Preparation for Hearing the Word of God Preached
- Consciously cultivate fresh awareness that I will be confronted with the very words of the living God.
Matt 4:4; 2 Tim 3:16; Isaiah 66:2; Heb 12:25; 1 Thess 2:13
- Consciously repudiate by fresh repentance all that would hinder my joyful reception and effective assimilation of the Word of God.
1 Peter 2:1; James 1:21a; Jeremiah 4:3Note: In the parable of the sower, it was the state of the soil (the heart) that determined the fate of the seed.
- Consciously cultivate a meek and eager disposition of heart toward the Word which I will hear.
James 1:21b; Psalms 25:8-9; 1 Peter 2:2; Psalms 119:20 & 131; Acts 17:11; Proverbs 27:7
- Consciously cultivate a disposition of dependence upon the Holy Spirit for His ministry as I anticipate the ministry of the Word.
Luke 24:45; John 14:26; Philip 1:17; Psalms 119:18, Proverbs 2:3-6, Jer 17:5-9
O God, believing that it is Your own living Word which I am about to hear, I repent of all that would hinder my hearing and receiving Your Word. I ask You to give me a meek and eager heart to receive Your Word and that the Holy Spirit will enable me to understand its truth.
– David Murray [from a summary of a sermon by Pastor Al Martin]