THE WORD OF GOD JOHN 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (KJV) The Bible is the authority and standard of all that we believe as Christians. Every practice and experience in the Christian faith must be judged by the bible. It is therefore, very important for the believer in Christ to understand what the bible is, why was the bible written, how to read the bible and where was the bible written. To understand the bible, there are many things to consider. The Bible is the word of God. The word "word" means the mind, thought, idea, or logic behind the message. The books of the Bible were written documents that give account of God through the ages. Thus, the writers of the books of the Bible had a focus in their intent and writing of the word of God. The word of God is made known and communicated in words. These words are a medium through which intentions, thoughts, and mindsets are expressed. This means, to understand the bible, you must understand the language of the bible, the audience of a particular book, the geography and history of the people of the time, and their culture and traditions. This means that the written documents called the bible cannot be read and understood in isolation. There are things to consider before proper understanding can be achieved. In our opening text, the writer made us understand that, the word was from the beginning and that the word was God, this means that we cannot separate God from his word or his word from him, they are the same. Peter speaking in his epistle to believers around the world at the time spoke concerning 1 Peter 1:23, “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever”. Peter here said, the word of God is incorruptible and is everlasting, so clearly, he was talking about a person, meaning God's word is himself. David also recorded this fact in the book of Psalms 119:89, “For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven”. That means the study of the Bible is the study of the person of God (Jesus). Jesus speaking in the book of John 5 made us know that the bible is about him and that he is the word of God. Meaning Jesus, is the plan, the idea, the thought, the mindset, the purpose, the focus of God. Jesus is the word means he is the plan, idea, thought and mindset of God. You cannot know God without knowing Jesus. John 5:39-40, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life”. The word of God is a person, and Jesus is the word, so we can safely say that, the Bible is Christocentric, meaning the bible is Christ-centered. Christ Jesus is the mind, thought, idea, or logic of God. He is the word made flesh. This means the mind, thought, idea or logic of God took the form of a man. This means that knowing the scriptures is knowing God. Any knowledge of God outside the documented scriptures is false. This means anytime we take the bible to read, we must be sure that we are learning about Christ. CONFESSION: I believe the word of God and I know that the word is the person of Jesus. Additional Studies: John 5:39,40, Luke 24 :25-27,44-46, John 1:45 epignosisofgrace@gmail.com Visit and like our page facebook.com/epignosisofgrace