What is the Bible?

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What is the Bible? The Bible is God’s holy Word, a collection of sixty-six books, two testaments, focusing on the Savior, Jesus Christ. It is complete, inerrant and trustworthy. 2 Timothy 3:16–17 | Psalm 19:7-8 | Hebrews 4:12 Reading the Bible is critical for a Christian; that’s an easy statement to say, but it’s much more difficult to put into practice. It’s far easier to stay in bed than to strain to read the small print on the page and confusedly stumble through a portion of scripture. Sometimes it feels like we aren’t getting anything from it. These are all things that we have all most likely thought and felt. However, the fact remains: We need the Scriptures because the Scriptures are the word of God. What is the Bible? The Bible is the book about God. The Bible is the preserved and inspired word of God. The Bible can be trusted to be authoritative and sufficient for life and godliness. The Bible is the authority over all knowledge to which it speaks. The Bible ultimately reveals God’s redemption and will for salvation. In the Bible we see God’s faithfulness to his people through all of history and to us now. In the Bible the Holy Spirit convicts us of our wrongs but points us to a Savior. Through the word the Spirit brings comfort in times of difficulty in ways that human wisdom and words never could. Through the word God shapes and forms us into the men and women God has created us to be, breaking us down by convicting us of sin and building us back up in the completion of God’s sacrifice on the Cross. Being immersed in Scripture changes us as the Spirit gives us more of the mind of God. God gave us the Bible not to be a chore, but to reveal Himself to us and prepare us to do His work on earth. He wants you to know Him personally and provided the means in which to do so.

What is your favorite book of the Bible and why?

Why is it necessary for God’s word to be true and authoritative in our lives? Or Why do we reject the authority of God’s word in our lives?

How have you experienced God through his word this week?

How is the Word of God to be read and heard? With diligence, preparation, and prayer; so that we may accept it with faith, store it in our hearts, and practice it in our lives. Psalm 119:1-16 | Isaiah 30:6-8 | Matthew 4:4 Imagine with me for one moment. Imagine that you’re sitting at home and God walks in and tells you, “Hey, I want to talk to you.” Imagine He tells you about Himself, what He’s like, the stories of what He’s done through history, how holy He is, how sinful you are, how much He loved you to send His only Son to be the perfect sacrifice for your sin. Imagine, He tells you what He wants you to do and that thing will bring you a life of joy. What would you do? Would you sit there, thinking “Man, I hope He hurries up. How long is He going to keep talking?” If God were sitting right in front of us talking to us we would sit up straight, listen intently, ask questions and take notes, eating up every single word. This is exactly how we should approach the Bible. The truth is God does visit us. He visits us through His Word. Diligence in reading the Bible is tough. We won’t be perfect at it. In fact, reading scripture can be a real fight against the flesh, a fight against our own sin. We are constantly believing the lies that “I’m not good enough,” or “I don’t know how” or “nothing happens when I read.” However, just like a muscle, the more we work it out the stronger it gets. We need to posture ourselves before God’s Word with prayer that He would meet us in it, help us to be consistent in reading and that He would help us understand it. It’s also important to ask Him to help us to do what His Word says. As Jesus says in John 14, if we love Him we will also keep His commands. It’s not enough to simply read the Bible to gain knowledge or so that we can win theological trivia. We read the scriptures to know God and then, in turn, respond to who God is and what he has done. We respond with transformed lives that make much of God and put the things that the scripture tells us to do into action.

Why is it important to be diligent and prayerful when you read the Scriptures?

What do you think it means that God visits or communes with you through his word?

How do we begin to read the Bible out of love rather than begrudging duty?


What does the Holy Spirit do through the Bible? The Bible through the power of the Holy Spirit tells us who God is, convicts us of sin, comforts us and tells us of his redeeming grace. 2 Timothy 3:16–17 | Hebrews 4:12 | Psalm 119:49-56 The Bible is unlike any other book: it tells us who God really is. We in our natural state don’t seek God or understand God (Romans 3), in fact we deny Him. But through the work of the Holy Spirit in the scriptures we know God. The Bible tells us who God is and what He is like. It opens our eyes to things that would otherwise be invisible to us. Through the power of the Holy Spirit the Bible also reads us we do not just read it; it cuts to the core of who we are and the motivations of our actions. The Bible, unlike any other book can, tells us where we run from God. The scriptures open our eyes to the law of God and reveals where we fall short and tells us of our wonderful Redeemer who took on our sin to save us. The word by the Spirit also, comforts our hearts in times of need. It is easy to come to scripture as though it’s some sort of historical/theological textbook but that is viewing the scriptures in the wrong light. It is a book written about real people who had real struggles, just like you and me. Within its pages it shows what God does in these real-life situations and tells us what God’s heart is for His children. The God that brought his people from slavery to freedom is the same God who comforted Paul in prison and the same God that inhabits the hearts of his people today.

What stuck out to you from the devotion and why?

Why is the Holy Spirit necessary when we read the Bible?

Give an example of a time you were convicted or comforted when reading the Bible?