Bible sales are up, will that matter? It may be up to you!

In reading and listening to the news lately, one of the small yet significant news bytes is that more people are buying Bibles now than in the past several years.  Apparently, the pandemic is causing more people to consider their mortality.  Is this good news?  I would like to think it is, but it is also somewhat worrisome that we will have a large new group of people trying to read the Bible without understanding the what or the why.  They are more likely to give up without a fight if the answer is not immediate.

Think about your own experiences reading the Bible.  Do you have consistent fond memories of each and every one of the 66 books of the Bible and how each impacted your life?  If you are anything like me, probably not.  The Bible is a difficult and challenging read, and countless Christians have set reading the Bible through as their New Years Resolution, only to fail in February when they get bogged down in Numbers!

The Bible is so full of good news that we need a way to tell new readers how to approach it, so that they gain an understanding of the basics, which will then support them as they dive deeper.  We need to get them in a position to understand the role of the Spirit of God in helping them gain truth from these words.

I first read through the Bible in high school – then several times in College.  I would take it to the bathroom with me in my dorm and read away.  It just seemed a natural thing to do – not read in the bathroom, but to read through for understanding. After college I purchased a study Bible which is filled with notes from sermons and bible studies.  It sits gathering dust on my shelf now but worked hard in its day.

After all that reading, you would think I would understand it all, and my behaviors and values would have reflected what I read.  Not so much.  Seems like my worldly experiences were a constant barrier to me really catching the point of it all – finding a real purpose for my life!

It was years later, after I had kids in high school that I took to serious reading again.  This time I bought Bibles with margins for notes.  As I read through, I wrote in the margins what I thought God was saying for each kid, then gave them the Bible when they graduated.  I would underline and mark what I thought were Very Important Verses for them to discover as they read.  I made it through two of these and hope to get at least one more done.  Not sure what they have done with them, but I at least put in the effort.

If you have never tried it, read the Bible as if you are preparing notes for your child in each section.  You will be amazed at the insights you can pull for them that you might miss if you were just reading for you. You just will work harder for them.

What does this have to do with these new Bible readers?  Consider the lack of background in God-Following that each may have.  Is it going to make sense to them without some sort of guide?  If they don’t know what they believe about God, will reading the Bible on their own get them there?  It is possible, but in this current “I want it now” generation, will they have the patience to get there?  This is my worry.

I think we as Christ-Followers have the best chance of leading a new reader through the key elements of the Bible, so they get an understanding of the Glory and Mercy of God, and the Divine Sacrifice He made with Jesus.  It is not enough to hand someone a Bible, we need to provide direction.  That is impossible to do if we don’t know how to read it for impact ourselves and if we are afraid to share because we might not fully understand what we are talking about!

This, therefore, is my challenge to you.  Right now, start a mission to read and make notes from the Bible to record the message and impact.  If you could come up with even three or four pages of notes to give to someone who just bought a Bible, would you?  If you could impact your children for their future by delivering a road map to the most important book they will ever read, would you?

You don’t have to be a Bible scholar to accomplish this task.  If you can take on the mindset that you are going to read each passage and write a love note to your child about it, the understanding will come, as will the words.  Start with Genesis, the Gospels, Acts and Paul’s letters to get the most significant points about God’s relationship to mankind, and our relationship to each other.

I used to explain homeschooling this way – we could be the teacher as long as we were one page ahead.  Providing insight from the Bible is no different.  Take what you know and start there.  Are you willing to help pull someone out of a ditch now, or are you too concerned about showing what you don’t know yet?  However, don’t be satisfied with what you know so far – read to expand your knowledge- this is the path to wisdom, which is really what those around you need you to have.

I have a long way to go to really get all that the Bible has to say about a fulfilling, purpose driven life.  At the same time, I don’t know just how much time I have left on this earth.  (Amazing how something like a pandemic can raise that thought?)  We need a sense of urgency to understand it ourselves, so that we can facilitate the understanding of others. 

TRY READING THE GOSPEL OF MARK.  As you read each couple of verses, jot down a note that you want your son, daughter, wife or best friend to get from it.  If you have a Bible with margins, write it there. If not, get a notepad or journal you are willing to give away.  Once you have read through it, give that Bible or journal away.  Don’t hold back your understanding just because it isn’t finished.  Your words might be all that is needed to help someone overcome their fear of not understanding the Bible, so they read and experience a life-changing impact.