Sir Isaac Newton – “I have a fundamental belief in the Bible as the Word of God, written by men who were inspired. I study the Bible daily.”
George Washington – “It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.”
Abraham Lincoln – “I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man.”
George Washing Carver – “The secret of my success? It is simple. It is found in the Bible.”
Richard Dawkins – “The Bible should be taught, but emphatically not as reality. It is fiction, myth, poetry, anything but reality. As such it needs to be taught because it underlies so much of our literature and our culture.” He went on to say that “A native English speaker who has never read the King James Bible is verging on the barbarian.”
Bible is unlike any other literary masterpiece you’ve ever read. Not one book but a collection of 66 different books/letters, each with a separate purpose. Using multiple genres of literature (think Blog, news article, allegory, biography, history, etc) to tell one unified story that leads to Jesus
Psalm 1 says the ideal reader is someone who meditates on the scripture day and night. Someone who reads it, thinks about it, memorizes it, discusses it and applies it to the way they live their lives. Jesus said the wise person would not just be a hearer of his teachings but a doer also. What does this look like?
Start reading in a specific place in the Bible and ask yourself three questions:
- What does it say?
- What does it mean?
- What should I do now?
Ephesians 1:1-8
This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus. I am writing to God’s holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus. May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.
- Which one of these verses stand out to you?
- Rewrite the verse you chose in your own words.
- What does it say? That because I belong to Jesus, God gives me grace
- What does it mean?
- What should I do?
- Write out a prayer of praise to the Lord and then pray it out loud.