Why read the Bible at all?

For many people, growing in Christ means learning biblical facts and doctrines first and foremost. Maybe you’re one of those people who like to dig deep in their Bible studies and learn the original meaning of passages of scriptures, listen to sermons, and read scholarly books. I love it too!

But the thing is, the Bible is not there to fill your head with knowledge. Its purpose is to fill your heart with wonder and joy.

Every study of the Bible should end with worship of the Lord. And worship is not just 20-30 minutes of singing that happens every weekend at your church service. Worship is expressed in your response to God's Word, in how willingly you obey God and in how much you value Him.

The fact that the apostle Paul ends Romans 9 through 11 with a burst of worship shows that the purpose of Bible study is not only to expand our spiritual understanding but also to ignite our hearts with a passion for God

In Romans chapters 9 through 11 we find one of the most complex and profound doctrines in all of Scripture: “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unfathomable are His decisions and unsearchable His ways! Who understood the mind of the Lord or was His adviser? Whoever lent Him what He should repay? After all, everything happens from Him and through Him, and everything exists for Him. Praise Him forever! Amen.” ( Romans 11:33-36 )

Perhaps you are more interested in Christianity from a practical point of view. You want to know how God can help you find a happier marriage, a family, and a more stable career that brings more satisfaction and fulfillment. That’s why you like sermons that tell you what practical changes the Bible should bring to your life.

And there is nothing wrong with this – the Bible is full of wise instructions for our lives. But the Bible is, first of all, not a book of the best spiritual practices. This is a book that can lead you to wonder. The stories in the Bible are not told for the sake of characters to emulate, but for you to have a Savior to admire.

Almost 75 years ago, British pastor D. Martin Lloyd-Jones said that in his day, Christians had an ongoing debate about whether sermons should be primarily filled with doctrine or whether it was more important that they should be easily applied to real-life

According to Lloyd-Jones, neither information nor the possibility of applying knowledge in practice should be the main thing in the sermon. The lecturer aims at the first. A motivational speaker strives for the second. But sermons are not meant to leave us with a notebook page covered in notes or a page with step-by-step instructions for action. Biblical sermons should leave us in a state of worship.

During each sermon, there should be a moment when having lowered the pen, you would raise your eyes. When you stop saying, “Oh my God, look what I’ve done for You,” but say, “Oh, God, look what You’ve done for me!”

This vision alone will change your life more than any list of practical advice. That is why D. Martin Lloyd-Jones said, “I spend the first half of the sermon exhorting Christians to study doctrine, and the second half of the sermon I tell them that doctrine is not enough!”

                                Author - JD Griar