Why should we read the Bible?
2 Timothy 3:16-17
Have you heard about the couple that sent their son off to college at Ohio State? When he left they gave him a Bible and told him to read it carefully, because it would be very helpful.
Well after a few weeks of school the son wrote home and told the parents that he needed a little money. So, the parents wrote the son and told him to read John 3:16. The son then wrote back, okay I read that, now what about the money? His parents wrote back, I know you are not telling the truth because between every page that has one of our favorite verses on it is a $100 bill.
See the bible may not be full of $100 bills, but it is full of treasures, so why do us as Christians not want to read it like we should?
So what is the Bible, and why is it important for us to read it.
First lets look at II Timothy 3:16-17
Well let’s see, the Bible claims to be the means that God has chosen to reach out to us in human language, reveal the essence of his relational heart, and relate the good news of his redemptive plan.
Man that is quite a statement isn’t it, but we can also look at the Bible in that way that Susie talked about in her children’s sermon a few weeks ago. She stated that the Bible is a whole library that we can take with us anywhere we go. It is 66 whole books, written by 40 different authors. It contains history, war stories, romances, miracles and many other stories.
Then we can look at the Bible in the way that I do, the way I believe that God wants us too. That we can look at the Bible as the instruction manual on how we become more Christ like each and everyday of our life. That the Bible is God’s love letters to us, and he wants us to know how much he loves and cares for us, and how much he truly wants us to be more like him.
Let me ask you something, how do you get to know God? Some of you may say by going to church and hearing about him, or others may say by what my friends and loved ones tell me about him. Well, I am going to let you in on a little secret. You will never truly know God, you will never truly know how much God loves you, and you will never truly know all that God has in store for you by learning about God in just that way.
Let’s take this for example:
If I stood up here week after week and told you about my father, about how great of a man he is, how much he would be willing to do for you, how much he would care for you. Then would you be able to truly love him like a father if you didn’t get to know him yourself. Well of course not, that would be impossible for you to love someone just because I love them.
Well see that is what I do each and every week, I tell you about how great my father is, my heavenly father. See, the same thing goes for God as it does for the example I just gave you. If you truly want to know God, on a one on one level, if you truly want to have that very special relationship with him, then you need to get to know him personally. There is only one way to do that, and that is reading what he has provided us with, and that is the Bible.
The Bible is very important to us if we want to truly be Christians.
Do you know what two of the greatest president’s said about the Bible?
George Washington said, “It is impossible to righteously govern the world without the Bible as your guide, because without it we would be without God.”
Ronald Reagan said, “Within the covers of one single book, the Bible, are all the answers to all the problems that we face today-if we will only read and believe.”
So how many of you in here tonight have a Bible in your home? How many of you have more than one Bible in your home? I would say that probably all of you have at least one Bible in your home, because did you know that 98% of all homes in the United States have at least one Bible in them. See, even though the Bible is and has been the best selling book in the world for quite sometime, it is also the most likely book in the world to get left on the shelf.
The fact is if the Bible was read like it should be then more than 4 out of 10 people claiming to be born again Christians would be able to tell you who delivered the Sermon on the Mount. Do you know? If not I will be nice and let you know that Jesus did.
So since the Bible is the best selling book in the world year after year after year, then why doesn’t anyone read it. Well, just let me tell you a few reasons why?
One, It can not be trusted
How can anyone trust a book that has been around for thousands of years?
Well first of all, when the text of the Bible from today was compared to the text of the Dead Sea Scrolls that where found from thousands of years ago, even before the birth of Jesus, the wording was identical. Secondly, everything written in the Bible is either direct word from God, or eyewitness accounts of things that happened. They are not hear say that is written down hundreds or thousands of years later. They even have manuscripts of the New Testament that date back to when it was originally written. Then lastly, out of all the people who have tried to prove the Bible was untrue, and there have been thousands upon thousand try, can you show me anyone who has proven it. No, and that is because no one has been able too, but I can name some people that where lead to know Christ while trying to prove it. One in particular, who was lead to Christ, just happens to be the greatest youth leader of our time, Josh McDowell.
The second reason the Bible isn’t read: It makes no sense to me
This has to come from people that only read small bits and pieces of the Bible. See, you have to put the Bible verses and chapters you read in context with the whole chapter and book that you are reading. You have to realize what is going on around that verse or it may not make sense to you. If someone just randomly opens the Bible, reads one verse and puts it down then of course it could be confusing, because you can make it out to appear to say anything when you do that.
Have you heard about the man who said, “Lord, I want to know you will for my life.” So he opened up the Bible, pointed his finger at the page and read, “Judas went and hanged himself.” He thought that couldn’t be right, so he tried again, and this time he read, “Go thou and do likewise.” He then thought to himself, what in the world can be going wrong, so he opened the Bible a third time and pointed to the page and read, “What thou doest, do quickly.”
See this is not how God wants us to use the Bible to direct our life. God gave us the Bible to direct us, not confuse us. So read the Bible how it is suppose to be read, not by picking and choosing, so that you can get out of it what God wants you to.
Another reason that Christians don’t read the Bible: Is they believe it is relevant for us today
I say anyone who would say this definitely has never read the Bible, because how can someone read the Bible and say that? The bible is as relevant today as it was a thousand years ago, because when you read it you will find out what the real purpose for your life is. You will find out how to treat your parents. You will find out how what to do with your money. You will find out how to choose a spouse. You will find out what to look for in a friend. You will find out exactly how much God loves you, and you will find out how to live your life the way the God wants you to. So, is all of that irrelevant, I don’t think so do you?
There is one more thing that I want you to know about the Bible, and why we need to read it the way God wants us too, and that reason is this. People say that the Bible is the never changing word of God, but I want you to know that I personally do not believe that is true. I think and know that the Bible is the life changing word of God.
The Bible connects us with God and helps direct our lives. In short the Bible is for transformation, not just information.
Let me share this with you:
A converted cannibal on an island in the Pacific Ocean was sitting in the jungle by a large, boiling pot, reading his Bible when an archeologist approached him and asked, “What are you doing?” The cannibal replied, “What does it look like I am doing, I’m reading my Bible.” The archeologist scoffed and said, “Don’t you know athat the modern civilized man has rejected that silly book? It does nothing that it is suppose to do. You should not waste your time reading it.” The former cannibal looked him slowly over form head to toe and replied, “Sir, maybe you should read this book and give thanks to God, because if it weren’t for the life changing power of this book, you would be in that pot.”
So do you want to be transformed?
As God leads
