“Blessed is the one…whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night” (Psalm 1:3).

Have you ever wondered why Christians ought read the Bible? Why is daily reading of the Bible so important for followers of Jesus?

Reading the Bible is only important if Jesus is important. There is no way to come to know Jesus apart from the Scriptures. If your information about who Jesus is comes from your feelings?…goodness. The only way we know who Jesus is through his word.

But, that’s not the reason why we read the Bible. We do not read the Bible for information. We read it for relationship, for fellowship.

Right information is very important. But we do not read the Bible for knowledge’s sake. We read it for relationship and fellowship with its author. How else are we supposed to have a relationship with Jesus? How do we expect Jesus to come and speak to us? In signs and wonders? Voices?

Jesus speaks to us through his word. So if we want to have a relationship and fellowship with Jesus, we do so through spending time in his word.

I love what A. W. Tozer wrote about reading the Bible:
My experience is to open up the Bible, get on my knees before this open Bible, and begin reading not in a race to finish, but in an attitude to receive. As I give God’s word priority in my life, he begins to honor that priority by unfolding to me what the word of God is all about.

Why read the Bible? Because that’s how we have a relationship with Jesus, and fellowship with him.

“Seek first the kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you as well” (Matthew 6:33).

When it comes to Christ, addition never works.

Let’s say someone just became a Christian. The most natural thing to do is to add weekly worship, a Bible study or small group, and giving some money to the church on top of all the things you used to do. As far as lifestyle goes, not much has changed except that you’ve added an hour or two on Sunday mornings for worship and a weekday Bible study or small group, and you’ve started giving some money to the church.

This is what adding Christianity to the old life looks like. This is where most Christians are.

The only thing is this never works. You will never grow that way.

Jesus didn’t say, “Add my kingdom and righteousness to your already busy life.”

Jesus never said, “Add some holy Christian things to your previous ungodly life.”

That’s not following Jesus.

Jesus made it pretty clear, “Seek FIRST my kingdom and righteousness.” He’s not asking us to add him. He’s asking us to completely throw out our old way of living that led to death and darkness, and replace it with kingdom values and righteous living. It is the surrendering of our old way of living, our old values, our old dreams, our old practices and placing Christ front and center.

Worship, small groups, serving others are not additions. They are the foundation to the Christian life.

That is why when anyone is in Christ, “There is a new creation. The old has gone. Everything is new!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Seeking Christ first is about putting God above all other things and only adding my hobbies, preferences, interests, and pursuits as long as they are consistent with kingdom values.

That’s what it means to seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness.

Christianity is not about adding Christ. It is about throwing out the old, and replacing our old life’s values with Christ’s kingdom values.

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

There is no such thing as “your truth” and “my truth.” If truth is to be true, there can only be truth.

Truth is not relative. Truth is not arbitrary. Truth has a name. His name is Jesus. And, one day, he will come to judge the living and the dead.

What our culture confuses is the difference between perspectives and truth. Perspective depends on where you are. Depending on how you are looking at something, it changes your perspective.

But what doesn’t change is that there is a number, and that each number must mean only one thing. That is an absolute truth. If that is relative, if that depends on perspective then all reason and logic comes crashing down. In such a society it is impossible to build anything.

I would love it if I could determine the value of a number based on my needs and feelings. I would love it to say that I have a bazillion dollars in my bank account. That would be really nice. But I don’t get to determine the value of my bank account. The numbers must mean what the numbers mean.

That’s how truth works. Truth has to be true.

In a culture where personal experience and relativism rules the day, it is not popular to hold to absolute truths. But truth doesn’t care much about popularity. Truth is truth. Truth has nothing to do with perspective.

Jesus declares, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

That’s the absolute truth and you can take that to the bank!