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TYPES OF BIBLE READERS. (Part 1)

Every morning, I make the conscious choice to show up and sit at the feet of Jesus. I refuse to walk through the day empty and I choose to choose Jesus daily. My quiet time is not just time set aside to meet with Jesus, it is an invitation I extend to Him to come and rule and have His way throughout my day. His reign over my heart (and life) will be evident in my thoughts, words and actions and in the act of daily seeking, He shapes me. My flesh is stubborn, demanding and selfish which is why I refuse to give it the chance by intentionally allowing God to fill me. This starts by setting time aside to listen to God through His word. Focused study is essential for every believer, only then can we have continuous fellowship throughout the day.

“When all your favorite preachers are gone, and all their books forgotten, you will have your Bible.  Master it.” — John Piper

I have been reading the Bible intentionally for about five years now and my reading style has evolved over the years and yet there remain constant tips/principles that I will forever cling to which is what inspires this post. My mistakes helped me have a renewed commitment to be a disciplined student of the Bible. My successes ignited a fire for the word and my consistency has continued to dig a deep longing for God and His presence. I not only want to encounter His presence but I want to be immersed , overwhelmed and lost in His presence; which starts of by allowing my imaginations to be consumed by His truths.

While there is no written “bible” (i.e. universally approved, sound, undebatable) manual on  how to read The Bible, there are different approaches that different people employ at given times. People hunger for transformation and  it often eludes them . Why? Because of a lack of a well rounded approach to Bible Study. The naming of the approaches is inspired by Jen, an amazing Bible Teacher who is an advocate of Bible Literacy. No one ever arrives at a full/ complete knowledge of the Bible no matter how long we have been reading it but we should desire to continuously grow in it.

“Nobody outgrows scripture.” Pastor Pam Dreda Oyola

1. Xanax approach

At first I wondered why Xanax. What is Xanax? You probably are as well. Xanax, as I found out is a drug. Also known as Alprazolam.  It belongs to a class of medications called benzodiazepines which act on the brain and central nervous system to produce a calming effect. It works by enhancing the effects of a certain natural chemical in the body. It is used for treating symptoms of anxiety and panic disorders but people take it recreationally and it has been said that unlike cocaine/heroine that produce a euphoric feeling, xanax comes with a much relaxed, calming and sedative feeling.

The Bible has answers to our varying situations and we are certainly not disputing that. However, using it to make us feel good is misguided. This approach, as Jen puts it, treats the Bible as it it was designed to make us feel better and to give us good doses for a while yet it wasn’t written for just that.  Great Bible Study is read in context and while there remains an assured comfort as we flip the pages the primary goal of knowing the God of the Bible should not be shoved at the back of our minds.

In the same breath, there are books of the Bible that can never be able to give us that “feel good” dose, does it mean they should never be read? You know the books I am referring to (Numbers, Leviticus, Obadiah, Nahum). These are the ones quoted less. Just last week I told a friend of mine that I wish God would show us a rank that outlines the most read and the least read books of the Bible from His point of view because He knows and sees it all because I am willing to bet, some books would never make it. I know we have our favorites but we should not stay and neglect other books. Why? There is no book in the Bible that God cannot use to stir your heart. With this kind of approach books like Hosea, Zephaniah will remain unread.

2. Pinball Approach

For starters, I have never played this game so my description is based off of the internet and as I watched videos of it, I realized I have seen it in movies, I just never knew it’s name. (If you know what it is skip over to the next paragraph) Wikipedia said A pinball machine is a glass-covered cabinet containing a play field populated with lights, targets, bumpers, ramps, and various other objects. The objective is to hit targets within the cabinet.

I’ll be honest, as a new Christian I used to hear “as the Spirit leads” and it would confuse me especially when it came to matters where sometimes choices had to be firmly made. Granted, The Holy Spirit leads us and even as we read the Bible there are moments when we will be nudged to a different section but should this be the daily approach as we read the Bible? Where we just flap and land on a random page every morning?  I think not and Jen agrees with me. This approach,  Jen says, is like treating the Bible like a textbook.  Too harsh? Maybe, maybe not and yet I remembered those days in class (evening and morning preps) when I had to read but didn’t particularly know what to and I would flip; a random topic and read it just for the sake of it. My Bible shouldn’t be like that. The Bible is too valuable, too rich to be “pinballed”. Also, reading in that manner doesn’t give context. Will you know which seeds you water? Will you just be storing with no reference to meditate? The Bible should be read while taking to account how passages fit into the bigger picture and in context (If there’s a word I will repeat throughout this blog post series is context so brace yourself.) Context is a crucial aspect when it comes to Bible Study

3. Personal Shopper aka Topical Bible Study Approach

I will admit once I landed on this, I just wanted to crawl under my bed and hide my face because Jen was talking about me . She finally found me. Well, the “me” from three years ago. In my first year of intentionally reading the Bible, I stuck to a Bible Plan (we will get to Bible Plans later) and then in the next year, I felt “mature enough”  to read the Bible in themes and why we like to think it is an expression of maturity and growth is something I will never understand. It never worked for me for two reasons ; First, I missed some days since I was creating my own plan and I often excused myself on those lazy days and my reading was inconsistent. Secondly, I realized the themes of the Bible cut across. There is no one topic that can be tied to a certain passage text, similar to how one verse can speak into many themes/topics.

I should go on and say that topical studies are not bad but if you desire to be a disciplined student of the Bible and want to go deep, do not use this as a primary way of reading the Bible, only use it to complement your revelations and add to your already learnt teachings. In this approach, you do less; you in fact, actively do nothing. You don’t practice the sitting, processing and lingering that is essential in studying the word. Instead, you take the already prepared meal (by someone who took time to study) and you feed on it.

This approach robs you of the joys of discovery.  I have come to realize that those verses I identify, process and meditate on I will not easily forget. What you discover for yourself you are more likely to remember.

“If all we ever do is do studies, we miss the richness of learning a book of the bible from start to finish.” Jen

We should labor in the process of discovery. We should set order in our Study Approaches. We should not treat the Bible as a textbook or a drug.

Which type of Bible Reader are you or were you? 

P.S Part 2 to follow soon outlining the remaining approaches.

You are light and you are so loved. Stay anchored  and Keep His light shining through

7 thoughts on “TYPES OF BIBLE READERS. (Part 1)

  1. Wow!! This is profound this should be read by every christian.I have used all the approaches you have mentioned?let me just say growth has taken place.This is beautiful and looking at how each approach I get to discover we all have room to do better.Cant wait for part 2 keep writing beautiful. ♥️♥️

    1. We have been found out ??? We have all definitely been part of either of this.
      Truly, we learn and we grow
      May God’s word continue to transform our lives and may He give us insight as we read through the power of the Holy Spirit.

      Thank you for you endless encouragement ma
      ❤❤

  2. This is beyond amazing and very enlightening. I didn’t there were all those approaches and how they are so weak in themselves. I would to know more. Thank you Edith.

  3. I have landed in all the types you’ve tackled and I can’t stop thanking God in my heart for outgrowing them all.

    So eye opening and enlightening. Can’t wait to see what part two has in store for us.

    Thanks for the post.

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