Live the Word Bible Studies

Welcome to Live the Word

I am happy you have visited this site, where my goal since 2001 has been to help people all over the world understand and then apply the word of God in their lives. If you look on the right hand side of this blog site, you will see the name of each book in the New Testament, where you will find what I call a devotional commentary for every verse in those books. My goal was not to do a technical study, but rather a practical one that presented not only insights, but also questions and recommendations to help you apply or live the word. I have now published those studies in book form, but it's time to expand my work with something new (pictured here are two of my commentary covers, and they are all available in paper or Kindle format from Amazon).

For several years, I have had the idea to develop a Purpose Study Bible, similar to others on the market like The Spirit-Filled Bible, The Leadership Bible, The African Bible, and The Student Bible. Each one of those incorporates insights about a particular topic right in the Bible itself, like an easy-to-use commentary. I have been teaching on the topics of purpose and creativity since 1991, and have seen, gathered, and have often written about those topics from a biblical perspective. For the remainder of my days, I want to share what I have learned with my readers on these two topics, and this format seems like an economical way to do so (since I am not ready to undertake publishing a Bible).

I also want to learn from my readers, so I invite you to post comments to supplement, correct, or augment what I have written. My goal, however, is not to make us all experts on what the Bible has to say about purpose or creativity, but rather to help us become people of purpose, for as Jesus said, "Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them" (John 13:17). That is why my commentaries are called Live the Word, for that is what we are expected to do.

I hope you enjoy reading these studies as much as I enjoy writing them, and I hope you will be an active participant by sharing your own insight and testimonies. Thank you, and may the Lord bless the study and reading of His word!

Purpose Study Bible 22: Big

We move on this week to one of the most important accounts in the Old Testament, for it is in chapter 12 that the Lord begins to fulfill the promise He made to Adam and Eve that their seed would crush the
head of the serpent:

The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran. He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.(Genesis 12:1-5).

We do not know why the Lord called Abraham, although it does seem like he had a heart for God even though he had no history in God of which we know. When the Lord revealed Himself to Abraham, He continued His directive for the people to spread out, multiply, and fill the earth, something that those in Genesis 11 refused to do until they were forced to do so. Abraham went willingly.

Put yourself in Abraham's place. How would you have received the news that you would be a great nation from your current situation? Would you ask a lot of questions? Would you want confirmation or more evidence that God was behind this?

We are all comfortable with being small, but what if God wants you to be "big"? What is His plan for you is to start a business that will employ thousands, or launch a fashion or beauty line that carries your name, or perform on a big stage (singing, preaching, teaching, performing) that will touch many people as you encourage, inspire, instruct, or entertain them? If God wants you to be "big," then what do you have to do to make yourself equal to the task?

Purpose Study Bible 21: Failure to Communicate

As we look at the last lesson from the Tower of Babel, we learn how the Lord thwarted the efforts of the people to settle down and build themselves a city with a monument:

Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.” So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. That is why it was called Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth (Genesis 11:7-9).

What exactly happened here? Did people suddenly start speaking different languages? There is that possibility that a few languages emerged from this story, but it is also possible that the Lord confused the language the people were already speaking so that their singular goal became unclear or unsatisfactory. Have you ever been totally confused by someone even though they were speaking your native tongue? Have you talked to someone using a common word but realized during the conversation that you both understood the word differently? That can be a source of frustration and friction between people, causing them not to be "on the same page" with one another and preventing them from successfully working together.. 

This story tell us that God is involved not only in the development of human language, but He also is involved in enhancing communication between people, whether one-on-one or in a group. This truth is demonstrated in the story of Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the disciples:

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?" (Acts 2:1-12).

The Holy Spirit empowered the disciples to "declare the wonders of God" in the languages represented in the crowd that day because God was involved to enhance communication the same way He was present to confuse communication in Genesis 11. Are you having any communication problems with others, even though you speak the same language—maybe even in your own family? Are you asking God to help you communicate with others, especially as you tell the story of His work in your life? Are you asking God to help you not just hear but also fully comprehend what others are trying to tell you? 

Purpose Study Bible 20: Power in Teams

The story of the tower in Genesis 11 is important because it encapsulates and explains so many of the challenges faced as we build and function in teams and families. Let's look at how the Lord responded to their efforts to build a tower:

But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. The Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. (Genesis 11:5-6).

The people thought they were building a great edifice that would reach unto heaven. Yet the account says that the Lord "came down" to see the city and the tower. (This shows that the people were doing more than building a tower; they were establishing a life center with the tower as the crowning achievement.) The Lord was not impressed with either, for He had to "come down" to see them.

No matter how great our efforts, they are futile in God's sight without His involvement and protection: "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and have given us over to our sins" (Isaiah 64:6-7). This is especially true of any works we do to try and gain His approval or earn His favor. We already have both, so our efforts should not be to gain God's favor, but to indicate we already enjoy His favor.

Notice also the power that God put into the power of teams working together. He created us to feed off one another's gifts and strengths, and when we combine them for the right reasons, our efforts are greater as a whole than the sum of their individual parts. In other words, when we work together, one plus one can equal five or ten or more. That is the power of something called synergy. God had to thwart the synergy in this story because He had promised not to intervene again as He had during the Flood, so He had to prevent the builders from being successful for their own good and protection—or they would have kept building.

Are you working for the Lord or building a monument for yourself or your organization? (Even people working in ministry can be building something great for the wrong reasons.). Are you part of a team that is experiencing synergy or one that is simply a collection of individuals working in silos or alone? What can you do to improve your team's dynamics and effectiveness?

Purpose Study Bible 19: Building a Tower

We saw in Genesis 10 how people spread out to fill the earth as the Lord had commanded them to do. In Genesis 11, we read about those who stopped spreading out and instead decided to stay put and build a tower:

Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth" (Genesis 11:1-4).

These people wanted to make "a name for themselves," and they determined to do it at any cost. What did they do? They made bricks. They lived in a hot climate, but decided to bake the bricks thoroughly, which meant they had to build fires, making an already unpleasant work environment even worse. Then they decided to use tar to hold the bricks together. Do you know what tar smells like when it's heated? It gives off a foul odor.

Contrast these conditions with those in the Garden and you will see what the Fall cost people in regards to their purpose and creativity and how they would ultimately be expressed. What's more, rather than spread out as they were commanded, these people decided to stay in one place and build up, believing they could reach heaven through their own effort and work. 

Proverbs 13:15 states, "Good understanding giveth favour: but the way of transgressors is hard" (KJV) while Psalm 127:1-2 reports, "Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for he grants sleep to those he loves."

How would you characterize your work and career? Do you enjoy your work or are you toiling away in the heat of the day in unpleasant conditions? Are you building a name for yourself or glorifying God? Have you stubbornly planted yourself in one place, perhaps enduring mistreatment and a harsh environment rather than move on to something else, like as if you have the only job on the planet? If you are making bricks in the desert, can you trust the Lord for something better? How will you find it?

Purpose Study Bible 18: Spread Out

The Lord told Noah and his sons to "be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth" (Genesis 9:1). Here is an example of how they and the generations following them responded:

Cush was the father of Nimrod, who became a mighty warrior on the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the Lord; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the Lord.” The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Uruk, Akkad and Kalneh, in Shinar. From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah—which is the great city (Genesis 10:8-11).

Obeying God's command, some went out and built cities and kingdoms, being true to their interests and purpose like Nimrod, who was a "mighty hunter before the Lord." These men did not necessarily honor or glorify God through their efforts, but they went out nonetheless and bore fruit, building kingdoms and establishing population centers that are mentioned throughout the Bible.

Later, Jesus gave a similar command found in Matthew 28:19-20: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” What are you doing with Jesus command? Are you going? Are you helping others to go? Are you praying? Are you doing something in response to the command to spread out and bear fruit? "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you" (John 15:16).

It is important to understand that Genesis 10 and Matthew 28 are not simply directives to evangelize but to fulfill one's purpose, whatever that God-assigned purpose may be. Are you fulfilling your purpose and bearing fruit? If so, what is your fruit?

Purpose Study Bible 17: Starting Over

After the Flood and the waters subsided, Noah, his family, and the animals disembarked from the Ardk, and God gave them these instructions:

Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth. The fear and dread of you will fall on all the beasts of the earth, and on all the birds in the sky, on every creature that moves along the ground, and on all the fish in the sea; they are given into your hands. Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything" (Genesis 9:1-3).

Notice that He told them exactly what He had told Adam and Eve—that they were to "be fruitful, increase, and fill the earth." God also gave them not only the green plants for food, but also all creatures that moved. He gave them everything and the emphasis here is on the word give.

God was not telling Noah's family they were not to work. The work mandate was still in place, but they were not to have the mentality that they had to work for their food or they would starve. God was their Provider, would guide their work, and He would make sure they were take care of.

Jesus, who came to restore things as they were in the Garden and after the Flood, addressed this issue of provision on more than one occasion, and let's look at one of His teachings on the subject:

 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" (Matthew 6:25-34).

Are you worrying over the state of the economy and your ability to feed you family? Are your thoughts and actions in alignment with what Jesus said—that if you seek to follow the King in His Kingdom, He will provide all that you need (not necessarily all you want)? What steps must you take or what attitudes must you address to be more focused on your work and less focused on your provision? Please note: I am not suggesting you don't have to work. You do, but I am suggesting you not see your employer or job as your provider. God is your Provider and if you have to start over in another part of His "Garden" for work, He will take care of you along the way. 

Purpose Study Bible 16: A Long-Term Goal

God directed Noah to build an ark and then gave him these instructions:

"You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with
you. Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive. You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them" (Genesis 6:19-21). 

What do these instructions tell us about Noah and his work:

1. The ark probably took between 50-70 years to construct.
2. Noah could not have built it himself; he had to organize his family to do the work with him.
3. His family had to have some construction skills in order to help.
4. Once built, Noah had to organize the way forward by gathering food, receiving the animals (note that he did not have to go fetch the animals; God brought them to him).
5. Noah, like Adam and Eve, worked in partnership with God. God directed the work but Noah had to draw on his gifts and intelligence to complete the task.
6. Noah had to have faith in God to begin and complete the task. Faith has always been a requirement to please and serve God.
7. Noah had to learn how to manage his time to get the job done.

Some significant projects and accomplishments cannot be achieved in a short period of time. They require thought and creativity in order to reach the goal. I just completed an 18-year project of writing and then publishing a New Testament commentary. That required me to apply the same practices Noah used as described above.

Do you have any long-term goals? Do you have something in which you can invest the best of who you are and who God made you to be? Do you feel like God is directing your work? Are you responding by utilizing your energy, gifts, and talent?

Purpose Study Bible 15: Noah's Creativity

As stated earlier, the concepts introduced in the earliest chapters of Genesis were still in effect after the Fall (things like purpose, creativity, and teamwork), but they were so infected by sin that eventually they became completely alienated from the Lord. Therefore, the Lord needed to "reboot" the human race as we read in Genesis 6:

The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord (Genesis 6:5-8).

In order to start over, God gave Noah a set of plans to build an ark. Keep in mind that Noah had never seen rain and no one had ever built an ark before:

"This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high. Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit high all around. Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks" (Genesis 6:15-16).

Those verses beg the question: How did Noah know how to build an ark? You may respond, "God told him how to do it," but is that accurate? After all, if someone gave you the plans to build a five-story building and you were not an architect or construction worker, would you be able to build it? Probably not. The point is that Noah had a skill, maybe even a gift, to build and he expressed his creativity to construct the ark.

Do you have any creative skills that seem so natural that you think anyone could do what comes easily to you? Can you read a pattern and create a dress? Can you read instructions and put together a bicycle? Can you learn a language quickly and easily by listening or following a step-by-step guide? If you can do any of those things or a myriad of other similar things, then you have unique creativity that is not an accident—it is something God equipped you to do and you should take it more seriously than you have up to this point in your life. If you are to take it more seriously, what should you do? school? reading? find a mentor or coach? get busy creating? Whatever it is, stop wasting this skill or skill (or whatever you label it) and start being more creative than you have ever been.

Purpose Study Bible 14: Diversity of Purpose

After Adam and Eve sinned, life on Earth began to expand but the elements introduced in the pre-Fall days were still in effect, including purpose as we read from these verses:

Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah (Genesis 4:19-22).

Notice from these verses the diversity of interests and skills that emerged. There was one who was a shepherd, one a musician, and another a blacksmith or metal-worker. I wonder how they knew what they were to do with their lives? It was simple, as it is today: each one followed his or her interests and they led them right where they needed to be. Also, it seems that each person then passed on their skills and interests to others so that entire industries or areas of labor were introduced and continued through the generations (but not only to family members but to other interested and skilled individuals). 

There had to be creativity expressed in each of these areas as people pioneered their work and learned how to be productive. What's more, God was with them because this was His intent from the beginning—that each person would fulfill his dominion mandate described in Genesis 1:28: "God blessed them and said to them, 'Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.'"

What is your area of interest in life? Have you pursued it to the extent that you can be proficient and master that area? Has fear kept you from doing that? Are you teaching others, imparting the skills and knowledge you have amassed in your area of expertise? What more can you do to become absorbed in your work or to be more effective in passing it on to others? What would people say is your legacy as they behold your life and work?

Purpose Study Bible 13: The State of Affairs in Eden

As we move into Genesis 4, we read that Adam and Eve got on with their lives after the cataclysmic events surrounding their Fall from grace:

Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a man.” Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil (Genesis 4:1-2).

Before we proceed, let's consider what has happened so far and their implications. We looked at five concepts present in these first three chapters of the Bible:

1. We saw that Adam and Eve had direct fellowship with God who spoke with them face to face.
2. God directed their work in accord with His desire that they multiply and have dominion over the earth, which was their purpose.
3. While God directed their work, Adam and Eve injected their creativity into the mix.
4. Eve was created to work alongside Adam and form a creative and purposeful team.
5. The first family was to rest on the seventh day, not because they were exhausted but so they could refocus and enjoy the fruit of their labors.

Then our parents sinned and each aspect was impacted by sin but not totally eliminated. They were still expected to be purposeful, have fellowship with their Maker, be a creative team, and rest. As time went on, each aspect became more complicated and difficult to carry out until they were totally obscured or buried under centuries of sin residue. 

The good news is that Jesus came not only to restore our fellowship with God, but also restore God's intent of how things were to be before the Fall. In other words, Jesus came to restore our ability to be purposeful, creative, work in teams, and truly rest from our own works (and that is not to lie on a hammock and do nothing): 

And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross (Colossians 1:18-20, emphasis added).

Have you ever given any thought to the fact that Jesus, who is the second Adam (see Romans 5:12-21), came to restore the Garden scenario in our lives? Are you allowing Christ to reconcile, restore, and activate every aspect of your being, or are you only expecting spiritual and not purpose restoration? Are you actively seeking to understand your God-given purpose and creativity? Do you realize that your limitations require you to work in a team setting, whether in a family, ministry, or work setting, relying on other's strengths while you contribute yours? Are you resting in your work as you enjoy your fruit and the fact that you are doing God's will right where you are?