5 Days to Get Motivated to Read the Bibleಮಾದರಿ

Where do you find your motivation to read the Bible? During the last few days, we’ve considered three reasons to be motivated to read God’s Word: It is a lamp that guides us, a sword that corrects us, and a rock that gives us stability. Today, we conclude with the idea that the Bible is honey that delights us.

We should read the Bible because it is first and foremost a delight—a delight because it ultimately leads us to know the God of the universe himself. Intimacy grows in the context of communication. Through God’s Word, we meet with God. Through the pages of Scripture, we learn to know and love the God we serve, and it is a joy to know him and be known by him!

When was the last time you had pure joy in reading some portion of the Bible? When was the last time you heard God speak to you in the pages of the Bible and the words moved you like sweet words spoken to you by a cherished friend? The word for honey in Psalm 119:103 is dĕbaš, a term that could be used either for honey from bees or syrup from fruits like grapes or dates. In biblical times there was no sugar, so these were the sweet foods that people could eat. The image in the psalm is one of delight.

As I have studied the Bible, I have been struck time and again with its artistic beauty, the words sweetening the reading at times like the touch of a cinnamon roll on my tongue.

You and I need moments in which God’s Word smites our hearts with its beauty, igniting delight and awe and hope in us. We need the Word to raise our heads above the difficulties of day-to-day challenges to remind us that at the end of the day, the darkness is “only a small and passing thing.” There is light and high beauty to be found in God’s character, God’s world, and God’s Word. The expectation of seeing such beauty motivates us to read God’s Word on a regular basis. When we read God’s Word on a regular basis. we grow to know the Source of beauty.

Friend, the Word of God has so much to offer us: guidance, correction, stability, delight—and more. But we will not know it unless we read it. Let's consider these benefits as motivations drawing us to the Word.

Thank you for reading this plan!

This plan was based on the book A Short Guide to Reading the Bible Better by Dr. George H. Guthrie. To learn more about this book, click here.