Why the Bible is so important--in the
Bible's own words
God commands it!
It is Divinely inspired
Study of it brings blessing and rewards
Rejection of it leads to death
God's Word is.... (A hammer, a fire, a
sword, water....Find out what the Bible itself says the Word of God is like!)
All Scripture taken from the New
International Version of the Bible unless otherwise indicated.
God Commands it!
"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and
minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach
them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk
along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the
doorframes of your houses and on your gates, so that your days and the days of
your children may be many in the land that the LORD swore to give your
forefathers, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth"
(Deuteronomy 11:18-21).
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly
as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms,
hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God" (Colossians
3:16).
"Do your best to present yourself to God as
one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly
handles the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15).
"Now the Bereans were of more noble
character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great
eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was
true" (Acts 17:11).
"These commandments that I give you today
are to be upon your hearts" (Deuteronomy 6:6).
"For everything that was written in the
past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of
the Scriptures we might have hope." (Romans 15:4).
"These things happened to them as examples
and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages
has come" (1 Corinthians 10:11).
"I delight in your decrees; I will not
neglect your word" (Psalm 119:16).
"Search the scriptures; for in them ye
think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me" (John 5:39).
"Look in the scroll of the LORD and read"
(Isaiah 34:16).
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It is Divinely Inspired
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is
useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that
the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy
3:16-17).
"For prophecy never had its origin in the
will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy
Spirit" (2 Peter 1:21).
"In the past God spoke to our forefathers
through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days
he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and
through whom he made the universe" (Hebrews 1:1-2).
"Praise be to the LORD, who has given rest
to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the
good promises he gave through his servant Moses" (1 Kings 8:56).
"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my
words will never pass away" (Luke 21:32-33).
"Your word, O LORD, is eternal; it stands
firm in the heavens" (Psalm 119:89).
"Do not add to what I command you and do
not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give
you" (Deuteronomy 4:2).
"Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke
you and prove you a liar" (Proverbs 30:6).
"The grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of our God stands forever" (Isaiah 40:8).
"...For you have exalted above all things
your name and your word" (Psalm 138:2).
"But I the LORD will speak what I will, and
it shall be fulfilled without delay. For...I will fulfill whatever I say,
declares the Sovereign LORD" (Ezekiel 12:25).
"I tell you the truth, until heaven and
earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by
any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished" (Matthew
5:18).
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Study of God's Word Brings Blessing and
Reward
"Blessed is the one who reads the words of
this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is
written in it, because the time is near" (Revelation 1:3).
"...The ordinances of the LORD are sure and
altogether righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. By them is your servant
warned; in keeping them there is great reward" (Psalm 19: 9b-11).
"Therefore everyone who hears these words
of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on
the rock" (Matthew 7:24).
"He replied, 'Blessed rather are those who
hear the word of God and obey it' " (Luke 11:28).
"The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving
the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple"
(Psalm 19:7).
"Jesus replied, 'If anyone loves me, he
will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make
our home with him' " (John 14:23).
"Do not let this Book of the Law depart
from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do
everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful" (Joshua
1:8).
"...the holy Scriptures, which are able to
make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15).
"Blessed is the man who does not walk in
the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of
mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates
day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its
fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers"
(Psalm 1:1-3).
"If you love me, you will obey what I
command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be
with you forever--the Spirit of truth" (John 14:15-17).
"We know that we have come to know him if
we obey his commands" (1 John 2:3).
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Rejection of God's Word Leads to Death
"But they mocked God's messengers, despised
his words and scoffed at his prophets until the wrath of the LORD was aroused
against his people and there was no remedy" (2 Chronicles 36:16).
"My people are destroyed from lack of
knowledge. 'Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my
priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your
children' " (Hosea 4:6).
"Jesus replied, 'You are in error because
you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God' " (Matthew 22:29).
"To whom can I speak and give warning? Who
will listen to me? Their ears are closed so they cannot hear. The word of the
LORD is offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it" (Jeremiah 6:10).
"Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant
stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath
sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the
LORD of hosts" (Zechariah 7:12, KJV).
"But to the wicked, God says: 'What right
have you to recite my laws or take my covenant on your lips? You hate my
instruction and cast my words behind you' " (Psalm 50: 16-17).
"And if anyone takes words away from this
book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and
in the holy city, which are described in this book" (Revelation 22:19).
"A man who strays from the path of
understanding comes to rest in the company of the dead" (Proverbs 21:16).
"Whoever rejects the Son will not see life,
for God's wrath remains on him." (John 3:36).
"There is a judge for the one who rejects
me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him
at the last day" (John 12:48).
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The Word of God.....
1. Is FOOD for the Soul
"He humbled you, causing you to hunger and
then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to
teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes
from the mouth of the LORD" (Deuteronomy 8:3).
"I have not departed from the commands of
his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread" (Job
23:12).
"How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth" (Psalm 119:103).
"Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual
milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted
that the Lord is good" (1 Peter 2:2-3).
"When your words came, I ate them; they
were my joy and my heart's delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty"
(Jeremiah 15:16).
"Why spend money on what is not bread, and
your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and your soul will delight in the richest of fare" (Isaiah 55:2).
2. Is powerful to SAVE
"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it
is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the
Jew, then for the Gentile" (Romans 1:16).
"I write these things to you who believe in
the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life" (1
John 5:13).
3. Is a MIRROR
"Anyone who listens to the word but does
not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after
looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like" (James
1: 23-24).
4. Is a DISCERNER of the thoughts and
intents of the heart
"For the word of God is living and active.
Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and
spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart"
(Hebrews 4:12).
5. Is a SEED, generative and life-giving
"For you have been born again, not of
perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of
God" (1 Peter 1:23).
"The farmer sows the word. Some people are
like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan
comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on
rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have
no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because
of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns,
hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the
desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.
Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a
crop--thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown" (Mark 4:14-20).
"Now he who supplies seed to the sower and
bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge
the harvest of your righteousness" (2 Corinthians 9:10).
"He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to
sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him" (Psalm 126:6).
6. Is WATER, the power to purify
"...to make her holy, cleansing her by the
washing with water through the word..." (Ephesians 5:26).
"How can a young man keep his way pure? By
living according to your word" (Psalm 119:9).
"Sanctify them by the truth; your word is
truth" (John 17:17).
"Now that you have purified yourselves by
obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one
another deeply, from the heart" (1 Peter 1:22).
7. Is a LAMP that illuminates and guides us
"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light
for my path" (Psalm 119: 105).
"The unfolding of your words gives light;
it gives understanding to the simple" (Psalm 119:130).
"For these commands are a lamp, this
teaching is a light, and the corrections of discipline are the way to life"
(Proverbs 6:23).
"And we have the word of the prophets made
more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining
in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts"
(2 Peter 1:19).
8. Is a consuming FIRE
'They asked each other, "Were not our
hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the
Scriptures to us?" (Luke 24: 32).
"But if I say, 'I will not mention him or
speak any more in his name,' his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up
in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot" (Jeremiah 20: 9).
"I will make my words in your mouth a fire
and these people the wood it consumes" (Jeremiah 5:14).
9. Is a HAMMER to break the hardened heart
" 'Is not my word like fire,' declares the
LORD, 'and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?' " Jeremiah 23: 39
10. Is a SWORD; a weapon against the devil
"Take...the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God" (Ephesians 6: 17).
"Jesus said to him, 'Away from me, Satan!
For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only' ' " (Matthew
4:10, emphasis ours).
"Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon
come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth" (Revelation
2:6).
11. Is the SOURCE OF FAITH
"So then faith cometh by hearing, and
hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10:17).
"Through faith we understand that the
worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which
are seen were not made of things which do
appear" (Hebrews 11:3).
12. Is a LIFE-GIVING force.
"He asked me, 'Son of man, can these bones
live?' I said, 'O Sovereign LORD, you alone know.' Then he said to me, 'Prophesy
to these bones and say to them, `Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is
what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and
you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you
and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life.
Then you will know that I am the LORD.' ' So I prophesied as I was commanded.
And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones
came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them
and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me,
'Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, `This is what the
Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these
slain, that they may live.' ' So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath
entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet--a vast army"
(Ezekiel 31:3-10).
"Then I passed by and saw you kicking about
in your blood, and as you lay there in your blood I said to you, 'Live!' I made
you grow like a plant of the field. You grew up and developed and became the
most beautiful of jewels" (Ezekiel 16:6-7).
"Simon Peter answered him, 'Lord, to whom
shall we go? You have the words of eternal life' " (John 6:68).
"But these are written that you may believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have
life in his name" (John 20:31).
"If your law had not been my delight, I
would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by
them you have preserved my life" (Psalm 119:92-93).
"Jesus answered, 'It is written: 'Man does
not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God'
"(Matthew 4:4).
"I tell you the truth, whoever hears my
word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he
has crossed over from death to life" (John 5:24).
"I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my
word, he will never see death" (John 8:51).
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