Monday’s Meditation – The Usefulness of the Bible

Is the Bible still “useful” in this day and age? Were the people of the past simple-minded, stupidly depending on a book full of stories to tell them how to live? Are we so enlightened in modern times that we no longer have need of God’s Word to guide us in decision making and choice of lifestyle?

God has given us “everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.” II Peter 1:3-9

God’s word is TRUTH, motivating us to what Peter speaks of in these verses. The most important thing is to take God’s word as absolute truth and live life how God desires us to live (which He reveals through the Word and prayer) and NOT to decide to live our lives the way WE want and then fit in the portions of God’s Word we think fit our lifestyle, disregarding the things we don’t like. This is what happens all too often in this present age.

Spending time reading the Bible and learning about the life of Christ is indeed necessary for living the joy-filled, discerning life God desires for us. God’s Word was written by people of many different lifestyles: historians, military generals, politicians, prophets, scholars, a doctor, a tax collector to name a few! I don’t imagine many would say these types of people are simple minded! There are many practical things that can be applied to your life throughout Scripture. I will share some of these things in next week’s meditation.

At times I struggle with how to read the Bible with the right mindset. Proverbs chapter 2 says,

“For if you cry for discernment,
Lift your voice for understanding;
If you seek her (wisdom) as silver
And search for her as for hidden treasures;
Then you will discern the fear of the LORD
And discover the knowledge of God.
For the LORD gives wisdom;
From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.

I’d encourage you that if you are a Christian struggling in this area to put aside your present assumptions about the Bible, if indeed you do think it is irrelevant to your life, and pray for understanding from God. I find when I confess to the Lord my wrong motives and assumptions about a particular idea in Scripture, He reveals what I need to know about it and relates it to my life! Praying through the Bible, asking the Holy Spirit to move in us, teach us, and discipline us in what we need to know will yield the “peaceable fruit of righteousness” (Hebrews 12:11).

“Since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:9-14