Thousands already have! Try your 30-Day free trial today!
Remove banner ads and expand your Bible reading experience using our valuable library of more than 40 top resources by becoming a member of Bible Gateway Plus. Try it free for 30 days!

Eric Henry Liddell was a Scottish athlete, rugby union international player, and missionary. He’s perhaps most well known as the subject of the Oscar-winning 1981 film Chariots of Fire, which depicted his experiences training for and racing in the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris and the religious convictions that influenced him to refuse to run in races on Sunday. In his book about spiritual disciplines, he outlines his own pattern for living which has as its foundation a daily Bible reading plan.

The Disciplines of the Christian Life (christianaudio, 2011) is a practical guide to helping Christians grow spiritually through a daily practice of prayer, Bible study, and Bible reading structured around key topics he believes are basic knowledge for every Christian.

[See our Blog post, Quiz: Do You Know These Sports References and Amazing Feats From the Bible?]

[See books related to the Olympic Games and sports in general in the Bible Gateway Store]

The following article is excerpted from The Disciplines of the Christian Life (christianaudio, 2011) by Eric Liddell.

The Key to Knowing God

A disciple is one who knows God personally, and who learns from Jesus Christ, who most perfectly revealed God. One word stands out from all others as the key to knowing God, to having his peace and assurance in your heart; it is obedience.

Obedience to God’s will is the secret of spiritual knowledge and insight. It is not willingness to know, but willingness to do (obey) God’s will that brings enlightenment and certainty regarding spiritual truth. ‘If any man will do [obey] his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself’ (John 7:17).

Here are some questions to ask yourself. If I know something to be true, am I prepared to follow it even though it is contrary to what I want, to what I have previously said or held to be true? Will I follow it even if it means loss of face, owning that I was wrong? Will I follow if it means being laughed at by friend or foe, if it means personal financial loss or some kind of hardship?

Following truth leads to God, for truth is of God.

Obedience is the secret of being conscious that God guides you personally. If in the quiet of your heart you feel something should be done, stop and consider whether it is in line with the character and teaching of Jesus. If so, obey that impulse to do it, and in doing so you will find it was God guiding you.

Every Christian should live a God-guided life. If you are not guided by God, you will be guided by someone or something else. The Christian who hasn’t the sense of guidance in his life is missing something vital.

To obey God’s will was like food to Jesus, refreshing his mind, body, and spirit. ‘My meat is to do the will of him that sent me’ (John 4:34). We can all have the same experience if we make God’s will the dominant purpose in our lives.

Take obedience with you into your time of prayer and meditation, for you will know as much of God, and only as much of God, as you are willing to put into practice. There is a great deal of truth in the hymn Trust and Obey:

    When we walk with the Lord
    In the light of His Word
    What a glory he sheds on our way!
    While we do his good will,
    He abides with us still,
    And with all who will trust and obey. J. H. Sammis (italics added)

Applying the Moral Tests

Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me and know my thoughts. (Psalm 139:23)

Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith. (2 Corinthians 13:5)

God speaks to people through the moral law. If we break these laws and excuse ourselves for doing so, the presence and guidance of God lose their reality in our lives: the freedom and radiance of the Christian life depart.

Here are four tests of the moral law by which to measure ourselves—and so obey the biblical commands.

Am I truthful? Are there any conditions under which I will or do tell a lie? Can I be depended on to tell the truth no matter what the cost? Yes or no? Don’t hedge, excuse, explain. Yes or no?

Am I honest? Can I be absolutely trusted in money matters? In my work even when no one is looking? With other people’s reputations? Yes or no? With myself, or do I rationalize and become self-defensive?

Am I pure? In my habits? In my thought life? In my motives? In my relations with the opposite sex? Yes or no?

Am I selfish? In the demands I make on my family, wife, husband, or associates? Am I badly balanced; full of moods, cold today and warm tomorrow?

Do I indulge in nerves that spoil both my happiness and the happiness of those around me?

Am I unrestrained in my pleasures, the kind I enjoy without considering the effect they have on my soul?

Am I unrestrained in my work, refusing to take reasonable rest and exercise?

Am I unrestrained in small self-indulgences, letting myself become the slave of habits, however harmless they may appear to me?

What am I living for—self, money, place, power? Or are my powers at the disposal of human need, dedicated to the Kingdom of God on earth?

Let us put ourselves before ourselves and look at ourselves. The bravest moment of a man’s life is the moment when he looks at himself objectively without wincing, without complaining.

Self-examination which does not result in action is dangerous. What am I going to do about what I see? The action called for is surrender—of ourselves to God.

The above article is excerpted from The Disciplines of the Christian Life (christianaudio, 2011) by Eric Liddell. Used by permission of christianaudio. http://christianaudio.com. Pages 27-29. All rights reserved.