Finally, we seem to be nearing the end of those inevitable first weeks of any new year. We have got to the point where ‘Happy New Year’ is becoming a slightly uncomfortable greeting and, most wonderfully of all, newspapers may stop churning out the articles about new year’s resolutions.
Among the talk of new exercise regimes, new diets, new disciplines, there are – of course – some excellent plans you can make for the new year. We enjoyed Matt Smethurst’s advice over on the Gospel Coalition blog: he gave us five top tips for Bible reading this year, including advice on expectations and attitude. We’d like to add one more point:
6. Don’t read the Bible as if it was written only for the UK
At Wycliffe, we talk a lot about the fact that the Bible is God’s message to the whole world, not just a select few, and that everyone should have the opportunity to see and hear the words of God. This perspective can give us fresh understanding of the Bible: we begin to realise that the Bible doesn’t mean only what we think it means in the UK! The insights that one community and culture get from God’s word may be completely different – and of the same value – as another’s. Finding out how other cultures read the Bible could help us see the Bible in a completely new way.
If you want to try getting into the Bible with new perspectives from around the world, we have resources that can help:
- Bible studies for small groups and individuals: Choose your words carefully and The whole Story in five acts
- Activities for church and small groups: Get the word out and the Idea bank
- Talks and lectures: Understanding the Scriptures
- Back to blog homepage.
- Go to main Wycliffe UK site.
Tags: Bible reading
[...] Read the rest of the Wycliffe UK blog post [...]