The Bible is an incredible book of history, wisdom, and insight into life that points to our God as the creator of all things. Most importantly, the Bible is the Word of God that has been gifted to us.
It holds the key to a fulfilling, spirit-led life. Within the pages are God’s will for our lives as presented in sixty-six spectacular books. The Apostle Paul says in Timothy 3:16-17,
“All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.”
The Bible is truly a holy, beautifully written, and immeasurably powerful book.
Why should we study the Word of God? What is the value? The following are a few reasons that need to be considered when answering these questions.
“The study of God’s Word for the purpose of discovering God’s will is the secret discipline which has formed the greatest characters.”
--James W. Alexander
The Bible is God's Word to us. God has chosen to reveal Himself not only through creation and conscience, but also through His Word and Jesus. For those who follow Jesus Christ and love God the Father, studying the Bible is a must.
It is crucial to spend time in solitude reading the Bible.
In the words of Professor George Brown of Great Lakes Christian College, “This puts you and the Word of God alone together at a small table with a checkered table cloth in a dark room with a 60-watt bulb.”
We are called to read and interpret God’s will in private and corporately. There are so many questions that philosophers have asked for hundreds of years that God
answers for us in Scripture:
In His evident love for His children, God gave us the Bible. God communicated to humankind His character and how we can have a right relationship with Him.
Isaiah 55:11 says, “So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing fir which I sent it.”
God sent His Word to accomplish His perfect will for our lives in His own time. There are endless promises given to us in the Bible. We serve a God who has immeasurable mercy, endless grace and comfort, who knows and hears our pain, and has a perfect plan to bless the lives of his children. Whatever God says, we know that His Word is priceless, and He will do what He says.
We can all take refuge in His Word, His promises.
“Since God is sovereign, and this world is His, then every moment, in a sense, is a moment of providence. Wherever you find yourself right now has come by the process of events He ordained. Every past moment of your life has led to your now. The same will be true tonight, and tomorrow, and ten years in the future. Our experience of providence is our experience of the present, which we know has been wondrously woven together by God.”
--Pastor Jonathan Parnell
According to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, the word “edification” indicates the promotion of “spiritual growth and development of character of believers, by teaching or by example, suggesting such spiritual progress as the result of patient labor.”
The term encompasses all activities and disciplines that create a reflection of Christ.
“For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love. For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 1:5-8
We are called to grow spiritually. Our knowledge of God and our obedience to Him should be constantly increasing. Each of us acts as a dwelling-place for God, and we must work to build ourselves up into a temple worthy of the Spirit.
The various Bible courses offered at GLCC provide a solid, in-depth, foundation for Scripture to be studied, discussed, and applied. The courses help students acquire the skills needed for understanding God’s Word and gaining doctrinal discernment. Students are discipled into church leaders, pastors, and elders that the church needs to live counter culturally in following Christ.
Great Lakes also offers many online course options.
As a Christian academic community, Great Lakes' task is to educate men and women for preaching and other ministry roles as well as for careers related to the church or institutions in the public sector. In all instances, preparing students to be servant-leaders is central to the Colleges’ founding character, history, curriculum and campus ethos.
This article first appeared in 2019 and has been updated recently.