Pastor's Circle - Joseph Parker

Joseph Parker, Pastor of Trinity AME Church and Director of Outreach and Intercession at AFA, joined the Pastor's Circle to talk about the Word of God. Below are the "CliffsNotes" of his interview.

What is the importance of the Word of God?

The Word of God is the mind and heart of God. As we teach that which God has commanded us to live by, it makes us productive and fruitful, whether we know it or not.

God's Word ministers to our mind, our body, and our spirit. It speaks to every aspect of life. 

In Mark chapter 4, the parable of the sower, everything centers around the Word of God. The devil knows he can't defeat it, so he focuses on getting it out of our lives.

Jesus said, "He that has ears to hear, let him hear." What are the implications of that?

After Jesus rose from the dead, he went to his disciples, cooked breakfast, and invited them, "Come and dine."

We think he's inviting them to breakfast, and he is, but he's also inviting them to feast on the Word of God. We often want to snack or nibble on it, but this is Jesus' invitation to us every day, to come and dine.

The Word is such a treasure, but many people don't realize that.

Is it worth reading the Word if you don't act on it?

God's Word is the Sword of the Spirit, it's our guidebook, it's our strength, it's our power.

There's all kinds of things we can do with it. We can read it, believe it, hear it, obey it, speak it, meditate on it. We can do any one of these things alone, but they all go hand in hand.

The Word is Jesus, and Jesus is in the Word. When an unbeliever reads the Word, he's interacting with Jesus.

It's important for us to read the Word, but to walk it out as well. A lot of believers trip up there. We read it, but we don't really believe what we've read. 

Deliberate obedience is an important part of our lives.