3 Reasons Why You Should Read the Bible Every Day
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There is no verse that commands us to read the Bible everyday.
However, there are verses that indicate such great familiarity and understanding of the Bible, that I can’t help but think that daily Bible reading is not only a good habit for Christians – it is essential.
Not only do I wish to explore 3 reasons why Jesus’ disciples should read the Bible ever day, but also why it isn’t religious or legalistic to do so.
There are Christians who question whether or not daily Bible reading is necessary for spiritual growth and a daily walk with Jesus.
I mean, do I really need to read my Bible every day?
Is it a sin to skip a day?
Will I backslide if I miss a week of reading the Bible?
Will I go to hell if I only read my Bible a few times a month?
My answer to these questions is: yes, we really do need to read our Bible every day. And we’ll look at why that is important in just a moment.
But no, it is not a sin to skip a day of Bible reading. You will not go to hell, and you will likely not backslide if you miss a day here and there.
But those questions miss the point entirely, because they point to a basic misunderstanding as to why we read the Bible.
- We don’t read the Bible out of fear that the “devil will get us” if we miss a day.
- We don’t read the Bible so we don’t go to hell.
- We don’t read the Bible so we can tick that box off on our to-do list for the day.
Reading the Bible shouldn’t be about a religious duty that we perform to “keep the devil away” or make sure God is happy with us.
Reading the Bible should be about building a relationship with the God who created us.
3 Reasons Why You Should Read the Bible Every Day
When we look at the Bible, there are several verses that imply a deep familiarity with Scripture that can only be gained through regular and consistent reading of Bible.
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” Joshua 1:8
Joshua was commanded by God that Book of the Law (the books of Moses – the first five books of the Bible) was not to depart from his mouth. He was to make a daily habit to meditate on it – mutter it under his breath. He could only do this by having such familiarity with it that he had memorized it.
“Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.” Psalm 119:97
We see this phrase pop up in the Psalms many times, in various forms. David loved God’s law and he talked about his love for God’s law many times throughout the Psalms, indicating how much time he spent thinking on and meditating on God’s law.
1. Reading the Bible every day builds intimacy with God
While prayer and worship are often considered to be the elements of Christian discipline that build intimacy with God – worship probably being considered one of the greatest elements of this – I contend that Bible reading is the greatest avenue achieving intimacy.
And here’s why:
The majority of worship songs are our words sung to God, about God, or about our desire to live for God. Prayer is our words spoken to God: our love for God, our exaltation of God, and our needs being shared with God.
If the majority of our relationship with God is built on our words to God, without at least equal time being given for God to speak back to us, our relationship is lopsided.
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And while I know that God speaks to us in prayer, we must have enough intimate knowledge of the Word of God to know whether what we’re hearing in prayer is truly God’s voice, and not the enemy trying to confuse us or lead us astray.
Which he will most certainly try to do!
The number one way we hear God’s voice is through His Word. Any other words we hear from Him must agree with God’s Word or its not His voice, and the only way we can be certain we are hearing from God is to read His Word.
Intimacy with God is built on communication, and communication only happens when both sides are allowed to speak freely.
2. It renews our mind
We live in a corrupt world where sin is considered normal living and biblical morals are at the very least considered outdated, and sometimes considered dangerous.
Even if we never watch TV, go to the movies, read secular magazines, or listen to secular music, we’re still bombarded by a sinful worldview every time we walk out our front door.
We can’t escape it.
As Christians, we can choose it live in a bubble and isolate ourselves from the world, but that’s not what God called us to do.
We cannot fulfill Christ’s commission while living isolated from the very world we were sent to touch and transform!
However, if we live in this world and we touch this world, and fail to allow God’s Word to cleanse us of the muck that gets splattered on us while out and about in the world, we’ll be the ones transformed, not the world.
Slowly, our worldview will begin to shift and small compromises will be made as God’s Word becomes a distance voice in the cacophony of immorality and political correctness being spewed every day.
It is essential for the believer to daily renew their mind in God’s Word so that our worldview agrees with God’s worldview.
3. It gives wisdom for living life
I am the type of person that when I find a new interest, I find out all I can about it.
I read blog posts
I listen to podcasts
I buy eBooks
And while we can find a lot of information out there about marriage, parenting, healthy living, financial freedom, and just about any other thing that could possibly interest you…
we must remember that knowledge and wisdom are not the same thing.
Knowledge is mental understanding
Wisdom is responding to life’s situations from a biblical worldview
The only way we gain godly wisdom is through the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is gained by knowing the Lord, knowing His commands, and knowing His character.
You come know the Lord, His commands and His character by reading His Word.
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2 scriptures came immediately to my head reading your introduction; 1 was Joshua 1:8 and the
other was Psalm 1:1-3:
Happy is the man who does not walk
according to the advice of the wicked
And does not stand on the path of sinners
And does not sit in the seat of scoffers.
But his delight is in the law of Jehovah,
And he reads His law in an undertone day and night.
He will be like a tree planted by streams of water,
A tree that produces fruit in its season,
The foliage of which does not wither.
And everything he does will succeed.
Of course most of God’s people in those days didn’t have their own copy of the Law (it was a little more common by the time of Apostle Paul, but still not in every home), but they paid attention when they had meetings and assemblies and memorizing was very common.