Too Much Bible Study?

I believe there is such a thing as too much Bible study. There--I said it, but before you question my commitment to God's Word, please hear me out.

I've spent 8 out of the last 17 years in a "Bible Church". Just like the name indicates, Bible Churches focus on... um... well, the Bible. (There are some Bible Churches here in Indianapolis that don't exactly fit the mold, but that's another post.) It's common to find sermons, Sunday School classes, Sunday evening services, Wednesday evening services, Bible quizzing, and men's and women's Bible studies that are focused on going through a book of the Bible. Add your personal Bible reading and you're inundated with Scripture. That's a good thing, right?

Well, it can be a bad thing. James writes that we are to "be doers of the Word and not just hearers only" (James 1:22). We are to be sponges of the Word. But think about a sponge. It soaks up water, but then you use it to clean surfaces. The sponge fulfills its design only when the water comes out.

That's a good picture of the function of the Bible. Yes, we are to soak it in. But I feel we are in danger if we do not let it out into our lives and the lives of others. I'm not necessarily arguing for less time in God's Word (though the elimination of programs and ministries can be healthy for a church). What I am fighting for is 3 simple words that are often neglected. Jesus taught:

"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock" (Matthew 7:24). 

It is not just hearing God's Word that matters. That is only the first step towards the life that God desires for us. We must obey everything that Christ taught (Matthew 28:20). The only healthy Bible intake is the reading or study that leads to obedience. Anything less is building our house on the sand.