Partake, and live - The Watch Letter

Recently, our Pastor, Chief Apostle H.C. Gunn, has been emphasizing to the Body the critical need for us to go over and be attentive to the Word daily.

Today, during rehearsal, our Choir Director, Apostle Terah, opened up a discussion about how often we abandon God for temporal things—experiences, items, emotions, desires, ambitions, careers, and even other people. As we talked, it was emphasized that spending time away from God and his Word was the root cause.

"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word from God's mouth" (Matthew 4:4). This is what came to mind when I began to write today's post. Then I was reminded of a video I saw one day and a man essentially asked, "What would life be like if we carried the Word around as much as we carry our phones?" On the video, he replaced his phone with a Bible every time he would normally pick it up. It showed that if he read the Word as much as he checked his phone, he would be more alive and connected in Christ.

This is a powerful correction. 

Psalm 1:1-3 says: Blessed is the man that walks not in the counsel of the ungodly .... But his delight is in the law (Word) of the Lord, and in his law does he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water ... his leaf  shall not wither....

I remember Chief Apostle Gunn once taught that you cannot sustain your prayer life and relationship with God without reading your Bible every day—because the Bible inspires prayer and causes you to reflect on your daily life so you know how to talk to and seek God. It's no coincidence that the first verses of the Psalms, which are intended to promote prayer and communion with God, emphasize the significance of reading and meditating on the Word.

Last Sunday, Chief Apostle Gunn said during service, “When you’re dead on the inside (spiritually), the Bible will be dead to you.” He said, “When you receive the truth of the Word, something will be different on the inside of you.”

This reminds me of when Chief Apostle Gunn explained years ago that the Bible is alive—not only because of its relevance and timeliness thousands of years after it was written—but also because it sustains the life of God within us. 

Last Sunday, Chief Apostle Gunn also preached from Matthew 14 and how Jesus commanded the disciples with his Word to get in the boat and go to the other side and meet him there. He didn’t tell them to be turned aside by the storm or come out of the boat for any reason. He told them to stay in the boat and make it to the other side where he would be. The Word spoken to them was alive. It contained the power to get them to where the Lord was sending them, if they took him at his Word. But in the place where faith in his Word was dead in them, they found themselves afraid of the storm, instead of focused on the other side. Essentially, their fear and unbelief had them lost at sea, so Jesus had to come and rescue them. 

There are 31,102 verses in the Bible. There are 52 weeks in a year where we are taught the Word. And Chief Apostle Gunn records an average of 43 radio broadcasts a year. Truly, we have so much bread to sustain us day-by-day—if we just partake in the Word, we will make it to the other side and be with Him.

Isaiah 55:2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

Catch up on the FORREAL RADIO BROADCASTS "Ordained to Life Part I and II" with Chief Apostle Gunn here: https://www.thebodyofchristinc.com/listen-in.