The Bible is composed of 66 books. It is actually a library of the writings of so many people over so many years in so many different location. It includes history, poetry, law, prophecy, and doctrine. It is a guide for everyday living. It details the ministry of Jesus. It tells what has been, what was occurring and what will be in the future that may be near or distant. In some places there are gory details of battles. In other places is outlined the means to get closer to God.
It can be frustrating if you start reading as a novice in the wrong area of Scripture. There are long details of people’s names. There are God’s commandments that may seem confusing at times for their purpose. Perhaps God instructs his people to do things not normally acceptable in society but would be acceptable in that ancient time period. Anyone that was not obedient to God’s direct instructions to man in those days could likely suffer a direct consequence such as death. The people of three or 4000 years ago did not have knowledge of medicine or diagnoses which resulted in the extreme conditions being attributed to Satan.
The best thing that I would recommend for you to do is to hold off on some of the difficult passages, especially in the Old Testament. Don’t get lost and what would not be of interest to you. Avoid measuring God’s commandments or man’s behavior by modern standards. It is unfair for those people in Scripture to place upon them an expectation that we would think to be normal today.
In the beginning of the New Testament are four books which detail the life of Christ. Two of those books list his ancestors. A list of names would not be of interest to you but later as you grow in understanding the Bible you will see why they are important. For now, I would suggest that you read the Gospel according to John which is the fourth book of the New Testament. It is easier to read. It speaks of God’s love, his nurturing of believers, and of the life and times of Jesus.
The next book after John is Acts, the history of the early church and the apostles who helped establish the church throughout the world. Those men were so instrumental that eventually the Roman empire adopted Christianity as a national religion. After the book of Acts, or many letters that the apostle Paul wrote to people and churches admonishing them of their deeds and established the means for how the church should operate. Some of those books declare specific doctrines. Some of those books talk about the ordinances or sacraments to be observed in the worship service. Some areas of those books talk about what it will be like when Christ returns to earth a second time as the King of Kings.
Avoid being prejudiced against the customs and practices of the day as recorded in the Bible. Avoid the portion of Scripture that is confusing to you. Eventually as you grow in understanding as the Holy Spirit leads you, the confusion will lift. You will find a real delight in reading God’s word. You might even find comfort for some of the issues in your own life. Hopefully what you read will encourage you to a daily prayer time. Treat the Bible with respect because many people died defending it. Approach the reading the Bible with the humble spirit. If you are in need of specific enlightenment about certain passages, reach out to someone you respect and who is already knowledgeable about the Bible. Most of all, let God bless you in his unique way.
Christian Writer 