Reading The Bible 

Bible verses about reading the Bible

Reading the Bible each day shouldn’t be a chore we dread doing. Nor should it be something we do just to mark it off of our To Do List. The Bible is God’s Word. It is alive and active. The Bible is inerrant and it is completely sufficient for all aspects of life in godliness.

Quotes about reading the Bible

The primary purpose of reading the Bible is not to know the Bible but to know God. — James Merritt

“Nobody ever outgrows Scripture; the book widens and deepens with our years.” Charles Spurgeon

“A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a college education.” Theodore Roosevelt

“Reading the Bible is not where your engagement with the Bible ends. It’s where it begins.”

“The very practice of reading [the Bible] will have a purifying effect upon your mind and heart. Let nothing take the place of this daily exercise.”  Billy Graham

“God speaks to those who take time to listen, and He listens to those who take time to pray.”

Read the Bible daily

Don’t neglect His Word. God has so many things that He wants to tell us, but our Bibles are closed. As believers we should be reading the Bible every day. God speaks most clearly to us through His Word. It might be a struggle at first, but the more you do it, the more you will enjoy reading Scripture. We read the Bible so we can hear from Him and so that we can learn to live according to His law.

1) 2 Timothy 3:16 “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”

2) Proverbs 30:5 “Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.”

3) Psalm 56:4 “I praise God for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me?”

4) Psalm 119:130 “The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.”

5) Psalm 119:9-10 “How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word. 10 I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands.”

How to read the Bible?

Many believers open the Bible to a random passage and just start reading. This isn’t the ideal method. We should read the Bible one book at a time, and slowly make our way through each book. The Bible is a collection of 66 books written over a span of 1500 years. Yet it is all perfectly composed with no contradictions.

We need to read it hermeneutically correct by using a method called Exegesis. We need to ask who the author was writing to, at what time in history, and what is being said in the proper context. Each verse only has a meaning but it can have multiple applications in our life. It is through reading the Bible properly that we learn what God is saying, and through that we grow spiritually. 

6) Isaiah 55:10-11 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

7) Psalm 119:11 “I have thought much about your words and stored them in my heart so that they would hold me back from sin.” 

8) Romans 10:17 “Yet faith comes from listening to this Good News—the Good News about Christ.”

9) John 8:32 “and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Why is it important to read the Bible?

It is vitally important that we read the Bible. If you claim to be a believer and never crave to know more about God or His Word, then I would be concerned as to whether or not your are a true believer. God is clear, we must have His Word in order for us to grow spiritually. We need to love the Bible and to want to know it more and more. 

10) Matthew 4:4 “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”

11) Job 23:12 “I haven’t wandered away from the commands that he has spoken;
I’ve treasured what he has said more than my own meals.”

12) Matthew 24:35 “Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.”

13) Isaiah 40:8 “Grass dries up, and flowers wither, but our God’s word will last forever.”

14) Isaiah 55:8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.”

15) Ephesians 5:26 “He did this to make the church holy by cleansing it, washing it using water along with spoken words.”

How the Bible brings spiritual growth?

Since the Bible is God-breathed, it is perfect in every way. God can use it to teach us about Him, for us to correct other believers, for discipline, for training. It is completely perfect in every way so that we can live our lives in godliness for His glory. God uses the Word to teach us about Him. The more we know about Him the more our faith grows. The more our faith grows the more we can withstand difficult times and grow in sanctification. 

16) 2 Peter 1:3-8 “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

17) Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

18) Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

19) 1 Peter 2:2-3 “Desire God’s pure word as newborn babies desire milk. Then you will grow in your salvation. 3 Certainly you have tasted that the Lord is good!”

20) James 1:23-25 “For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.”

21) 2 Peter 3:18 “But grow in the good will and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Glory belongs to him now and for that eternal day! Amen.”

Relying upon the Holy Spirit as we read the Bible

God uses the indwelling of the Holy Spirit to teach us about what we are reading in His Word. He convicts us of our sin, and helps us to remember what we have memorized. It is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can grow spiritually. 

22) John 17:17 “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”

23) Isaiah 55:11 “So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

24) Psalm 33:4 “For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness.”

25) 1 Peter 1:23 “Since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God.”

26) 2 Peter 1:20-21 “Knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

27) John 14:16-17 “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.”

Look for Jesus in every chapter of the Bible

The entire Bible is about Jesus. We may not see Him in every verse, and we shouldn’t try to. But God’s word is a progressive revelation about the story of God redeeming His people for Himself. God’s plan of salvation was in place since the beginning of time. The Cross was not God’s plan B. We can see God’s progressive revelation as we study the Bible. A picture of Jesus is seen in the Ark, and in the Exodus, and in Ruth, etc. 

28) John 5:39-40 “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.”

29) 1 Timothy 4:13 “Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching.”

30) John 12:44-45 “And Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees him who sent me.”

31) John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

32) John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

33) Deuteronomy 8:3 “He made you go hungry, and then he gave you manna to eat, food that you and your ancestors had never eaten before. He did this to teach you that you must not depend on bread alone to sustain you, but on everything that the Lord says.”

34) Psalm 18:30 “As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the Lord is tried: he is a buckler to all those that trust in him.”

Memorizing Scripture

It is critical that we as believers memorize God’s Word. Over and over the Bible tells us to store God’s Word in our heart. It is through this memorization that we are changed into the likeness of Christ.  

35) Psalm 119:10-11 “With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”

36) Psalm 119:18 “Open my eyes to see wonderful things in your Word.”

37) 2 Timothy 2:15 “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

38) Psalm 1:2 “But they delight in doing everything God wants them to, and day and night are always meditating on his laws and thinking about ways to follow him more closely.”

39) Psalm 37:31 “They have made God’s law their own, so they will never slip from his path.”

40) Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

Application of Scripture

When God’s word is firmly planted in our hearts and minds, it is easier for us to apply it to our lives. When we apply God’s Word we are living our life and viewing all of life through the lens of Scripture. This is how we have a Biblical world view. 

41) Joshua 1:8 “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.”

42) James 1:21 “Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.”

43) James 1:22 “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”

44) Luke 6:46 “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ but not do what I say?”

Encouragement to read the Bible

There are many verses that encourage us to study God’s word. The Bible says that His Word is sweeter than honey. It should be the delight of our hearts.  

45) Romans 15:4 “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”

46) 2 Timothy 2:7 “Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.”

47) Psalm 19:7-11 “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.”

48) 1 Thessalonians 2:13 “And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.”

49) Ezra 7:10 “For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.”

50) Ephesians 6:10 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.”

Conclusion

God, the Creator of the entire universe who is so infinitely Holy that He is completely otherly has chosen to reveal Himself through His Scripture. And He desires that we know Him and are transformed into His likeness. This comes through careful and thoughtful meditation on His Word.

Forgetting God In His Word

I had tiny toes with me today as I had to go back to the start of the book of John to re-read and take notes.

I’ll be honest, sometimes I read and forget what I read… like the next day.

Can I share something with you all? I don’t read scripture every day and even sadder… is that a word?  I must admit I don’t always walk the talk and it’s something I’ve struggled with since the birth of our baby. My prayers are short and I fall asleep. Scripture time is reading and forgetting and sometimes I go DAYS without reading my Bible and feeling guilty and I don’t dare approach God… this is all so wrong.

First of all, I had to come to terms that praying half an hour isn’t what it looks like for right now and it doesn’t make me any holier for it. Bible time is a MUST so I had to put many things aside to be able to do this.

That means I wake up earlier, to get up earlier I must go to bed earlier. That means no TV or less. It means I need to put my day in order and make God first. I’ve heard this quote but not sure who said it:

“If you’re too busy for God, you’re busier than you’re supposed to be.”

I’ve made it my mission to spend time with my God even if that means sacrificing, wanting to stay up to watch a show, or scroll through FB or Instagram. It means saying no to the world and yes to God. It means saying yes to His Word. It doesn’t have to be an hour long but it has to be a time where it’s you, God, and His Word. Maybe it’s a 3-minute devotional that hits your heart. Maybe it looks like a 5-minute sit down of reading or finishing your Bible book and truly understanding what you read.

It’s nice to listen to a good preaching, it’s amazing to listen to worship music, but those things are easy to do. Well at least for me it is. It’s so easy to push play on a good sermon but why is it that it’s so hard to sit, and read the Bible? Our flesh is lazy when given the opportunity to do something productive like spending time with God.

It’s so important and I know this and yet I find myself being a hypocrite.

I felt so guilty this morning as I got up late, my girls were hungry and I had a newborn who was crying and all I could think about was, “this is why I can’t spend time with God first thing in the morning. It’s impossible.” Then I took a deep breath and served my family breakfast, fed my baby boy, and put him to sleep. I made up my mind that after breakfast instead of jumping at my day I would sit. Even if my home was a mess, even if my to-do list was the size of an encyclopedia. I sat down and asked my daughters to quietly read to themselves (no TV either) and I just sat and read. 

Romans 8:5 “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.”

It felt amazing. Not the sitting part, due to my hyperactive personality I really dislike sitting still but the stillness of time spent with a book inspired by the Holy Spirit stopped me and captured my heart once again as always.

Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

I read John and I understood. I came to the feet of Jesus and asked Him to renew my mind. To help me out all things aside, to teach me what to give up and what to put on my schedule. Most importantly, I asked Him to forgive my lazy ways and to help me to make Him a priority.

John 3:30 “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Spending time with God doesn’t have to be lengthy, or fancy as I see many people post on social media with coffee, makeup done, and a clean home at 5AM according to them. It’s a time spend with God, opened to rebuke and comfort.

I don’t know about you but eternity, His Word, and time with Jesus is worth starting over right now, it’s never too late. Today you can choose to examine your day and make it about the one who gave it to you. Today, make it happen friends, I know I am.