Ecclesiastes 12:11 (NLT) “The words of the wise are like cattle prods – painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which a shepherd drives the sheep.”
Cattle prods are often used when driving animals from one place to another, and while they aren’t deadly, they are painful. Words of a wise person, or God’s words can be like that for us – painful but in our best interest especially when we are traveling the wrong path. We are sinful by nature and have a tendency to try and hide our sin from others and from God. But God knows everything, He sees deep into our very souls, and we are unable to hide anything from Him. That’s why sometimes when we read His word it may feel as if it is cutting deep into our hearts. We may know that we’ve done wrong but we’re trying to avoid detection, trying to hide, to remain out of sight. God’s word should motivate us into doing what is right, not what is right in our eyes or man’s eyes, but what is right in God’s eyes. There is not only wisdom in His words but great power, power we can use to fight when facing the enemy. His word will help us to stand firm, to stay alert and to find courage in difficult times. But it can only do these things if we are willing to invest time and energy in consuming His word. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote “Because I am a Christian therefore, every day in which I do not penetrate more deeply into the knowledge of God’s Word in Holy Scripture is a lost day for me. I can only move forward with certainty upon firm ground of the Word of God. And, as a Christian, I learn to know the Holy Scriptures in no other way than by hearing the Word preached and by prayerful meditation.” Bonhoeffer knew the importance of daily spiritual growth, so much so that a day without God’s word would be considered a day lost. We know how difficult it is when we lose a day of work and have bills to pay, but losing a day of God’s word is like losing a day of life! Think about that, if your life depended on you not just reading or hearing God’s word every day but on “penetrating more deeply into the knowledge of God’s Word” would you do it? Would you do it to add extra days to your life? Of course you would. While it may not add days to our life here on earth, it will give us a better, more peaceful and joyful life. There is great power in God’s word and when we learn to apply His words to our life it gives us the power to overcome that which would otherwise overtake us. Fighting spiritual battles is impossible without the word of God, His words are our weapons, our shield, our firm foundation that provides stable footing as we stand and fight. Jeremiah 23:29 “Does not my word burn like fire? says the Lord. Is it not a mighty hammer that smashes a rock to pieces?”