What does the Bible means to me?
It's another one of those questions that we know the answer to technically.... But if it's just you and God in a moment of quiet, and He asks you this question, what would you honestly say?
There are several ways we could answer. Most of us would agree that the Bible means Truth, and that by it we have given ourselves to Christ. But after we say all the right things (things we really do mean), how do we then treat God's Word in our daily lives to reflect what we just said?
It’s something that we are continually working on, but this is our goal: to trust it, to hold it dear, and to need it to live.
First, we have to trust in the words of the Bible as God’s Word— not just in general, but specifically for us in each of our lives. I could tell you all day long that I trust a certain product or food brand. But if I don’t actually use it, it’s kind of hard to believe that I actually mean what I say. It’s the same for the Bible, whether we’re trying to tell others, God, or even ourselves. If we really trust the Bible’s authority in our lives, then our lives should be changed by it.
It’s been a struggle for us for awhile. When the Israelites were finally “home” (Canaan), led there by God out of a life of slavery in Egypt, God said told them to meditate on his words 24/7 so they could be careful to do all that was written in it (Joshua 1:8). And at the end of Joshua (24:24-27), the people gave God their word that they would truly follow him. But it didn’t take long for them to instead start doing what was right in their own eyes (Judges 17:6, 21:25) and putting God’s Word outside of their daily lives.
What God says isn’t just extra - it is life! Like David said in Psalm 19, “Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.” And when we trust in God’s Word— truly, not just saying so — God is able to do incredible things (things that we long for!).
Establishing that the Bible is personally important is… important. Thankfully, God didn’t just give us a bunch of rules. He gave us something that we can hold dear.
When we are clinging to God’s Word, usually when we’re in a rougher season of life, we treat the Bible as the a well-worn war love letter— we can’t get enough of it! It’s more precious than gold and sweeter than raw honey (Psalm 19:10). But the fact that it is a most precious gift given to us by God never changes, no matter what our life looks like! The Bible is our only lifeline to God. Without it, we have no idea what to do here on earth. Temptations become harder to bear, life seems hopeless, and truth is just based on opinions. Admittedly, we’re human, and there are times when we want to want to read the Bible, but it just doesn’t seem as sweet as we know it is. But if we truly continue to seek God, those doubts and discouragements fade. And through God’s strength, we will always come back to holding what He has to say as more dear to us than anything else in this world.
It’s the bottom line. We need the Bible. It is Truth and it is dear, but it is also just absolutely essential if we’re going to make it.
When Satan was tempting Jesus, the very first thing Jesus said was, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Jesus was fully human and he hadn’t eaten at all in forty days (when was the last time you did that?). He knew very well what the essentials were for us as humans to stay alive. But even then, Jesus powerfully proved that the Bible was more important. Life isn’t found in the things that keep us breathing physically; it’s found in every word that comes from the mouth of God that sustains our souls.
Without the Bible, we’re just existing and surviving. But with the Bible, our souls are revived (Psalm 19:7), which literally means to bring back to life. Where else would we find that? It’s an echo of what Peter told Jesus in John 6:68, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life…” It’s as true today as when Peter said it.
So, if God asked you what the Bible means to you, what would you say? We know he already knows our heart, so there’s no point trying to pretend with Him like we might with others or ourselves. But the beautiful thing is, even if we honestly are standing in front of Him with tears in our eyes saying, “I don’t know, “ or “I’m not holding it dear,” God isn’t looking back with a stern glare. He’s looking at us with compassion, also with tears in His eyes, asking us, “Why not?” He has done everything possible to get these words to us. It’s one thing for us to have trouble desiring to read it; it’s another to purposefully keep setting the Bible aside and pretending like we don’t need it. Our goal is to desire the words he has given us, to treasure them daily, and to live a life that shows what a difference those words mean. And over time, we realize that the Bible means everything to us.
