The Best Way to Read the Bible
Those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior are advised by counselors to pray constantly, attend church regularly and read the Bible every day. Praying and going to church are the easy part, but studying God's Word on a daily basis may take some effort as it is not that easy to read.
The common mistake of new Christians is that they begin reading the Bible from Genesis, which could be interesting at first as it talks about Creation. The challenge begins on chapter 5 which lists the genealogy of Adam and Eve's descendants up to Abraham.
This is where interest commonly wanes as the Bible begins to read like a textbook. Confusion creeps in when the reader comes across stories of iniquities committed by characters of the Old Testament. These books are replete with accounts of war, violence and carnage.
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The reader usually stops at this point and draws a negative conclusion about the Bible even if he or she has covered less than one percent of the entire Book. This is unfortunate as he or she misses the message of the Scriptures about God's love that made man's salvation possible.
Renowned Bible study teacher Bob Grahmann, Ph.D., advises newbies to begin with the New Testament. Why the New Testament? Because the Bible's central theme is about Jesus. Start with the Gospels of Mark and John, then proceed to Acts and Romans.
These books are easy to follow, being arranged in chronological order. They contain action-packed accounts of Jesus' life and teachings, His resurrection and ascension, the works of the early Church until the coming of the Holy Spirit — tenets that define the Christian faith.
After that, Dr. Grahmann recommends getting a Bible reading plan to study the other books. Most reading plans contain explanations to guide the reader in understanding the daily verses being studied to avoid unnecessary misinterpretations.
Follow this technique and be assured of a fulfilling Christian life.
