http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/2010/4465_Holding_Fast_the_Word_of_Life_in_2010/
Reading the Bible won't magically fill up my spiritual tank. It won't make my life fruitful. I can read the whole book five times over and memorize my favorite verses, but it won't make a dent in my life. Why? "The Bible is not God. God is God." It is the Spirit who leads our hearts to stir; we can't manipulate God to bend at our will. So then how do we see the glory of God? First we must open our hearts. Just because we start reading the Word doesn't mean that our hearts will be stirred. God must overcome our spiritual blindness; only then will we be able to see His glory. By not living on the Word of God, John Piper says that we are starving "every grace that God means for you to thrive on his world." When I think about it that way, how can I even ask God to show me grace if I'm not seeking the Word first? That's like asking someone how to assemble a desk when the manual is sitting right in front of them. Therefore, we must hold fast the Word of God. That is the only way we can shine in this world of darkness and evil.
"Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain." Philippians 2:14-16
