Pro-Textually Speaking
About a year ago, I began investigating how many Christians I knew personally who had read the Bible in its entirety. It started out as a general inquiry with teens in youth ministry, but grew into a real concern of mine as adults began to respond. Irrespective of whether I was talking to a new convert or seasoned believer, I was hard pressed to find a handful of non-clergy members who had read all sixty-six books of the bible. And if I added the qualifiers of intentional, and in canonical order the number dropped even more. How could we as believers neglect such an integral part of our faith? The Bible shapes how we see and respond to everything in our world. If we don’t read the Bible to know what it says, it is impossible to have a biblically sound, Christian worldview.
I wrestled with this reality in light of II Timothy 3:16-17 which says, “All scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work”.
What are some of the reasons Christians struggle with reading the entire Bible? I think the reasons are as numerous as the people themselves, but there are a few that we should consider:
1. We have not been properly discipled. We have not been taught the importance of Bible study in a personal setting for spiritual growth. Many Christians have only experienced conversion and have been left to find their own way.
2. We know that reading the Bible is important but we have developed a lack of interest in reading for any purpose. It is so uncomfortable to read the Bible that it becomes a source of frustration that we would rather not have it associated with our Christian development.
3. The reality of disorganized lives. We have every intention on reading the Bible during our morning (or evening) devotional time, but things happen, and something takes the place of time we have allotted for God.
So, what can you do if you identify with one of these reasons? First, Matthew 28:19-20 described what is known as the “Great Commission.” It is here that Jesus gives his disciples their marching orders. He tells them to “go and make disciples,” which for them is no problem, because they just had a few years of training from God himself. These instructions show us the importance of walking someone through the reeducation phase of Christianity. One of the first things Jesus did was to transform his disciples’ way of thinking with the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus was constantly teaching through his words and actions. If discipleship was so important to Jesus, than we as believers must submit ourselves to the discipleship process and not just church attendance and volunteerism. True discipleship starts with an intentional bible-reading plan.
If we desire to know God, the starting point must be what He says about Himself. For many years, during our secular education, we put forth effort to learn what man has to say about things in this world, but after conversion we can forget how important it is to reconcile those thoughts with the word of God. If we truly desire to grow beyond the point of salvation we must read and study the scriptures. Our love for God and a desire to know His ways must overcome the discomfort that sets in when we acknowledge that we may not read for pleasure, or at a level that is commiserate to our age and worldly understanding.
Time is one of the most precious things that God gives us. If you recognize that you are not actually devoting time to the things that are of the highest priority, find an hour or two in your week that you will do nothing except sit down and write out the things that you value in life and how much time you plan to devote to them (i.e. bible study, family time, work, exercise). After you have written them down fill in your weekly planner with those things starting with the highest priority and if time needs to be shifted, shift it starting from those with lower priorities. Part of your devotion time to God, is the time that you are devoting to him.
There are many bible-reading plans that will help you get started. If you create a profile with
www.youversion.com they have plans to fit your time commitment and desired outcome. Additionally, your account can be set up to send daily reading to your mobile device or email. Knowing our God personally and intimately is a privilege. If we forsake reading and knowing the words of our God, we miss a valuable part of the Christian experience. Not only does reading His word strengthen our faith, it also equips us to give a defense for the hope that lies within us. Minister Fikre Prince
