Does your church do a Bible-read (or listen) through as a church?
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Does your church do a Bible-read (or listen) through as a church?
Yes, we make a concerted effort to read/listen through the Bible every year Votes: 2
Yes, we have at least on one occasion made a concerted effort to read/listen through the Bible in a year Votes: 5
Yes, we read/listen through the Bible every so many years Votes: 1
No, we encourage Bible reading, but we do not do it as a church family with a schedule Votes: 4
No, but I am going to see if we can next year! Votes: 0
No, but we are or have done this through the New Testament Votes: 0
No, but are or have done a select list of passages as a church Votes: 0
Other Votes: 0
- 1 view
You can choose to believe the Bible, not having read it all. But you really cannot believe its contents if you have not read or heard them.
With all the gimmicks out there — 40 day programs, Daniel fasts, WWJD, etc., it’s time we start pushing our own fad: Reading through the Word!
The vast majority of Christians, certainly in evangelical and even in fundamental churches have probably never read the entire Bible.
Whether we read it in order or simply read all its 66 books, I think we need to read/listen to the entire book. And, ideally, more than once.
With Biblegateway.com and Max McLean reading it online for free via http://www.biblegateway.com/ http://www.biblegateway.com /, it has never been easier to listen to the Word read. And, with our many versions, font sizes, and reading schedules, what more can we do?
Our church is reading/listening through the Bible this year (2012), and we did it once before (2000). A couple of years ago, we listened via Faithcomesbyhearing to the New Testament (the “You’ve Got the Time” program). Slower, more detailed reading has its benefits; yet, every so often, we need an overview refresher. It’s the forest and tree issue. I have a friend who has read through the Bible every year since about 1977. He is a forest guy, but he can handle the trees, too. That’s not me, but I respect him for it.
I have found I catch some details by listening that I do not catch by reading and vice-versa. We give our folks the option to read, listen, or combine the mediums. Some people read along as they listen. People listen on the way to work or jogging via MP3s.
If a program is well promoted and things are made easy, perhaps one-fourth or more of our people will succeed, many for the first time. And people are excited about it. As people read, their reading generates questions and discussions about the Word. God’s people take “ownership” of the Scriptures through reading, and, most importantly, the Holy Spirit works as people read the Word. It is the process itself that can nurture the soul.
We talk so much about God’s Word, yet it is really cool to read it. And, no matter how seasoned we are, we have much to learn, much to review, and much to ponder.
What are your views and experiences pertaining to reading/listening through the Word in a year (or less)? How did it affect your church?
With all the gimmicks out there — 40 day programs, Daniel fasts, WWJD, etc., it’s time we start pushing our own fad: Reading through the Word!
The vast majority of Christians, certainly in evangelical and even in fundamental churches have probably never read the entire Bible.
Whether we read it in order or simply read all its 66 books, I think we need to read/listen to the entire book. And, ideally, more than once.
With Biblegateway.com and Max McLean reading it online for free via http://www.biblegateway.com/ http://www.biblegateway.com /, it has never been easier to listen to the Word read. And, with our many versions, font sizes, and reading schedules, what more can we do?
Our church is reading/listening through the Bible this year (2012), and we did it once before (2000). A couple of years ago, we listened via Faithcomesbyhearing to the New Testament (the “You’ve Got the Time” program). Slower, more detailed reading has its benefits; yet, every so often, we need an overview refresher. It’s the forest and tree issue. I have a friend who has read through the Bible every year since about 1977. He is a forest guy, but he can handle the trees, too. That’s not me, but I respect him for it.
I have found I catch some details by listening that I do not catch by reading and vice-versa. We give our folks the option to read, listen, or combine the mediums. Some people read along as they listen. People listen on the way to work or jogging via MP3s.
If a program is well promoted and things are made easy, perhaps one-fourth or more of our people will succeed, many for the first time. And people are excited about it. As people read, their reading generates questions and discussions about the Word. God’s people take “ownership” of the Scriptures through reading, and, most importantly, the Holy Spirit works as people read the Word. It is the process itself that can nurture the soul.
We talk so much about God’s Word, yet it is really cool to read it. And, no matter how seasoned we are, we have much to learn, much to review, and much to ponder.
What are your views and experiences pertaining to reading/listening through the Word in a year (or less)? How did it affect your church?
"The Midrash Detective"
When we thought about doing it as a church, I thought that we ought to make it more than reading 23 chapters a week and reporting and making the aim just to get through it…so we set some learning goals objectives, some spiritual goals and objectives, and put out a study guide each week in advance. We rotated having men in the church cover the past week’s reading during Sunday school.
It went very well. We had really good participation. The study guides are a mix of “forest” and “tree” questions. http://www.goodshepherdbaptistchurch.org/downloads/exploring-the-height… They’re still up on our website .
This year we’re doing the New Testament in a year, which comes out to one chapter each week day.
It went very well. We had really good participation. The study guides are a mix of “forest” and “tree” questions. http://www.goodshepherdbaptistchurch.org/downloads/exploring-the-height… They’re still up on our website .
This year we’re doing the New Testament in a year, which comes out to one chapter each week day.
Michael Osborne
Philadelphia, PA
We’ve read the Bible using The Daily Bible In Chronological Order 365 Daily Readings, we read through the New Testament, we have spent a year in Proverbs and last year each quarter we read specific themes (Major Beliefs, Major Events, Major People, and Major Themes). This year we are starting with the ES100. For the past several years we have had a blog where each day the passage(s) is discussed and people can respond to the readings.
I used to be a farmer, and one fall I decided to start listening to the Bible on cassette while I ran the combine. It was really neat to hear the entire Old Testament within about a month and a half. It really helped to tie the whole narrative together and to look at it as a complete history instead of a bunch of unrelated stories. I had already read the Bible multiple times, but it had not been in that short of a period and there is a difference between reading and listening.
From time to time, I have put a schedule in our weekly bulletin with bookmarks to help us read straight through the Scriptures. Then, the morning message comes from somewhere in the passage we have read for that week. It kept it interesting for our people, and it forced me to keep fresh in my personal study.
Dick Dayton
Dick Dayton wrote:
There are not “even” divisions, so the way I do it is when time is short, I read a shorter reading. When I am listening, for example, while doing something menial, I’ll listen to a long run.
Because of this, we are all reading, but not using the same schedule. Still, the schedule linked above is like a breath of fresh air. In the words of an old alka-seltzer commercial, “Try it, you’ll like it.”
Then, the morning message comes from somewhere in the passage we have read for that week. It kept it interesting for our people, and it forced me to keep fresh in my personal study.I did that last time in 2000. This time, we are offering different schedules. My favorite I have dubbed http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf] “schedule A,” and it is GREAT. On Sunday you read epistles, Monday the Torah, Tuesday is history, Wednesday is Psalms, Thursday is other poetic books, Friday is prophets, Saturday is Gospels/Acts.
There are not “even” divisions, so the way I do it is when time is short, I read a shorter reading. When I am listening, for example, while doing something menial, I’ll listen to a long run.
Because of this, we are all reading, but not using the same schedule. Still, the schedule linked above is like a breath of fresh air. In the words of an old alka-seltzer commercial, “Try it, you’ll like it.”
"The Midrash Detective"
certificates at the beginning of the year for the previous year’s efforts: the whole Bible, Old Testament only, New Testament only
Hoping to shed more light than heat..
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