Some of us feels sometimes unrelated to the bible and the habit of reading it, how did you start loving reading it again ?
I cannot speak for all, but let me tell you my experience with this. I walked away a few years ago, well, a long time ago, getting old. But I found a local church with an excellent Pastor. That got me curious again. So I got up one hour earlier and started reading.
I started in the New Testament, and my goal was to read one page turn a day. Meaning, I would start on whatever the next verse was and read until I turned the page and ended with that verse. Not much. I was not trying to read the whole Bible in one day.
I did this to the point where, unbeknownst to me, it became a habit. Then my family and I took a Camper trip. I forgot the Bible. Do you know that I sent my Wife out to buy a new one? I had to have my morning reading. A little grew. My time in prayer grew. My faith grew.
Start small, with whatever works for you. Then simply let God be God.
Peter
Hi Keith,
I don’t read much. I’ll just read a short passage, but then I stay with it and think about it. I take it with me during the day and I’m thinking about what it says to me. The Gospels are great for this. When I first became a Christian I would write out different verses in a note pad because I was unfamiliar with the Bible and I didn’t want to lose the verse. Any verse that speaks to you, write it out and think about what it says.
Start with Acts 17:11[1]. The key Greek verbs are ἔλαβον (they received), ἐπεξετάζοντες (searching/examining). The Bereans demonstrate two principles: readiness of mind (πρόθυμον), a deliberate eagerness to engage, and active verification, examining the text to confirm truth.
Next, consider the imperatives of Yeshua in the Gospels. For example, in Matthew 28:19–20[2], the verbs πορευθέντες (go), μαθεῖτε (teach), βαπτίζοντες (baptizing), and τηρεῖν (observe/keep) are imperatives or participles commanding active obedience. Studying these in the Greek shows how Yeshua’s commands are action-oriented; the Word is to be enacted, not just read.
In the Pauline epistles, the imperatives and participles form the backbone of practical instruction. Take Ephesians 4:22–24[3]. Here, ἀποθέσθαι (put off), ἀνανεοῦσθαι (be renewed), ἐνδύσασθαι (put on) are aorist and middle/passive imperatives, commands emphasizing conscious, continual transformation. The nouns like παλαιὸς ἄνθρωπος (old man) and καινὸς ἄνθρωπος (new man) define the subjects of these actions.
A practical study method then is:
Select a passage (Gospel or epistle) with clear imperatives.
Identify Greek verbs and nouns: note tense, voice, mood. Imperatives show action required; participles indicate ongoing or related actions.
Contextualize: ask what these commands mean in your daily life. Example: in Ephesians 4, what does ἀνανεοῦσθαι τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ νοός (be renewed in the spirit of your mind) look like practically?
Cross-reference with other passages**: Berean method-check consistency with broader Scripture.
Memorize key imperatives: speaking, meditating, acting on them repeatedly.
The Holy Spirit will illuminate the Scriptures and that no one can take away from you, not if you keep on actively put the Imperatives into action and another piece of advice, stay clear of selective reading of the Scriptures and don’t be afraid to use exegetical and hermeneutical commentaries.
You WILL fall in love with our Lord Jesus Christ all over again and a new impetus to immerse yourself deep into the Scriptures.
You just might be the last apologist we need.
Shalom brother.
J.
These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. KJV ↩︎
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. KJV ↩︎
That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. KJV ↩︎
To fall in love with the Bible again, one must move past the surface level and enter the “deep water” of exegesis. This is a shift from reading a book to encountering the Logia Zōnta, or the “Living Oracles” of God. When you approach the text not just for information, but as the primary means of your Hagiasmos (Sanctification), the words begin to carry the weight of eternity.
The Search for the Hidden Treasure
Scripture commands a specific kind of intensity in our reading. In John 5:39, Jesus says, “Search the scriptures.” The Greek verb used here is ereunate, which implies a diligent tracking or mining. It is the same word used for a dog tracking a scent or a miner digging for gold. You fall in love with the Word again when you stop skimming the surface and begin to “mine” the text for the glory of Christ. This is echoed in Proverbs 25:2, which states, “It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.” By digging into the original languages, you are performing the “honorable” work of a spiritual king.
The Chewing of the Divine Word
The affection for the Bible is often restored when we change the “speed” of our intake. In Psalm 1:2, the man who is “blessed” (the Hebrew 'Esher we discussed earlier) is the one who “meditates” on the Law day and night. The Hebrew word for meditate is hagah. This is a visceral, auditory word. It means to moan, mutter, or growl. It describes a lion over its prey or a cow chewing the cud.
To love the Bible is to “hagah”—to mutter the verses under your breath until the Holy Spirit applies the Rhēma (the specific, spoken word) to your soul. As Jeremiah 15:16 says, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart.” You don’t just read the Bible; you consume it until it becomes the very fiber of your being.
Finding the Cross on Every Page
The Bible becomes a masterpiece when you realize it has one singular theme: the Substitutionary Atonement. When you see the “Crimson Thread” connecting every story, the text becomes alive.
In Luke 24:27, it says of Jesus, “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” This is the ultimate “Bible study.” Whether you are in the Law, the Psalms, or the Prophets, you are looking for the One who would be “made sin for us” (2 Corinthians 5:21). When you find Christ in the “Tabernacle,” in the “Sacrifices,” and in the “Prophecies,” the Bible is no longer a collection of dry rules, but a panoramic map leading you to the Cross.
The Sword that Heals
Finally, the Bible becomes precious when we allow it to perform its surgical work. Hebrews 4:12 describes the Word of God as “quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword.” The Greek word for “powerful” is energēs, meaning it is active and “working.” It is a “critic” (kritikos) of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
When you allow the Word to “cut” away your carnal desires (the process of Metanoia), you find a strange joy. You love the Bible because it tells you the truth about your sin and the greater truth about your Savior. As Psalm 119:103 exclaims, “How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!”
The way to fall in love with the Bible is to treat it as the “Voice of the Beloved.” When you open the pages, you are not just studying a dead letter; you are listening to the God who “made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
Shalom brother.
J.
I’ll follow your way of reading the bible. Thanks sister Bestill. Have a good day.
Awesome way , I hope one day to have that consistency .Thank you Brother Peter.
I think during different seasons it’s completely alright to have a different relationship with the Bible. Sometimes we will hungrily read several chapters and have a “growth spurt,” and then sometimes we will have periods in which God feels farther away and Scripture doesn’t seem to be so engaging. The important thing is to be consistent and keep reading it. It’s totally normal to not always love doing it. Sometimes when I feel that way, reading a Psalm helps me feel more connected to God and to enjoy reading the Bible. The raw emotion of the Psalms always seems so applicable to our current time in history and whatever is going on in my own heart. Being a part of a good Bible study/small group can also be a good way to enjoy reading Scripture more.
This question also reminds me of a fellow Christian mom I know who once shared that, during the busy, tiring years when her children were little, she had a very hard time reading Scripture regularly and enjoying it, but she did listen to Christian songs and Scripture put to song with her children, and she realized that, for that season, God honored even that small way of hearing and receiving his Word. Hope this encourages you!
After decades of reading the Bible daily, @KeithR, I have one suggestion. Don’t get bogged down in some of the chapters with a lot of names or repeated laws. Get the idea of it and then move on. Those people and laws won’t be offended. ![]()
I did leave something out. Can’t believe I did. Every time you go to read, ask God to show you, teach you, and help you to receive what He wants you to know. Prayerfully read the Word. You will get more out of it.
Peter