger by turning stones into bread.
Jesus could have done it. We know from the Gospels that He later multiplied loaves and fish and turned water into wine. But He understood something deeper: human beings need more than physical food.
We can be physically full and spiritually starving at the same time.
The Bible repeatedly uses food as a picture of our need for God's Word. In 1 Peter 2:2, Peter encourages believers to long for pure spiritual milk so that they can grow in their salvation.
And I have to admit, I appreciate a good illustration involving food.
I'm a big cereal fan. I usually have cereal for breakfast, sometimes as a snack, and occasionally before bed. I'm an old-school cereal guy, and I particularly like Shreddies.
There's something wonderful about a fresh bowl of Shreddies with cold milk. You have to eat it at just the right time, before everything gets mushy.
But every once in a while, you take a big bite and discover that the milk has gone bad.
Suddenly, something you expected to be refreshing becomes absolutely disgusting. You brush your teeth, rinse your mouth, and do everything you can to get rid of the taste. And somehow, you can still taste it for days!
That's not the kind of nourishment Peter is talking about. He's describing something good, refreshing, and life-giving.
Reading your Bible isn't supposed to be a punishment. It's nourishment for your soul.
Unfortunately, I learned something different as a child. When we misbehaved in elementary school, the nuns would sometimes make us sit in a corner and write out passages of Scripture as punishment.
I was taught to loathe the very thing that should have been helping me learn to love God's Word.
The Bible isn't a burden we carry to prove we're religious. It's an invitation to receive the truth, wisdom, correction, encouragement, and nourishment our souls need.
This is also why our approach to Scripture matters. If we're constantly distracted by our phones, notifications, and the endless stream of information around us, it becomes difficult to slow down and let God's Word do its work.
Several years ago, I intentionally returned to using a paper Bible for my personal devotional time. I'm not opposed to Bible apps or online resources. They're wonderful tools. But I recognized that my phone could also be a source of distraction.
Sometimes, the best thing we can do is find a quiet place, put the phone in another room, open our Bible, and give God our attention.
We need to make space for our souls to be nourished.
2. God's Word Anchors Us in Truth
One of the striking things about the temptation of Jesus is that Satan knew Scripture too. He quoted it, but he twisted its meaning.
And that is still a danger today.
We live in an age when a video or social media post can present a Bible verse with an interpretation that sounds convincing but completely misses the point. People can take Scripture out of context to support their views on money, sexuality, politics, or just about anything else.
Sometimes, we are tempted to make the Bible say what we already believe rather than allow it to challenge what we believe.
The difference is important.
When we approach Scripture asking, “How can I make this support my position?” we're in danger of distorting it. When we approach it asking, “What is God actually saying here, and how should I respond?” we begin to put ourselves in a posture of humility.
This doesn't mean every passage is easy to understand. I'm still learning, and I don't claim to have every answer. But we all need to become students of God's Word rather than simply accepting whatever someone tells us it means.
Consider the way some teachers use Malachi 3:10 to encourage people to give money by promising that God will return their generosity with financial blessing. The passage speaks about testing God in the specific context of Israel's unfaithfulness in giving. We cannot simply take that invitation and turn it into a universal promise that giving money will make us wealthy.
We need to read passages in context and understand how they fit within the whole of Scripture.
Why does this matter?
Because people can be manipulated when they don't know their Bibles. Some religious teachers exploit the hopes and fears of vulnerable people, even encouraging them to give money they cannot afford in exchange for promises of blessing.
That is a serious distortion of the heart of a God who repeatedly calls His people to care for the poor and vulnerable.
This is why I want you to read the Bible for yourself. Don't simply believe something because a pastor says it, a preacher says it, or a video online makes it sound convincing.
Read it. Study it. Ask questions. Learn to recognize when a passage is being taken out of context.
Hebrews 4:12 describes God's Word as living and active. Psalm 119:11 connects knowing Scripture with resisting sin:
“I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”
God's Word helps us recognize what is true, exposes what is false, and protects us from being led astray.
We need that foundation now more than ever.
3. God's Word Shapes Our Loyalty to Jesus
In the final temptation, Satan offers Jesus the kingdoms of the world in exchange for worship.
The temptation is to take a shortcut to power by turning away from the Father's will.
Jesus refuses. He declares that we are to worship the Lord our God and serve Him alone.
This brings us to a crucial question: What has our allegiance?
There is nothing inherently wrong with education, careers, hobbies, sports, relationships, or the many other good things that fill our lives. The problem comes when those things take priority over following Jesus.
We can become so focused on our interests, responsibilities, and ambitions that our relationship with God gets whatever time is left over.
We fit in church if our schedule allows. We join a small group if it's convenient. We read the Bible if we happen to find a few spare minutes.
But Jesus calls us to something deeper. He calls us to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.
And we cannot grow in love for someone we never take the time to know.
You wouldn't normally commit your life to someone you barely knew. Yet sometimes we expect to develop a deep love for God while giving Him only a small portion of our attention.
The more we know Him through His Word, the more our understanding of His character, His purposes, and His love shapes our hearts.
This is one of the reasons we gather for worship. We open Scripture to discover who God is and what He has done. We allow His truth to challenge us, correct us, and realign our hearts.
Then we sing, pray, serve, give, and love others in response.
The goal isn't simply to know more about the Bible. The goal is to become people whose lives are increasingly shaped by Jesus.
Psalm 1 describes the person who delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night. As God's Word becomes part of us, it begins to influence our decisions, our priorities, and our worship.
But what does that look like in everyday life?
Four Ways to Develop the Practice of Scripture
There are four practices I want to encourage you to explore. Each one builds on the previous one, and you can begin wherever you are.
1. Read
If reading the Bible isn't a regular part of your life, start small.
You don't need to begin by reading twenty chapters a day. You could start with a verse of the day, a short passage, or a few minutes of reading several days a week.
Going from not reading Scripture at all to engaging with it regularly is a significant step. Give yourself grace as you establish the habit.
It can also help to have a plan. Perhaps you want to read one of the Gospels by the end of the month or all four Gospels by the end of the year. Choose a goal that will help you develop a consistent rhythm.
I recently started watching House of David. It's an entertaining series, although some of its storytelling is not biblical. Watching it prompted me to return to the biblical account, so I started reading 1 and 2 Samuel.
I've been reading the actual biblical narrative alongside the show, looking at the characters and comparing what I'm watching with what Scripture says.
In the space of a couple of days, I had read fifteen chapters of 1 Samuel.
The important thing isn't the television show. It's that something sparked a renewed desire to engage with Scripture.
Find a plan that works for you, and begin reading.
2. Meditate
Once you're reading Scripture regularly, learn to slow down and meditate on what you've read.
I know the word meditation can make some Christians uncomfortable because of its association with other religious traditions. But meditation is also a biblical practice. Psalm 1 speaks about meditating on God's Word day and night.
Biblical meditation isn't about emptying your mind. It's about giving God's Word your attention, reflecting on its meaning, and allowing it to shape your thinking.
In my own quiet time, I often spend ten to twenty minutes in silence before reading a passage. Then I sit with the text and ask questions:
What does this passage actually mean?
What does it show me about God?
What is it revealing about my own heart?
How should it change the way I live?
Recently, Danielle challenged me with a simple question about my reading in Samuel: “What did it mean for you?”
I had been reflecting on King Saul and the way his relationship with God changed. At some point, it seemed that God had become more the God of the prophet Samuel than the God Saul himself was truly following. Saul's life increasingly became about Saul.
That challenged me to consider how easily Christian leaders can fall into the same trap.
Every Sunday, people come up to me and say the sermon was amazing. I'm grateful for their encouragement, but I also need to remember that ministry isn't about me. It's about God and what He is doing in people's lives.
Meditating on Scripture gives us an opportunity to examine our own hearts rather than simply think about what the passage means for everyone else.
But this takes time and attention. If we're constantly rushing from one thing to another, with our phones beeping and our minds racing, we rarely stop long enough to reflect.
Practise silence. Read Scripture slowly. Ask God to show you what you need to see.
Then listen.
3. Study
As we grow in our engagement with Scripture, we also need to learn how to study it carefully.
I've often said that I want every family to own a Bible. I'd go a step further and encourage people to consider purchasing a study Bible.
I intentionally returned to using a large study Bible because I wanted to get away from my phone during my devotional time. Carrying it around isn't always convenient, but I appreciate having the notes, explanations, and references available.
I've also been spending years studying Isaiah 61, trying to understand more fully the depth of what Jesus has done and what He desires for His people. I've marked passages, written notes, and highlighted things that have stood out to me.
When I hear someone teach from Isaiah 61, I can return to those notes and consider what I've learned. Sometimes, I have to stop and ask myself whether an interpretation I've heard is actually supported by the passage.
That's not about criticizing the person teaching. It's about taking Scripture seriously enough to examine what it says.
Studying the Bible requires us to consider context. What kind of writing are we reading? Is it history, poetry, wisdom literature, prophecy, or apocalyptic writing? Who was the original audience? What was happening when the passage was written?
For example, Proverbs contains wisdom and principles for living. When Proverbs tells us that walking with the wise makes us wise, while associating with fools brings harm, it is describing how life tends to work. We shouldn't automatically treat every proverb as a guaranteed promise or a direct command.
When I was raising my children, my daughter once suggested that you can't help who you fall in love with. My response was essentially, “Yes, you can. Don't put yourself in situations where you're likely to make foolish choices!”
That may not have been the most elegant parenting advice, but the principle stands: the people we spend time with influence us.
Understanding the kind of passage we're reading helps us apply it appropriately.
A study Bible is a great place to start. You can also use trustworthy commentaries, Bible dictionaries, and other resources to help you understand the text.
The important thing is to move beyond asking only what a passage means to you and learn to ask what it actually meant and how that truth should shape your life today.
4. Memorize
Finally, I want to encourage you to recover a practice that seems to have become less common: memorizing Scripture.
We don't need to memorize the entire Bible. But there is real value in learning passages that we can carry with us throughout our lives.
I find the history of ancient Jewish education fascinating. Jewish children were taught Scripture from an early age, and memorization played an important role in their formation. That kind of familiarity with God's Word is something worth recovering.
I have Psalm 97 memorized, and the funny thing is that I learned it largely because Michael W. Smith released a song that included the psalm being read aloud. I listened to that song so many times that the words became part of me.
And I'm grateful they did.
There have been many times in ministry when I've felt discouraged or wondered whether someone would ever experience freedom from a particular struggle. In those moments, Psalm 97 has come back to me as a reminder of God's greatness and sovereignty.
It begins with the declaration that the Lord reigns and calls the earth to rejoice. It describes His righteousness, justice, and power, reminding us that the world ultimately belongs to Him.
When work is difficult or circumstances feel overwhelming, those words help redirect my attention. I remember that God is still on His throne, that His righteousness and justice stand firm, and that His glory will one day be seen by all people.
That's the beauty of memorizing Scripture. God's Word can come to mind when you need it, even when you don't have a Bible in front of you.
So choose a verse or a short passage and begin learning it. Write it down. Repeat it. Put it somewhere you'll see it. If a song helps you remember the words, use it!
Whatever works, start memorizing something.
You might be surprised how often those words return to you when you need encouragement, wisdom, or a reminder of who God is.
Meeting with the Living God
One of my professors and mentors, Dr. David Barker, once held up a Bible and made a profound observation. We sometimes divide our time in Scripture into different categories: devotional reading, study time, sermon preparation, or preparation for a small group.
But every time we open the Bible, we have an opportunity to come face to face with the living God.
That perspective changes everything.
If you're preparing to lead a small group, study Scripture to prepare well. If you're preparing a sermon, study the passage carefully. If you're reading a verse before heading out the door, receive what it has to offer.
But don't lose sight of the privilege in front of you.
You are engaging with God's Word. You are learning who He is, what He has done, and how He calls you to live.
Don't treat the Bible as simply another item on your religious to-do list. Treat it as an opportunity to meet with your Father.
Let His Word nourish your soul. Let it anchor you in truth and protect you from deception. Let it reshape your priorities and deepen your love for Jesus.
The goal isn't simply to become more knowledgeable about the Bible.
The goal is to become more like Jesus as we spend time in the presence of God through His Word.
And that is a journey worth taking, one day at a time.