The Bible—Its Purpose And Use

But these are written so that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you might have life in His name. 
John 20:31

The Bible was not designed to teach science and other branches of learning. It is primarily a religious book, pointing men to CHRIST and teaching them how to live. 

As a religious book it is:

A. AUTHORITATIVE

If the Bible is divinely inspired, then it is authoritative in its message. When it speaks it is to be obeyed. Some religious groups place the authority altogether in the Church, as do the Roman Catholics. They claim that it is the church in which men are to believe, and it tells them how they must live.

Others attribute partial authority to the Bible. They say it contains the seed of truth, but it must be supplemented by the decrees and opinions of men. There are others who reject the authority of the Bible, and look to the individual conscience and to human reason for religious authority -- every man being his own authority.

We know, however, that the Bible, interpreted to the believer by the HOLY SPIRIT, is the final authority because it is the Word of GOD.

More than once, as Paul combated the errors of religious leaders, he appealed to the Scriptures. As he spoke in the synagogue at Thessalonica, he "reasoned with them out of the Scriptures" (Acts 17:2). In Romans we see such expressions as these: "What saith the Scripture?" (Romans 4:3); "For the Scripture saith" (Romans 10:11). It is to the Scriptures we must still go for our authority. When it is a choice between man's words and GOD's, "we ought to obey God rather than men". (Acts 5:29).

Profitable Bible Study

Reuben Archer Torrey (28 January 1856 – 26 October 1928), was an American evangelist, pastor, educator, and writer.

Reuben Archer Torrey

There are many profitable methods of Bible Study. There is something, however, in Bible study more important than the best methods, that is, the fundamental conditions of profitable study. He who meets these conditions will get more out of the Bible, while pursuing the poorest method, than will he who does not meet them, while pursuing the best method. Many a one who is eagerly asking, "What method shall I pursue in my Bible study?" needs something that goes far deeper than a new and better method. 

1. The first of the fundamental conditions of the most profitable Bible study is that the student must be born again. 

The Bible is a spiritual book, it "expresses spiritual truths in spiritual words" (1Co. 2:13), and only a spiritual man can understand its deepest and most characteristic and most precious teachings. "The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned" (1Co. 2:14). Spiritual discernment can be obtained in but one way, by being born again. "No one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again" (John 3:3). 

No mere knowledge of the human languages in which the Bible was written, however extensive and accurate it may be, will qualify one to understand and appreciate it. One must understand the divine language in which it was written as well, the language of the Holy Spirit. A person who understands the language of the Holy Spirit, but who does not understand a word of Greek or Hebrew or Aramaic, will get more out of the Bible than one who knows all about Greek and Hebrew and cognate languages, but is not born again, and, consequently, does not understand the language of the Holy Spirit. It is a well-demonstrated fact that many common men and women who are entirely ignorant of any knowledge of the original tongues in which the Bible was written have a knowledge of the real contents of the Bible, its actual teaching, in its depth and fullness and beauty, that surpasses that of many learned professors in theological faculties. 

One of the greatest follies of the day, is to get unregenerate men to teach the Bible because of their rare knowledge of the human forms of speech in which the book was written. It would be as reasonable to set a man to teach art because he had an accurate technical knowledge of paints. It requires esthetic sense to make a man a competent teacher of art. It requires spiritual sense to make a man a competent teacher of the Bible. The man who has esthetic discernment but little or no technical knowledge of paint would be a far more competent critic of works of art than a man who has a great technical knowledge of paint but no esthetic discernment; and so the man who has no technical knowledge of Greek and Hebrew but has spiritual discernment is a far more competent critic of the Bible than he who has a rare technical knowledge of Greek and Hebrew but no spiritual discernment. It is exceedingly unfortunate that, in some quarters, more emphasis is laid on a knowledge of Greek and Hebrew in training for the ministry than is laid on spiritual life and its consequent spiritual discernment. 

Unregenerate men should not be forbidden to study the Bible, for the Word of God is the instrument the Holy Spirit uses in the New Birth (1Pet. 1:23; Jas. 1:18); but it should be distinctly understood that, while there are teachings in the Bible that the natural man can understand, and beauties which he can see, its most distinctive and characteristic teachings are beyond his grasp, and its highest beauties belong to a world in which he has no vision. The first fundamental condition of the most profitable Bible study is, then, "You must be born again." You cannot study the Bible to the greatest profit if you have not been born again. Its best treasures are sealed to you. 

Why The Bible?

Often new believers ask why Christians put so much emphasis on the Bible. The main reason is this: The way you treat your Bible is the way you treat Jesus Christ. He is the living Word and the Bible is the written Word, and they agree in their character and ministry.

If we ignore the Bible, we are ignoring the Father who gave us the Bible, the Son who is the theme of the Bible and the Spirit who wrote the Bible and wants to teach it to us. The Book of Hebrews opens by saying, “God … has spoken to us by his Son” (Hebrews 1:1-2). That idea is reinforced later in the book, too: “See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks” (Hebrews 12:25).

Palawan's Subterranean River, Philippines

When I open my Bible and open my heart to learn, God opens His mouth and speaks to me and the Holy Spirit teaches me. Although it’s an ancient book, the Bible speaks to people today because it teaches timeless truths. It tells us the truth about the world around us, the future before us and the problems within us. That’s why God’s Word is always relevant. The Bible is a source of information that never grows old.

Information produces transformation, and this information is more than just Bible facts—it is spiritual truths. When we understand Bible truth and receive it into our hearts, that truth releases spiritual power and we are changed to become more like Christ. It’s like the story of the man with the shriveled hand found in Mark 3. Jesus told the man to stretch out his hand, which was something the man couldn’t do.

But our Lord’s word of command has power to make things happen. All we need to do is receive the Word, trust it and obey it, and God will do wonderful things.

A third reason the Bible is so important is found in Psalm 40:8: “I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” We’ve gone from information to transformation to motivation. What motivates us to read, study and obey the Bible? We love Him because we have His Word in our hearts. What we do as believers is important, but why we do it is also important. The more we know about Jesus, the more we love Him. It’s a spiritual chain reaction.

You may be thinking, But that means I must spend time every day reading my Bible and learning from it. Precisely! It’s a daily discipline, like taking a shower or eating meals. The Word cleanses us (John 15:3, Ephesians 5:25-27) and the Word feeds us. And don’t forget about exercise. Take a look at Matthew 4:4, 1 Peter 2:2, Jeremiah 15:16 and 1 Timothy 4:7-8. Praying, worshiping, giving, using the skills God has given us—all these things develop our spiritual muscles and help make us strong in the Lord.

You’re probably saying to yourself, “I see it now, but how do I get started?”

Choose an accurate Bible translation, one that’s clear and understandable. I recommend the King James Version or the New King James Version, if you have difficulties understanding Elizabethan English. Choose the best time and place for you to meet with the Lord. Read your Bible carefully, meditate on it and pray for enlightenment from the Holy Spirit. Read systematically and follow a schedule.

Begin with the book of John in the New Testament, then find a certain daily Bible reading pattern which is best for you, and then follow that pattern of reading each day as you move to the following chapters and books. If a chapter is long, break it into comfortable reading units, but stay with the plan. It takes time to develop this discipline, but it’s worth the struggle.

There’s one more thing. Application. The Lord will guide you in applying His Word to the practical details of your busy life. Romans 5:17 describes a coronation, where we each allow Jesus to be seated on the throne of our lives. We’re there with Him and we reign together with Him. Through information, transformation, motivation and coronation, the Bible helps us to understand just how to live the Christian life.