20 Reasons to Read the Bible Today

It's easy to find reasons to avoid reading the Bible. Here are a few that come to mind:

• Busyness

• Difficulty

• Complexity

• Tiredness

• Conviction

• And its length.

I thought I would look up what Scripture says about itself. I put together this list, and it became a compelling list for me to pick up the Bible and read it today.

Here are 20 reasons to read the Bible from the Bible:

1. All Scripture is inspired by God and helpful for our growth (2 Tim. 3:16).

2. The Scriptures give us instruction and hope (Rom. 15:4).

3. Every word of Scripture will come true (Matt. 24:35).

4. We should meditate on Scripture and be careful to do what is written in it (Josh. 1:8).

5. The living and active Scriptures reveal our thoughts and intentions (Heb. 4:12).

6. It transforms us. Scripture is perfect. It revives us, makes us wise, and brings joy (Ps. 19; 119:16).

7. It nourishes us. We feed on every word that comes from God (Matt. 4:4).

8. It endures. The word of God will stand forever (Isa. 40:8).

9. Jesus used the Scriptures as the measure of truth (Matt. 22:29).

10. The truth of God's word brings sanctification by the power of God (John 17:17).

11. The Scriptures must be handled rightly (2 Tim. 2:15). It is possible to misinterpret them, misapply them, and handle them wrongly.

12. We should let the word of Christ live inside of us richly (Col. 3:16). How can we do this if we don't know Scripture?

13. The wise are not only hearers of God's word, but they are doers (Matt. 7:24; Luke 11:27-28; James 1:22).

14. Storing up God's word inside of us helps in the fight against sin (Ps. 119:11).

15. They reveal Christ. The Scriptures point to Jesus (John 5:39).

16. They are honest. Scripture itself says that it can be hard to understand (2 Pet. 3:15-16).

17. They predict that some people will twist them. The "ignorant" and "unstable" twist the Scriptures to their own destruction (2 Pet. 3:15-16). We should learn them so we can spot when someone is trying to twist them.

18. They are God's words. The Scriptures were produced by the will of God, not the will of humans (2 Pet. 1:20).

19. We should study them and check teaching we receive by them. It is considered a noble thing to search the Scriptures daily and examine them to make sure what we're taught is correct (Acts 17:11).

20. They free us. God uses the truth to set us free (John 8:32).

Are we too busy and tired for these things? We should heed the phrase that Augustine famously heard: "Pick up and read."

Practical takeaway: How will you read Scripture today? One powerful verse? One chapter? One book of the Bible? One Psalm? A section from the Old Testament and New Testament?

Hear the words of Jesus: "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!" (Luke 11:28).