When we come to the Scriptures, we all have a reading plan. Sometimes our plans are highly structured, like a chronological study or “read the New Testament in 30 days.” Others tend to be, essentially, a game of Bible roulette—we just pick a place and read, with no clear direction as to why. (Maybe not the best approach, but…)
In general, I believe reading plans are helpful. Structure, whether through general guidelines or a detailed plan, is beneficial for us:
- A plan gives us a goal to shoot for
- It encourages us to read books and passages we might otherwise avoid
- A plan allows us to see that reading the whole Bible is something everyone can do
However, I do have concerns about what I see our plans do to many of us as we read the Bible. For all their benefits, I’ve seen many instances where strict adherence to the plan—especially when we’re falling behind or confronted by a less-than-familiar passage—turns what should be a delight into drudgery (or worse). We read several books of the Bible just to read them and say they’re done, not for what we learn about our Lord through them.
Wisdom from Newton
And this is what we’e got to avoid—after all, reading the Bible is meant to help us better know Christ. So if we’re going to do that, what is the best reading plan? John Newton suggested one that is particularly simple: Start at the beginning, and keep reading all the way until the end. Then, do it again.
I know not a better rule of reading the Scripture, than to read it through from beginning to end; and, when we have finished it once, to begin it again. We shall meet with many passages which we can make little improvement of, but not so many in the second reading as in the first, and fewer in the third than in the second.1
The Best Kind of Reading Plan
Newton’s point was not to say read through the Bible for the sake of reading through the Bible. Instead, he encouraged this so that we might see Christ more clearly in every passage. As Tony Reinke says regarding this very point in Newton on the Christian Life:
Rereading the Bible over and over will help you make sense of Scripture. And reviewing Scripture over and over will help you see more of Christ. To see Christ on every page requires a familiarity with the entire Bible.
So what is the best kind of Bible reading plan? The one that helps us to see Christ more clearly in every book and on every page: Genesis, Exodus, and Leviticus. Zephaniah and Obadiah, too. Let’s make it our aim to read every page, familiarizing ourselves with every word. For all have something about them that points us to Jesus.
- Newton as quoted by Tony Reinke in Newton on the Christian Life: To Live Is Christ. ↵
An earlier version of this post was published on Aaron’s personal blog. Republished with permission.
DeWayne Wyatt says
I am 83 years old and I have read the Bible through numerous times. The last plan I used was the Divine Mentor, which I did three years straight. It got to where all I wanted to accomplish was to check the box and now I do not read it through anymore, but I read it every day. I like to read and ponder.
What I would like is a three-year plan so I could take time to read and ponder. Is there such a plan? Or, do you have a suggestion?
Aaron Armstrong says
I haven’t seen a daily 3-year plan, and we haven’t created a full-fledged 3-year reading plan to correspond with The Gospel Project, although that’s definitely something worth considering.
Pt says
The Gospel Project books do have a weekly devotional 🙂
Ken says
That is exactly what I would like to have.
Jennifer Drury says
There is a three year plan that my church uses, from the Community Bible Reading Journal. You read the New Testament through every year, 5 days a week, one chapter a day. Every Saturday you read a psalm, which takes about 3 years. You read through the Old Testament in order, a chapter a day, m-f, for 3 years. Sunday, worship.
Tim Wilson says
Aaron,
I have taught adults from The Gospel Project when it first became available, and now at a different church, we have started this fall using Gospel Project across all age groups – I now teach in youth – and would especially love if that reading plan were built into an online Bible App like YouVersion.
What I’d love to see is what you mention – a reading plan that goes along with the sequence that sort of “fills in the gaps” – so that the same scripture is being read, but obviously, not all is taught or part of the devotions each week – but so that we cover the same scripture in that three years in more depth in personal reading time.
Sherri Kim says
Hi DeWayne,
You can download an App called “Schedule” onto your phone. It has 9 different reading plans including a sequential 3-year plan.
Clark Coleman says
Following different plans in different years helps keep things fresh.
Repetition is the key to most learning. One-year plans tend to mean that I will not repeat a certain verse until one year later. So, doing a chronological plan for a year, several different times in your life, is great, but it is good to supplement it with other plans in other years.
In 2020, our congregational plan was to read the gospels in 30 days (3 chapters a day, except one day with just Mark 15-16). Then repeat. Twelve times through the gospels in a year. The immersion in the gospels was life changing.
Then there is the approach of taking a smaller number of books (e.g. the epistles) and reading, rereading, and writing down an outline of the book, then re-reading while consulting the outline. Immerse yourself in Galatians until you know it intimately, then do the same with Ephesians, etc.
Variety of plans and repetition within each plan are great.