Leaving Beyond – Grounded In Scripture

Written by: April J. Buchanan

Few devotionals sit on my bookshelf, and that is intentional.

Even the most theologically rich and doctrinally anchored devotions often serve to fill a space in the day when we want to spend time in the Word but give little time to what should be the most important part of our day. Devotions can allow us to feel as though we have spent time in the Word when, in reality, we have not.

Even sound and faithful devotions can unintentionally empty the text of its beauty if we are not also faithfully sitting under the Word itself. A devotional may rightly handle a verse, offer honorable application, and provoke thoughtful reflection. But if that is all we consume, we may simply be seeking something to carry us through the day and to feel good about having been in the Word when we have not truly been.

We can easily begin to treat theologically rich books and devotions as substitutes rather than as what they ought to be. They are meant to serve us by helping us go deeper into Scripture and understand it more fully.

These resources can be good, beneficial, and God honoring, and they can lead to beautiful worship that truly glorifies God. They can also become substitutes for the true treasure. Used improperly, they may help us grow fluent in the language of sound doctrine while we spend little time actually sitting under the Word itself, which alone is inherently powerful and the ordinary instrument the Spirit uses to sanctify His people.

Can the Spirit of God enlighten us as we read a verse in a devotional written by a faithful expositor? Certainly He can. But there is no substitute for the Word of God.

While some chase experiences and encounters that lead their hearts away from the truth, we must also be careful not to replace Scripture with things that are good but can never and must never stand alongside or over it.

Devotions and theologically sound books have their place and can serve the believer well. We need not be as those who think they should never pick up a commentary, theology book, or study church history. That’s unwise and not at all what scripture teaches. It is also dangerous and prideful. We benefit greatly from studying church history, reading theologically sound books, and we can find encouragement from few (and I stand in stong conviction on the word few) devotions. But when a choice must be made, we ought always to choose what is best, which is the Word of God.

Even when isolated verses are handled carefully in some devotionals, and sadly many popular ones are not, they must still be tested by the whole counsel of Scripture. More than merely tested, we should be driven back into the text itself for the joy of seeing its beauty in full context rather than only through carefully selected fragments.

As Charles Spurgeon once said, “Visit many good books, but live in the Bible.”

Grace and peace.
Soli Deo Gloria