Why Must You Know Your Bible?
THE Bible is Almighty God’s written revelation to mankind. It contains the thoughts of God in the language of men. It is the only inspired book that reveals God, his purposes, the duties of man and the requirements for life. As Sir Matthew Hale, lord chief justice of England, once said: “The Bible is the only source of all Christian truth;—the only rule for the Christian life;—the only book that unfolds to us the realities of eternity.”
You must know your Bible to know God. This is important because without a knowledge of God no man will gain everlasting life. Jesus Christ said: “This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.” (John 17:3) So knowing God and Christ and having knowledge of God’s requirements for gaining everlasting life are closely linked together.
The Bible is the only sure guide in the worship of God, which is another reason why you must know your Bible. Worshipers of Jehovah should “be filled with the accurate knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual discernment, in order to walk worthily of Jehovah to the end of fully pleasing him.” (Col. 1:9, 10) Yes, we must know God’s will if we are to “walk worthily” before him.
By means of such God-approved worship one finds peace with God, peace with one’s fellow man and peace with oneself, which is so vital to happiness. Wrote the psalmist: “Abundant peace belongs to those loving your law, and for them there is no stumbling block.” The American journalist Horace Greeley declared: “It is impossible to enslave mentally or socially a Bible-reading people. The principles of the Bible are the groundwork of human freedom.” Are not the gaining of divine approval, the finding of peace and freedom worth-while reasons for knowing your Bible?—Ps. 119:165.
In addition to these, there is another compelling reason why you should know your Bible. We are living in the time when, as God has foretold, he will sweep away all wickedness and firmly establish an everlasting new world of righteousness. This he will do by means of his kingdom, his heavenly government in the hands of his Son Jesus Christ. To survive that time of destruction and gain the blessings of God’s new world, we must submit to the rule of his kingdom now. The Bible, the book that has as its very theme the kingdom of God, shows us how. Yes, a knowledge of the Bible with obedience to it means life.