My cousin, blogging at The Cruciform Life, writes about reading the Bible two different ways:
In his lecture (which is well worth listening to), Keller describes two ways of reading the Bible. When we read the Bible diachronically, we read the text “along the chronos…along the timeline of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, in which case the Gospel (read diachronically) is: Creation, Fall, Redemption, Restoration.” We might also read the Bible synchroncially that is “across the grain…you can look at it topically: what does the Bible say about God?…about sin?”…etc. If you read the Bible in this way, says Keller, “the Gospel is: God, Sin, Christ, Faith, not works.” Keller argues that “you’ve got to read the Bible both ways.”
I recently found a second confirmation of this “both/and” view in Paul David Tripp’s new book A Quest for More: Living for something bigger than you. . . .
How do you read the Bible? I keep wanting to read it through from cover to cover, and I keep failing to discipline myself to do it. Most recently, I’ve picked a book to read through, sometimes repeating parts of it. But I recognize that I need the discipline of regular Bible reading, regardless my approach.
Planning to read the whole Bible is daunting. I know I would find excuses instead of doing it.
What works for me is not to try to read the Bible for its own sake. Instead, I write things that are related to the Bible. So I don’t read the Bible out of obligation or discipline, but because I am asking it for help. I am hunting for information. That makes it a lot more fun.
If this had been Lars’s post, I would have suggested he write fantasy that takes place in Biblical times. I don’t know what you do, so I don’t know what works for you. Maybe read the works of the Prophets and try to write a political statement for this day and age in the same style?
Had to much to say for the comment box; you can see what I wrote here.