How much bible reading is enough? Aren’t evangelicals supposed to be bible people? Why do evangelicals read so little of the bible in their services then? Certainly it is a common enough accusation. I’ve heard it many times. The real question here is, is it true?

I don’t want to speak for all evangelical churches, but I feel safe speaking for ours. What is the typical amount of bible reading we have in our service? Let me run you through it:

1. Opening reading picking up some of the emphases of the main reading/sermon to come
2. Sermon reading on which the sermon is based – this could be anything from a handful of verses to three or four chapters
3. Communion reading to prepare us for the Lord’s Supper
4. Closing benediction, usually a few verses.

If we take yesterday as a reasonably typical model, our readings were:

1. Opening reading: Philippians 2:1-11 – picking up the theme of peferring other’s needs before our own
2. Sermon reading: 1 Corinthians 10:21-11:1 – followed by the sermon
3. Communion reading: Isaiah 52:13-53:12 – focusing in on the sacrifice of Jesus on behalf of his people
4. Benediction: Collated verses from Philippians 4

This would be our pattern most weeks. Always four readings, the first three varying in length week by week. The final reading is always reasonably short, though sometimes slightly longer. There are weeks on which the first three reading might amount to four or more chapters worth of readings.

These readings aren’t designed to fit the the pattern laid out in the lectionary. Rather, we are a church that believe the Word, are led by the Word and want everything we do to be based in the Word. As such, any time we come to a new section of the service (an ‘element’ if you’re a Regulative Principle type), we tend to want to root it in scripture and reflect on it in line with scripture. Much of our intent is about gathering our thoughts and reflecting on what we’re doing.

To that end, we have an opening reading that picks up on (at least one of) the key themes of the sermon to come later. We have a reading prior to the sermon so that we all hear directly what is about to be explained and applied to us specifically. We have a reading before communion in order to reflect upon what we are doing together as a church and to remind ourselves about Jesus’ atoning cross-work (something equally evangelically important). We close with a benediction to encourage us in line with the things we have heard and been challenged by/encouraged in during the sermon.

Not only do I think this is a reasonable amount of scripture being read, I also think it helpfully reemphases key and important points of teaching. It is not so tightly controlled as being a ‘themed service’, but nevertheless we encourage a thoughtful approach to leading meetings so that key themes are highlighted and reemphasised throughout. Moreover, I think it communicates fairly clearly that we are, indeed, a Word-centric church for whom centring what we do in the Word is important to us. It makes it entirely unsurprising for people when we begin to bring the Word to bear in the lives at other times because it is so clearly a part of how we root what we are doing when we are together.

It may be true that some evangelical churches have relatively little bible reading as part of their meetings. I think that is a shame for people who make much of being Bible-people. There is no clearer way to communicate that we are people of the Word than weaving the Word throughout our service, particularly reading it out and using it in such a way that it clearly informs and directs all that we do on a Sunday morning.