10 Things Bible Study Will Do For You
Question. What do you want your life to be
characterized by? What words come to
mind if I ask you, “How would others describe you?”
How about these?
Strength.
Boldness.
Joy.
Peace.
Wisdom.
Purity.
Determination.
Success.
To the person, all of us want
happy, successful, effective lives. No
one wants to get to the end of their days and say, “Well, that was a wasted
life!”
We want to make a
difference. Some of us have gifts and
passions that are able to influence large amounts of people. God has put something within that pushes us
to not only have big dreams, but to go after those dreams. For others, God has enabled us to live the
small, quiet life, making a difference in less dramatic ways. But for all of us – we want to know that our
lives meant something.
If you are a believer – a true
Christ-follower – the way that happens is through saturating yourself in God’s
Word and living your life by its principles.
Here is a great article I ran
across that gives Ten Things Bible Study
Will Do For You. Consider its
implications for your own life. Want to
have a successful, joy-filled, impactful Christian life? Here’s how.
Ten Things Bible Study Will Do For You
The Bible is a book about God. It is not just history with references
to God’s people, nor is it a record of poetic songs of religious people. The
Bible is a book about God. It is not just a book about the birth, life, and
death of God’s Son, nor is it just a story of the subsequent spread of
Christianity. It includes all these, but it is a story about God, given to us
from God, written by God through His servants a story that points us to
salvation and worship of God.
The Bible is God’s revelation of Himself to you. When you understand
this principle you begin to understand the Bible. Since God is who He is, then
what is true of God must also characterize the Book that describes Him. God is
the Source of this revelation (Deut. 29:29). Christ, the Son of God, is the
central theme of the Bible (John 5:38). The Holy Spirit is the divine Author of
Scripture (2 Pet. 1:20, 21). Therefore, the Bible is the revelation of God,
Christ is the message of the Bible, and the Holy Spirit is the author of the
Bible.
The Greek word inspiration, that Paul used to describe how the
Bible was written, literally means “breathed-out from God.” “All scripture is
given by inspiration of God” (2 Tim. 3:16). Jesus spoke of “every word that
proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4). Therefore, when you pick up the
Bible to study its pages, you have God’s book in your hands. Determine to get
God’s message into your mind.
1.
Personal
Bible study will strengthen your Christian life. The Bible is your
source of strength in your Christian life. John wrote, “I have written to you,
young men, because you are strong, and the Word of God abides in you” (1 John
2:14). As you consistently study the Bible, you will be strengthened to meet the
challenges you encounter in life.
2.
Personal
Bible study will strengthen your assurance of your relationship with God.
In the same epistle John also wrote, “These things I have written to you who
believe in the name of the Son of God, that you many know that you have eternal
life” (1 John 5:13). Christians who tend to struggle with the assurance of
their salvation also struggle with the discipline in personal Bible study.
3.
Personal
Bible Study will strengthen your confidence in your relationship with God.
According to the Apostle John, “This is the confidence that we have in Him
. . .” (1 John 5:14). Our assurance comes from God to us through Bible study.
4.
Personal
Bible study will undergird the effectiveness of your prayer life. Bible
study is an important key to getting answers in prayer. You get answers when
you come to God by the Bible. Jesus told His disciples, “If you abide in Me,
and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done
for you” (John 15:7). This promise extends beyond those gathered in the Upper
Room that evening. It is a promise to be claimed by every Christian involved in
the discipline of personal Bible study.
5.
Personal
Bible study will help you overcome sin. The Bible describes itself as “profitable
for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2
Tim. 3:16). As you study the Scriptures, you learn doctrines which are the principles
of Scripture to govern the way a Christian should live. Occasionally, these principles
reveal how you live contrary to God’s way. Therefore, the Scriptures correct
the wrong way you live and instruct you in the correct way of righteousness. As
you respond to this ministry of learning doctrine, learning reproof, being
instructed in righteousness, you deal with sin in your experience. Jesus told
His disciples, “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken
to you” (John 15:3).
6.
Personal
Bible study will bring you internal joy. Jesus assured His disciples,
when He said, “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in
you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11). Joy comes from Jesus’ words.
7.
Personal
Bible study will bring you peace. Jesus promised His disciples peace
when He added, “These things have I spoken to you, that in Me you may have
peace” (John 16:33). Therefore, peace comes from Jesus’ words. The joy of the
Lord and peace of God are two experiences that come from the Word of God
planted in your life.
8.
Personal
Bible study will help you make good decisions. The Psalmist observed, “Your
word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps. 119:105). The principles
you learn through the daily study of the Scriptures will guide you through the
issues involved in each decision you make. Many Christian businessmen have
developed the habit of reading one chapter from Proverbs as they begin each
day. They read the entire Book of Proverbs once each month by reading one
chapter a day. As they make decisions throughout their business day, they do so
with the added advantage of God’s wisdom to help them evaluate each situation
they face.
9.
Personal
Bible study will help you explain your faith to others. The apostle
Peter urged Christians, “Sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be
ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is
in you” (1 Peter 3:15). The better you understand the Bible, the easier it will
be for you to explain the message of the Scriptures to others. Those who are
most effective in sharing their faith with others are those who have gone one
step further in their Bible study. As they come across verses which summarize
the teaching of Scripture on various subjects, they commit these verses to
memory to be used in later conversations about their faith.
10.
Ultimately,
personal Bible study leads to success in every aspect of your Christian life.
The word “success” occurs only once in Scripture and it is found in the
context of meditating on the Scriptures. God promised Joshua, “This Book of the
Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and
night, that you may observe 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”
(Josh. 1:8). Many successful Christians have proven God honors this promise, by
giving priority to personal Bible study in their lives.
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