4 Steps to Read the Bible without Feeling Overwhelmed
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The Bible is big, and for many it can be daunting. These 66 books comprise numerous genres of writing, great for the bibliophile hungry for everything from family saga to reference material, genealogy to true crime. Others, however, can feel unnerved by the size of this sacred and important book.
Bible Study Tools reports: “statistics show that most people professing faith in Jesus have never completely read their Bible.” Many get through Genesis and possibly Exodus before running out of steam. They “become overwhelmed by the number of chapters (1,189) and verses (31,102) there are.”
So how does one approach the bible without feeling overwhelmed by the scope of this challenge? Here are some thoughts.
1. Plan to Read the Bible in a Year
Settle in for the long haul rather than treating Scripture like any other book. If you are accustomed to consuming literature in a short space of time, remember that this is no ordinary beach read. The Bible is not escapist fiction; the idea is to absorb the words and let the truth of God’s power and love sink in. Scripture’s purpose is to teach you about the person of God and who you are in relation to him. There is a life-giving purpose to Scripture. But it is difficult to grasp if you try to hurry through it and call “the Bible” merely another one of a handful of other completed titles in a growing list.
There are many Bible Reading Plans which enable you to tackle the Bible in 365 days, spreading the chapters into manageable chunks. There are numerous ideas for tackling God’s Word every or almost every day, whether chronologically or reading a bit of the Old and the New Testament every day together. Most people can imagine covering a chapter or two in one sitting. When you plan to approach small chunks at a time, sometimes you will even be impatient to read ahead.
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2. Plan to Read with Joy, or at Least Appreciation
Reading the entire Bible is a lot easier if you want to, although – as Katherine Forster encourages – just read it even when you would rather scroll social media or do just about anything to avoid God’s Word. Maybe you think the Bible will bore you or will be too hard to understand; but you need this book like you need oxygen. Still, “knowing we need it doesn’t help us want it. It doesn’t make reading the Bible any less boring. No — but reading the Bible will. How can you learn to enjoy something if you never partake of it?”
She recommends that you ask the Holy Spirit to help you both enjoy and understand what you are reading. And there is plenty to love about this vast, epic work which spans thousands of years and is written by the divinely-inspired hands of many individuals. Think of it this way: when you pick up this Book and stare at its pages, although the paper and the binding are modern, you are walking an ancient road that Jesus traveled. You are taking a walk with your Lord.
At the very least, try to appreciate something about its production, whether that is the commitment made by scribes to copy texts faithfully many centuries ago, the risks taken to give Bibles away in hostile countries, or the translation efforts which have made the language so much more accessible.
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3. Read with Help
Reading the Bible might seem a little bit like training for an athletic competition, and some athletes like to train with a partner. Although Bible reading plans come with instructions and commentary to assist you, that is not the same as having a real person at your side keeping you accountable. With that individual also following the same plan, you are mutually accountable: he or she is relying on you too. As Paul wrote in Romans 12:10, “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.” Christian love makes the other person more important than ourselves which means, within a Christian Bible reading group, every participant is being lifted up, encouraged, and prayed for.
One key point here is to choose someone who wants to read the Bible with you and will stay the course. But also, if you decide to read with a partner who then loses motivation, his or her lack of energy to finish the task cannot become your excuse for letting the reading plan slide. We pursue Christ together and we do this individually. We are responsible for our own choices.
Finally, with a helper you get more out of the Bible than you do reading alone. Even if the “helper” is a commentator in a study Bible explaining a certain passage, you enjoy the benefit of learning more about what you are reading and, perhaps, even remembering it better. The more you learn about Jesus through Scripture reading, the more you see him when you go back and re-read those same passages in a year, two years, or however long it takes you to start again. You go deeper and deeper every time.
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4. Be Kind to Yourself
This is not a test. If you lose your way and put the Bible down at a point where the text becomes heavy, dry, or upsetting, remember that you can always pick it back up again. You can skip a part that troubles you right now and come back to it later. Choose to revisit the genealogies or the laws later rather than getting stuck and giving up.
If you want to leave all of the Old Testament for a while and focus strictly on the Gospels, do that. The key is to keep reading. The Lord wants you to “be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2). Consider selecting a Bible written in easier language: put down the KJV and try the NLT, NIV, or The Message. You are not “more saved” because you read the Bible in an archaic form of English.
Keep asking God to give you a heart for his Word and a mind that will grasp it. You are not on parole, fearful of losing your position as a Christian unless you consume the entire 66 books within a certain period of time. If you never read the whole thing, you can still submit your life to Christ. And doing so will make you want to at least pursue him to the best of your ability.
Moreover, if you trust him, God will help you to understand what the Bible is saying. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5). His Word is a love letter. In fact, Larry Crabb wrote a book entitled 66 Love Letters, a review of which by Bob Kelleman indicates how passionately God loves us and how much the author loves the Lord. Think of the Lord’s great work as a conversation with you, and try to grasp what this means: you are so loved that God wrote to you personally.
In fact, even though the Bible was written for every person across millennia, something unusual happens when three people read the same words at the same time. Each one will come away with a unique take on the same verses. And each of their applications, though personal, could be truthful at the same time.
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Read with Caution
With that being said, one must approach Bible reading intelligently. There are many people who want to interpret Scripture so that it fits with their personal worldview. They want the Bible to affirm their way of thinking and their activities in the world, rather than surrendering their lives to Christ and allowing their hearts, minds, and behaviors to be shaped by their Savior.
Choose your Bible reading plans and helpers carefully. Read commentaries which do not stray from core-tenet teaching about the Triune God, about the inerrancy of Scripture, about salvation by grace through faith in the saving work of Christ alone, and about eternity. Ask what your Bible teacher’s beliefs are (written in a summary at the start of a program, professed verbally to you, etc.) and ask the Spirit to lead you in discernment.
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).
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