What Is the Bible Supposed to Do in Our Lives?

Why do you think God gave us the Bible? Why did he go to the effort of having his message written down by numerous authors over many centuries and faithfully preserved? What was his ultimate purpose?

Was it so that we would know the truth? It goes without saying that to learn anything from God, we must first receive the relevant information and details. Acquiring facts and insights is vital in any field.

I’m incredibly grateful for the year I spent at Moody Bible Institute, where I gained a treasure trove of biblical knowledge. But I’ve met people who know Scripture better than I ever will and could probably recite it forward and backward in Greek and Hebrew. And yet, they don’t even believe in a Creator.

God didn’t reveal his Word just to fill our minds with information. He gave it to transform our lives. Unless we allow the Bible to mold and shape us, we study in vain, no matter how much we read. We could know every verse by heart and the historical context of each book and letter, but without applying what it says, our knowledge is ultimately useless. 

Many verses speak to the connection between the Bible and the human heart. God promises to “write it (the Law) on their hearts.” ⁽¹⁾ The reader is encouraged to engrave God’s wisdom “on the tablet of your heart.” ⁽²⁾ We are told that the Bible “judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” ⁽³⁾

What do I mean by the word “heart?” In the Biblical sense, it is the seat of the will, intellect, and emotions. We could call it the “headquarters” of our thoughts, decisions, conscience, and emotions. It is the ruling center of who we are. Consequently, we follow the way of our hearts.

Every one of us is prone to resisting the Bible’s influence on our hearts, no matter how much of it we’ve read. How do I know? I see this tendency in myself, and I’ve been studying God’s Word for almost as long as I can read (I won’t admit how many years that’s been). I don’t think I’m an exception. No matter where we are on our spiritual journey, whether at the beginning or after many decades, letting the Bible mold our hearts is always a challenge.

So how do we let God’s Word impact our hearts? It all comes down to our attitudes and choices. Do we read the Bible only for information, or do we continually ask the Holy Spirit to show us the truths we need to apply? And then we go out and do them! Acknowledging that something is true or that we need to change is an excellent first step, but it isn’t enough. Unless we practice what we learn and allow it to mold and shape us, it remains “information only.”

You could say we need to let God’s Word “marinate” our hearts. We should become so permeated by Scripture that its truths mold who we are. Marinated food changes its flavor and aroma, and this is what God wants to do with us (in the spiritual sense, of course). However, this process can only happen when we cooperate with God’s work in our lives.

One final thought. Why is it so important to let the Bible change our hearts? Does God want to control us? Does he want to take all the fun out of our lives? Hardly! His goal is to expose what is wrong, help us overcome our sinful nature, and enable us to live according to what is good and true. If we’re honest, we will admit to wrong thoughts and actions, which is why we so desperately need God’s Word to do its transforming work in our hearts.

⁽¹⁾ Jeremiah 31:33

⁽²⁾ Proverbs 7:3

⁽³⁾ Hebrews 4:12