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Governments of nations arm their soldiers with guns, but Christ Jesus arms His soldiers, preachers of the gospel, with the Word of God and empowers them with His Spirit. The written Word of God is the Bible.
It is, therefore, difficult to find apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers and genuine Christians without Bible in their possession. Many have different versions printed in different languages to ensure deeper understanding.
Now, the Christian Bible, similar to the Law of the Lord used by the ancient Jewish people, is not ordinary; it is sacred, special and inspired. Therefore, those who possess it must understand how it must be used.
This short article focuses on three key things genuine men of God do with the Bible. We learn these things from the life and ministry of Ezra, the priest and scribe.
“For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel” (Ezra 7:10).
In the verse above, Ezra reportedly did three things with the Word of God. And these three things are important for servants of Christ Jesus to understand and imitate today.
Study The Bible
First, Ezra personally STUDIED the Law of the Lord. He made a personal heart decision to take the written Word of God, read and understand it. That was necessary for him to gain knowledge and insight about the precepts, decrees, commandments and the will of God.
Similarly, a minister of the gospel, must by necessity resolve in his heart to study the Bible, paying greater attention to passages that project the redemptive work of Jesus Christ.
We must study the Bible to comprehend the deity of Christ Jesus, to appreciate the requirements of the Old Testament worship that were fulfilled in Christ Jesus, to realise the dangers clericalism poses to the Church, and to consider the ministry of all Christian believers for the advancement of the gospel.
Live By The Bible
The second thing Ezra did, for our example, is that after studying the Word, he also DID it. This means he did not just study it for knowledge but also acted on it, obeyed it or lived by it.
This reminds us that it is one thing studying the Bible; it is another thing applying what is learnt or known. Many have studied and known the Word of God, but they refuse to live by it. That is self-deception.
The greatest thing God expects Christians to do with His Word is to obey, act or do what it teaches in the context of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. A Christian who does not do or keep the commandments of God, after hearing or studying them deceives himself (James 1:22).
He also exposes himself as a hypocrite. Jesus Christ described the Pharisees and the scribes as hypocrites in Matthew Chapter 23, because they did not practise what they knew and taught (Matthew 23:2).
Teach God’s Commands
The last thing Ezra did with the Law of the Lord was that after studying and doing it, he TAUGHT it. He explained its statutes to the congregation of Israel to obey.
This implies that a servant of God is unfit to interpret, explain or provide instruction about the Bible for others to obey unless he has assiduously studied it and diligently put it into practice.
A pastor who does not practise what he teaches is not worth imitating, considered a role model or a mentor, because he is a hypocrite. And we know that hypocrites are already under the criticism and condemnation of Christ Jesus (Matthew 23:13-33).
Now, these three key things Ezra did with the Law of the Lord, in his day, are still relevant in our day, where the gospel of the Kingdom of God is the important message for the Church.
Even Jesus Christ Himself “…began both to do and teach (Acts 1:1). He acted His words before teaching them, implying that action precedes instruction. Jesus lived out the message before He preached it.
His ministry was not just sermons; it was the living demonstration of God’s kingdom — healing the sick, feeding the hungry, showing compassion, and walking in holiness. In kingdom work, demonstration validates proclamation.
There is, therefore, the need for Church leaders to follow the examples of Jesus Christ and Ezra. We must study the Bible, especially the New Testament books, live by its teachings before we teach others.
We must teach gospel facts. It is sad that many Christians do not understand simple biblical terms like: born again, gospel, salvation, church, ministry, sanctification, baptism, meditation and others.
This situation exists because many pastors have chosen to often tell biblical stories during church meetings to excite people’s emotions than to teach gospel concepts to deepen their understanding and to ground them in the Faith.
By James Quansah
