I have been blessed by God to be placed in a family who believed in studying and understanding God’s Word. From the time I was 4 years old, my mother assisted me in memorizing Bible verses. I still remember the very first verse I ever memorized. And no… it was not John 3:16 (although I do have that memorized!); it was actually Matthew 5:9, which states; “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called sons of God”. Looking back, I realize that my mother probably had me memorize that one for a reason! J That was not really my favorite verse, because it was pretty convicting!
When I was 8, my mother had me start “365 Devotions for Boys,” a small book that had me reading devotionals on a daily basis. This was the very beginnings of my deeper study of scripture. At age 10, I starting reading the Bible every day. I usually would pick a book, and read it one chapter at a time in order to thoroughly understand it. Since starting this, I have found a much deeper love and respect for God in knowing who He really is. The Bible is my favorite book to read and to study.
I do not say this to offend anyone, but I am becoming very disturbed with the growing Biblical illiteracy amongst professed Christians. I am very discouraged when I see someone trying to find 2 Peter in the prophets (I have really seen that). I kindly and gently tell them, “excuse me, but you are on the wrong side of the Bible.” I try to remember to have a helpful attitude, and not an attitude of arrogance or sarcasm. But it greatly disturbs me that many Christians simply see no reason to study Scripture. Scripture is not just a collection of poems and riddles that cannot be understood without a seminary degree. It is the very Word of God given to us as a tool on which to base our lives.
I often use the analogy of a football coach and player. What if a player decided he did not need the playbook designed by the coach to play the game? This player is ultimately worthless to the coach and the team, because he does not know how to play the game, since he has not read the manual. The Bible contains so many passages that are relevant to our lives. I cannot understand it when people say that the Bible is an outdated book that holds no purpose for the present. The Bible speaks of everything from divorce, to sexual immorality, to death, heaven, hell, apologetics, music, salvation, worldliness, worry, prayer, marriage, love, loneliness, patience, obedience, addiction, anger, bitterness/resentment, jealousy, forgiveness, grief, guilt, happiness, healing, even aging! 2 Timothy 3:16 says: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” (NIV) The Bible applies to all things and is relevant to every person, circumstance, and place.
A common misconception of studying the Bible is that you need to have a doctorate’s degree from the world’s greatest seminary just to read and understand the Bible. This pagan belief was encouraged by the ancient Roman Catholic Church. Roman Catholics taught that only the priests had the “capability” to understand scripture, and therefore the common man was forbidden from studying scripture because they might “misinterpret” it. Then came the Reformation, with men like Martin Luther, John Calvin and John Knox. These men believed that the Bible was meant to be understood by the common man. And they were right! After all, some parts of the Bible, such as some of the gospels, were written by fishermen! These were men with very little formal education, yet God chose to inspire them by His Spirit to write scripture. If these men could write parts of the Bible, certainly the common man could read and understand the Bible!
As Christians, it is vitally important to read and understand our Bibles. I Peter 3:15a says; “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” (ESV-emphasis added) The Bible calls us to be able to make a defense for the faith we have. We are to defend the truth of the contents of this Holy Book. How are we to do this if we do not read and understand the Bible that we claim to live by?
Ephesians 6 talks about the armor of God. Verse 17 ends by saying that our sword is the word of God. If you look at a set of armor, you will notice that every piece is defensive equipment, except the sword. It is offensive equipment. We are protected by the armor, and are called to do something with the sword. All the rest of the armor simply has to be worn in order to experience its benefits, but the sword requires us to know how to use it in order to experience the benefits of its protection. The Bible is our sword in our battle with the devil. It is the only part of the armor that is used for attacking, not just for defense. We are to know and understand this weapon in order to fight well in the battle against the powers of hell.
Soli Deo Gloria!
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