The Believer's Need for the Word
"My soul cleaves to the dust;
Revive me according to Your word...
My soul weeps because of grief;
Strengthen me according to Your Word."
—Psalm 119:25, 28
Many Christians have an earnest desire to know God's Word. Barely a Christian can be found these days who does not own and carry a "study" Bible. Christian marketing has seized upon this apparent hunger for Bible acquisition and presented the Christian community with a tantalizing array of study Bibles, study helps, and a multitude of versions from which to choose. Elaborate and complex computer Bible programs can be purchased and entire Bibles in a variety of versions are available for computers, tablets and smartphones. There is a Bible for every personal need.
Knowledge of God's Word is important; without it we would not know about God. However, facts, information, doctrine and theology do not always put us in touch with God; they do not connect us to God personally. Knowledge about God does not necessarily translate into knowledge of God experientially. Facts and information about God's Word may be one step to knowing God but is only one step towards God.
God is not known or experienced fully until we connect with Him personally through His Word. Christians seek to experience God in a variety of ways. Some seek to experience Him in worship, while others attempt to discover what "God is doing," and then join in. Some seek to experience God through the expression of charismatic gifts, while others seek to experience Him through prayer, meditation, or encounters in spiritual warfare.
Walk with the Word is based on the belief that the best way to know God personally is to experience Him through His Word. How does experiencing God personally through His Word happen? It happens when we allow Him to "speak" to us through His Word. It doesn't take a study Bible to make that happen, but it does take time. We believe that every Christian is capable of hearing God speak through His Word. Too few Christians today are truly experiencing God through His Word because they have assumed that the attaining of facts and knowledge about God's Word is sufficient.