Why should we read the Good Book?

No one can be absolutely sure exactly how many copies of the bible have been printed, sold or distributed – but it’s in the billions. And it keeps increasing. I mean, Gideons International alone, a Christian organisation dedicated to the distribution of free Bibles, has successfully given away 2 billion Gideon Bibles from 1908 to 2015 (you may well have found one of theirs in your hotel bedroom – or in your prison cell if you’ve ever ended up there!).

Interestingly, Amity Printing Co. Ltd., the only printing company authorised to print Bibles in China printed over 100 million Bibles from 1988 to 2012.

With such a long print run this is a book that must be worth reading! Why has it been printed so often and read so assiduously? Why are we putting a whole year aside to make it our theme and read it all the way through? Why? - Because it is such a significant part of God’s revelation to us about who He is and who we are.

In the Vineyard the Bible is one of our Priorities: “Sometimes we seek inspiration from the scriptures; sometimes comfort, sometimes counsel and direction, or sometimes a “help” resource. The Bible is God’s love letter to us, one of the main ways in which He tells us His story and guides us in the ways we should live and what to believe. We believe the bible is true and essential for faith and for living a fulfilled and effective life. We study and teach the bible all the time!”

2 Timothy 3:16-17 says that “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

So, here’s the BIG challenge for 2019, not only are we going to make the Good Book the theme for 2019, we are going to read it. Yes, all of it! Together! There will be loads of help and encouragement: apps, explanations, videos, audios, support in your small group and preaching on Sundays to help guide through the difficult bits. And at the end of the year we’ll celebrate crossing the finishing line together!

As you persist and keep reading you will find that God speaks to you clearly, but you'll also find that you are confounded and confronted in ways that will surprise you. You will end up the year a different person to the one who started reading!

If you want to know how to get started on 1 January 2019 (or join in if you have come across this later) go to How to get started.