The Dog Ate My Bible – Excuse #3: “The Bible is Boring”
Today’s post addresses a third excuse for not reading the Bible: The Bible is boring. However, many people don’t want to admit this. It sounds too unholy, perhaps even blasphemous. Surely lightning would strike them down if they confessed to such a thing. But the only way to solve a problem is to admit that there is one.
That being said, if you genuinely think the Bible is boring, you probably haven’t really read it! Pick a genre, any genre…the Bible contains drama, romance, history, mystery, horror, poetry, action, biography, suspense, etc. Even so, it’s true that some sections can be boring. Most people aren’t excited about reading genealogy lists, Leviticus laws, or tabernacle construction details. These sections of the Bible often slow people down and prevent them from making significant progress toward finishing the Bible.
The Bible is an acquired taste. The more you devour it, the more you will come to love even the parts most people want to skip. There are many ways to breathe life into the time spent reading the Bible:
1. Read a new translation. Don’t limit yourself to a particular translation because of tradition or a sense of loyalty. You don’t serve man, but God, and he hasn’t handpicked a particular Bible translation over another. The best Bible is one you will read and understand.
2. Read a nontraditional Bible. Did you know that there are graphic and comic book Bibles? Buy a children’s picture Bible. If you have children, you can use them as a cover for your purchase. If not, surely you have nieces, nephews, kids of friends, etc. You get the idea.
3. Start a Bible reading plan or switch to a different plan if you’re already using one. There’s more than one order in which to read the Bible. An unconventional reading plan can revitalize your time in the scriptures.
4. Listen to a dramatized audio Bible like The Word of Promise or the Bible Experience. These Bibles feature popular actors and actresses reading different parts of the Bible, like a play.
5. Change your perception. Reading the Bible is not a chore to be completed or a task to check off the to-do list. It’s not a plate of vegetables that we eat because daddy will be mad it we don’t. We read the Bible because we love God and because, through his Word, he makes himself known to us.
6. Increase your understanding of the overall theme of the Bible. It may be boring you because you don’t understand how the books, chapters, and verses fit together. The more you understand about the Bible, the more interesting it will become. Many books are available that provide a birds-eye view of the Bible.
7. Skip the part that’s boring you. You’ll come back to it next time (You do realize that you will read through the Bible multiple times, right?). Don’t let a particular passage or section prevent you from moving on. The Bible police won’t arrest you if you decide to just skip Leviticus this time.
8. Enlist the aid of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes reading the Bible is about as interesting as watching water boil and other times it lights a fire inside you can barely contain. That’s the difference between letting the Spirit lie dormant and being filled with the Spirit. Pray for understanding and enrichment before reading the Bible.
Is the Bible boring you? You have many options, so take control and do something about it. One day you will be able to say with the Psalmist: Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long. How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path (Psalms 119:97, 103, 105).
Missed the beginning of the series? Read parts 1 & 2 now:
The Dog Ate My Bible – Excuse #1: “The Bible is a big book”
The Dog Ate My Bible – Excuse #2: “I don’t like to read”
The Message Bible is a good translation to read! I parallel it with my other bibles to try to get some understanding as well.Laymens' terms is what I call it! Great article! We really have no excuse for NOT reading the Bible.
GOOD ADVICE..