The Nucleus of Life

            Sometime during middle school, I fell in love with biology. Specifically, I developed a strong interest in cell biology and anatomy and physiology. Cells always fascinated me, not only because they give evidence of God’s creative power, but because of the intricacy of their design. Every cell in our bodies is controlled by its command center—the nucleus. All of the activity in the cell is driven by it. Like the nucleus of a cell, the Bible should serve as the control center of our lives and should influence every part of our lives. God’s word should set our agendas, govern our decisions, determine our priorities, direct our minds, and guard our hearts. Without Scripture, our lives will be chaotic, like a cell without a nucleus. When anything other than God and His word become the driving force of our lives, we place ourselves in grave spiritual danger.
            Paul highlights the importance of God’s word when encourages the church at Colossae to “let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” (Colossians 3:16). The word of Christ, or the gospel, can only dwell richly within our hearts when it’s not neglected but taught wisely and in accordance with sound doctrine. This is why Paul teaches in the next phrase that the believers in Colossae must be faithfully “teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom.” Wading in the shallow end of today’s popular evangelical pool, where Scripture is often limited to a verse or two and used merely as a diving board to get the pastor the topic he wants to discuss with little to no regard for the text’s context, one might reasonably question the sufficiency of Scripture as the sole source of authoritative truth. As it’s been rightly noted, “Sermonettes produce Christianettes.” Nor should Scripture ever be weaponized to manipulatively coerce people to do as the pastor demands rather than what God commands.
            To win popularity as a pastor these days, one has to be skilled in the rhetoric of ambiguity, practice the fine art of being noncommittal, teach a hazy theology that is steeped in catchy phrases, be crafty at soundbite nuggets of half-truths, and be eloquently conversant in soothing buzzwords that resonate with people’s ever-changing feelings. Whenever the pulpit follows the crowd’s whimsical moods, the pastor may become more palatable to the itching ears of society, but he becomes pathetic in the eyes of God. The preaching of God’s word must do more than move us to tears; it must overwhelm us with the depths of our sin and overpower us with God’s grace.
            Pastors and teachers in the church are miners, meticulously digging up the precious jewels of God’s truth to share with those under their care. They’re not meant to be sculptors, twisting and manipulating Scripture to meet their own ideas and needs or chiseling out the parts that make people uncomfortable. Preachers are excavators drilling into the depths of Scripture in order to teach and admonish God’s flock. God’s tender mercies and divine wisdom only make sense when the entirety of God’s truth is explained and applied. It is through the consistent proclamation of the gospel that spiritually blind eyes are opened and deaf ears are made to hear. The wounded are healed, the mourning are comforted, the lonely are encouraged, and the rebellious are brought to repentance only by the grace of God communicated through the preaching of His word.
            In Colossians 3:16, Paul uses the Greek word enoikeo, translated in the ESV as dwell. Enoikeo carries the idea of “to feel at home” or “to dwell in one and influence him (for good).” In other words, the gospel message is meant to take up residence in our hearts so it occupies every nook and cranny. There should be no part of our hearts and lives where God’s word is not the dominant influence. When our hearts are fully occupied by the truths of Scripture, there are no secret closets where our pet sins are locked away and never addressed. Granting God full access to our hearts allows His word to illuminate every shadowy corner, throw open every locked door, and expose every restricted area. To grow closer to God and become more like His Son, we must allow God’s holy word to dwell in us richly. Scripture should permanently dwell in our hearts so it consistently influences how we live.
            God’s word must be so deeply entrenched in the fabric of our being that it controls our thinking, motivations, actions, attitudes, responses, and decisions. Obediently following God’s commandments can only happen when we consistently allow the Scriptures to teach and admonish us. Once God’s truth takes up permanent residence in our hearts, we are on the road to spiritual maturity. When Scripture is the nucleus of our lives, everything we do revolves around it, empowering us to faithfully follow Jesus according to His word of life. Take a moment and consider what your life revolves around. If it is anything but the word of God, it’s time for your idols to be smashed and their altars torn down.