Sitting with his closest friends, with the shadow of his own death looming in the upper room, Jesus lifted up his voice to the Father and uttered some of the most profound words of his ministry: “This is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” ( John 17:3 3 And this is life eternal, that they should know thee the only true God, and him whom thou didst send, `even' Jesus Christ. ). Life — to know and enjoy Jesus Christ. This is the heartbeat of our Bible reading — to know and enjoy “the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus” ( Philippians 3:8 8 Yea verily, and I count all things to be loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but refuse, that I may gain Christ, ), before whom even our greatest loves are considered nothing. This is the highest task of Bible reading, not to internalize a dry list of dos and donts, nor to find instruction or wisdom for living, but to know and enjoy more of God. http://www.desiringgod.org/why-read-the-bible