The first way is to read it and apply it to the world at people "out there". It is easy enough of course; Sylvia Plath used a phrase in one of her short stories of using "Bible verses like bullets" and that is certainly something that, over the history of the Church, it has shown itself quite willing to do - let alone ourselves as individuals. There is always someone or something out there, violating God's Word.
The second way is to apply it to ourselves.
Applying Scripture to ourselves is not the fun way to do things of course: nothing less encouraging that to open up Scripture in the morning and immediately be confronted with yesterday's sins, or to realize mid-day that that grudge you have been carrying all morning was just as much of a sin as anything Christ called out in the Pharisees.
But here is the odd thing, at least for me: the more I concentrate on applying Scripture to myself, the less I become concerned with applying it to other people. Perhaps it simply reflects the fact that - for me - pride is me always looking out to others on how they have missed the mark and humility is me looking inward on where I have missed the mark.
I cannot control or "work on" others. But I can certainly do both of those things on myself.
Very, very true TB. A good example of pride versus humility in action. How often do we think, "So-an-so ought to hear that sermon" or read that book. But as Dan often says, "I've got enough to worry about with myself."
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