Answers

By   •   June 7, 2013   •   Topics: ,

Q:

I know I'm supposed to read the Bible, but I've never been much of a reader and I just have a hard time getting going. Will God forgive me if I don't read the Bible? Maybe the Bible is just for preachers.


A:

Certainly, preachers do need to read the Bible; it should be the source for their preaching every week. One way you can learn more about the Bible is by listening carefully to your pastor’s sermons or Bible studies each week.

But the Bible isn’t only for preachers — not at all! The Bible is God’s gift to every believer, and He gave it to us so we could know what to believe and how to live. He also wants us to come to know Him and learn to walk with Him through its pages. Some people have a gift for teaching its truths, but we all have the privilege of opening its pages and learning what God has in store for us. We all should be able to say with the Psalmist, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path” (Psalm 119:105).

Get a Bible you can read easily; my wife used to say that a Bible with tiny, unreadable print was one of the devil’s most clever tools! Use a modern translation also, so you don’t get bogged down in language you can’t understand.

Then set aside time daily to be alone with God, reading the Bible and praying. It may be only a few minutes at first, but they’ll be the most important minutes of the day. Since reading isn’t easy for you, read your Bible in small “bites.” Select a book (such as a Gospel or Psalms) and read a paragraph or so, asking God to help you understand it and apply it to your life.