Why
Study the Bible?
Why the Bible is so important--in the
Bible's own words
God commands it!
It is Divinely inspired
Study of it brings
blessing and reward
Rejection of it leads to
death
God's
Word is.... (A hammer, a fire, a sword, water....Find out what the Bible itself says the
Word of God is like!)
All Scripture taken
from the New International Version of the Bible unless otherwise indicated.
God
Commands it!
"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie
them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your
children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when
you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your
gates, so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land that
the LORD swore to give your forefathers, as many as the days that the heavens are above
the earth" (Deuteronomy 11:18-21).
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you
teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and
spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God" (Colossians 3:16).
"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a
workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth"
(2 Timothy 2:15).
"Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the
Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the
Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true" (Acts 17:11).
"These commandments that I give you today are to be upon
your hearts" (Deuteronomy 6:6).
"For everything that was written in the past was written
to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we
might have hope." (Romans 15:4).
"These things happened to them as examples and were
written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come" (1
Corinthians 10:11).
"I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word"
(Psalm 119:16).
"Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have
eternal life: and they are they which testify of me" (John 5:39).
"Look in the scroll of the LORD and read"
(Isaiah 34:16).
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It is Divinely
Inspired
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for
teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may
be thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
"For prophecy never had its origin in the will of
man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2
Peter 1:21).
"In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the
prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to
us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the
universe" (Hebrews 1:1-2).
"Praise be to the LORD, who has given rest to his people
Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave
through his servant Moses" (1 Kings 8:56).
"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never
pass away" (Luke 21:32-33).
"Your word, O LORD, is eternal; it stands firm
in the heavens" (Psalm 119:89).
"Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract
from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you" (Deuteronomy
4:2).
"Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and
prove you a liar" (Proverbs 30:6).
"The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of
our God stands forever" (Isaiah 40:8).
"...For you have exalted above all things your name and
your word" (Psalm 138:2).
"But I the LORD will speak what I will, and it shall be
fulfilled without delay. For...I will fulfill whatever I say, declares the
Sovereign LORD" (Ezekiel 12:25).
"I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not
the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from
the Law until everything is accomplished" (Matthew 5:18).
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Study of God's Word Brings Blessing
and Reward
"Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy,
and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the
time is near" (Revelation 1:3).
"...The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether
righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than
honey, than honey from the comb. By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is
great reward" (Psalm 19: 9b-11).
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts
them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock" (Matthew
7:24).
"He replied, 'Blessed rather are those who hear the word of
God and obey it' " (Luke 11:28).
"The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul. The
statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple" (Psalm 19:7).
"Jesus replied, 'If anyone loves me, he will obey my
teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him'
" (John 14:23).
"Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth;
meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.
Then you will be prosperous and successful" (Joshua 1:8).
"...the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for
salvation through faith in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15).
"Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the
wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in
the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted
by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers" (Psalm 1:1-3).
"If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will
ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever--the Spirit
of truth" (John 14:15-17).
"We know that we have come to know him if we obey his
commands" (1 John 2:3).
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Rejection
of God's Word Leads to Death
"But they mocked God's messengers, despised his words and
scoffed at his prophets until the wrath of the LORD was aroused against his people and
there was no remedy" (2 Chronicles 36:16).
"My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. 'Because
you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the
law of your God, I also will ignore your children' " (Hosea 4:6).
"Jesus replied, 'You are in error because you do not know
the Scriptures or the power of God' " (Matthew 22:29).
"To whom can I speak and give warning? Who will listen to
me? Their ears are closed so they cannot hear. The word of the LORD is offensive to them;
they find no pleasure in it" (Jeremiah 6:10).
"Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they
should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the
former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts" (Zechariah
7:12, KJV).
"But to the wicked, God says: 'What right have you to recite
my laws or take my covenant on your lips? You hate my instruction and cast my words behind
you' " (Psalm 50: 16-17).
"And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy,
God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are
described in this book" (Revelation 22:19).
"A man who strays from the path of understanding comes to
rest in the company of the dead" (Proverbs 21:16).
"Whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath
remains on him." (John 3:36).
"There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not
accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day" (John
12:48).
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The
Word of God.....
1. Is FOOD for the Soul
"He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you
with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not
live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD"
(Deuteronomy 8:3).
"I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have
treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread" (Job 23:12).
"How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to
my mouth" (Psalm 119:103).
"Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by
it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good"
(1 Peter 2:2-3).
"When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my
heart's delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty" (Jeremiah 15:16).
"Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on
what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will
delight in the richest of fare" (Isaiah 55:2).
2. Is powerful to SAVE
"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of
God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the
Gentile" (Romans 1:16).
"I write these things to you who believe in the name of the
Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life" (1 John 5:13).
3. Is a MIRROR
"Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says
is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away
and immediately forgets what he looks like" (James 1: 23-24).
4. Is a DISCERNER of the thoughts and intents of the heart
"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any
double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it
judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12).
5. Is a SEED, generative and life-giving
"For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but
of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God" (1 Peter 1:23).
"The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along
the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the
word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at
once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When
trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others,
like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the
deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word,
making it unfruitful. Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and
produce a crop--thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown" (Mark 4:14-20).
"Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food
will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your
righteousness" (2 Corinthians 9:10).
"He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return
with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him" (Psalm 126:6).
6. Is WATER, the power to purify
"...to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with
water through the word..." (Ephesians 5:26).
"How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according
to your word" (Psalm 119:9).
"Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth" (John
17:17).
"Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth
so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the
heart" (1 Peter 1:22).
7. Is a LAMP that illuminates and guides us
"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my
path" (Psalm 119: 105).
"The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives
understanding to the simple" (Psalm 119:130).
"For these commands are a lamp, this teaching is a light,
and the corrections of discipline are the way to life" (Proverbs 6:23).
"And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and
you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the
day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts" (2 Peter 1:19).
8. Is a consuming FIRE
'They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within
us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?" (Luke
24: 32).
"But if I say, 'I will not mention him or speak any more in
his name,' his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of
holding it in; indeed, I cannot" (Jeremiah 20: 9).
"I will make my words in your mouth a fire and these people
the wood it consumes" (Jeremiah 5:14).
9. Is a HAMMER to break the hardened heart
" 'Is not my word like fire,' declares the LORD, 'and like a
hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?' " Jeremiah 23: 39
10. Is a SWORD; a weapon against the devil
"Take...the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of
God" (Ephesians 6: 17).
"Jesus said to him, 'Away from me, Satan! For it is
written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only' ' " (Matthew 4:10,
emphasis ours).
"Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and
will fight against them with the sword of my mouth" (Revelation 2:6).
11. Is the SOURCE OF FAITH
"So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word
of God" (Romans 10:17).
"Through faith we understand
that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which
are seen were not made of things which do appear" (Hebrews 11:3).
12. Is a LIFE-GIVING force.
"He asked me, 'Son of man, can these bones live?' I said, 'O
Sovereign LORD, you alone know.' Then he said to me, 'Prophesy to these bones and say to
them, `Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these
bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to
you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and
you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.' ' So I prophesied as I was
commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones
came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin
covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, 'Prophesy to the
breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, `This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come
from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.' ' So I
prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on
their feet--a vast army" (Ezekiel 31:3-10).
"Then I passed by and saw you kicking about in your blood,
and as you lay there in your blood I said to you, 'Live!' I made you grow like a plant of
the field. You grew up and developed and became the most beautiful of jewels"
(Ezekiel 16:6-7).
"Simon Peter answered him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You
have the words of eternal life' " (John 6:68).
"But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is
the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name"
(John 20:31).
"If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished
in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have preserved my
life" (Psalm 119:92-93).
"Jesus answered, 'It is written: 'Man does not live on bread
alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God' "(Matthew 4:4).
"I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes
him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death
to life" (John 5:24).
"I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word, he will
never see death" (John 8:51).
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