The Bible is old. Like really old – and originally written in languages that are foreign to us to people living on the opposite side of the world with very different cultures and situations. So, why read the Bible? Is there anything in it relevant to our lives today?
Yes. A lot, actually. You see, the Bible isn’t a story about ancient people: it is an ancient story about people. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth,” it opens (Gen. 1:1). From there, it describes the creation of a very good world, made complete by the presence of humanity whom God created with the very special purpose to be like Him. On those first pages of the Bible, we see everything that makes life worthwhile. Meaning and mission. Work and rest. Perfect relationship with God, each other, and the world around us. Reading the Bible reveals why we are here. It also reveals where things went wrong. Humanity sinned, rejecting relationship with God to decide what is good and evil ourselves. All fear, blame, shame, pain, and decay began there. We separated ourselves from the Source of life. Thus, the Bible exposes sin and death as our true enemies, the root cause of all that is wrong in the world (cf. Rom. 5:12-14, 1 Cor. 15:25-26).
Yet, it also offers a solution. “And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live,” Moses said (Deut. 4:1). “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night,” the Psalms begin (Ps. 1:1-2). When we read the Bible, we learn a completely different approach to life that brings us back to our original purpose to be like God. The Bible – “living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12) – exposes those things we think, say, and do that cause death while also training us in how to have a right relationship with God, “that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
So, read the Bible. Discover who you were meant to be. Expose the true source of your struggles. Find what is missing in your life. Learn how to live abundantly right now. “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power” (Heb. 1:1-3). Hear and do what He says, and live.
Discover God's Word for your life in our series Confirmed!