Why Study the Bible

A lot of us grew up in religious spaces that placed a high value on the Bible. Were were taught (and sometimes shamed) about it’s importance and how we should read it every day. Some of us had competitions about how many verses we could memorize. Some of us even memorized whole books of the Bible.

Surely reading, studying and memorizing the Bible can be so beneficial. How many of us have experienced hearing God speak to us through those words time and time again? (Many, I am sure!)

And yet sometimes we miss the point. Sometimes we think that there’s some magic in the Bible. Sometimes the Bible becomes an end in and of itself. We feel smart when we know it more than others. We feel more in control of our future if we can quote it when we pray. We sense that we can win arguments with it.

Jesus had precious little tolerance for misusing the Bible. Listen in to his words and think about how you might take them to heart today:

You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. - John 5:39-40

What might be an appropriate response to those words for you today?