DO WE NEED TO READ THE BIBLE EVERY DAY?
DO WE NEED TO READ THE BIBLE EVERY DAY?
I could give two completely different answers to that question. One would be an unconditional yes. The other one would be an unconditional no. Why should we read the Bible every day and why isn’t it necessary? This is my theme for today.
When my children were old enough to read, I was teaching them to read the Bible as it was their food. I asked them how often they ate during the day and the answer was three to four times a day. What would happen if one stops to drink and eat? One would die, not right away, but after some time. We would become weaker and weaker and we would eventually die. What more did they do every day? We go to the toilet. We should do that spiritually as well. We need to get rid of the rubbish. We could ask The Holy Spirit if we harbor any sin or if there are people we haven’t forgiven? If we do not do that, we might have poison in us and that could influence both our soul and body and would limit our spirit to flow freely. A physical constipation creates pain and causes much discomfort. Sin and lack of reconciliation block my relationship to God.
Some people feel that they are religious and under the Law if they must read the Bible every day. They say that they are free and do not need to do that as an obligation. They might use different scriptures to prove their point. One might be John 8:36. It says that if the Son makes you free, you are free indeed. Another one is Galatians 3:13. There we read that Christ has bought us free from the curse of the Law. Can we say that reading the Bible is a curse of the Law? I would say no. The Word is like food giving us life.
How much food do you eat every day and what kind of food do you eat? In some churches you are told how much you should read every day. Others are choosing their own reading plan. These plans are usually having portions from The Old Testament as well as from The New. If you read the Bible to satisfy your pastor or another spiritual leader, your motive is wrong and you might loose the appetite for the Bible. We human beings are almost allergic to control and if we think that others are controlling our Bible-reading, we might oppose it more and more.
I personally feel that I should read the Bible more than I do and The Holy Spirit encourages me to read more. Would the Lord love me more then? No, He loves me with unconditional love and in Romans 8:39 it says that nothing can separate me from His love, not fear or anything else. God’s love and care for me is not dependent on my Bible-reading.
Jesus is saying in John 14:23+24 that if we love Jesus, we would keep His commandments. How can we keep His commandments if we haven’t read The Word? The more we read, the more we get to know and the easier it is to keep the commandments. When you love somebody, you want to be with that person and you want to listen to the words coming from that person. This is the same with Jesus. If we love Him, we want to spend time with Him and listen to what He has to tell us through His Word. I think that more than I can see that I do not love Him the way I should since Bible-reading isn’t my first priority. Naturally I read the Bible, but I believe that Jesus wants me even closer.
In the Gospel of John and in the letters of John we read that we do not love God if we do not love His children. I think that we should teach much more on this. There is so much division in the Body of Christ. People are arguing within the same church and between the churches. Just think of all the gossip. That is sinful. Many people are praying for revival for hours, but revival does not start outside of us, but within us.
If you and I shall see a revival, there must be a deep change in our inner being.
I know some countries where many have gotten saved and gotten a relationship to Jesus, but there is a great lack of Bibles. I have been part of an organization spreading Bibles to many countries. It is unbelievable to see the hunger people have for the Word of God. Many are willing to risk their lives for spreading the Word of God. I have friends that have risked their lives for smuggling the living Word. These people are also having a love for the Bible. Bibles are smuggled into many closed countries even today. When people get saved, but lack the Word, the revival has a tendency to become spiritual unhealthy. Hosea 4:6 says that people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. We also need good teaching books that are based on The Word of God. I find that even here in Sweden there are many unhealthy practices in the body of Christ based on lack of knowledge.
The Word of God is full of promises, encouragement and comfort. It gives healthy guidance for everyday life and how we should treat each other. It teaches us how to pray. Isaiah 55:11 says that The Word of God should not return to God void. It is alive. We received a promise that we should receive power when The Holy Spirit came. That power is available for us today.
LET US READ THE BIBLE TOGETHER WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT, OUR HELPER!
Mother Else