The Bible is arguably the most important text that the world has ever known. It’s the most widely available book. It’s found in hotels, schools, homes, places of worship, and bookstores worldwide. What makes the Bible so important, aside from its popularity, is its usefulness for so many people in their daily lives. Whether they are religious, non-religious, Christian, or another denomination, the Bible has value for anyone who wants to learn the history and importance of religion.
Numerous lessons come from the Bible, and they are applicable to people of all backgrounds. As mentioned, this is a big reason why the Bible is so useful. It extends past borders, races, and even existing religious beliefs. What many people fail to recognize about the Bible is that every lesson is valuable. It can be hard to understand what those lessons are without a background in religious studies or practicing faith, but these are some important lessons you can learn from the Bible and benefit from.
1. God is your most valuable relationship.
Relationships, in the conventional sense, relate to family, friends, partners, and even business. These are common relationships that people will have in their lives, but sometimes, you need one that’s above all else. Your relationship with God can prove to be the most important because of the fact that it’s so important for the other ones as well, so it presents you the opportunity to take solace in having someone to confer with that’s above the metaphysical plane. What all of this means in simple terms is that the relationship with God is unbreakable, and it’s always available. Whether you’re religious or not, the Bible teaches everyone that they are a child of God and that He’s always there for you.
2. Love is the most important a person can provide.
At the end of the day, many of the Bible’s lessons are about love. It brings up the physical and emotional questions, such as What’s the definition of fornication? “Who is okay to love?” and all manners of what constitutes love. In this sense, love is the emotional aspect of doing good for others out of the kindness of your heart. Love is the end-all, be-all of the Bible, meaning that God is love, and everything you do should come from that place. Using this lesson to better your own life and those around you is always important, and the Bible helps strengthen that idea. Even for those that aren’t avid followers of religion, this is valuable.
3. Forego power and seek purpose.
There’s a lot of discussion about the pursuit of wealth, and thereby, the power that the Bible makes mention of. These discussions on power are important for the foundation of living a meaningful life. In today’s world of excess and personal pleasure, the pursuit of wealth and power is an enticing allure, but the Bible teaches us to live with purpose. This purpose is to help others, and not just ourselves, and enlightenment will come. Like loving those around you and making the idea of love integral to your understanding of life, so, too, is the idea that you should serve a purpose to people around you and your community. Helping others in small ways like holding doors open leads to bigger purposes like charity and volunteer work, but the point is that it should be a lifelong pursuit to treat your fellow men and women with respect in service of a better world.
4. Be thankful for the good in your life.
It doesn’t take a religious person to understand how important it is to revel in the good things that occur in life. It may be hard to appreciate the ups when there are an equal or greater amount of downs. These times in life make it hard to feel that there’s space for positivity or optimism, but the Bible helps reaffirm the belief that there’s always space for these positive feelings. In fact, there’s always a need to appreciate the good, and it’s a crucial lesson that the Bible can impact anyone. Understanding the complex and confusing life isn’t easy, but knowing you can take comfort in the teachings of the Bible, supporting your quest to find inner peace by appreciating what you have, is something we can all accept as helpful.
5. Taking a leap of faith
Often referring to finding “it” or a passion or some other calling, the leap of faith is a crucial aspect of Bible teachings. Finding your leap of faith is the first step in making that change in your life. The leap of faith could be about committing to God, committing to religious teachings, something as simple as asking someone out on a date, applying for a job, or any manner of everyday social cues. These leaps of faith aren’t uncommon, but they present themselves in any size and scope. Finding your passion in life could start with something as small as taking that leap of faith in a less important, but still meaningful way.
6. Judge others how you’d like to be judged.
This is a time-honored truth that people need to remember. It’s rephrased in numerous ways, but the message is always the same that judging others is never ideal, unless you can do so in a way that’s concurrent with how you’d like to be treated. Judging others in a way you’d like to be treated is something that anyone can aspire to follow, not just those who read the Bible, but the Bible helps make this point clearer.
Learning from the Bible doesn’t require devotion to faith or an extensive background in religious practice and study. All you need is an open mind and a willingness to learn as much as you can from as many sources, and this book is one of history’s greatest texts for teaching humanity about essential words of wisdom and stories.
Story by Peter Reeds