Part two of Chapter 5, Bible Reading from J.C. Ryle's book, "Practical Religion"

1. Practical Religion
Chapter 5 - Bible Reading (Part 2)
J.C. Ryle

2. Review - Reasons to value the Bible
No other book is written like the Bible
The knowledge needed for salvation is
found in the Bible
No book contains such important matter
as the Bible
No book has produced such effects on
mankind as the Bible
The Bible is the only rule to try all
questions of doctrine and duty
The Bible is the book which all true
servants of God have lived on and loved
The Bible is the only book which can
comfort you in your last hours of life

3. Those Who Never Read the Bible
You are in danger of losing your soul.
Beware, lest you put off reading your Bible
until you are on your deathbed, and find the
Bible a sealed book to your soul.
The idea that “men do very well without
reading their Bibles” keeps you from
knowing that they do very poorly, and end
up in Hell.
A neglected Bible is evidence that
its owner does not love God.
~ J.C. Ryle

4. Those Who Read But Seek Advice
Start reading it today!
Don't just think about it, do it
If you can not read it yourself, persuade
someone else to read it to you
Read with an earnest desire to understand it
Do not just turn pages
Dig for the meaning like you are digging for
gold.
A Bible not understood
is a Bible that does no good.

5. Those Who Read But Seek Advice
Read with a childlike faith and humility
Resolve to believe, even if it goes against your
biases
Resolve to receive it as truth, even if you don't like
what you read
Resolve to take on faith that which you can not
understand
Remember that when you read the Bible, God is
speaking to you, and you are not to argue, but to
listen.
Open your heart
as you open the book

6. Those Who Read But Seek Advice
Read in a spirit of obedience and self-application
Study it with a daily determination that you will live
by its rules, rest on its statements, and act on its
commands
Consider, as you read it, how this affects you and your
conduct, or teaches you.
Read the Bible daily
Make it a daily practice to read and meditate on some
part of the Bible
Do not hurry over your reading
That Bible is read best,
which is practiced most.
Visit the throne of grace
and the Bible
every day

7. Those Who Read But Seek Advice
Read all the Bible, and in an orderly way
Do not engage in “dipping and picking”
Read both the Old and New Testaments
Read the Bible fairly and honestly
Take everything in its plain and honest
meaning, questioning forced interpretations
When a literal interpretation will stand, the
farthest from literal is usually the worst.
“All Scripture is profitable…
2 Tim. 3:16

8. Those Who Read But Seek Advice
Read with Christ continually in view
OT ceremonies are shadows of Christ
OT judges and deliverers are types of Christ
OT history shows the world's need of Christ
OT prophecies are full of Christ's sufferings and
glory to come
The first advent and second, the cross and crown,
the Lord's humiliation and kingdom, shine
everywhere in the Bible
The grand primary object of all
Scripture is to testify of Jesus.

9. Some Love the Bible but Read it Little
You will get little comfort from the Bible in time
of need
Your stores of Bible consolation may run very
low
You are likely never to be established in the
truth
You may be troubled with doubts about
assurance, grace, perseverance, faith, and the
like
You are not sufficiently ready with
your weapons to be able to fight a
good fight with Satan. Your armor
does not fit you well. Your sword
sits loosely in
your hand.

10. Some Love the Bible but Read it Little
You are likely to make many mistakes in life
In your marriage, your childrens' education, the
running of your household, the company you keep
You are not sufficiently familiar with the charts to
guide you through life's rocks and shoals
You are likely to be carried for a season away by a false
teacher
You lack the ballast of the Word
You are likely to be tossed to and fro, like a cork on
the waves
All these are uncomfortable things.
I want every reader of this paper to
escape them all. Take the advice I
offer you this day. Do not merely
read your Bible
‘a little,’ but
read it a great
deal.

11. Some Love the Bible but Read it Little
Do not read your Bible a little – read it a great
deal
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly
(Col 3:16)
Deep Bible knowledge enables us to say not
only “I feel hope in Christ” but “I know
whom I have believed.” 2 Tim 1:12
All these are uncomfortable things.
I want every reader of this paper to
escape them all. Take the advice I
offer you this day. Do not merely
read your Bible
‘a little,’ but
read it a great
deal.

12. Some Read the Bible Much, But Feel No Better
For It
Not seeing the effects of Bible reading does not
mean that no good is coming from it
The greatest effects are often silent, quiet, or
hard to detect
There may be far more affecting your soul
than you are aware of
This is a crafty temptation of the
devil, to get you to give up reading
your Bible. At one stage he says, ‘Do
not read the
Bible at all.’ At
another he says,
‘Your reading
does you no
good: give it up.’

13. Some Read the Bible Much, But Feel No Better
For It
The Word may produce deep impressions on
your soul, of which you may not be presently
aware
Does sin become more hateful to you?
Is Christ becoming more precious?
Is holiness becoming more desirable to you?
If so, the Bible is doing its work in you
This is a crafty temptation of the
devil, to get you to give up reading
your Bible. At one stage he says, ‘Do
not read the
Bible at all.’ At
another he says,
‘Your reading
does you no
good: give it up.’

14. Some Read the Bible Much, But Feel No Better
For It
The Bible may be restraining you from sin
You would soon find this out if you stopped
reading it
Settle your mind that, whether you feel it or
not, you are inhaling spiritual health by
reading the Bible, and becoming more
strong.
This is a crafty temptation of the
devil, to get you to give up reading
your Bible. At one stage he says, ‘Do
not read the
Bible at all.’ At
another he says,
‘Your reading
does you no
good: give it up.’

15. Some Love the Bible Much, Live Upon It, and
Read It Much
Resolve to read it more every year
Try to get it in your memory, and engraft it
on your heart
If sight or hearing fails, we will be well
provisioned with it
Sight and hearing may fail us, and
we may be in deep waters. Oh, to
have the Word
‘hid in our hearts’
in such an hour
as that!

16. Some Love the Bible Much, Live Upon It, and
Read It Much
Resolve to be more watchful over our Bible
reading each year
Be very jealous of the time we give to Bible
reading and the manner the time is spent
Do not omit Bible reading without sufficient
cause
Be careful never to exalt a preacher, sermon,
book, tract, or friend above the Word
Cursed be that book, or tract, or
human counsel, which creeps in
between us and the Bible, and hides
the Bible from our
eyes! Once more I
say, let us be very
watchful. The
moment we open
the Bible the devil
sits down by our
side.

17. Some Love the Bible Much, Live Upon It, and
Read It Much
Resolve to honor the Bible more in our family
Read it unashamedly to your family and
household
Resolve to meditate more on the Bible
Take two or three texts with you and turn
them over in your mind when you have a
little time
Meditating on verses from the Bible
preserves our souls from stagnating
and breeding corrupt things.

18. Some Love the Bible Much, Live Upon It, and
Read It Much
Resolve to talk more to believers about the Bible
This helps make our conversation profitable
And helps drive the devil away
Resolve to live by the Bible more every year
Measure all your opinions, practices, habits,
attitudes, public and private behavior, by the Bible
Resolve to conform these things to the teachings
of the Word
Let us measure all by the Bible, and
resolve, by God’s help, to conform to
it. Oh that we may learn increasingly
to ‘cleanse our ways’
by the Word!

19. For next week:
Chapter 6: The Lord’s Supper (Going to the Table)
Please read:
1 Cor. 11:23-34