Reading The Bible!

 

Reading The Bible!

 

Reading and studying The Bible is critical to our growth and maturity as a Christian. How can we know GOD and serve Him if we do not know Him and understand what He is doing in our life and the world in which we live?

 

There are those who want to know GOD by osmosis, they just want to think about GOD and let Him reveal Himself and teach them directly, they don’t need others or The Bible to teach them about GOD. Wrong! While GOD is more than capable of spending as much time with every person in the world to reveal Himself and instruct us as is necessary; that is not how He created us. There are some who just want to listen to what others teach, the fact is made clear in The Bible that there are those who teach false doctrines or misapply the Truth of The Bible for their own purpose and gain. Believing what someone else teaches without checking it out by doing your own reading or study of The Bible is not GOD’s way. Believing and living a lie based on what someone else teaches because you did not take the time to find out the truth for yourself could cause you to end up in hell rather than Heaven. Then there are those who believe the devil’s lie, I can be my own GOD, or I can become a GOD. So they follow all these do it yourself religions (works) hoping to gain immortality.

 

All religions even Christianity when practiced legalistically are about earning what GOD has given us freely. Salvation is a free gift that included GOD’s SPIRIT living in us so that we can pursue GOD and know Him as our Heavenly Father. We receive salvation freely based on JESUS CHRIST and what He did as a man. But GOD expects us to then give up our life and take up CHRIST’s Life instead. CHRIST said, “To be My disciple you must take up your cross daily and follow Me.” Therefore GOD gave us His Word and His SPIRIT, so that we could learn of Him and serve Him doing the works of His Kingdom and His Will in the earth as it is in Heaven now and in eternity.

 

GOD created humanity in His image with a free will and an inquisitive nature so we get to decide what we want to know and then we get to search it out. In The Bible, which is GOD’s Divinely inspired Word to humanity^* is the primary way He reveals the truths about Himself and His purpose; His SPIRIT is our guide and teacher into the depths of who GOD is and what He is doing in our life and the world we live in. The Bible and The SPIRIT of GOD work together, remember JESUS is The Living Word and the written Bible is a representation of Him. All that we need to know, and more, about GOD and His purpose is in The Bible.

 

Sometimes we make reading the Bible complicated or legalistic, this is not helpful. Every person has to develop their habit and process, one that is comfortable and beneficial to them. Choose a time of day that is convenient to you when you will not be disturbed, find a place that is comfortable and free of distractions, have a translation of The Bible that is easy for you to read and has these four features; space to write in it, like the borders around the verses; a cross reference; a concordance; and a harmony of the Gospels. A separate pad of paper and a pen so that you can make notes and your own cross references as you read and study, use the pad for thoughts, ideas, and subjects for further study that you do not have room for in the borders of the pages of your Bible. A Bible dictionary and a concordance are helpful tools for your study.

 

The reading process should be one you enjoy and you can do it differently whenever you want. Some like to read 10 chapters consecutively, starting at Genesis 1 and reading through to Revelation 22. Some like to read 1 or 2 chapters from several books at a time. Some like to use one of the many Read The Bible in a Year guides. Some days you will not have the full amount of time you want, some days you will not be able to read at all, that is part of life. Do not get frustrated or upset about it, just get back to your reading when you can. Don’t skip over the hard or boring parts, they are there for a purpose and don’t worry about pronouncing all the names. Remember it is not about the system or any specified time frame; it is about hearing the voice of GOD in His Word by His SPIRIT for you.

 

Make notes, ask questions, write out your thoughts, share with others and hear what they are learning. That is what fellowship, Bible studies, home groups and any gathering of Christians is about; sharing, learning and growing in understanding and faith. This leads to obedience to GOD which is better than sacrifice.

 

*Don’t get hung up on the thought that The Bible was written by fallible men, all men are fallible. Don’t get caught up in the controversy that some interpret The Bible for their own purposes, yes some do. Get caught up in the fact that GOD by His SPIRIT directed men to tell the story of humanity with the purpose that humanity would learn who GOD is and what His purpose for humanity is. The Bible is Divinely inspired and nothing man can do will change the Truths it teaches those who read and study it for themselves. It is GOD’s HOLY SPIRIT’s responsibility to open our mind and heart to understand GOD’s Truths and purposes. GOD said to Jeremiah, “When you call to Me and pray to Me, I will listen to you. When you seek Me you will find Me, provided you seek for Me wholeheartedly; and I will let you find Me. Says ADONAI.” 29:12-14a You should know that The Bible in its modern Protestant form is an encyclopedic collection of 66 books written by about 40 different men over a period of about 2000 years. The Orthodox version has books that were discounted in the 16^th century by Protestants; the Jewish Bible does not include the New Testament and none of these things change the basic truths revealed in all of them. There is One True Living GOD who made everything that exists. He created humanity in His image with a free will and has a purpose for everything that happens. He commands us to seek Him so that we will know the Truth and when we believe and practice the Truth it will set us free.