Every Man's Bible - Proverbs - Flipbook - Page 6
Personal Gold
from
J. I. PACKER
FOUR KEYS TO READING THE BIBLE
One: Before you open your Bible, remember you are in the presence of God. Remind
yourself that God is the primary author of Scripture and that what you are seeking is
the personal togetherness that you would hope for if you were opening a letter from
someone you knew cared for you. Remember that and think
of it consciously before you do anything else. Then ask God to Some books in
speak to you, and make you listen, as you read.
Scripture have a
Two: . . . All the Bible should be read, and read regularly.
richer vitamin
You and I should acquaint ourselves with the full landscape
of Scripture and keep covering it backwards and forwards. content than
Something like four chapters a day, I find, is a very good plan. others.
It gets you through the whole Bible in approximately a year.
Three: Focus particularly on the richer books. This is quite distinct from point two.
There are some books in Scripture which, as words from God to his people, have a richer
vitamin content than others.
The four Gospels in which you see your Lord in action . . . are the most precious books
in the world. They are the Bible books that ought to be read oftener than any others.
I also think the Psalter ought to be read regularly, one or two psalms every day as a minimum. (Treat Psalm 119 as a cluster of twenty-two 8-verse psalms for this purpose.) . . .
You should try to find the condition of heart in the Psalter that matches your own inner
experience and make it your own day by day. . . . If you find the psalmists’ exuberance,
intensity, sudden shifts of theme, and utter lack of inhibitions too much for you at first,
don’t be discouraged. These men were more alive in themselves and in God than most
of us are, and it takes time to catch up with them. . . .
Four: Linger in those books that have a special resonance with you individually. One
book which I have found wonderfully enriching to read over and over is Paul’s letter
to the Romans. The way Paul strings things together is the model of what a systematic
study of God’s saving activity ought to be. It’s all there. The fifth-century Bishop of
Antioch, John Chrysostom, had somebody read the letter to the Romans aloud to him
once every week. I can understand that.
So, to reiterate. Point one: come humbly into the presence of God. Point two: read all
of Scripture generally. Point three: focus on the richer books—among which, it seems
to me, the Gospels and the Psalms are especially significant. Point four: linger in those
books that have a special resonance with you individually.
