HOW NOT TO READ THE BIBLE
One of the best ways to start reading the Bible is by avoiding common errors. We'll see three wrong ways to read and then offer a clear how TO read the Bible.
01. HYPER-SPIRITUALIZING.
As a 90's kid, I had these fad "magic eye books". Strange mosaic patterns filled each page with secret visuals only discerned by relaxing the eyes. When we come to the Bible, we often imagine it will be something like that. We think the Bible is a magic book that is read in a supernatural way. Yes, there's a very supernatural element to Bible reading we explore in this article. But learning to interpret Scripture requires less magic and more ordinary reading skills. The reformers talked about the doctrine of "perspecuity" meaning understandability. In His wisdom, God had the Bible written in the common language of the people.
02. CODE-SEARCHING.
Bible reading demands zero tin-foil hats. You wouldn't open an email and take one line out of context and derive a private, personal meaning. You wouldn't open a letter or a biography and hunt for secret codes. While God reveals deep mysteries of the faith through the biblical authors, we find those revelations and principles in everyday ordinary means. God isn't tricking us. God's Word was written by God through real people, for specific purposes, and the author's had a meaning. Just like with all literature we are primarily looking for that meaning as we study the Bible.
03. CHERRY-PICKING.
Too often, people cherry-pick verses from the Bible. Some play bible-roulette, flipping at random asking, "What will God say to me today?" Sadly, this is neither honoring to God nor helpful in our lives. That's because God never intended for us to snatch verses haphazardly out of context.
So then, how should we read the Bible?
READ BOOKS COVER TO COVER.
When you're reading the Bible at home, you want to start a book of the Bible at the beginning and progress gradually until you reach the end. Why? Because God did not write the Bible in heaven and then drop it from the sky. He did not bury it mysteriously underground like the fairy-tale conjured up by Joseph Smith about the book of Mormon.
READ EACH TEXT IN CONTEXT.
As you read the Bible, approach it like we would any other literature. Although the Bible is the Word of God, we interpret the Bible like all other literature. Scripture was penned by real authors in history "as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter 1:21). Therefore, we want to dig for the author's intended meaning as well as God's redemptive meaning through Jesus. Here are FOUR types of questions to ask as read a passage:
CONTEXT: What's going on in the context surrounding this passage?
HISTORY: What's the historical occasion for this piece of writing?
GENRE: In what literary style is this text written?
GOSPEL-CONNECTION: How does this passage point to Jesus?
Does this seem too ordinary? Well, there is a supernatural dimension too. I want you to read this article that addresses that aspect. I pray you're Bible reading grows in 2024.
Want to grow in the Word? Join us for a 31 day Bible plan we're starting on January 1st.