(2 Timothy 3:16) The Bible is inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Over the decades that I have been a Christian leader, I have watched many individuals and churches fall away from following Jesus Christ.

The primary reason they began wandering from God is that they started to downplay the importance of the Bible as the objective Word of God.

They began to question whether there is any real eternal truth at all. They began to consider the ethical teachings of the Bible to be outdated for the modern world.

2 Timothy 3:16 tells us that the Bible is inspired—literally God-breathed.

Once an individual or church begins to reject the truths of the Bible as being fully trustworthy, spiritual decline begins.

I have seen it happen many, many times.

If the Bible is not at the center of our Christian lives, then our faith will be weak, if not absent.

The Bible is not magic; it is God-inspired and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness.

In order to grow and mature as Christians, reading, listening to, and meditating on the Bible are essential.

When we absorb and apply the truths of the Bible to our lives, we develop a biblical worldview—a way of seeing the world through the truth of God.

We read or listen to the Bible to renew our minds; reading the Bible is not simply a religious virtue.

This is an absolute fact: if you neglect biblical truth, you will spiritually decline.

If you prioritize biblical truth, you will spiritually grow.

Today, there are numerous ways to hear and absorb biblical truth, from podcasts and online sermons to daily devotions you can receive by email, like this one.

There is no true Christian who is not a biblical Christian.

I encourage you not to neglect biblical truth.

I encourage you not only to read it, but also to allow the Holy Spirit to internalize its truths and principles into your thinking and your heart.