Bible illiteracy - it’s an epidemic
Did you know, in the average church:
⅓ of members read the Bible once or a few times per week
⅓ read their Bible rarely if ever
Only ⅓ read their Bibles daily! (Approximate Statistics from Lifeway)
These statistics point us to the sad reality that there is a very pervasive issue of Bible illiteracy in the church. Many have found a wide variety of excuses to avoid spending quality time in the Word. Some of these excuses include:
I don’t have time.
The Bible is too overwhelming to read and understand.
I don’t believe it.
The Bible is boring.
I just don’t want to.
As Christ followers, we need to become disciples of Christ and an important way to do that is through becoming saturated in the Word of God. If we are going to see our children become Christ followers, we need to love the Word and, in turn, foster our children’s love for it as well.
As a church what are some practical ways that we can do this together? Consider these suggestions.
Bible emphasis
Plan an emphasis around the Word. Help individuals and families to find baby steps towards diving into the Word through accessible Bible studies that include a focus on Bible skills.
Bible skills
Challenge Bible study leaders to incorporate Bible skills into their sessions. This might include having fun with Bible trivia, where to find major Bible stories and verses in the Bible, etc. Kid’s ministry leaders and volunteers could make sure they make a Bible skills activity part of every class. These activities would be great for early arrivers or even as a wrap up to each class. The BCNE Kids Ministry team recently did a free webinar to help build a Bible skills box which is available to view along with many other training resources on the BCNE website.
Scripture memorization
Create a Scripture memorization challenge. Scripture memorization is another great way to encourage Bible literacy. You might consider challenging families to memorize Scripture together. As with any challenge, it is important to make sure you provide fun and realistic resources for busy families. Be sure that you create a way to add a layer of accountability for those who need support and of course a reward!
Discipleship
Encourage one-on-one discipleship. This suggestion would allow discipleship partners to really dive into the Word on a regular basis. It would also provide natural accountability and an ongoing relationship with another that could help with individual study and engagement with the Word. This option would also need resources that discipleship groups can use that are centered on developing Bible skills.
Resources
Make suggestions for resources that can help encourage more consistent Bible reading. These could be books, Bible studies, apps, groups, etc.
It is clear that Bible illiteracy is a major problem in the church, but it is one that can be addressed in effective ways if we, as church leaders, would take the time to include it in our strategies for growing the people we lead and shepherd.
Sandy Coelho serves as lay leadership development coordinator at the Baptist Convention of New England.
