Why Read the Bible
In these blogs, I’d like to spend a few weeks on “How to Read the Bible.” Most of us know we should read it, and I’m sure most of us want to read the Scriptures, but sometimes it feels more like a chore than a delight. Among the many excuses we might give for neglecting the Word, one of them that we should address is simply that reading the Bible is hard. The Bible can be difficult to understand. Well, the good news is that you can read the Bible and understand it! Over the next few weeks, I hope I can give you some simple tools to help you read and understand the Bible on your own. But I’d like to begin with why we should read the Bible.
The apostle Peter had some pretty incredible experiences with the Lord. He heard his teachings. He saw him cast out demons and heal the sick. And certainly a mountaintop experience (literally) for Peter was when he saw the glory of Jesus on the mount of transfiguration. Surely we all long for an experience with the Lord like that!
Well, Peter tells us we have a sure way to experience Jesus Christ. He says in 2 Peter 1:16-21,
16 For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son,[i] with whom I am well pleased,” 18 we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. 19 And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21 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.
I like what Peter Krol says about this, “Peter loved the mountaintop. There’s nothing wrong with the mountaintop. But don’t miss Peter’s larger point- we don’t need the mountaintop to know God; what we need is to pay very close attention to the Word God has already spoken. That is where he speaks with the greatest clarity and the most authoritative power.”
We need the lamp of God’s Word to lead us through this dark world until the glory of Jesus breaks through at His return. If God has given us such a great gift in His Word, we ought to do as Peter said: pay very close attention to it. Maybe we can start by reading the whole letter of 1 John this week, one chapter a day.
Pastor Mark