STEEMCHURCH: WHY READ IT?

Everyone who hears these words and puts them into practice is like a prudent man who built his house on the rock. The rains fell, the rivers grew, and the winds blew and whipped that house; all in all, the house did not collapse because it was cemented on the rock. Matthew 7: 24-25

Source

---

Many literary scholars advise reading the Bible, since they consider it a beautiful literary piece, and undoubtedly it is. But the benefits of reading it go far beyond artistic beauty. If we intellectualize the Bible and consider it only as a compendium of beautiful stories, biographies of interesting characters, historical data and beautiful songs and poems, we will have hardly appreciated the form. But what gives life is not the form, but what is hidden behind it. Its essence is in the hand of the one who directed the writing of each letter, each word and each thought: God himself!

"But the natural man does not perceive the things that are of the Spirit of God, because for him they are foolishness, and he can not understand them, because they are to be discerned spiritually." 1 Corinthians 2:14

the Bible is not just any book you should read for reading, the Bible is the written Word of God in which it reveals its will for each one of us, it is a library of 66 books written by different men at different times under divine inspiration and preserved in perfect harmony, so that "All the Scripture is inspired of God and useful to teach, to rebuke, to correct and to instruct in righteousness, in order that the servant of God may be fully enabled for every good work" 2 Timothy 3: 16-17.

When, guided by the Holy Spirit, we are able to discover God in every text of Scripture, we are opened to a sphere of relationship with him that no other relationship can replace. God, through his Word, speaks to us, provides direction in decision-making, and gives us a wisdom that goes beyond the human sciences. In that way, we fill ourselves with power to perform our daily duties.

Dedicate a daily time to this activity: If you are a beginner, it may be a bit difficult at first, but with the passing of days you will need to finish reading the previous day, which will be an additional motivation. Start with a daily chapter, you can start with the Gospels, the 4 books that are starting the New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). "For the things that were written before, for our teaching were written, so that through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures, we may have hope" Romans 15: 4 NKJV. Now you can look for resources or guides to carry out a plan of constant reading of the Bible, make use of the one that best suits your times!

Source

Read and analyze each word: "Finally, brothers, everything that is true, everything that is honest, everything that is just, everything that is pure, everything that is lovely, everything that is of good name; if there is any virtue, if there is something worthy of praise, think of this "Philippians 4: 8 NKJV. After starting, stop to analyze each of the words you read, you can find words that you may not understand and I invite you to have a handwritten notepad and pen to take note. Writing what you have trouble understanding or the key words of a chapter will help you find out and make external inquiries so you can have a better understanding of it. Write, write, write, you will be surprised by everything you can learn!

The Bible entertains you, teaches you, questions you, confronts you and above all transforms you. It talks about our origin and shows us what our future will be. But it also speaks of the fascinating and hopeful message of Jesus Christ becoming man to restore us from the fall of humanity, and to return to us the undeserved gift of Eternal Life, which is the greatest expression of God's love for us.

And that's true. It is through the Bible that we learn about the precepts and commandments of God that we must fulfill. For example, in the book of Deuteronomy 28 it says that if we obey his law, we will do well in everything, but if we disobey we will also obtain dire consequences, losing his protection and remaining at the expense of the enemy that governs this world.
That's why we see so many calamities that happen in people's lives and that people sometimes do not understand why. But we also find others who, even in the midst of world crises, seem to be doing well.
But how can we know the precepts of God? The only way to know the law of God is to read the Bible, because that is where we can find everything about the Will of God and his Word.

We must read and study the Bible because God does not change and because human nature does not change either - it is as current to us as it was when it was written. While great technological changes are generated daily around us, the desires and nature of the human race do not change. You will find, as you read the pages of the biblical story, that whether it is interpersonal relations or between societies, "there is nothing new under the sun." And while the human race as a whole continues to seek love and satisfaction in all the wrong places, God, our good and merciful Creator, tells us what will bring us an ETERNAL joy. His revealed Word, the Scriptures, are so important that Jesus said about them, "... Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4: 4). words, if you want to live a full life as was the will of God, listen and follow the written Word of God ... it is more important than eating!

We must read and study the Bible because there is a lot of false teaching. The Bible gives us the measure by which we can distinguish truth from error. It tells us what God is like. To have a wrong impression of God is to worship an "idol" or "false god". We are worshiping something that is not Him! The Bible also tells us how we can truly go to heaven ... and it's not because we're good, or baptized, or anything else we can DO (John 14: 6, Ephesians 2: 1-10, Isaiah 53: 6, Romans 3: 10b, 5: 8; 6:23; 10: 9-13). Through these texts, the Word of God teaches us how much He loves us (Romans 5: 6-8, Isaiah 53: 5). And that's how knowing this, we are led to love Him in response (1 John 4:19).

But I advise you to read it for the right reasons. Do not stay any longer in the form, be able to penetrate as far as you can hear the voice of God speaking directly to you. Take every word and every promise of the Lord and make them yours. Put your Word in your heart and let it change everything that needs to be transformed.
Make the daily reading of the Bible for you a personal encounter with your God, in which you can appropriate your power and gain new strength to face the challenges that each day proposes. Take it as your reference book to know the will of God whenever you have an uncertain situation in your life. Let the Lord comfort you when you feel overwhelmed and claim your beautiful promises. Allow it to provide mental health when your emotions are confusing you and, above all, fill yourself with your Holy Spirit when you are buffeted by evil.

Source