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What does the Bible say about illiterate people?
What is biblical literacy & why is it important?
How does illiteracy affect the church?
Can you demonstrate biblical literacy by passing a test?
What is the decline of biblical literacy?
Does Bible study increase biblical literacy?
For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 2 Timothy 2:15 ESV / 2 helpful votes. Helpful. Not Helpful.
As they looked on Peter and John so fearlessly outspoken--and also discovered that they were illiterate persons, untrained in the schools--they were surprised; and now they recognized them as having been with Jesus.
Then the book will be given to the one who is illiterate, saying, “Please read this.” And he will say, “I cannot read.”
Biblical literacy is about reading and comprehending the Scripture in your own language. That’s why access is so important to biblical literacy. But it’s not the only component. Reading the Bible, which is powerful, is foundational and valuable, but not enough. Biblical literacy is also about speaking.
- The Biblical Literacy Crisis
- What Is Biblical Literacy?
- 4 Critical Questions to Answer About Biblical Literacy
- 5 Tips to Increase Biblical Literacy in Your Church
- How to Know Your Biblical Literacy Initiative Is Working
- Conclusion
Many Christians simply don’t know what to do with their Bibles or where to start reading. Or they may consult their Bibles on occasion—like when searching for a verse on a particular topic or an answer to a problem they are facing—but often end up reading verses out of context and applying them to completely unrelated situations. Church leaders str...
To understand what biblical literacy is, let’s first talk about what it is not. 1. Biblical literacy is not factual knowledge. Being able to rattle off the name of Adam and Eve’s third son or who collected the Israelites’ gold jewelry to make the golden calf does not make one biblically literate. Nor does being able to explain Christian terms like ...
1. Why is biblical literacy crucial today?
The Bible answers the most fundamental questions about who God is, who we are, and why we need Jesus. The answers to these questions impact how we live our everyday lives—the choices we make (and don’t make) and how we spend our time—but apart from Scripture, those answers will always be lacking. That’s precisely why biblical literacy is a must.
2. How does biblical literacy differ from Bible study?
Though they overlap, biblical literacy and Bible study have different intentions. Biblical literacy involves a person’s ability to read the Bible with enough understanding to explain its basic meaning. Bible study is more rigorous and detail-focused. It involves research-focused intention, interpretation (known as “exegesis”—in Greek, “to lead out”), and application for real life. Rather than reading for meaning, Bible study focuses on the world behind the text, analyzing such things as 1. An...
3. When should biblical literacy be taught?
Kids are growing up in a world where everything is being questioned—from marriage to gender to the existence of truth. They need a plumbline for how to navigate their world just as much as adults do. If they don’t have a biblical framework to process this life with, their peers, media, and culture will become the voice they listen to. That’s why biblical literacy must start early. And though pastors have a crucial role in modeling and encouraging Bible engagement among allages, biblical liter...
Start at the pulpit
Most pastors would agree that biblical literacy is essential for a believer’s growth, but too often, a rift exists between affirming that belief and encouraging it among their people. In 1 Timothy 4:13, Paul instructed Timothy on how to handle the church in Ephesus until Paul returned: “Give your attention to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching” (NIV). So should you—and here’s a few ways how: 1. Preach the story—often. In the course Preaching Biblical Narrative, J. K...
Encourage Bible reading
Ed Stetzer writes, “Reading the Bible won’t make us a Christian, but it helps us to grow as one.” In short, biblical literacy has to begin with reading. One way to encourage this is to have an online hub where members can interact over Bible readings. Start by posting a daily Bible reading planto get the whole church reading the Bible together. You can then use the group to: 1. Ask specific questions about the reading 2. Post a verse or passage and ask what people are learning about it from t...
Offer a church-wide online Bible study
Gone are the days of midweek services where the people would gather at church for discussion-based classes that were an effective way to get an entire church body growing in biblical literacy. Yet people still need to study God’s Word, and according to Dr. R. Albert Mohler, President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, churches need to lead the charge: “Christians who lack biblical knowledge are the products of churches that marginalize biblical knowledge.” He says Bible teaching of...
You can take all the steps outlined above but not be sure whether your people understand their Bibles more than they did three, six, nine months, or a year ago. That’s why a critical step to your plan must be to check in with people often to ensure growth. You can do this in a few ways: 1. Conduct occasional surveys and polls to see how your congre...
It’s time to reverse the trend. Church leaders must “transition from ‘survival’ mode back into ‘discipleship’ mode” and establish confidence in their people that they can read and understand their Bible. Biblical literacy is non-negotiable for your congregation’s spiritual health in any season—not just during crises. It will take time and a bit of ...
Jul 10, 2017 · Fewer than half (47 percent) say the Bible is 100 percent accurate in all it teaches. Half (51 percent) say the Bible was written for each person to interpret as he or she chooses. Three-quarters (74 percent) disagree with the idea that even the smallest sin deserves eternal damnation.
And Isaiah 29:11, Isaiah 29:12 are also opposed to this assumption of a gloss. For by those who understood what was written (sēpher), it is evident that the prophets and rulers of the nation are intended; and by those who did not understand it, the great mass of the people.
