As an online graduate student at the Augustine Institute, being able to visit Colorado and actually sit in the physical lecture hall I had previously only seen in recorded videos and listen to two incredible biblical scholars felt like a dream. I was so eager to hear about all of the books they would recommend (and books they’d written!) and to hear them speak about Jesus.
Within the first hour of the class, however, my professors made something very clear: the books they’d written and would recommend, along with their hours of lectures, didn’t matter if we were not first immersing ourselves in the Word of God.
“If you’re not engaging Scripture and just skipping to the secondary readings,” they warned, “you’re missing the point.”
Oof. How often I am guilty of this!
How often do I look to other readings—books from the saints and leading theologians, books and articles and blogs about the spiritual life—to teach me about God, while ignoring the Word of God Himself? Friends, these other readings are indeed good, beautiful, and helpful—but that doesn’t change the fact that they’re secondary.
THE WORD INCARNATE
The Gospel according to John begins, “In the beginning was the Word… and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:1, 14). This is not just a poetic description of Christ’s Incarnation, but a revelation of Jesus’ identity.
There is a reason why our Eucharistic celebration has both a Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. There is a reason why we don’t read any books outside of Scripture during the Mass. Christ wanted to give us His entire self—so we receive Him in our minds in the Word and then consume Him into our hearts in the Eucharist.
He is the Word who was there in the beginning and through Whom creation came together; the Word who was with God and was God. Within the words of Scripture is the revelation of the Word of God Himself. It is Jesus Who we encounter every time we engage Scripture.
So, when St. Jerome said, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ,” he really meant it.
THE GREATEST LOVE STORY EVER TOLD
You’ve probably heard Scripture referred to as “The Greatest Love Story Ever Told.” And if you’re like me, you thought to yourself, “Awww. Well that’s nice!”
But my friends, I’ve come to learn that this is not just a nice sentiment. It’s the absolute Truth.
Sacred Scripture is the story of God pursuing your heart. When God created the world in the beginning, He was thinking of you. When He promised Eve that her child would crush the head of Satan, He was thinking of saving you. When He promised that through Abraham all nations would be blessed, it was so that His blessing would reach you. When He saved Israel from slavery in Egypt, it was in His plan for your freedom. When He sent Gabriel to Mary, it was so that you would have a Savior.
In every encounter, every healing, ever parable ever preached, He was thinking of you. And when He gave His life up on the cross, it was your heart that He carried in His.
From the moment of creation and the subsequent Fall, Sacred Scripture reveals God’s plan from all eternity to bring you to fullness of life with Himself. (I’m not making this up—it’s technical term is Divine Pedagogy.) Every promise from Adam to the Patriarchs to the Kings of Israel to the Prophets has been fulfilled in Jesus Christ… For you.
ENGAGING SCRIPTURE
I understand the Bible is incredibly long and everything about it just seems daunting. Nonetheless, we should never take this sweet gift for granted. If you need some help integrating Scripture into your everyday life, here are some tips:
- Start small. You don’t have to read the entirety of Scripture by tomorrow! Habits must be built. Start small (a chapter a day?) and work your way up!
- Make it a date. Schedule this time to be with Jesus the same way you schedule time for Mass on Sunday, coffee dates with friends, and work meetings. Write it in your calendar as a way to write it on your heart.
- PRAY. We know Sacred Scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit (cf. CCC 105). Who better to help us read it, engage it, and be nourished by it than by the Holy Spirit Himself? He longs to help you if you only let Him.
- Find good reading plans or commentaries. I find that a great way to build up a habit is to have some structure. Find a reading plan (or make one!). Find a commentary that guides you through little by little. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy, but something that can help guide you so that you don’t sit down everyday and think, “Okay, now what?” I’ve listed some of my favorites down below! (Tip: Make sure to engage both Old and New Testaments or you risk missing out on the fullness of revelation.)
- Invite a friend. Start a mini bible study or set up an accountability plan together! Not only will praying through Scripture build up your friendship, but having an accountability partner is so helpful in building up a habit.
- Persevere. I know the feeling of reading Scripture and thinking, “Ok… I got nothing from that.” Rest assured that “the Word of God is living and effective” (Hebrews 4:12) and any encounter with it is an encounter with Christ. Just like with any friend, sometimes you have moving conversations and sometimes you just need to be together.
“May every day of our lives thus be shaped by a renewed encounter with Christ, the Word of the Father made flesh: he stands at the beginning and the end, and ‘in him all things hold together’ (Col 1:17).”
Benedict XVI, Verbum Domini, 124
From my heart to yours,
RESOURCES:
- USCCB: Daily Mass Readings (This is a great way to start reading Scripture everyday!)
- Walking With God: by Tim Gray and Jeff Cavins (Incredible guide through Salvation History)
- Baker Academic: Commentary on Sacred Scripture
- The Augustine Institute: “Bible in a Year” plan (What I’m using now and love it!!)
