Daily Bible reading prevents spiritual illiteracy

Tessa Landrum, a senior at Cedarville University, wrote a powerful commentary in Kentucky Today entitled "Gen Z is spiritually illiterate and abandoning church: How did we get here?" As the title suggests, there are several factors that are affecting the spirituality of people born between 1995 and 2015.

Landrum cites James White's groundbreaking book "Meet Generation Z" and notes "the most defining mark of members of Generation Z, in terms of their spiritual lives, is their spiritual illiteracy... They do not know what the Bible says. They do not know the basics of Christian belief or theology. They do not know what the cross is all about. They do not know what it means to worship."

Are we a generation away from losing our Christianity? What can we do to reverse the current trend? I am convinced that reading the Bible is something we can do to remedy the situation. To get the most out of the study of Scripture, there are several factors that we must consider.

First we need to understand the structure of the Bible. It is not simply a collection of verses.

When I refer to the Bible, I am referring to the 66 books that comprise the Christian Bible. The Bible is not one book written at one time by one author, but it is a collection of books written over centuries by prophets who were divinely inspired to write.

There are historical books, poetic books, wisdom literature, prophetic writings and letters. The Bible tells the story of God's interactions with humans from the beginning of time until the last days.

Consider the personal benefit you might gain from reading the Bible. You may gain a sense of purpose. The first few words of Genesis tell us we exist for a reason and we were created by God. Life has meaning.

Scripture also enables us to form a moral compass. Everyone has a sense of right and wrong, good and bad. Proverbs 14:12 says, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death." The Bible defines sin and leads us to Jesus who offers us the gift of eternal life.

The reality is that the Bible examines us as we examine it. Hebrews 4:12 says, "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."

If our intention is to understand the God who made us, and our desire is to become the people he wants us to be, God will bless the reading of His word.

You may choose to read the Bible straight through from Genesis to Revelation, or you may purchase a Bible organized to be read through in one year. These specialty Bibles contain daily portions of Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs.

If you are like me, you may prefer to listen to Scripture with a Bible App for your phone. It is best to read a little each day and to stick with it until you have completed the task.

Keep in mind that reading the Bible is something we need to do for the rest of our lives for our spiritual health. One of my pastor friends is beginning his 45th time reading the Bible through this year.

I agree with Landrum's conclusion: "If the church desires to reclaim Gen Z and reintegrate them into the Body of Christ, then we must educate our children and youth. We must actively seek out the lost and meet them where they are with their questions and concerns. If we remain silent, these trends toward atheism and spiritual illiteracy will continue to grow -- and our culture will complete the shift from sacred to secular until Christian thought is no more than a trivial relic of an intolerant, uneducated past."

Let us encourage every generation to read the Bible.