“… haven’t you read what was spoken to you by God” (Mt 22:31)
I want to make a strong suggestion…please read the Bible every day. It is God’s Word written to you. This is the way the Lord communicates to you. Christ-followers – you have to eat…right? The Bible is where you get your true and necessary sustenance (see Psa 119:103; Jer 15:16; Ezek 2:8,3:3; Rev 10:9).
All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (2 Tim 3:16-17 – NASB)
Life is a wonderful gift from God, but it is complicated. In it you must deal with things like people dynamics, finances, raising another human being, your sin nature, avoiding pitfalls, the complexity of the world, your own emotions and needs, temptations, and countless other things without making a mess of it. Well, the Bible is God’s user manual on how to live life in the best way possible.
Just like anything you receive as a gift or buy that is complicated, you need to read the user manual to operate properly, safely, and understand the features. The same is true for your life. You must read the user manual … the Bible … to live properly, safely, and get the most out of life. You must read the Bible because unlike buying a vacuum, living the right way is not intuitive to us. You don’t need to read the user manual for a vacuum because you already know how to use it. Not so with your life. Sure, you can live according to your sinful flesh without reading the manual but that won’t end well. To live right you need to read the Bible regularly and learn from it. This glimpse into Paul the Apostle’s life is a great example:
For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am made out of flesh, sold into sin’s power. For I do not understand what I am doing, because I do not practice what I want to do, but I do what I hate. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree with the law that it is good. So now I am no longer the one doing it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it. For I do not do the good that I want to do, but I practice the evil that I do not want to do. Now if I do what I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but it is the sin that lives in me. So I discover this principle: When I want to do what is good, evil is with me. For in my inner self I joyfully agree with God’s law. But I see a different law in the parts of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and taking me prisoner to the law of sin in the parts of my body. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this dying body? (Rom 7:14-24)
What would a terminally ill parent write in a book to their newborn child? They would capture the most important things they wanted to pass down to their child. It would overflow with their love toward the child, have all the best life advice and instruction, and have the main purpose of helping the child have the best life possible. The Bible is like that in a sense, it is the Lord’s tool to you where He passes down life advice and instructions and His love to you. He has a lot that He wants you to know for your own good. The only thing required on your side is to read it.
Look at this passage to get an idea of what God’s Word is and what it accomplishes:
The Law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes … By them your servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward. (Ps 19:7-8, 11 – NASB – highlights added)
Did you notice how it transforms you? It:
– Revives you
– Makes you wise
– Gives you joy
– Helps you to see clearly
– Warns you
It blesses you by making you like a thriving fruit tree that never withers:
1 How happy is the man who … delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted beside streams of water that bears its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. (Psalm 1:1-3)
Notice from the above passage that you should read the Bible every day and think about it throughout the day. The Bible is a keyway that God speaks to you … not reading it is showing that you are not interested in what God has to say. Not reading it is like covering your ears when He speaks and that is not a good thing:
Anyone who turns his ear away from hearing the law—even his prayer is detestable. (Pv 28:9)
9 “The Lord of Hosts says this: Make fair decisions. Show faithful love and compassion to one another. 10 Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor, and do not plot evil in your hearts against one another. 11 But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder; they closed their ears so they could not hear. 12 They made their hearts like a rock so as not to obey the law or the words that the Lord of Hosts had sent by His Spirit through the earlier prophets. Therefore great anger came from the Lord of Hosts. 13 Just as He had called, and they would not listen, so when they called, I would not listen,” says the Lord of Hosts. (Zec 7:9-13 – underline added)
Even though the Bible is God speaking, and that reading it transforms a believer, most believers do not read the Bible. For some reason, they are not interested in the letter their loving Savior wrote to them to help them through life. They are missing out and hurting themselves. Do not be like that and deprive yourself. Read it.
Read the Bible EVERY day for at least 15 minutes. I realize some people are not readers. If that’s you, LISTEN to it for 15 minutes a day on CD. Afterwards, think about what you read throughout the day.
I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. (Ps 119:15 – ESV)
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. (Josh 1:8 – ESV)
But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. (Ps 1:2 – ESV)
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (Rom 10:17 – ESV)
Digest it. Absorb it. Pray for understanding.
Write down what you learned, it will help you absorb, understand, remember, and make it part of your life:
But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his own face in a mirror. For he looks at himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but one who does good works—this person will be blessed in what he does. (Jms 1:22-25)
If you have never read the Bible, start by going through the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). From there you can move on to reading the rest of the New Testament and then start on the Old Testament. It is a big Book, and you will never learn everything there is to learn. So don’t overwhelm yourself. There is no need to rush.
Jesus expects His people to know His Word:
“… haven’t you read what was spoken to you by God” (Mt 22:31)
“Haven’t you read this Scripture …” (Mk 12:10)
“… haven’t you read in the book of Moses …” (Mk 12:26)
Jesus answered them, “Isn’t it written in your scripture …” (Jn 10:34)
Then He began to teach them: “Is it not written …” (Mk 11:17)
Since the Lord expects you to know His Word, read the Bible every day. If you need help, ask Him for help to do it and help in understanding it.
As you read it, His Word will change you.
10 For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return there without saturating the earth and making it germinate and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat, 11 so My word that comes from My mouth will not return to Me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do.” (Isaiah 55:10-11 – emphasis added)
Key points
– Life is complicated and living it in the right way does not come naturally to you
– The Bible is God’s user manual to you to show you how to live right
– The Bible is God’s love letter to His children showing you how to have the best life possible
– You need to read the Bible every day, think about it constantly, and put into practice what it says
– Jesus expects His people to read and know it
– God’s Word will change you
– If you don’t read it (or listen to it), it shows you are not interested in what God has to say
Think about it…
Do you read the Bible every day? If not, what does it say about your heart toward God’s Word and what He has to say?
What is stopping you from reading the Bible every day? What can you do to build in time every day to read it?
Does your attitude toward reading the Bible need to change?
If you do read the Bible every day, do you think about it throughout the day?
Do you put into practice what you’ve read (change how you live, change how you think)?
What habits and attitudes toward God’s Word do you need to change? If yes, how will you do it?
