Getting Back to the Basics, Part 1
In any sport, it’s vital to learn the basics and practice them until they are mastered. When I played football in high school, my coach would lecture us players to get back to the basics in playing the game. He reminded us that we had to run our routes, play only our zone, focus on catching the ball before running down the field, and to wrap our arms around our opponent when tackling. He would yell, “Get back to the basics! Get back to the basics!” In the spiritual realm, too, we must get back to the basics. We need to realize where we are in our relationship with the Lord since He saved us.
It’s ironic that as I was contemplating writing this article, my cell phone rang. It was a dear friend of mine from West Virginia who was saved in the same church as I. He said to me, “Jerry, do you ever think back to the time when you were first saved and remember those early days of your walk with the Lord?” As he began to voice his love and gratitude for those who helped him to grow spiritually, he became emotional. He loved my father, who took him on visitation. He loved my mother and was grateful that she prayed daily for him. He had no idea that I was going to write this article and how timely his phone call was. What a flashback of those days when I was first saved! I greatly treasure the thrill, excitement, and impact of those “newborn” days. I’m afraid that among many of the Lord’s people, their hearts have become full of lethargy—we need to get back to the spiritual basics, because this is vitally important in being effective for the Lord. What are these spiritual basics? I am going to list seven of them, which I feel are crucial in our living for the Lord.
The first one we need to get back to is Bible study, memorization, and meditation. First Peter 2:2 states, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” Psalm 119:11 says, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” Psalm 119:97 reads, “O how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.” What a trilogy for reading, memorizing, and meditating on Scripture!
Many Christians have become too blasé about the Word of God, just as the children of Israel did with the manna God had sent and began to despise it (Num. 11:6; Ps. 78:25). They became so used to it that they took it for granted and started complaining and wanting something else—meat. They were saying in essence, “We’ve had enough of this manna stuff! We want meat, give us meat!” So what did God do? Psalm 106:15 says, “And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.” Some Bible scholars believe that the phrase “leanness into their soul” means “a wasting disease among them.” I’m afraid that many Christians are searching for something new—the Bible is not enough! They want something more exciting, more entertaining, and they grab at those things like a child in a candy store. But there is no nourishment or substance in those things; therefore, they began to spiritually waste away. I believe this is happening all across our country, and that is why I strongly urge that we get back to the basics, get back to the Word of God! Echo the psalmist’s cry in Psalm 119:18: “Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” Begin to memorize the Scriptures again, begin to meditate on them again, for they are your authority for living as God’s child. And in your decisions of life, get back to the basics of making much of God’s Word.
In my next article, I will discuss the other spiritual basics.
Evangelist Jerry Sivnksty may be contacted at PO Box 141, Starr, SC 29684 or via e-mail at
(Originally published in FrontLine • September/October 2013. Click here to subscribe to the magazine.)