Our small group just kicked off a 7-week study on the book of Romans. How can you possibly cover the 16 chapters in Romans in 7 weeks? Answer: very carefully and intentionally! We got to the end of our group time together last night, just the few first chapters, and I think everyone could have kept talking for another hour (or at least I could have). It was so difficult to bring our group to a close for the evening with prayer.
You know, the Bible is exhilarating – it is exciting! The Bible is life transforming, and able to get right to the bottom of all the issues we face in life. But it is also important to realize that we cannot learn everything there is to learn in 7 weeks. More importantly, we can’t neglect the Bible for days and weeks on end, and then expect to sit down one day and try to understand everything. Learning is a process, it is a journey that occurs over a life time.
The Duck Inn in Redditch, Worcestershire offers customers the world’s largest steak, coming in at a whopping 150 ounces; that’s almost 9 pounds. So far, no one has been able to eat it. In fact, I believe the record steak eaten has come in at just over 70 ounces. The Bible refers to our spiritual maturity in terms of drinking milk or eating solid food (Hebrews 5:12ff), and when it comes to maturity, many people are impressed and challenged by the 150 ounce steak, in fact, some are impressed with the whole cow!
Well guess what, you cannot sit down and eat a cow. You cannot sit down and eat a little 150 ounce steak. With the Bible, we need to pace ourselves, keeping our eyes focused on the prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14).
God used the Apostle Paul to write the book of Romans, and it is one of the great works of the New Testament. Romans tells of the fallen condition of man, the hope that is ours through faith in Jesus Christ, and outlines a great example for how to live out the Christian life! Pick a book, start somewhere, but dive into God’s Word – it will change your life!
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