Biblical Literacy by the Numbers: Fixing the Problem

Engaging with Scripture can begin to solve our biblical illiteracy problem, but how do we engage with Scripture?

Faithful and Fruitful: How Do We Fix the Problem?

Of course, you already knew that reading the Bible helped you to grow. It’s actually doingit that’s a challenge. So what are some ways churches are helping people to engage the Scriptures more intentionally? Based on our work with churches, we’ve seen a few patterns. Those producing the most fruit concerning Bible engagement do the following:

See the Bible as a whole.

It’s not just that we read our Bibles, but the way we read our Bibles that increases biblical literacy. I believe there’s a link between biblical illiteracy and our habit of fracturing the Bible into pieces and parts. We read a verse here, a chapter there. We need a quick verse for anxiety, so we run to Matthew 6:34 (“Take no thought about tomorrow, for tomorrow will take thought about the things of itself”). We need another verse about fear, so we jump to 1 John 4:18 (“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear”). These verses can help when we’re dealing with life’s difficulties, but a steady diet of verses and chapters digested in this way amounts to spiritual “fast food” from our McBibles. We need a whole Bible approach to Bible reading and study.

I serve as general editor of The Gospel Project, a curriculum that takes such an approach. In two years, we’ve gone from zero to over 500,000 weekly users. Why? Because people see walking through the Bible, following Scripture’s redemptive storyline, as a way to combat biblical illiteracy. The Bible isn’t 1,000 stories or even 66—it’s one story. Helping people see this encourages them to read the Bible more faithfully and fruitfully. Some resources for this …