Poets Feature Sampler - Flipbook - Page 3
Welcome to I M M E R S E
The Bible Reading Experience
The Bible is a great gift to us from God. Through its words, God reveals
himself to us and invites us into a relationship with him. And as we begin
to better understand who God is, we also begin to better understand who
we are—people who are loved by God, created in his image, and called into
a new kind of life as members of his renewed creation.
The appropriate way to receive the Bible is to come to know it deeply, to
lose ourselves in it precisely so that we can find ourselves in it. But the
Bibles that most of us read are filled with artificial divisions and additions
that, though originally meant to make the Bible easier to navigate, have had
some unintended consequences. We now rarely read the Bible the way it
was originally meant to be read. We most often break it into small, digestible
chunks and pieces. We seldom read it at length and without distraction.
Immerse: The Bible Reading Experience has been developed to reopen our
eyes to the beauty of God’s word in its amazing unity so that we can more
easily discover its call to live into God’s grand Story.
Immerse: The Reading Bible presents each book of the Bible without chapter
and verse numbers, subject headers, or footnotes—all later historical
additions. The entire text of the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, is
presented in a single-column format with easy-to-read type. To provide
meaningful perspective, book introductions give historical and literary
context, and the books are often reordered chronologically or grouped with
books that share similar ancient audiences. This unique Bible enhances the
opportunity for readers to approach God’s word in simple clarity.
The entire Bible divided into 6 volumes provides the framework for
the Immerse experience.
Immerse is more than just a series of books; it’s a community growing
experience rooted in God’s word. This sampler provides information on
the layout, features, and text found in Immerse: The Reading Bible, but it
also provides an opportunity to experience what Immerse is all about. The
opening pages of Proverbs are included to give you a taste of the wisdom
literature that makes up much of Immerse: Poets. Take a deep breath, and
drink deeply. Immerse yourself in God’s beautiful, life-giving words.
Each volume has been developed so it can be read according to
an 8-week reading plan. The goal is for churches and other groups
to read Immerse and then to come together each week to discuss
what they’ve read. Meetings should feel more like a book club,
where people gather to discuss the reading, freely sharing thoughts
and opinions, all centered on God’s word. Ultimately, the goal is to
encourage God’s people to read through the entire Bible in a regular
3-year rhythm, leading to a lifetime of deep Scripture engagement.
immersebible.com