You should read your Bible.

I always think that January 1st is a nice time to start a new Bible reading plan, so that means that you have exactly one month to figure out how your Bible reading will look in 2012.

First, as far as reading goes, I want to be perfectly clear.  When I say you should read your Bible, I’m not just talking about reading a chapter of Proverbs a day.  I’m talking about reading the WHOLE Bible.  Cover to cover. All 66 books.  There. I said it. I think you should do it.

But before you panic or start shouting words like “legalism” at me, let me point out that I did not  say: You should read your Bible in [blank] amount of time. I acknowledge that it is a significant task.  It is hard work, and I’m not going to pretend that it’s not a big deal. [We’ll talk more about these specifics in a later post.]

But here’s the truth: Most Christians do not read the Bible on a regular basis, and most Christians have not read the entire Bible either.  Here are three reasons why I think you should:

1.  Love: The Bible is God’s love letter to you.   Not just the “popular” passages.  The whole thing.  He wrote every chapter and every verse for you.

2.  Nuggets: If you are counting on preachers and teachers for all of your biblical knowledge, you will miss something.  Not everything gets taught on Sunday mornings.  There are a lot of hidden nuggets of truth tucked away between the typical sermon passages.  When preachers and teachers talk, it’s on a general, broad level, trying to reach the most amount of people possible in the short amount of time they have.  It is not a one-on-one personalized message.

I have attended church regularly for 30 years, and I still have yet to hear a sermon preached on Judges 11. One passage in Judges 11 changed my life, and if  if I had not read it on my own, I never would have discovered God’s message for me.                                                         

3.   Taboo: The Bible is the venue through which God speaks.  To not read every single word is like shutting the mouth of God.  Consider game of Taboo.  You draw a card, like the one on the right, and your goal is to get people to guess the word on top without using any of the words below. When you only study part of the Bible, it’s like you are playing Taboo with God. You’re limiting His ability to communicate with you efficiently.  It’s like you pray, “God, tell me how to live my life.  Tell me how to face my challenges.  Tell me what your will is.  But, don’t use Leviticus, Revelation, or any of the minor prophets to do it.”

So there you have it. Love, Nuggets, and Taboo. Three reasons why you should decide to read your whole Bible. Next week, we’ll start exploring how to do this, so stick around!

Q: Have you read the whole Bible? Why or why not?