Why study Gods Word?

Sac49 · Jan 6, 2017

The study of Gods Word is very important to the growth of a Christian (2 Tim 3:16). But it can also be done for the wrong reasons.

There are 3 main reasons for the study of Gods Word;
1: so we can grow closer to God.
2: to worship God
3: to glorify God
Yes, we are to study Gods Word so we can learn how to live our lives for Christ. But this should not be our main purpose for study. Our main purpose in study should be to glorify and worship God. God is the creator of everything so thus deserves our worship and glory. Our purpose in life is to glorify God so we should also be studying The Word to glorify Him. If we approach study in a way as to glorify God then we will ultimately end up living our lives for Him. If we approach study with a thought of growing closer to God as a main focus then we will ultimately end up with a self centered reason for studying His Word. Notice the difference between these two reasons for study. Study "for us to grow closer to God" has "us" as the first focus. If we study "to glorify and worship God" then He becomes the first focus.

Yes, study so you can grow closer to God but first and foremost, study to worship and glorify God. Put God first in your study, for God should be first in all you do.

2 Corinthians 8:5 "but they gave themselves first to the Lord".

FreeNChrist · Jan 6, 2017

In order to better know it's Author.

stonesoffire · Jan 6, 2017

I study to see Jesus or to have Him revealed to me. Every time I see Him, I worship, and am filled with joy.

John146 · Jan 6, 2017

Sac49 said:

The study of Gods Word is very important to the growth of a Christian (2 Tim 3:16). But it can also be done for the wrong reasons.

There are 3 main reasons for the study of Gods Word;
1: so we can grow closer to God.
2: to worship God
3: to glorify God
Yes, we are to study Gods Word so we can learn how to live our lives for Christ. But this should not be our main purpose for study. Our main purpose in study should be to glorify and worship God. God is the creator of everything so thus deserves our worship and glory. Our purpose in life is to glorify God so we should also be studying The Word to glorify Him. If we approach study in a way as to glorify God then we will ultimately end up living our lives for Him. If we approach study with a thought of growing closer to God as a main focus then we will ultimately end up with a self centered reason for studying His Word. Notice the difference between these two reasons for study. Study "for us to grow closer to God" has "us" as the first focus. If we study "to glorify and worship God" then He becomes the first focus.

Yes, study so you can grow closer to God but first and foremost, study to worship and glorify God. Put God first in your study, for God should be first in all you do.

2 Corinthians 8:5 "but they gave themselves first to the Lord".

2 Timothy 3
16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:17 That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

maxwel · Jan 6, 2017

Sac49 said:

The study of Gods Word is very important to the growth of a Christian (2 Tim 3:16). But it can also be done for the wrong reasons.

There are 3 main reasons for the study of Gods Word;
1: so we can grow closer to God.
2: to worship God
3: to glorify God
Yes, we are to study Gods Word so we can learn how to live our lives for Christ. But this should not be our main purpose for study. Our main purpose in study should be to glorify and worship God. God is the creator of everything so thus deserves our worship and glory. Our purpose in life is to glorify God so we should also be studying The Word to glorify Him. If we approach study in a way as to glorify God then we will ultimately end up living our lives for Him. If we approach study with a thought of growing closer to God as a main focus then we will ultimately end up with a self centered reason for studying His Word. Notice the difference between these two reasons for study. Study "for us to grow closer to God" has "us" as the first focus. If we study "to glorify and worship God" then He becomes the first focus.

Yes, study so you can grow closer to God but first and foremost, study to worship and glorify God. Put God first in your study, for God should be first in all you do.

2 Corinthians 8:5 "but they gave themselves first to the Lord".

Can you give us some verses to support your thought that study is primarily for worship, rather than for relationship with God?

Marcelo · Jan 6, 2017

stonesoffire said:

This is the way we should study the Bible! Sometimes we forget that the knowledge of God comes through our hearts.

NayborBear · Jan 6, 2017

I study the Bible to, as I have come call it, as a "drifting BACK" to God, or. "reverse apostasy"!....Although, I applaud you in your efforts in worshipping, and glorifying God, as He is SURELY worth it, and if this is all you wish to do, then, have at it brother! I "PRAY" that GOD will "reveal" to you, that, there are more "sides/aspects" of Him, then this, but glorifying HIM, is CERTAINLY 1 of 'em!.....

Blain · Jan 6, 2017

I think to study it to learn to live a holy life and to grow and mature as a believer is a good reason to study the word in fact all the reasons posted so far in this thread are good reasons but I think just as we are unique and different as people we also study it with a different yet not exactly wrong priority.

Me personally I do so to become closer to him and to know him intimately I focus mainly the bond and the relationship with God than I do learning to live holy or to even to glorify him but I also think that in seek his heart by reading it I in turn learn how to live holy and I give him glory simply because I seek his heart in the scriptures with both an intense hunger and thirst.

Amazing-Grace · Jan 6, 2017

It's all linked, you have to study God's word to truly know Him and as a result of knowing Him we feel the need to worship Him - worship is (or should be) the end result and the ultimate goal.

Ariel82 · Jan 6, 2017

Worship of God is a good reason to study the Bible and so is building a relationship or learning to live our lives in a manner that glorifies God.

I would not rank one above or call it better than another.

Only bad reason I can think of is to use or twist the Bible to make others do what you want or have power or control over others...to use in debate to "prove" your point.

It our hearts are focused on God and learning from Him, then he Bible can be a tool the Holy spirit uses to change and shape our hearts and minds. Sometimes though we forget we are not God and should,not try and cut our brothers and sisters with His words but simply share what we have learned and allow His Spirit to convict or change others hearts and minds as He has shaped ours.

Willie-T · Jan 6, 2017

Probably the best reason to study God's word is so that you won't inadvertently absorb denominational doctrines, thinking they are actually God's word.

People having done this seems to be the root problem of so many arguments here.

As a friend of mine wrote:
The millennias-long struggle of man has been to perceive God rightly, holding at bay personal and cultural influences that would fog up our lenses, and to then pass on a proper and untarnished understanding of Him to the next generation. Men have fought, prayed, studied, and worshipped themselves delirious, testing out different means and methods of coming at the Divine in the name of learning Him aright.
Unfortunately, a virgin view of God is a notoriously difficult thing to acquire and an even harder thing to hold on to once found, and so we are typically handed nothing more than the former generation’s toxic misunderstanding which, in my opinion, always does far more damage than an ignorant atheism ever could. We would oftentimes have been better off with no theology at all than with some of the nonsense that has been taught in the name of Christianity.

Tragically, these gruesome and harmful caricatures of God eventually become dogmatized and doctrinalized and, despite being nothing more than revivals and revisions of Abraham’s “gimme-God”, become cardinal teachings of the institution that calls herself the “church”. Sadly, it is typically these gloomy portraits that become the standard understanding of God preached from most pulpits and printed in most publications and, consequently, many, just like Abraham, find themselves behaving in ways that would have seemed unthinkable had it not been for the influence of their imagined “god”.

Eventually, whole structures arise that devote themselves to brewing and distributing these doctrinal distillations to eager-to-drink disciples. Whole generations emerge from the wombs of these structures, fully possessed by and devoted to the false representations of God learned within their walls. All of us have been influenced by such ideas in one way or another, but trick ourselves into thinking that we just happen to be the ones possessing a pristine and perfect knowledge of God’s character, and then become quite enamored with our “knowledge” and “revelatory insight”. Like Abraham, however, many of us also eventually find ourselves in that moment where, as George MacDonald said, we stand horrified at the things we believed to be true of God. We find the doctrines we once thought so angelic, to be utterly demonic, and the beliefs we thought so pure, to be rotten to the core.

Because God is jealous for His loving reputation, when we persist in beliefs that portray Him as angry, retributive and just plain old mean, we will inevitably hit a wall and realize that our concepts simply do not work. While seeming so right initially, we find that they’ve left us crooked, bent in the wrong direction, disillusioned and desperately longing for reformation. Ideas and doctrines that we think will lead us into spiritual enlightenment and freedom often lead us, instead, down a path of darkness, depression, and spiritual death.
As the scripture says,

25 There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death. -PROVERBS 16: 25

Grace777x70 · Jan 6, 2017

Amen Willie

I believe to the very depth of my core that we will be shocked at the things we believed about our loving Father taught to us by religion - when we really see Him and the Lord Jesus Christ for who they truly are.

Just like this quote here says:

"as George MacDonald said, we stand horrified at the things we believed to be true of God. We find the doctrines we once thought so angelic, to be utterly demonic, and the beliefs we thought so pure, to be rotten to the core."

Willie-T · Jan 6, 2017

Grace777x70 said:

Thought you guys might like to see the whole quote:

Abraham, Put Down Your Knife! “Good souls, many will one day be horrified at the things they now believe of God… such must take courage to forsake the false in any shape, to deny their old selves in the most seemingly sacred of prejudices, and follow Jesus, not as he is presented in the tradition of the elders, but as he is presented by himself, his apostles, and the spirit of truth.”
-George MacDonald (1824-1905)

Sac49 · Jan 6, 2017

There seems to be a bit of misunderstanding in what i am saying. What i am saying is that "if" the main reason for studying Gods Word is "self" then we are not studying His Word for the correct reason. If "self" is first the first reason we study Gods Word then that means God is second. We are to "seek" a relationship with God but God should be first in that relationship. Left on our own we would not seek a relationship with God. God took the first step in the relationship by creating us. He also took the last step in the relationship when He came to earth as the man Jesus to die and rise again defeating death for our sins so that we could have a relationship with Him thru our faith in Jesus. Our "motto" as Christians should be two words...."Jesus first".

All i am saying is that our study of Gods Word should be a "Jesus first" reason for our study.

Am I thinking "Jesus first" or am I thinking of "self" first? This is the reason for this thought.

maxwel · Jan 6, 2017

Sac49 said:

You started off by saying that "woshipping God" is MORE IMPORTANT than a "relationship with God".

Are you now saying it's not?

Are you now saying "worshipping God" is NOT MORE IMPORTANT than a "relationship with God."

You made a clear statement, and now you seem to be contradicting that statement...
I'm just trying to figure out whether or not YOU AGREE with the original statement you made.

I can't decide whether or not I agree with you, until I can first determine if you agree with yourself.
: )

Ariel82 · Jan 6, 2017

Sac49 said:

I think we have to reach a level of maturity in our walk with God before we realize that God comes first. When we realize that we couldn't have made the decision to turn from our sins unless God's grace allowed us to see our sin and His call allowed us to turn back to Him.

It is a false dichotomy to set up the question "Do you study the Bible for God or for yourself?"

Because we study for both God and ourselves. God loves us like children. He wants us happy and joyful and to find joy in deepening our relationship with God.

God doesn't need our study or worship but He calls us to do it for ourselves and uses what we do for His glory.

We shouldn't continually question our motives and separate our wills from God's, but learn to make our wills to be what God wills for our lives. We need to learn self control by walking with His Spirit and by doing so showing the world true worship.

Sac49 · Jan 6, 2017

maxwel said:

You started off by saying that "woshipping God" is MORE IMPORTANT than a "relationship with God".

Are you now saying it's not?

Are you now saying "worshipping God" is NOT MORE IMPORTANT than a "relationship with God."

You made a clear statement, and now you seem to be contradicting that statement...
I'm just trying to figure out whether or not YOU AGREE with the original statement you made.

I can't decide whether or not I agree with you, until I can first determine if you agree with yourself.

Look at how i stated it. "We are to seek a relationship with God but God should be first in that relationship". Before we can have a relationship with God we must give Him glory. We must bow before God as the almighty and confess our sins to Him. Our relationship with God begins with us glorifying Him. If we dont glorify God in this way first then we cannot have a relationship with Him. We must first submit to God by glorifying Him. So therefore glorification of God comes first making Him first in the relationship which we are created to have. But this all only because He reached out to us first. Glorification of God first then the relationship begins. So therefore we are first to study to glorify and worship God so we can have the relationship with Him. Does this help?

maxwel · Jan 6, 2017

Sac49 said:

maxwel said:

Sac49,

I'm only trying to understand if you're still asserting your ORIGINAL position,
or if you're now taking a DIFFERENT position.

You originally said this.

Making the point that we should study to "worship" God, rather than studying to have a "relationship" with God.

Then you go on to assert that studying in order to have a "relationship" with God is actually SELF CENTERED, and thus BAD.... as seen in your quote below.

So:

1. You say studying in order "worship" God, is BETTER than studying in order to "grow closer to God".

2. You also say studying in order "grow closer to God" is actually SELF CENTERED and thus BAD.
(Being self-centered is a sin, so studying for self-centered reasons must be, inherently, sinful.)

These are 2 of the points YOU propose in your opening post...
I'm simply asking if you are STILL asserting these points,
or if you have changed your mind, and you are now asserting something different?

So, do you STILL stand by these 2 points?
(If not that's fine, I'd just like to know. I certainly don't care if you've changed your mind; I'd just like to be clear about it.)

Thanks,
Max.

Willie-T · Jan 6, 2017

Well, there IS the point that it might not be such a great idea to develop a relationship with anyone, without first learning something about them.

Sac49 · Jan 6, 2017

maxwel said:

Sac49 said:

Sac49,

I'm only trying to understand if you're still asserting your ORIGINAL position,
or if you're now taking a DIFFERENT position.

You originally said this.

Making the point that we should study to "worship" God, rather than studying to have a "relationship" with God.

Then you go on to assert that studying in order to have a "relationship" with God is actually SELF CENTERED, and thus BAD.... as seen in your quote below.

So:

1. You say studying in order "worship" God, is BETTER than studying in order to "grow closer to God".

2. You also say studying in order "grow closer to God" is actually SELF CENTERED and thus BAD.
(Being self-centered is a sin, so studying for self-centered reasons must be, inherently, sinful.)

These are 2 of the points YOU propose in your opening post...
I'm simply asking if you are STILL asserting these points,
or if you have changed your mind, and you are now asserting something different?

So, do you STILL stand by these 2 points?
(If not that's fine, I'd just like to know. I certainly don't care if you've changed your mind; I'd just like to be clear about it.)

Thanks,
Max.

Have a look at my last post where i reply to your other message. This might clear uo what i am saying.

Why study Gods Word?

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