I’ve had trouble getting this article finished because I’ve been incredibly busy. With a church of 700, and as its only pastor to adults, I don’t have a lot of extra time. You know what I’m talking about. The life of a pastor is full of stuff to do—good stuff, important stuff, stuff that won’t get done if we don’t do it, and stuff that comes up without warning. So forgive us if we don’t jump right up and implement the latest “Top Twelve Tips for Enhancing Bible Engagement.” The spirit is willing, but the schedule is bleak.
And yet we know how important this is. Getting people meaningfully connected to God’s Word is one of the most important things we do as pastors. And it becomes all the more important as our culture—even our church culture—drifts away from Scripture.
It seems sensible to think that someone who professes to trust, love, and follow Jesus would read the book that tells his story. But this is a huge assumption that pastors and church leaders can no longer make. Studies by American Bible Society, the Center for Bible Engagement, and LifeWay all suggest that Bible reading plays a diminishing role in the daily faith experience of the believer. According to one survey, among Protestant believers, 54 percent read the Bible once a week or less.
Why is this? Could it be that the church is failing to communicate a compelling reason to read God’s Word? With a need this glaring, how can we cast a vision for Scripture engagement in our churches?
1. Plan for it.
We need to get more intentional about it. How does my ministry planning reflect my vision for Bible engagement? Do my people know that this is a high priority, or is Bible engagement just one of many options on the smorgasbord of ministry options? I’m not saying there’s no value in reading popular Christian books, but even the best of these are just vitamin supplements to the five-course meal of consistent Bible reading.
Does my preaching communicate the full importance of consistent Bible engagement? Beyond that, is a Bible-reading plan part of the church’s discipleship strategy? Is the small group ministry focused on faithful Bible engagement? Are youth and children’s ministries going beyond Bible stories to promote regular Bible reading?
If Bible reading is going to permeate the lives of our people, it must permeate all levels of our ministry.
2. Answer the why.
We could use go-to verses like 2 Timothy 2:15 and Hebrews 4:12 to promote the value of God’s Word, and we should. But let’s zoom out and get a wider view of our spiritual growth. Romans 12:2 talks about transformation, the renewing of our minds. In Colossians 2:6-7 we’re exhorted to “walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught…” (ESV).
These and other passages speak of a process of Christian development that must be based in the Scriptures. How does the Christ-follower combat the temptations of this world? By the renewal of the mind, and that involves consistent engagement with God’s Word. How can a believer experience a healthy, vibrant walk of faith? Through the teaching received from reading and studying God’s Word. This is how a believer gets built up, rooted, and firmly established.
To cast a proper vision, we must go beyond telling people what they should do. We need to tell them why. People don’t just read the Bible because they’re supposed to. This is nourishment, a guide for living, a new pattern of godly thinking.
3. Establish a clear pathway.
We can no longer assume that believers understand how to consistently engage with God’s Word. A consistent pulpit emphasis is not enough. Church leaders must work to present a clear pathway for people to connect with Scripture.
There are two groups of people you may need to program for—those who don’t know the Bible very well and those who know it too well. For the novices, you need to provide entry-level information that doesn’t insult people’s intelligence. We simply can’t
assume anymore that people know the difference between Old Testament and New Testament, or who Paul and Moses were, or why there are four gospels.
But you may face a different problem with those who grew up on Scripture. They may pride themselves on their Bible knowledge and insist that you keep providing new information about the Bible. Yet they might be substituting Bible info for Bible engagement. Can you teach them to apply the Bible to their lives and not just their minds?
Whether your church features small groups, missional communities, a traditional Sunday School model, or some combination of all three, you can find new ways to make Bible reading central to experiencing life together—so central that when people sign up to participate they expect to be digging into God’s Word. They expect to be guided on the path of understanding. And they expect to be doing so in community with other believers.
Church leaders create such a Bible-centered culture through consistent communication of the centrality of Scripture to all areas of ministry. We can also do this through our daily meetings with ministry leaders, through our weekly sermons, and in our monthly newsletters. This provides clear expectations for our teachers and group leaders. A Bible-reading plan or at least clear reading guidelines will help the congregation keep up.
A Clear New Year
This next year will be a busy one. Things will come up that you can’t plan for. But here’s something you can plan: utter clarity on the importance of Bible engagement. As you put that on the top of your agenda, and as you cast that vision for teachers and leaders, you will see the effect on your congregation. God’s Word will do its work.
