“This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you, and it is not beyond your reach.It is not kept in heaven, so distant that you must ask, ‘Who will go up to heaven and bring it down so we can hear it and obey?’It is not kept beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear it and obey?’ No, the message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it. – Deuteronomy 30:11-14

For some, the Bible is inaccessible. It is strange, foreign and impenetrable. The thing is, God never meant for it to be any of those things. In fact, the verses cited above tell us that it was not like that when God gave it. Instead, it was “very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart”. So what happened?

Lots of things happened. Some promoted the idea that the Bible should be limited to certain “holy” languages. Others prefered to keep the Bible in archaic language. Still others promoted the idea that one needs special training and knowledge to understand it. Finally, some of us don’t read the Bible enough to have any hope of getting comfortable with it.

We went all the way to Africa to help translate the Bible to bring it close to Africans. It would be tragic if it became more distant back in our home country.
Here are some suggestions for bringing it close.

• Read a modern translation
• Read it as a letter from God, not as a theological text.
• Read the historical books as stories of real people rather than trying to find spiritual lessons everywhere.
• Read several chapters at a time.
• Read a chronological Bible.