You can and should read the whole Bible

When I was in elementary school, one of the teachers had us do an interesting, and somewhat enlightening, experiment. My entire class was led outside and told to lie down on our backs on the warm blacktop and stretch out our arms as far as we could. As instructed, one by one, we laid down. As we did, someone came by and put a white chalk mark on the pavement at the end of our outstretched fingertips. Then we were told to stand and lie back down beneath the two freshly drawn chalk marks. Again, when we did, someone made another mark at the tops of our heads and the bottoms of our feet.

The results were pretty surprising to us kids. Would you believe that in almost every case, the little white lines were right beside of each other? Quite unexpectedly, we learned our reach from fingertip to fingertip was equal to our stature. Did you know this? I did not. While there are exceptions, especially among top tier athletes, this simple test remains true for most people. Your wingspan will normally equal your height.

I share this story because it illustrates a spiritual truth.

As a Christian, our level of spiritual growth will always be in direct proportion to our reach around God’s Word. While there are a few individuals whose physical arm span is greater than their height, this is never the case spiritually. You will never grow any taller or mature any higher, than your understanding of the Scriptures. Simply stated, the extent of your grasp of God’s Word will determine your stature as a Christian.

Unfortunately, statistics tell us again and again that the majority of confessed Evangelicals have never read the entire Bible. In fact, reliable studies have shown that as few as 10-15% of churchgoers have actually read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. While I would like this article to be an encouragement rather than a rebuke, this should alarm born-again believers.

Are you aware, there are countless Christian brothers and sisters around this globe who are not fortunate enough to even own a Bible? Yet many of us have multiple copies of God’s Word, sitting neglected in some dark corner of our home. C.H. Spurgeon once told his congregation, “There is dust enough on some of your Bibles to write ‘damnation’ with your fingers.” Scathing perhaps, but true. Further yet, in some countries, followers of Christ face bitter and cruel persecution if they are caught with a Bible, or even a portion of the Bible. While many Americanized Christians absentmindedly toss our Bibles in the backseat of our cars, or let them bake on the dashboard. Shame on us!

Rather than undervaluing the great gift of having God’s Word so readily available in our own language, we can and we should familiarize ourselves with the Bible. I realize and readily admit that there are parts of the Bible that are difficult to understand. Other sections seem to have little or no significance on the lives of modern Christian life. However, I will remind you that 2 Timothy 3:16 states, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for instruction in righteousness.” All Scripture is profitable. All Scripture is beneficial. Even those parts that are hard-reading. Even those parts that make us uncomfortable. All Scripture is spiritually rewarding reading.

The sad truth is that it doesn’t take as much effort to read the totality of the Bible as people think. Do you realize that even the average reader can read the whole Bible in a year by reading only 10-15 minutes a day, every day? It really is that simple! It just takes commitment. If we would only spend a small fraction of the time we now spend on electronic devices, we could easily read the Bible in its entirety.

If you are serious about growing as a Christian, I would highly recommend you commit to reading God’s Word from cover to cover. Frankly, when I made this commitment several years ago, I quickly found out I didn’t know as much of the Bible as I thought I did!

I would highly encourage you to find and follow a reading plan. Rather than just starting out and not having a plan in place, personal experience has proven you are far more likely to succeed if you follow a schedule. You can find numerous Bible reading plans available online or in print. I would also advise you to remain consistent in your reading time, and guard that time religiously. Many, many good godly people have started out strong in January with the best of intentions, only to get frustrated when they fall behind, or don’t understand everything they read, and give up. Dear friend, keep plodding along.

With the numerous Bible translations that exist, someone will invariably ask, “What version should I read?” My answer is this: the best translation is the one that is read. You can and should read the Bible—the whole Bible. God’s Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path … but only when it is used.

Paul reminded Timothy that the Holy Scriptures he learned as a child, are able to make us wise unto salvation. The “volume of the book” points us to Christ. If it is your desire to mature as a Christian, I remind you, your spiritual growth will be in direct proportion to your grasp of the Bible.

Make 2021 the year you read the Bible … the whole Bible.

Christian, you can and you should.

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