I read the Bible.
As I write this, I am immersing myself in the book of Ezekiel. I also read the book of Proverbs, regularly. I go slow with Proverbs! I am also re-reading the Gospel of John. I have read John many times, and always discover new insights.
Why do I do this? Because: I am a disciple of Christ. The required text is the Bible. Jesus is training me to be like him, in character and behavior.
An apprentice to Christ constantly studies the Great Manual of Instruction. It functions as a guide to life, a light to one’s path. Plus, the Bible is the greatest, most influential, inspiring book ever written!
God used my earthly father to influence me to read the Bible. I remember seeing dad, holding his Bible, his glasses perched on the bridge of his nose, usually in the evening before he went to bed. Dad read it so much that his thumb almost wore through the leather cover. I have his Bible.
I received a black, leather-covered Bible when I was confirmed in our Lutheran Church. I was twelve years old. My fingerprints were not on this Bible. I never touched it. My mother stored it somewhere - I don't know where, and I didn't care. I never picked it up and read it. Until…
…I was 21. That's when Jesus rescued me out of deep enslavement to evil. Instantly, my life began to change for the better. I was now an apprentice to Jesus, and I needed a Bible!
I drove to my parents' home. I asked, "Mom, do you know where my Bible is?"
She got it for me. I began to read. And read. I wore the leather out on it so much that the cover finally tore off. I still have this Bible. Here it is.
I am my father's son. Like father, like son, right? I have been reading and studying the Bible for fifty-one years. Disciples of Christ study to show themselves approved, as they rightly handle the Word of God. (2 Timothy 2:15)
I want this for you. The apostle Paul wrote: Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. (1 Corinthians 11:1)
And: Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do. (Philippians 3:17)
I am a disciple, a student, in the School of Jesus. Jesus teaches us through the Word, and through other disciples, like my father.
Follow my example. Read and re-read your Bible.
(For a good book on understanding the Bible see How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stewart.)
DECLARATIONS
I am a student of God’s Word.
I love reading the Bible. It is a guide to my life!
I read portions of the Bible every day.
I write verses on 3X5 cards and carry them with me, looking at them often.
God speaks to me through the words of the Bible.
The Bible nourishes me. It is food for my soul.
I have time to read my Bible.
The Bible is getting inside me and transforming me.
(From my book 31 Letters to the Church on Discipleship, p. 20)
