Welcome! We are about to begin a journey through the most important book ever written. The Bible is the revealed Word of God, and through its pages the Lord speaks to us about who He is, who we are, and how we relate to Him. Every day you will Him speaking to you in new ways, even if you have read through His Word many times.
Many Christians know some of God’s Word. They may have favorite passages they like to read and re-read (which is always worthwhile), but they skip over or just struggle with other parts of the Bible. Reading through the whole Bible is a valuable discipline, because it gives us the balance that we need in hearing the whole counsel of God.
In our journey, we are using a reading plan from the Bible Gateway web site (www.biblegateway.com) that has us reading through the Bible in the order in which the books were written, according to some scholars. (There is some question about the exact order among Bible scholars, but for our purposes it doesn’t change anything important.) This means we’ll be reading the Old Testament until October! (Yes, the OT is that big, and that much of God’s Word.) This reading plan will give us a perspective on how the actual writing of God’s Word unfolded under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. You can get a daily reminder directly from Bible Gateway if you sign up for the reading plan on their web site or app (it’s free to sign up). You can read from any translation you choose; I will be using the 2021 NASB this year, and my blog posts will be based on that translation.
Each day I hope to also post a devotional based on part of the day’s reading. All of those posts will be here on the “Read With Pastor Steve” blog. In these devotionals, I hope to bring out points from part of the reading, or provide some teaching on difficult passages. However, you may find that what you get from the day’s reading is an entirely different emphasis than mine. That’s not only OK, it’s a good sign that you are thinking about what God is saying to you in His Word.
So let’s get ready to begin our journey. For the next 365 days, we want to walk through the Scriptures and gain new insights into God’s truth and how we can live that truth in our lives. Feel free to post comments and questions on the blog posts, and to encourage each other to continue on our journey.
[This post has been adapted from my original post from 2020 to reflect the format and translation I am using this year. The blog posts from 2020 are still available on this web site; those use the ESV and a reading plan with OT and NT readings each day.]
Read With Pastor Steve 