How The Bible Reveals a Revolution of Personal Devotional Transformation

When reflecting on the stories of Moses and the Exodus, Samson and the two pillars, Gideon’s war against Baal, Abraham’s journey, and Joseph’s rise to power in Egypt, what stands out? These narratives represent more than just historical events—they signal a revolution and resurrection of devotional thought. They challenge us to consider a deeper devotional revival.

At the heart of the Bible is the concept of an inward resurrection, a transformation of our devotional conversation’s inner being. King David, recognizing this profound truth, wrote in Psalm 51:6, “Thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.” The core message of the Bible is a resurrection driven by wisdom and knowledge. As 1 Samuel 2:3 declares, “The LORD is a God of knowledge,” and Proverbs 2:6 reminds us that “out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.”

The Bible’s wisdom is the fuel for inner revival. The Bible is not ultimately a collection of stories, but rather a message with a call to revive and reshape our devotional thoughts and feelings. Proverbs 1:23 affirms, “I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.” From Genesis to Malachi, the focus remains on this inward transformation of the mind through the Bible’s wisdom.

However, when we transition to the New Testament, the language and philosophy shifts, influenced by the dominant Greek culture and religious thought. Despite this shift, the original message remains hidden beneath the surface. Luke 17:21, for instance, tells us, “The kingdom of God is within you,” echoing Ruth 2:4, “The LORD be with you.” These two verses are not different in meaning but convey the same core message. The “kingdom of God” isn’t a new concept. To the Greek it was called the “doctrine of the kingdom,” but to the Hebrew it was called the “science of the LORD.”

Here’s the fascinating part: the Bible plays with these terms to keep its message accessible yet profound. “The LORD” and “the kingdom” are essentially one and the same—they represent the experience of the Bible’s words within our devotional character. Yet, because of religious tradition and theological interpretations, we often fail to see this continuity.

This philosophical expression is captured in the word “Immanuel,” meaning “God is with us,” or more directly, “within us is God” (Isaiah 8:10). Understanding this helps us reclaim the Bible’s original intention—a focus on the inward, personal devotional experience, untainted by external religious structures.

So why is it essential to grasp that the “kingdom of God” predated the New Testament? Because as we move through the Bible, especially into the Greek-influenced gospels, we encounter distortions of the original Hebrew philosophy. If we aren’t rooted in the wisdom of the Old Testament, we risk misunderstanding the message. As Isaiah 45:21 says, “There is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me.”

The Greek-influenced reinterpretation of the Bible’s message led to a distortion of the original Hebrew philosophy, especially regarding the nature of God. This shift wasn’t just a religious one but a philosophical one, altering how people understood their relationship with the scriptures. Even though the landscape of religious interpretation has changed over time, the original intent remains intact and waiting to be rediscovered.

This shift in biblical interpretation mirrors what happens in secular history: those in power shape the narrative. In the same way, the Bible’s original philosophy has been overshadowed by religious and political agendas. Understanding this is vital if we are to reclaim the Bible’s true devotional experience and engage with it in a way that transforms our personal and devotional character.

The Bible calls for more than belief—it calls for a revolution of the heart and mind, a resurrection of our inner dialogue with the Bible. By returning to its original message, we open ourselves to a wisdom that revives, restores, and reshapes our lives.

Discovering God Though Stillness

The counsel is, “Be still, and know that I am God,” Psalm 46:10. 

The advice isn’t to “imagine” God. The advice isn’t to take confidence in what we assume God is. The Bible is asking its reader to know God from first employing stillness. The Bible is actually asking its student to develop an understanding of and on God by simply living and proving their experience, idea, and prior knowledge of God. 

This is, to me, revolutionary. It is revolutionary because, who would imagine the Bible advocating for a knowledge of God without “God”? The Bible is asking its student to take what they think they know about “God” and prove it. How are they supposed to get proof of God? The Bible counsels to be still, to be silent, to hold peace, to “wait.”

Now, all of this may sound like the Bible is calling for a dormant or an inactive experience. It may even sound like the Bible is asking its reader to blindly employ whatever “faith” they imagine themselves to have, and to “let go and let God.” To the Bible’s mind, to be “still” and to “wait” actually means to “rest.” When “resting,” one isn’t passing through a lethargic experience. “Rest,” to the Bible’s mind, is a concept understood from how it says:

“Precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little…To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear,” Isaiah 28:10-12

When “still,” one is at “rest.” To the Bible’s mind, “resting” equates to high mental activity. “Rest,” to the Bible’s mind, is the exercising of the mental faculties to experience spiritual or philosophical rejuvenation. “Rest” brings “refreshing” because of the enlightenment experienced when mentally examining and applying the scriptures. 

The advice to “be still” is counsel encouraging the Bible’s student to actually exercise mental energy for rejuvenating their spiritual understanding. When doing so, one may then “know God” by exercising the understanding acquired. This manner of devotional learning is for ensuring that our belief practically understands the reason behind its existence. 

It sounds so simple to say and to read, “Be still, and know that I am God,” but the reality of this counsel goes deeper than what is written. The Bible is asking the person to re-imagine their conversation by spending time not only with the Bible’s words, but with their conversation exercising those words. 

Every word and illustration within the Bible is instruction directing the person to set their devotional conversation in order. The mind inspiring the Bible isn’t content that its reader takes comfort in a public or private deity. The Bible’s mind is concerned about the state of the conversation’s thoughts and feelings, and to help the conversation understand reality, the Bible directs it to exercise its higher faculties. 

We can observe the Bible as a set of stories pointing to a moral human obligation. We can observe the Bible as a book counseling on practical religious ethics. Or we can see the Bible for what it is. We can see the Bible as a book correcting the human and religious moral and ethical character by instructing its reader to investigate the structure of their belief or assumption. 

The Bible is a book about firstly correcting the devotional conversation’s conscience. Beneath all of the illustrations, allegories, and parables, the Bible’s main concern is informing its reader that their conversation is unhealthy. 

We believe our spiritual belief and its idea is sound. We believe our conversation is sober. To the Bible’s mind, no conversation is healthy. This is why it says, “There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not,” Ecclesiastes 7:20. 

The mind inspiring the Bible is a disposition determined to elevate the devotional conversation’s thoughts and feelings. A key element to this elevation is “stillness” or “rest,” without which the conversation remains without a sure understanding not only of the Bible, but also of its own experience.