When my church leaders decided we should teach Deuteronomy to our cell groups, many of us groaned in horror. Deuteronomy is one of the books we try to avoid reading as Christians, let alone teach it.

This showed every time I asked my cell members to read chapters before coming to cell; almost all of them would come without reading. One of my cell members even complained to me that it was a difficult book and wanted us to move on to something easier like an epistle ASAP. 

It’s not just Deuteronomy. There might be other books in the Bible that we adopt a TL;DR (too long; didn’t read) approach to because they contain laws or genealogy. Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, parts of Exodus, 1 and 2 Chronicles and Ezra, for instance. We easily gravitate towards books that are far more interesting, or even gory, such as Joshua and Judges.

I myself only recently completed the whole Bible from Genesis to Revelation and restarted a 1-year Bible reading plan with the help of the Read Scripture app. However, I still struggle. 

The question is why do we treat the Bible with such disdain and dread if we know that it’s God’s Word? Could it be the double-edged sword of technology which has not only given us access to more Christian resources but also other types of content that seem more engaging?

“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17 ESV)

Through the laws given, we know how much our God treasures holiness and justice.

Even the ‘boring’ parts like building the tabernacle (Exodus) and the genealogies (Numbers, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra) have their purpose for being in the Bible.

An example is Matthew 1, which starts off with a genealogy of Jesus Christ. While we might not be able to appreciate all the names listed, we will definitely recognise Abraham, Issac, Jacob, David, Solomon, Joseph and Mary. Besides Mary, 4 other women – Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and wife of Uriah – are mentioned in the genealogy, which is otherwise filled with men.

It’s interesting that these women are highlighted even though their backgrounds are somewhat questionable. Nevertheless, they have the privilege of being mentioned in the Lord’s heritage. Despite Jesus’ background, God still managed to bring Christ our Messiah into the world to fulfil the greatest purpose of salvation.

After completing the Bible, I’ve found there are 3 main reasons why one should read it. 

IT’S A WONDERFUL STORY OF GOD’S SALVATION FOR MAN

All of us should attempt to read the Word more (even better if you can read it end to end), as it’s the greatest story of God’s faithfulness and love for us. From the fall of man in Genesis 3, the Old Testament prepares the reader for the promised Messiah.

In the Gospels, we read about Jesus and His ministry, which culminates in His death and resurrection. The rest of the New Testament reminds Christians how we should be living differently from the rest of the world and to share the Good News with others ’till Christ returns to earth.

IT’S A CHANCE TO KNOW GOD MORE INTIMATELY 

Through the laws given in the Old Testament (while boring and archaic to us), we know how much our God treasures holiness and justice. Israel was chosen to be a blessing to all nations (Genesis 12:3), and with the laws the nation would be set apart from its neighbours.

The Word is a lamp to our feet and a light for our path (Psalm 119: 105), which enables us discern God’s will for us. Knowing God more will also change us to become more Christ-like, enabling us to fulfil our purpose as salt and light (Matthew 5:13-16).

IT GUARDS AGAINST WRONG UNDERSTANDING

On our social media pages, we often see encouraging Christian verses, sometimes taken out of context just to make our day. Jeremiah 29:11 is often cited as a verse to show that God always has a plan to prosper us.

That verse, however, was addressed to the Israelites in exile to give them hope and Jeremiah 29:12 goes on to say that it is for Israel to turn back to God. If we do not know the Bible well and understand its background, we will misinterpret it. Worse, we will easily fall prey to false teachings. 

The Word has been preserved for us to enjoy it. I especially love The Bible Project videos, which seem to make the Word come alive through animation. May we find the hunger for God’s Word and not shun it because we consider it TL;DR today.