The Bible Is a Declaration of Who God Says He Really Is — and Who God Says You Really Are!

Day 5 of the 7-Day “Pick Up the Bible and Let the Bible Pick You Up” Reading Challenge

Welcome to Day 5! We’ve covered a lot of ground this week — discerning God’s voice (Secret #1), the Bible as God’s voice of encouragement (Secret #2), the documented mental health benefits of Scripture engagement (Secret #3), and the Bible as a book of transformation, not just information (Secret #4). Today’s secret might be the most personal one yet.

Here’s an excerpt from Pick Up the Bible and Let the Bible Pick You Up on Bible Reading Secret #5.

One of the Greatest Bible-Reading Secrets

What is the Bible? One of the greatest Bible-reading secrets — and one of the most life-changing discoveries I’ve ever made — is this:

The Bible is not primarily a rule book. It is not just a collection of stories. It is not simply a book of promises.

The Bible is God’s self-revelation.

From Genesis to Revelation, Scripture is divine self-disclosure. Jesus made this unmistakably clear in John 5:39: “The Scriptures point to Me!” And after His resurrection, in Luke 24:27, He walked through Moses and the Prophets, showing that all Scripture ultimately reveals Him.

That means this: the greatest benefit of reading the Bible is not just learning what to do. It is discovering who God says He really is — and who He says you really are to Him.

The Greatest Bible Reading Secret

If you want the Bible to transform your life, not just inform your mind, here is the secret:

Read the Bible to discover the character and attributes of God.

This single shift changed everything for me. Like Tara-Leigh Cobble calls them, Scripture is filled with “God shots” — moments where God reveals something about His nature, His heart, His ways. And once you begin to read with that lens… you start seeing Him everywhere.

I spent several months in the Psalms with this focus, and what I discovered was staggering. In just 150 chapters, I uncovered over 300 attributes of God — 308, to be exact. And here’s what stood out: the overwhelming majority of those attributes were not distant or abstract. They were relational. They were personal. They were for our benefit.

The God who forgives. The God who heals. The God who restores. The God who protects. The God who is for you.

The God David Knew

This is the God David knew. The Lord who was his shepherd — “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1). The Lord who was his light and his salvation — “The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?” (Psalm 27:1). The God who forgave all his sins and healed all his diseases (Psalm 103:3). The One who redeemed his life from destruction and crowned him with lovingkindness and tender mercies (Psalm 103:4). The God who was his refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1). The God whose mercy endured forever (Psalm 136).

And perhaps most personally of all, David could say with unshakable confidence: “Whenever I call to You, my enemies will retreat. This I know: God is on my side!” (Psalm 56:9).

This was not theology to David. This was not abstract. This was not distant.

This was revelation.

David did not just know about God — he knew God. And because he knew who God was, he could not be defeated. That is why his confidence was so strong. That is why his worship was so bold. That is why his life was so anchored.

And this is exactly what happens when you begin to read the Bible the same way. You are not just collecting verses. You are discovering a God who is for you… a God who is with you… and a God who has already declared who He is — and who you are in Him.

The God Who Reveals Himself Through His Word

God hides His nature in His Word, not to keep it from you, but to draw you into a relationship where He can reveal to you who He really is. This is not an isolated idea. It is a pattern woven throughout Scripture. When Jesus asked, “Who do men say that I am?” and then turned to His disciples, Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus responded with something profound: “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 16:15–17).

In other words, the greatest revelation of who Jesus is was present, visible, spoken in front of everyone, yet only one man saw it. Why? Because the knowledge of who God is is not discovered by observation alone, but by revelation.

This is the principle: God conceals, not to hide from you, but to reveal Himself to you. “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter” (Proverbs 25:2). People conceal their weaknesses, their limitations, the things that are embarrassing. God conceals the opposite. He conceals His glory. He conceals His kindness. He conceals the fullness of who He is within His Word, waiting for those who will seek Him. And Scripture is clear about what happens when you do: “Then you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).

This is why engaging with Scripture is not merely reading for information. It is an encounter with the character of God. Every page is asking a question: What does this reveal about who God really is?

The Bible Is a Weapon for the Greatest Battle Over Your Life

There is a battle being fought over your life every single day. It is not primarily a battle over your circumstances. It is not primarily a battle over your behavior. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again — it is a battle over this: what you believe about God, and what you believe God believes about you.

A.W. Tozer said it this way: “What comes into your mind when you think about God is the most important thing about you.”

Why? Because your perception of God will either draw you to Him… or push you away from Him. And the enemy understands this. From the very beginning, his strategy has been to distort the image of God. In the garden, he didn’t attack Adam and Eve directly. He attacked God’s character: “Did God really say…?” In other words: Can you really trust Him? Is He really good? Is He holding something back from you?

That same voice is still speaking today. But the Bible answers that voice. The Scriptures are God’s declaration: “This is who I am. This is what I’m like. This is how I feel about you.”

The Two Voices: Psalm 3

No one captured this battle more vividly than David. The Psalms are more than poetry. They are the conversations David had with God about himself… and with himself about God.

In Psalm 3 (NLT), David gives us a perfect picture of the two voices that exist over every life. He begins in verses 1–2: “O Lord, I have so many enemies; so many are against me. So many are saying, ‘God will never rescue him!'” There it is — the voice of the accuser. The voice that says: You’re finished. God is done with you. You’re not going to make it.

But David doesn’t stop there. Verse 3: “But you, O Lord, are a shield around me; you are my glory, the one who holds my head high.” This is the voice of revelation. This is what David believed about God.

And look what it produced: “I lay down and slept, yet I woke up in safety, for the Lord was watching over me. I am not afraid of ten thousand enemies…” Think about that. David is surrounded by opposition… yet he is sleeping in peace. Why? Because he knew who God was. You can never be defeated when you know who God is to you — and who you are to Him.

Chesed: The Greatest Word David Knew

As I studied the Psalms, one word rose above all others. It is the Hebrew word chesed. It is the attribute David used most often to describe God. It is translated: unfailing love, lovingkindness, mercy, steadfast love, covenant love. But none of them fully capture it.

Chesed is God’s loyal, covenant-keeping, never-giving-up, always-pursuing love. It is not based on your performance. It is not temporary. It is not fragile. It is committed love.

God Himself used this word when He revealed His nature to Moses in Exodus 34:6: “The Lord, the Lord, the God of compassion and mercy… filled with unfailing love [chesed] and faithfulness.” This is the most quoted self-description of God in Scripture.

In the Psalms alone, chesed appears over and over again: “Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me…” (Psalm 23:6). “Your unfailing love is better than life itself…” (Psalm 63:3). “His unfailing love continues forever…” (Psalm 100:5). And in Psalm 136, every verse repeats: “His mercy (chesed) endures forever.”

David lived in the revelation of this chesed. That is why he could say, “The Lord is my shepherd…” “The Lord is my light…” “The Lord is my salvation…” He wasn’t quoting theology — he was describing a relationship.

Psalm 119: A Man in Love with the Word

The longest chapter in the Bible — Psalm 119 — is not a legal document. It is a love letter. It is the journal of a man who discovered God in His Word.

David didn’t love the Word because it gave him rules. He loved the Word because it revealed who God is. And that revelation changed everything. The Word gave him confidence, stability, peace, and joy — because it gave him God.

The Names of God: Windows Into His Character

One of the most powerful ways God reveals Himself is through His names. His names are not labels. They are revelations. Each name tells you what He is like.

From the Old Testament: Jehovah-Jireh — the Lord who provides. Jehovah-Rapha — the Lord who heals. Jehovah-Shalom — the Lord your peace. Jehovah-Raah — the Lord your Shepherd. Jehovah-Tsidkenu — the Lord your righteousness.

From the New Testament: Jesus — the Lord who saves. Emmanuel — God with you. The Good Shepherd — the One who lays down His life for you. The Bread of Life — the One who satisfies your soul. The Light of the World — the One who brings clarity and truth.

And these are just a glimpse. There are hundreds more. Each one is an invitation: to know Him, to trust Him, and to experience Him.

The Revelation That Changes Everything

The Bible says in 1 John 4:19: “We love Him because He first loved us.” That means this:

The level of your love for God is determined by the level of your revelation of His love for you!

When that revelation comes: fear breaks. Distance disappears. Confidence rises. Just like in any relationship — when you know you are loved, everything changes.

The Greatest Investment You Will Ever Make

The greatest investment you can make in your life is this: spend time in the Word of God discovering the God of the Word. If you are going to add anything to your life — start here. Because everything else in your life flows from this.

You will pray with greater confidence. You will worship with deeper understanding. You will serve with greater purpose. Why? Because when the Word of God is doing its work in you, it is shaping how you see God — and how you see yourself.

Jesus said it this way: “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you” (John 15:7, NKJV). Everything flows from the Word.

Because when you discover who He really is — you will see differently. You will think differently. You will live differently.

The Bible is not just a book you read — it is a revelation that transforms. Because ultimately, everything in the Word leads to this: the Bible is a declaration of who God says He really is… and who He says you really are.

And when you begin to see that clearly — everything changes.

Your Bible Reading Secret #5 Takeaway

Before you open your Bible today, carry this with you:

• The greatest benefit of reading the Bible is not just learning what to do — it’s discovering who God says He really is, and who He says you really are.
• Read the Bible to discover the character and attributes of God, not just information or instruction.
• The voice that pushes you toward fear and defeat is the voice of the accuser. The voice that lifts your head is the voice of revelation.
• The level of your love for God is determined by the level of your revelation of His love for you.

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Join the 7-Day Challenge

This is Day 5 of 7. Tomorrow we pick up Bible Reading Secret #6, straight from Chapter Seven: “The Atomic Habit of Engaging Daily with God’s Word.” Pick up the Bible… and let the Bible pick you up.

If this excerpt was a blessing to you, get your copy of Pick Up the Bible and Let the Bible Pick You Up on Amazon and read the full chapter — plus everything else God has for you in the pages ahead.

And if you know someone who needs a fresh revelation of who God really is, share this post with them today. It might be exactly what changes everything for them too.

Pick up the Bible… and let the Bible pick you up.