Reading His-Story
Why read through the entire Bible?
When we concentrate on verse-by-verse study, we may fail to recognize the main themes that the authors are developing, and can miss the main purpose of the books of the Bible. So it is valuable to also read the Bible through as you would with other works of literature. This helps us see the overview of what God is doing throughout history, and how the books are written around major themes, fitting together to open our eyes to His-Story.
Reading as a Church
By all following a set reading schedule, as we encounter questions or make observations, we can share these thoughts with others in the Church who are reading the same material. When we share, discuss, and "process" Scripture we come to a clearer understanding, and grow more in our maturity and knowledge of Christ.
The Reading Plan
We are following a plan that only involves reading 3 to 4 chapters per day, which typically takes 15-20 minutes per day. This also gives us a large enough "bite" of Scripture to see the context around the verses, so we better understand why each verse is included by how it fits the theme development.
We are reading the Old Testament Historical books first, in chronological order. This gets us familiar with the historical settings in Israel and the flow of Biblical history. Then we will read the Wisdom literature, also in chronological (rather than Biblical) order, and can look back at the history to understand what was going on when each book was written.
Finally we will read the prophetic books, again in chronological order. Here we will see the stage set for the coming of Christ, and will also see the future plan of God for Israel, that is yet to happen.
Only after laying the foundation of the Old Testament will we read the New. Again we will read the historical books (Gospels and Acts), then the Epistles in chronological order.
Reading in Context
The Bible is thematic and contextual, and any time we take verses away from their context in a book, we may misinterpret what they mean. Each book includes those details that build the theme and omit details that don't. They are also written to an original audience that existed in a culture very different from ours. We need to first see how the original audience would have understood the book before we can get the full meaning, and then look for how we apply it today. This blog will try to open up the historical backgrounds for the Biblical books and passages. His-Story Backgrounds
