George H. Guthrie - Read the Bible for Life

Praise for Read the Bible for Life

In the church's dry desert of biblical illiteracy, this book is a drink of cold, refreshing water. With pastoral sensitivity and practical skill, George Guthrie is equipping us to know, understand, and apply the treasures of God's Word in a way that will transform our lives and our communities for the glory of our God. I wholeheartedly recommend Read the Bible for Life for every Christian and every leader in the church.

David Platt, pastor of The Church at Brook Hills,

Birmingham, Alabama and

New York Times best-selling author of Radical

In a culture where biblical illiteracy continues to spread like the proverbial plague, George Guthrie has introduced a healing medicine in the form of Read the Bible for Life. This overview of the Bible's nature and content will be welcomed in churches intent on developing biblically grounded followers of Christ. The book's conversational approach provides an easy entry for a generation that tends to read only headlines. With fresh insights for the longtime student of God's Word and accessible material for the new student, it is a resource I recommend for all believers.

Ed Stetzer, coauthor of Transformational Church

The genuine give and take of conversation is key to the Christian community's deeper grasp of the Scriptures. Read the Bible for Life is a celebration of biblical conversation between friends who really love the Word. Hopefully, lots of people will join in.

Michael Card, award-winning musician and author

Copyright 2011 by George H. Guthrie

All Rights Reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

978-0-8054-6454-2

Published by B&H Publishing Group

Nashville, Tennessee

Dewey Decimal Classification: 220.07

Subject Heading: BIBLESTUDY AND TEACHING \ CHRISTIAN LIFE \ SPIRITUAL LIFE

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. Copyright 1999, 2000, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible, Holman CSB, and HCSB are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers
.

Other versions include: New International Version (NIV), copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society; English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved; the NET Bible, copyright 19962009 by Biblical Studies Press (BSP), L.L.C. and the authors. All rights reserved; and The King James Version (KJV).

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DEDICATION

To my children, Joshua and Anna

May you ever be people of the Word

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

As I look back over the past eighteen months in which this project has moved from conception to delivery, it strikes me that it has been born in and through vibrant community.

From the beginning of our conversations on a biblical literacy initiative, the gifted leaders at LifeWay, President Thom Rainer and the heads of various divisions, have embraced me as a partner in ministry. My longtime friend, Brad Waggoner, now the executive vice president of LifeWay and the publisher of B&H Publishing Group, believed in the importance of the book from the beginning and kept me laughing along the way. Shepherding the manuscript, editor Thomas Walters nudged with a "rod" now and then, but mostly guided gently with a steady "staff" of encouragement. With good grace, designers Diana Lawrence and Jon Rodda put up with an extraordinary amount of back-and-forth discussion on the book cover, listening to my concerns and hopes and guiding the process to a good conclusion.

My dear friend, Jack Kuhatschek, now the executive vice president and publisher at Baker Books, has long encouraged me to address the problem of biblical illiteracy in the church. It was Jack's idea to do the book in a narrative interview style, and the initial feedback I have gotten from family, friends, and students seems to indicate that his finely tuned "publishing" sense was spot on.

cannot say enough about Union University, where I have been privileged to teach for the past two decades. Out of their love for the church and their keen vision for a Christian university, President David Dockery, Provost Carla Sanderson, and my dean, Gregory Thornbury, have given me life-space in which to write and have cheered me on each step of the way. My extraordinarily gifted colleagues in the School of Theology and Missions, often took time away from their own writing projects to talk to me about mine. The two women who really run the School of Theology and Missions (and my unofficial "design consultants"), Christy Young and Marianna Dusenberry, have given generous feedback on the cover and the initiative logo. A colleague in Union's Art Department, Melinda Eckley, freely gave of her time and nailed the cover design, as well as the initiative logo (and got a wedding dress in the bargain!). My students walked with me in community through the whole process, reading early drafts of various chapters, discussing ideas vetted in class lectures, offering feedback on design issues, and praying for me to endure.

Louise Bentley, still my teacher, offered encouragement and editing expertise at the eleventh hour, and David Wickiser and Lauren Bogdan, former students, did a great deal of work in helping me craft the Bible reading plans in the appendix.

Those interviewed in the book have given much time because they believe in the project and the broader initiative. Needless to say, the book would not have been possible without their expertise and their time. For what I have learned from them in the process I am deeply grateful. My personal reading of the Bible will never be the same.

Of course, special mention must be made of my wonderful wife, Pat, and our children, Joshua and Anna, who read parts of the manuscript and gave loads of feedback on all aspects of the project. They are my nearest and dearest discussants on the Bible as we attempt to read it and live it together.

To all these I give thanks.

To God alone be glory.

George Guthrie

Jackson, Tennessee

Summer 2010

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

Invitation to a Conversation

Could we sit down for a conversation? As I write this introduction, I am tapping away on my laptop in a popular coffee shop, and I would love it if we could have a cup of coffee and talk about the Bible. How to read it well. How to understand it. How to live it. Or perhaps we could sit in front of our fireplace at home, eating my wife's chocolate-chip scones and sipping hot tea. There is nothing better than a rich conversation with a friend about important matters, and it is made all the better over a hot drink; a little music in the background doesn't hurt either. But since you are where you are at the moment and I am where I am, we will just have to make do, meeting in the pages of this book. So grab a coffee or tea, find a comfortable chair, and let's have our conversation.

Why I Wrote This Book

Let me tell you why I went to the trouble of writing this book. To be honest, I really didn't have time to write it, but I felt strongly that it