THE GNAW INITIATIVE: An Introduction
Welcome to the Something To Gnaw On Podcast, I am your host – Nate Vainio, and this episode is the first of season two, and the first episode in a project I am calling the Gnaw Initiative. Where the methodology of the STGO Podcast is a Parable-Style Devotional to both encourage people, and to push them to dig into the scriptures deeper for themselves. The Gnaw Initiative will focus on giving people the tools to do so. And for those who are more seasoned students of the Bible, well, look at this as a refresher course.
This Episode is simply “An Introduction”
I am a creature of habit, and I don’t fix things unless they are broken beyond my ability to tolerate them… So I stuck with Android phones for years… that is until it broke and I found a great deal on an I-Phone. I used to turn my nose up at I-phone snobs, but as of bout 2017 I switched sides. At the same time, I don’t think of myself as an I-phone snob – because I think I would switch back if this phone broke and I found a great deal on an Android.
And in that statement is buried a subtle little factoid….. I still have the same I-phone 6s Plus right now. Like I said I am a creature of habit, and don’t fix things unless they are broken beyond my ability to tolerate.
That being said, early on I began to tolerate this phone, because I found out quickly why it was so cheap. Apple made these phones without removable, or replaceable, memory cards. So, you pay for a phone with a fixed amount of memory with no chance of upgrading memory, unless you upload to the blessed cloud, or buy a new phone. I got the 6s Plus at such a cheap rate because it had the lowest amount of memory.
As a result, for the last 6 years I have repeatedly had to download pictures to the computer, or erase app’s that haven’t been used for a while when I need to install an new app or program. The process gets a bit frustrating, but I tolerate it. I need APP A, so I delete APP B, but 6 months down the road, I need APP B, so I have to delete APP A. Now multiply that situation by about 6 or 7 and you have a picture of my phone life.
On several occasions, I have tried to download apps, and I get the message that my operating systems is out dated, and I need to update it…… HERE’S THE IRONY!!! I don’t have the necessary space to do the update…… without deleting more apps and files. So, while IOS is on update 15.7.9, my phone is running on 12.5 or something like that. Now, as apps develop, my phone won’t even operate some apps, even if I had space.
Simply put, my phone lacks the necessary operating system and memory necessary to process new content, new programs, and new apps.
Toward the end of last season, I mentioned a survey several times that referenced the key to spiritual growth being the reading of the bible four or more times per week. The puzzling thing about it is that only about 25% of people in the church will actually crack open a Bible and read it 4 times per week. (you can find that part of the survey in the show notes as well).
This all begs the question of “WHY”? If this could change a person’s life so drastically, why do people not dig into it? Why do they tolerate the addictions and strongholds of life, when God promises so much freedom and life abundantly, see John 10:10.
Well, …… Either they have a lack of space (in terms of time to study, or the mental capacity due to the cares of daily life), or they lack a framework (a mental and spiritual mold) with which to process and retain the content. They have the same problem I have with my phone. I add something on the front, something has to fall off the back….sometimes I have no idea what that is till much later! And FRANKLY, it all takes time….. Time I don’t want to take away from other projects and duties….. so we tolerate life without freedom and abundant living. It’s sad
In very blunt terms, the study said most people say they don’t have the time (or dare I say space) for studying their bible. The focus of this study is two fold: ONE, to help create a mold, an operating system if you will, that will help you retain the information you read in the Bible. AND TWO, it will also seek to motivate you to break your schedule, slow down and actually take the time necessary to study your Bible. You might take a minute after this episode to listen to the episode from season 1 titled “TITHING YOUR TIME”. It could be a bit of an encouragement on this issue.
So, what is this going to cover? Here is a brief list of topics I’ll be hitting in the future:
· A Quick Survey of the Old Testament
· A Quick Survey of the New Testament
· Conversation on Inerrancy & Authority of Scripture
· Where Did this Unique Book Come From.
o Keep in mind the uniqueness of the Holy Bible:
§ 66 books written by more than 40 authors, over a 1500 year period, in three different languages, dead languages… and within their pages is a continuity, a streaming message of God’s love for mankind…
§ How is it that the writings of all 40 authors, over this period of time, end up in the same book? We will address that in time.
· What versions should I read from (I would add here that I am going to offload the bulk of this topic to my friends at LIFE FAITH AND EVERYTHING ELSE. I think it is one of their most popular episodes, but Justin and Tommy do an incredible job at giving a basic understanding of how we get the versions we read today…. So if you’ve ever wondered what version you should use….. or avoid…. This is a good starting point. And as always, these guys make a potentially dry subject pretty fun and enjoyable.
· Types of Bible Studies
o Verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book, you might have heard the term Expository Preaching, that is what this is….. if you need a big theological word for it!
o Character Studies, like I did in season 1 on Handling Conflict King David Style
o Geographical Studies
§ Like Jericho, from conquering, to cursed, to ahab, to the removal of the curse under a guy named Elisha, to the New Testament.
§ In the upcoming episodes where I will be doing a quick survey of the Old Testament I will highlight a few references to Samaria, so that some things in the New Testament will make more sense. (you might even call this a sociological or cultural study)
§ In the New Testament, Ephesus is a great geographical or cultural study because it is mentioned in the books of Acts, of course Ephesians, 1 Corinthians, 1 & 2 Timothy and Revelation. There is a lot to be learned from this geographic location, as well as other locations in the bible, it makes the rest of the bible a bit more clear.
§ The 7 churches in Revelation 2-3 necessitate this kind of study.
o We’ll look at doctrinal studies, or what I call threads throughout scripture
§ For example, looking at examples of God’s grace throughout scripture
§ Or looking at teachings on the same topic throughout several passages in scripture.
o We’ll look at overlapping records, and I may cover this more offhandedly in the survey of the Old Testament, but studying books that address the same events from different perspectives, like Samuel, kings, chronicles, and the prophets, as well as the 4 gospels.
· Basic Questions To Ask When Studying Scripture
· What Bible Should I Use, and Is Reading On An Electronic Device VERSUS a Physical Copy OK
· Common Errors People Make When Studying The Scriptures
· Rules of Proper Interpretation (the big college word would Hermaneutics, your power word for the day)
· And please email me if you have any other topics on bible study that you’d like for me to address…. You can email somethingtognawon@gmail.com
Keep in mind, These may be individual studies, and some may be merged in a single episode.
With all this in mind, I want to take a quick look at Psalm 119, which is quite unique… especially for what we are discussing. It’s the longest chapter in the bible, 176 verses to be exact. According to David Guzik, It’s one of the most poetic Psalms in outline form, It has 22 sections with 8 verses each. The writer goes through the alphabet and each section has a corresponding letter, then in that section, each verse begins with that letter.
The interesting thing to me is that this Psalm doesn’t revolve around God’s might, his holiness, his grace, his love, his justice, his peace, or any other attributes … The central point of this Psalm, like this podcast, is God’s Word. The subject of 171 of the 176 verses is God’s Word, but he makes up for missing it in those 5 verses by mentioning Gods Word multiple times in some verses. It refers to it with 8 different Hebrew words, but it’s all God’s Word… references are as follows: Law, Word (2 variations), Judgments Testimonies, Commandments, Statutes, Precepts. I would add that some words may be represented differently in different translations, like instruction instead of command or statute.
With that as an introduction to the Psalm let me read the section under the Hebrew letter Beth, which are verses 9-16, and listen for some of the words I mentioned before (or synonyms) and how the writer uses each of them.
9 How can a young person stay pure?
By obeying your word.
10 I have tried hard to find you—
don’t let me wander from your commands.
11 I have hidden your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.
12 I praise you, O Lord;
teach me your decrees.
13 I have recited aloud
all the regulations you have given us.
(****LOOK AT JOSHUA 1:8…….. “Don’t let this book of the law depart from your mouth…” The Israelites didn’t have a quick reference bible or scroll, dare I say they didn’t have an apple I-phone to pull up their favorite translation….. they wrote it down in their own hand (Deuteronomy 6) and they recited, and memorized, and sang scriptures to each other.….see Deuteronomy 31-32 and Ephesians 5:18-20, and Colossians 3:16 consider the important of not just speaking the word, but speaking it poetically, and lyrically….. basically singing helps you remember scripture better. When I was in the 8th or 9th grade, that would be 1988-89, a musician in our church put Psalm 51 to music. To this day, I have probably memorized and forgotten many verses in the bible, but I can quote verses 1-9 flawlessly, and courtesy of Keith Green, I can quote verses 10-13 as well. This all is simply to say that there is great power not only in taking God’s word in , but speaking it out, singing it out, reciting it aloud!)
OK … back to Psalm 119
14 I have rejoiced in your laws
as much as in riches.
15 I will study your commandments
and reflect on your ways.
16 I will delight in your decrees
and not forget your word.
Each verse highlights the focus on God’s Word, the importance of God’s word. And that’s the focus of this project, the foundation of it all, not that I would only have it, but that those of you listening would dig in to the Word, and look at what God has proclaimed, look at His Teaching, His Statutes, His Commandments, His Promises, His Testimonies, His Judgments. More than 4 times per week… And in so doing, find yourselves living in the Freedom and Blessing God so richly desires you to live, to be living in Him. But you have got to make the time to get into the word, and take the time to delete some of the apps in your head and your schedule so it can be done, so you can create a mold or a format (or a mental operating system) to retain and hold what God has taught in His Word. And dare I say, Some of you need to learn to SING scripture!
Let me leave you today with one last story that I found in David Guzik’s commentary.
Matthew Henry – the great 18th century Bible commentator – was introduced to Psalm 119 as a child. His father, Philip Henry, told his children to take one verse of Psalm 119 every morning to meditate on, and thereby go through the entire psalm twice in the year. Philip said to his children, “That will bring you to be in love with all the rest of the Scriptures.” Perhaps that practice was why Matthew Henry loved the Bible so much that he wrote commentary that is used still today.
And that’s what this is all about. Encouraging you, like Phillip Henry encouraged his children, to meditate on it, to gnaw on it, that it will bring you to be in love with the rest of scripture… and dare I add to Mr. Henry, that you would come to a place where you experience the promises of scripture in a real and personal way… that you grow spiritually, that you thrive, that you experience freedom in submission to Christ, that you find freedom over strongholds,… fruitfulness over bareness, peace of mind over anxiety – depression – and other mental illnesses, that you find intimacy in Christ instead of the abandonment of the world, that you come to experience God so close it eclipses the baggage you bring to the cross. God has so much more for you than you can imagine… and the gateway is getting into His word.
That’s it for this week folks, next week I will be diving into a crash course through the Old Testament, it will be that airplane view of it all… I am excited for this, I have been working on this for a while, and I haven’t seen anyone do this before. A lot of the time you see preachers and teachers go through the bible in a painfully slow manner. I will be taking a fast paced run through the books of the bible, giving some key points of each (certainly not detailed), but enough that it will help you hold the rest of scripture in a more clear and understood context.
You can find all the bible references, as well as David Guzik’s commentary on Psalm 119 in the show notes….. and in addition to reading the entirety of Psalm 119, his commentary is pretty good too!!!
Until Next Week
God Bless!