Top 10 Reasons why People Don't Read the Bible Regularly
August 16, 2010
by Gibson Largent
Category: Scripture
How well do you know your Bible? Here's a pop quiz:
How many books are in the Old Testament portion of the Bible?
What is the longest book of the Bible? How many people did Moses take with him on the Ark?
How many of the 10 Commandments can you name?
How many apostles did Jesus appoint? What four books are known as 'the Gospels?' (Answers given below)
"A bible which is falling apart usually belongs to someone who's not!" This phrase was written in the cover of my first Bible. It's a constant reminder to saturate my life with the Word of God. I find that in times of less Bible reading I experience more frustration, difficulty and temptation. The times of victory and strength and clarity often coincide with times of great Bible saturation. Are you falling apart? How's your Bible? Is it dusty or well worn with lots of use? What are your struggles in reading it daily? Chances are good that one of the following reasons resonates with you:
Top 10:
10. I don't have time (we always make time for what's most important to us)
9. I don't know where to start (having a good Bible reading plan makes all the difference - see helps below)
8. Reading makes me sleepy (this is true for many people - try switching times and locations - pace if you need to!)
7. The Bible is too confusing (it can be, but it doesn't have to be! anything is confusing when you're not familiar with it - commit to spending a month reading it daily using a plan below and you'll be much less confused!)
6. I never get anything out of it (if you go to the Bible to "get something" you might consider changing your motivation - pray before, asking God to open your eyes that you might hear from Him - approach the Bible looking for application - put what you read into practice - that's where the reward comes!)
5. There are many contradictions in the Bible (show me five and then we'll talk)
4. The Bible is boring (there are 'challenging' parts - here's a tip: picture what you're reading - if it were a movie, what would it look like? If it were a painting, how would it look?)
3. I might have to change (you probably will have to change! This is the most difficult aspect of Bible reading - it challenges your beliefs and lifestyle! But the wisdom of God and His love for you assures you that change is good)
2. I forget or I get distracted (if you find your mind wandering, press on - this usually only lasts for a short time - if you can get past a few minutes, your mind will engage)
1. I'm not smart enough (I often ask people who pose this reason, "did you have to read or memorize things for school or work?" Everyone does! There are even Bible tapes, cd's, and mp3's available for those who cannot read. We have enough mental capacity to grasp God's Word, we often just lack motivation! If it was your favorite hobby, you would overcome any of these barriers easily. Admit that you lack desire, stop making excuses, and get in to God's Word!)
Daily Bible Reading Tips and Resources:
Start small! Read just a chapter or two each day. Think of the Bible as food - a consistent diet of smaller "meals" is better than binge eating!
Not sure where to begin? The book of John is a great starting place! From there, work through Luke, then Acts, and then Genesis.
Take advantage of great online resources! Here are two of my favorites: ESV Online Study Bible (www.esvonline.org), Bible Gateway (www.biblegateway.com).
Get a daily Bible reading plan. It's frustrating to not know where to read. Many people just open the Bible and start reading. This Bible roulette plan is not a healthy way to read the Bible. There are great Bible plans out there that will help you by following a daily calendar. Check out Heartlight for daily Bible reading plans (www.heartlight.org), or just google "daily Bible reading plan."
Take Prof. Horner's 30 Day Challenge! I stumbled onto Professor Horner's Bible Reading System recently and have really enjoyed the experience. It's simple and offers variety. It doesn't take any longer than most plans, but it is far more substantial. You can read more about this plan at www.challies.com/christian-living/ten-chapters-per-day (there's even a mobile version: http://www.calvarybiblechurch.org/TheTenLists.aspx)
For more help, contact one of the pastors at riverside@riversideconnect.com
Pop Quiz Answers:
39 books in the Old Testament, 27 in the New Testament - 66 total books in the Bible; Psalms is the biggest book of the Bible;
Noah built the ark, not Moses! There were eight people on the ark - Noah and his wife and his three sons and their wives;
The ten commandments are
1) I am the LORD your God...You shall have no other gods before me.
2) You shall not make for yourself a carved image,
3) You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain,
4) Remember the Sabbath day,
5) Honor your father and your mother,
6) You shall not murder,
7) You shall not commit adultery,
8) You shall not steal,
9) You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor, and
10) You shall not covet (Exodus 20:2-17 ESV); (NEEDS TO BE KJV BIBLE, NOT ESV.)
Jesus appointed 12 apostles (can you name them?)
The gospels are: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Called gospels, meaning 'good news' because they focus on the life and ministry of Jesus
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You should consider writing posts yourself, rather than cutting and pasting other people's work.
Like many atheists, I know quite a bit about the Bible. When I was at primary school in the 1950s, they had regular bible classes. I used to be able to list all of the books by heart. It's a great party trick (LOL). Can you do that?
Here's another reason for your list. The Bible is a boring iron-age magic book full of nonsense, cruelty, and immorality.
I believe you are mentally ill as you have written several very long rants and have yet to engage in any actual dialogue. At the very least you suffer from a personality disorder. I truly hope you are able to get the help you need.
Am I the only one who noticed he didn't get the 10 commandments right? Second commandment is not about carved images.
Jon the Catholic,
Actually he didn't get any of them right.
Almost all atheists know more about "the bible" than any believers.
Here are 10 reasons to not read the bible.
1) There is no ONE bible. There are thousands of versions.
2) All bibles have a political agenda and were written for that purpose.
3) The "original bible" was written 3 to 4 centuries after the supposed events and are not even close to accurate.
4) The "bible" is based on allegory, myths, and fictional characters.
5) None of the bible stories are original. They all came from other culture's myths.
6) There is no corroboration of the bible. Nothing can be substantiated or fact checked.
7) The bible is filled with contradictions.
8) You can't anything in the bible literally. Believers cherry pick stories and or modify them to fit a narrative, which is intellectually dishonest.
9) There is absolutely no consistency of interpretation. There are millions of different sects and denominations, sometimes even within a particular religion.
10) The bible dictates actions detrimental to humanity, like slavery, homophobia, racism, hate, war, murder, genocide, child molesting, rape, slavery, and much more.
There are far many more reasons but these ten are sufficient for now.
"Almost all atheists know more about "the bible" than any believers."
Hmmm.
"1) There is no ONE bible. There are thousands of versions."
And those versions are primarily based upon different interpretations of Greek-English.
"2) All bibles have a political agenda and were written for that purpose."
I don't know about "all".
"3) The "original bible" was written 3 to 4 centuries after the supposed events and are not even close to accurate."
Those supposed events were passed down via oral tradition..so the written material was just that, WRITTEN material from oral traditions that, to the Jews, were dear to their hearts and very sacred. However, this is not even the case with the New Testament, though...as the NT can be dated very close to the actual events, which is usual for books of antiquity.
"4) The "bible" is based on allegory, myths, and fictional characters"
I disagree, obviously.
"5) None of the bible stories are original. They all came from other culture's myths."
I disagree, obviously.
"6) There is no corroboration of the bible. Nothing can be substantiated or fact checked."
False. A lot can/has been substantiated. It just depends on what you are specifically referring to, as your assertion is very...broad.
"7) The bible is filled with contradictions."
"Alleged" contradictions, sure.
"8) You can't anything in the bible literally. Believers cherry pick stories and or modify them to fit a narrative, which is intellectually dishonest."
I agree, some do. But then again, some don't.
"9) There is absolutely no consistency of interpretation. There are millions of different sects and denominations, sometimes even within a particular religion"
Sure, there are disagreements in religious circles about interpretations of the Scriptures. But you can say that about anything...sports, politics, food, cars, etc. Nobody agrees on everything.
"10) The bible dictates actions detrimental to humanity, like slavery, homophobia, racism, hate, war, murder, genocide, child molesting, rape, slavery, and much more."
I fail to see this as a strike on the Bible.
9. Good we agree, the bible is just like sports, politics, food, cars, etc, open to interpretation and no one agrees on everything. That makes the bible no better then sports, politics, food, cars, etc. I like it. I agree.
10. You fail to see this as a problem? How would you like it if: I wrote a book that millions of people read and believe as the truth that, you have slaves, are homophobic, are racist, you hate, you like war, you murder, you commit genocide, you rape children, and much more? You would have no problem with that book? Even if I tried my hardest to represent it as the ultimate truth?
Really For_the_Kingdom?
#5 I said all the stories aren't original. Heres just one example the "resurrection."
http://listverse.com/2013/03/30/10-resurrected-religious-figures/
I could go on about every old and new testament story.
#4 Prove any of stories or characters is factual. There is no record other than the bible of any of this shit.
#3 No! The first bible was commissioned by Emporer Constantine in 324ADE because he wanted to consolidate power.
#10 You don't see the bible dictating " detrimental to humanity, like slavery, homophobia, racism, hate, war, murder, genocide, child molesting, rape, slavery, and much more." as a strike against the bible? If that is the case you have serious issues.
#9 Sports etc are not trying to rule your life! So you are proposing a strawman argument to justify that religion doesn't have its shit together. If there is one god as you believe then there should be a consistent guide to go by.
#6 Prove it provide corroboration. There isn't any!
#8 I have never ever come across anyone that doesn't cherry pick the bible.
#7 They aren't alleged contradictions.
#1 Bullshit! There are different versions because people wanted a different political agenda. Like the difference between the "holy" bible and the "King James" bible. What about the Codex Sinaiticus? It is markedly different than any other bible. There is no alleged about it, and it isn't simply because of translation either!
#2 you don't know about that because you don't WANT to know about that!
FTK
So you have no problem worshiping a god that commits genocide? No problem with a god that commands mass murder, slavery, and the rape of young girls?
For_the_Kingdom,
There are at least 144 easily detected contradictions in the Bible.
William Burr wrote a book about them in 1860.
"Self-Contradictions of the Bible" by William Henry Burr [1860]
"Published anonymously by Burr in pamphlet form, Self-Contradictions of the Bible was, and remains an essential reference work for Atheists, Biblical skeptics and doubters, as well as believers who want to know what the opposition is up to. It is a set of 144 thematically organized pairs of Bible quotations that for the most part, will immediately induce cognitive dissonance in some. You have been warned."
It has four sections =
Theological Doctrines
Moral Precepts
Historical Facts
Speculative Doctrines
http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/cv/scb/index.htm
Another source is =
"Bible Inconsistencies - Bible Contradictions?"
Compiled by Donald Morgan
https://infidels.org/library/modern/donald_morgan/contradictions.html
"IMPORTANT: These lists are meant to identify possible problems in the Bible, especially those that are inherent in a literalist or fundamentalist interpretation. Keep in mind, however, that what constitutes a valid problem is to some extent a matter of opinion. You may disagree that these are, in fact, genuine biblical problems, but it is the author's opinion that a perfect and omnipotent God could, should, and would see to it that such problems did not exist in a book which s/he had inspired.
IMPORTANT: Even though accepted and common definitions of the two terms often make them synonymous, "inconsistencies" do not necessarily equate to "contradictions." An inconsistency involves a lack of harmonious uniformity, regularity, steady continuity, or agreement. Thus, a contradiction is necessarily an inconsistency, but an inconsistency is not necessarily a contradiction."
typically I know more about the babble than most christians with whom I interact
And the number one reason::: it is all nonsense and the collected wisdom of iron and bronze age peasants
@ Diotrephes
"There are at least 144 easily detected contradictions in the Bible"..
I can add a few more.....
http://www.1001errors.com/