why you should read the bible
The bible has been an age old book of guidance and debate. A literary staple in all of history. It’s been used to launch freedom movements and create slavery, create religions and foster cults. It’s the most read book of all time and is central to 2 of the world’s major religions. It’s shaped the society of entire countries and been used to conquer whole continents. You may think it’s an outdated, biased, irrelevant book but I think you should read it. It's the most influential book in the history of humanity and it’s a must-read if you want to understand wisdom, culture and how our societies have formed, whether you are religious or not, Judeo-Christian or not.
The bible is composed of 66 books by 44 authors with over 1,500 pages. It’s not a small or easy read. I’ll start by coming clean. I’m not just asking you to read the bible. I’m suggesting that you read the Gospels and see where it goes. Don’t worry, I’m not asking you to marry me on the first date! If you haven’t read or had a bad experience hearing about the bible, this is for you. Hell (pun intended), even if you have read but got bored or confused, this is for you.
What if you had a free resource that gave you all wisdom, understanding, rules and guides to living? One book that is the portal to an infinite world of learning how to live. Too good to be true right? Yet, many people have experienced the bible as a deep source of pain through its bad connotations, weird laws and cherry-picked verses that back up far-right wing views. But imagine you go on a first date and your date nervously talks a lot or doesn’t quite understand what you share. While it’s fair to be hesitant, that person is more than one night out. You have to see what could be in what is. Nothing worth following is figured out in a day or even a lifetime. The bible is the dating dialogue that leads to deep relationship with ourselves, others and the world we live in.
For the 2.4 billion worldwide who practice Christianity and 16 million worldwide who practice Judaism, the bible is a foundational aspect to ascribing to the religion. It determines rituals, family gatherings, beliefs, questions, stories, values and entire social structures. Foundational moral systems are determined based on each major Abrahamic religion’s interpretation of it. From history to modern day affairs like the current conflict in the Middle East, this interpretation helps to understand where people are coming from, and why they’re willing to give most of their lives, even unto death, based on the teachings in scripture.
Growing up, the bible was just a book of stories I tried to memorize so I could get a macaroni necklace at vacation bible school. Shoutout to the edible jewelry days, someone bring those back. I read these seemingly mythical tales of people getting swallowed by whales, eating forbidden fruit, listening to voices through burning bushes and other supernatural acts that not even Superman could perform. For such a seemingly supernatural book of stories, the people reading and telling it sure seemed to act dead.
As I’ve ebbed and flowed in both my interest and engagement with the bible over the years, I’ve come to find it the most important resource in my life. If you read it like a story and not an instruction manual, it goes from being a dusty book of morality to a narrative of divine imagery. It expresses both the most micro form of the human condition as well as the macro view of the divine. It’s one long dialogue about who humans are, who we know God to be and the relationship of those two things becoming one. As Leo Tolstoy wrote, “'True religion is that relationship, in accordance with reason and knowledge, which man establishes with the infinite world around him, and which binds his life to that infinity and guides his action.”
The bible has gone from a confusing, contradictive, judgemental source of pain to a living, applicable and helpful guide. Now, as a contemplative Christian, I see the bible as a healing and helpful guide to living through a daily practice, called Lectio Divina. In this practice, I read a passage of scripture slowly and quietly, 3 times through. Then, I open my spirit, or “heart” to recognize what resonated in my reading. A word or phrase that I then sit with in meditation for 20 minutes. This one practice has most shaped my life in all areas and led to all self- awareness and growth. It’s become my compass, map and direction in the complexities and uncertainties of life. I used to see it as the literary piece that Christians owned the sole rights to. Now, I see it as the most accessible and free gateway to all wisdom and understanding.
Notice I didn’t say knowledge. While this book is full of facts, the deepest truths are meta-truths. As a fellow bible reader once said, "The greatest truths are the ones farthest from ourselves." Meaning, the more objective something is, the more stable it is as a truth/meta-truth. It stands as more valid, more applicable, more believable and more approachable. This means that they are “more real” than reality, not because we can explain them but because we can live them.
You could read any part of the bible at any time, anywhere, in any way and it would mean something different, yet universal, each time. It’s a history book, nature book, wisdom book, imaginary book, rule book, song book, all in one. It’s a book full of real people just like you. Some who believe, some who don’t. Some who rule and some who serve. Some who run and some who stay. Every possible human action, condition and belief can be found there, along with a divine Presence that reveals itself in and as our very lives.
In Matthew 13:16, Jesus said, “You must have ears to hear and eyes to see”. We all have the necessary tools to learn, grow and change (ears and eyes). The ability to see and hear are the innate rights of all humans. The question is, are we open to letting the things we are blind and deaf to, open our eyes and ears? Instead of projecting our own views on the bible, what if we allowed it to speak to us? Think about the person in your life who loves the most, who is most wise. Who has every ideal positive characteristic possible. You would seek to let that person most shape and define you, and you certainly wouldn’t ignore them.
Reading the bible every day and sitting with what it has to say is the single most important practice in my life that anyone could benefit from. Think about why you read books in school, or went through job training, or looked up resources to be a better partner. We all have an innate desire to learn and seek from sources which make us better and give us truth. Reading the bible does the same, but at the most comprehensive level. While we all hold individual beliefs, the bible transcends the need to agree and expands to a generative gift that is valuable to all who seek, in whatever you seek.
I believe God will risk being taken advantage of, being misunderstood and rejected for the sake of changing people’s lives to look like love. The bible is God’s gift of revelation that leads to transformation. If you have an open heart that wants to be better, find truth and grow into a deeper, more full life, the bible is there. Simply put, if you seek, you will find. You will find all you need to live the life you were made to live.
Ignore the news and others interpretations or views and find out for yourself. Just like falling in love, it’s when we stop thinking our way into living and start living our way into new thinking that we find all we most desire and need: love, belonging, acceptance, truth and direction.
As Richard Rohr says, “We don’t change so we can be loved, we only change because we are already loved.” You don’t have to leave your doubts, questions and resistance to arrive at the bible. In fact, it’s only through your life in its truest, most authentic form that the bible shows its most value and impact. What (and who) defines this love I speak of? Jesus Christ (hey, watch your mouth!).
For Christians, Jesus is the central figure of focus in the bible. His life and teachings are what matters most. The different denominations are formed based on how to interpret scripture, the inerrancy of the bible and how much value it holds, yet, all people who practice Christianity ascribe to living a life based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. This is important because most of what is talked about, debated and expressed as absolute truth are not the Gospels. While the entire bible is important to understand, the teachings of Jesus are of utmost importance.
Start with a Gospel story, read it a few times and sit in silence to notice what may arise. Observe and be patient. In the silence and stillness, truth will arise. Jesus is the perfect revelation of divine love and completely embodies what it means to be human. Starting with His life and how He lived it will give you the most truth, in the fewest words. All you need is “faith the size of a mustard seed”, and rest will take care of itself.
