How To Make The Bible More Interesting To You

Last updated on: March 15, 2016 at 6:03 pm by Jack Wellman

How To Make The Bible More Interesting To You 2016-03-15T18:03:28-05:00 Jack Wellman

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Here are a few ways that I believe will make the Bible more interesting to you.

Buy a Study Bible

I love my study Bible because it has a lot of commentary about the historical background, the audience to whom the book or letter (epistle) is being written to, and the purpose of the verses you’re reading. It can illuminate the meaning in some cases to know what happened before this and if it is meant for us or if it’s simply historical. The author’s notes are not inspired but they might be inspiring but also they might tell you something about the author or setting that you didn’t know about. It could help to clear up some verses that you’re puzzled by. There is safety in the multitude of counselors (Prov 11:14) and that includes the author’s and editors of some study Bibles.

Prescriptive and Descriptive

There is a difference in how you read Scripture. Some verses are prescriptive and some are descriptive. In other words, some Bible verses are prescriptive or prescribed for us to obey like in Mark 1:15 where Jesus said that the gospel of the kingdom is about repentance and belief or where the Apostle Paul tells his Greek audience that “God commands men everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30) . That is prescriptive or prescribed for all of us just as if a doctor prescribed something for you but in some cases, it may be only for you. Then there are Bible verses that are descriptive like with the historical accounts of the ancient Israelites or on the Day of Pentecost. We can’t try to go to the Red Sea and raise our arms and staff to part the waters and we can’t claim that every time someone receives the Holy Spirit that an actual cloven tongue of fire will appear over them. Some writings in the Old Testament are written with qualifications, such as “Say to the children of Israel” so we can’t presume that everything in the Bible is prescriptive for us. In some cases, Bible verses are both prescriptive and descriptive like in the Book of Acts.

Use Your Name in the Text

Here’s an idea to make the Bible more interesting. Take the verse in John 3:16 and put your name in it like “April” and then read it this way, “For God so loved April that He gave His only Son, that whoever would believe in Him, like April, will not perish but have eternal life” or even “For God so loved me that He gave His only Son, that whoever would believe in Him, like I do, will not perish but have eternal life.” Another example might be Ephesians 2:8-9 which is the gospel in a nutshell, and placing the name “Terry” into the text it reads more personally; “For by grace you Terry have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing Terry; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one like you can boast Terry” or “For by grace I have been saved through faith. And this is not my own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that I cannot boast.” You see my point. God’s Word is written to you and to me and so why not insert your own name into the text where it says “You” or in other appropriate places?

Highlight Important Verses

I have a yellow highlighter for very special verses. In some cases these are verses that I intend to memorize or by now, already have. They also indicate fundamental beliefs such as the gift of grace that is freely given and not earned by works (Eph 2:8-9), that Jesus Christ is not one of many paths but the one and only way to be saved (John 14:6) and that there is salvation in no other person but in Jesus Christ alone ( Acts 4:12). I have these Bible verses memorized. I also use a red marker to underline reasons that we need to be saved like Romans 3:10-12 which tell us that there’s not even one that’s good or one that seeks after God, and that our sins have cut us off from a Holy God (Isaiah 59:2). I see the yellow highlight verses as the ones that can resolve our sin problems which highlighted with the underlined red verses.

Follow the Cross References

Most Bibles have an index; either in the center of the page or at the bottom and these contain Scriptures that are often related to one another. For example, in the Gospel of Matthew it says of John the Baptist that he was “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight’” (Matt 3:3). In my Bible there is a very small letter next to that verse and it’s the letter “q” and in my Bible, in the central column, there is a letter “q” and it has “Isa. 40.3” next to it which is the prophecy of Isaiah the Prophet writing about John the Baptist’s coming where he writes “A voice cries: In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God” (Isaiah 40:3). Using the Scripture references found in your index can enhance your Bible study and make the Bible more interesting because you can understand it better by reading the related verses elsewhere in the Bible.

Conclusion

I hope this can help you find more enjoyment in reading the Bible and by knowing more about the Word of God you’ll know more about the God of the Word and that is always a blessing. It takes time and effort but the Apostle Paul commanded Timothy to “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved,[c] a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth” (2nd Tim 2:15) but this is not just descriptive; it is prescriptive for all of us as we are commanded to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen” (2nd Pet 3:18).

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.

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