From Forward Day by Day
Luke 24:32 Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?
Before I was ordained, I had three degrees in theology. I had read and studied the Bible, some of it in Hebrew. In an academic sense, I thought I was at least competent. But it wasn’t until five years into ordained ministry that I actually knew much about the Bible.
In one of the churches I was serving, we decided to read the Bible. We went all in. In September, we read the whole Bible out loud over a long weekend. Then throughout the rest of the year, we had a Thursday evening dinner and study group of a few dozen people who read the Bible cover to cover together. Sunday mornings we had a simpler, Reader’s Digest version of the class. We stopped printing the lessons in the bulletin and urged people to bring a Bible to church.
It was transformational. Opening the scriptures with open hearts with a group of people made room for the Holy Spirit to bring God’s word alive for us. Our hearts burned within us.
