Saturday, June 12, 2010

MAKING THE WORD MY OWN





When we read the Word of God, it is relevant to each of us in our personal lives and our personal relationship to Jesus Christ. Sometimes as we read, we fail to make the words our own and instead we understand the passages as general to all mankind or all Christians. While the Word is meant for all, God desires us to identify with His Word and make it our own. The following passage from Ephesians describes our condition before we were saved and the result of our salvation through faith. Read the passage from the Word here. If you prefer another translation, feel free to get your Bible and read it from there. After reading this passage, we will personalize it and make it our own.

Ephesians 2:1-10 (ESV)

1. "And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2. in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience--3. among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4. But God being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5. even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved--6. and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7. so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9. not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." 

To personalize this passage, replace "you" with "I", "me", or "my". As you do this, notice what you are reading, the words. Allow the Lord to speak to you. As you read, you can freely worship and know that the marvelous grace and mercy of God is meant for YOU. I will personalize the passage so you can experience personally what God has done. 

Ephesians 2:1-10 (ESV)


1. "And I was dead in the trespasses and sins 2. in which I once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience--3. among whom I once lived in the passions of my flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and was by nature a child of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4. But God being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved me, 5. even when I was dead in my trespasses, made me alive together with Christ--by grace I have been saved--6. and raised me up with him and seated me with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7. so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward me in Christ Jesus. 8. For by grace I have been saved through faith. And this is not my own doing; it is the gift of God, 9. not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10. For I am his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that I should walk in them."

What an awesome gift of love and grace my God showed to ME!


23 comments:

Ruth said...

I love this passage. and i absolutely love the way you personalize it...Thank you for sharing this.Have a great weekend.
Ruth

Denise said...

This is so awesome, bless you.

Anonymous said...

Beautifully explained how His Word is so alive and yes it is God speaking to each of us intimately--like a love letter. Blessings!

From the Heart said...

A great verse. It takes me back to the time before I was saved. I remember things I said when asked if I wanted to give my heart to Jesus. I'm so glad He loved me enough to forgive my trespasses and come into my heart. I'm so glad I did for He has been my rock through out my whole life, in my marriage, raising my two daughters. I could not have done it without Him. My husband was not a Christian when we married but he was raised by Godly parents and I prayed a lot. God answered my prayers as he has been my support and helpmate through all the difficult years. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Blessings,
AE

Gregg Metcalf said...

This shows us very clearly that our salvation is such a gift of God. He gave us salvation, he gave us faith, he gave us life, he made us alive when we were dead. Praise God, my salvation had nothing to do with me and all to do with him! He came to this dead man who had no capacity to respond to him nor any desire to and breathed life through his Holy Spirit into me thereby giving me faith and the desire to turn to him in both faith and repentance. All the glory goes to him and I cannot boast except in him!

Anonymous said...

Bobbi, Thanks for sharing this.
It is indeed a wonderful way to personalize the scripture and reflect on it.

Charlotte said...

I like our insight of replacing the words with me, I, and my. It does make it more personal and that's as it should be. Thank you for sharing these wonderful scriptures with us.
Blessings,
Charlotte

Vilhelm man said...

God is merciful to us.
Forgive us are weak and subject to mistakes.
God bless you because he knew his Word.
Wish you a great day!

Musings of A Minister said...

Excellent! You are turning the spotlight on us today. This is wonderful.

Sandy said...

Thank you so much for this reminder. God's Word is so relevant to each of us!

Joan Hall said...

Great post, Bobbi. God's word is real and personal for everyone of us.

Blessings,
Joan

Renee said...

Personalizing scriptures makes them so much more powerful doesn't it! Thanks for the reminder and the great scripture..

Whidbey Woman said...

Thank you for the comment on my blog regarding my husband. I believe it. Alleluia. Amen!!!!

Elizabeth Dianne said...

That is an awesome passage. I just read it this past week and now I've read it two more times. It always blesses me. Thanks, Dr. Bobbie.

Ginger~~Enchanting Cottage said...

That is pretty powerful replacing the scripture with I. Thank-you Bobbi for this post.
God Bless,
Ginger

GodsOwn/Bernice said...

After reading an book from Stormie Omartian (praying wife)Some years ago i notice the power of personalizing verses out of God's word and speaking them out loudly....

It's like i could feel and see "the enemy" running away instantly.....
And me growing spiritually....

Was great to be here!
Bernice

Nikki (Sarah) said...

this is a great lesson Bobbi. Grace....means so much to me. thank you for it.

Cherie Hill said...

I have definitely found this to be powerful in my life...The Word is my everything...it is God's very breath in my life. What I have also come to realize lately is that when the Spirit has led me to a particular Scripture "by coincidence" (yeah, right!)...God is speaking DIRECTLY to me. I'm still trying to grasp that the God of the Universe is using words written thousands of years ago to speak to my situations in life. (so directly and powerfully) It is taking me some time to realize that the Spirit is intervening and using the Word to lead and guide me with such detail and precision...and strengthen me in my faith for the journey. What an awesome God! I cling to His Word.
Bless you sister!
Cherie

Dee said...

Hi Dr. Bobbi, Thank you for taking the time to visit my humble little blog and leaving a comment. My son and his family live in southern Illinois in a tiny place called Norris City. I am eager to one day do some backroad wanderings in the area. You have very informative blogs and I will spend part of my Sunday afternoon doing some reading and get to know you better .I love to blog. It is a very unique way to express ones self and to meet some really creative and talented peoplelike you. I do hope you will visit me again some time. Dee

A Busy Single Mom said...

Thank you for a very inspiring post!

Anonymous said...

Just found your blog. Can't wait to read more.

Cathy said...

That is wonderful. Thank God for His Words to us. Blessings ~

Covnitkepr1 said...

Seems so real and indivisual when read as the covenant it is. Hi...just passing through.