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I’ve had the recurring thought that I should write an article about why we study the Bible. This is the foundation of why I named my newsletter Grounded in the Bible, but I’ve never taken the time to write out why the Bible should be the foundation of our lives or why it is important to study the Bible.
A few weeks ago, I came across Psalm 111:10 in my transforming verse of the day jar. I decided to read the whole psalm for context, and it hit me—this is why we study the Bible. Let me tell you the reasons I saw in Psalm 111 for why we study the Bible.
1 Praise the Lord.
I will extol the Lord with all my heart
in the council of the upright and in the assembly.2 Great are the works of the Lord;
they are pondered by all who delight in them.
3 Glorious and majestic are his deeds,
and his righteousness endures forever.
4 He has caused his wonders to be remembered;
the Lord is gracious and compassionate.
5 He provides food for those who fear him;
he remembers his covenant forever.6 He has shown his people the power of his works,
giving them the lands of other nations.
7 The works of his hands are faithful and just;
all his precepts are trustworthy.
8 They are established for ever and ever,
enacted in faithfulness and uprightness.
9 He provided redemption for his people;
he ordained his covenant forever—
holy and awesome is his name.10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all who follow his precepts have good understanding.
To him belongs eternal praise.
Reason #1: We study the Bible to understand God’s character.
Read through Psalm 111 again and look for the characteristics of God. Here’s a table to help you find them.
Here’s a list of the characteristics I see:
Worthy of praise
Great
Performs wonders
Glorious
Majestic
Righteous (upright)
Eternal
Gracious
Compassionate
Provider
Faithful
Omnipotent
Just
Trustworthy
Redeemer
Holy
Awesome
God’s name
Wise
And that’s just from one psalm—10 verses! How much more can we understand the characteristics of God if we study the entire Bible. This is one reason I have created the Characteristics of God series.
Reason #2: We study the Bible to remember God’s mighty acts.
Verses 2-9 are all about God’s works, his deeds, his wonders, the works of his hands. We read the Bible to remember all the things God has done. His deeds display his awesome power and his control over creation and people and history and events. Without a written record of God’s mighty acts, we would so quickly forget them.
God’s mighty acts are also one way that we see that God keeps his promises. Every promise that God has made, he has fulfilled. He has kept his end of the covenant, even when we don’t. By reading about God’s mighty acts, we see that God is a good and trustworthy God, a faithful and holy God, and he is worthy of our praise.
Reason #3: We study the Bible to know that God has redeemed us.
One of God’s greatest “mighty acts” is his redemption of his people, both the Israelites and humankind as a whole. Verse 9 says that God has provided redemption for his people. That redemption was complete when Jesus paid for our sins on the cross and rose again in full power and glory. We study the Bible to know Jesus and to believe in him.
Reason #4: We study the Bible to grow in our fear of the Lord.
Verse 10 says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. What is the fear of the Lord? If we fear the Lord, it means that we have holy reverence for him and we understand that he has the power to forgive us and cleanse us of our sins or cast us away into darkness forever. He is a holy and just God, and we are all deserving of eternal death because of our sins. But God in his mercy sent Jesus to redeem us. By fully understanding God’s character, his intolerance of sin, and his greatest act of compassion for us, we grow in our fear of the Lord.
Reason #5: We study the Bible to grow in wisdom and understanding.
As we study the Bible, we begin to understand God’s character and his redemption plan, which causes us to fear him. As we fear him and continue to study his Word, we grow in wisdom and understanding. By applying what we learn in the Bible to our lives, we can be wise and discerning in how we live and the choices we make.
Reason #6: We study the Bible to be reminded to worship God.
The Bible, especially the Psalms, gives us reason after reason why God is the only one who is worthy of praise and worship. All other gods fail in comparison to the One True God. God is the only one who is in control of all creation. He is the only one who sustains life. He is the only one who is exalted far above all other gods. He is the only one who can restore his fallen creation so that we can be in a right relationship with him. We have so many reasons to worship God.
The day after I pulled Psalm 111:10 from my transforming verse jar, I pulled Romans 15:4. And that verse gave me more reasons why we study the Bible.
Romans 15:4: For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.
Reason #7: We study the Bible for encouragement.
Life on earth can be hard. Sometimes we need a bit (or a lot) of encouragement to get through the day, to not give up. When we feel this way, the Bible has words of encouragement that God has given to his people.
Reason #8: We study the Bible for hope.
Very few things on this earth give us hope. I’m not talking about “I hope I get this awesome gift for Christmas” or “I hope I get this job.” I’m talking about real hope. Not just a wish for something to happen, but hope that is based on something sure and certain. God’s promises in the Bible are sure and certain. He has already acted to redeem us and to save us from the enemy. He already knows what the end will look like. He already has a plan in place for a new heaven and a new earth. Because God is trustworthy, we can depend on his promises. We can depend on him to keep his word. This is our sure source of hope in a tired and weary world.
Reason #9: We study the Bible so we can endure.
When we place our trust in Jesus, when we believe that the words of the Bible are true, when we know that God’s promises are sure and certain, we have the hope and encouragement we need to endure all hardships and persecution. For some, this may look like tolerating a below-average job because it pays the bills. For others, this may look like a cancer diagnosis. And for still others, this may look like becoming a martyr for your faith. Whatever God calls us to endure, we know that we can endure it because he’s given us encouragement and hope in the Bible. He has told us how everything ends. He has told us that the side of good will win. But if we don’t study the Bible, how will we know this?
I hope these reasons convince you that it’s important to study the Bible. That it’s important to let the Bible be the foundation of your life. The Bible holds the key to knowing God, being redeemed from your sins, and having hope to endure to the end. It holds the words that bring eternal life. I hope you will join us at Grounded in the Bible as we study God’s word each week!
