Why Don't Christians Read the Bible? The Excuses That Hold Us Back

Carol Plafcan
1 hour ago
7 min read

Why God's Word Is Our Greatest Weapon

Why don't Christians read and study the Bible? As Christians, we know the Bible is our instruction manual for life. It is our loving guide. We intend to read it, but life slowly crowds it out. Over time, good intentions turn into spiritual drift.

Our reasons are many. When we really think about them, some are honestly just excuses. Scripture repeatedly tells us the importance of hiding "God's Word in our heart that we may not sin against you" (Psalm 119:11). Jesus famously quoted scripture to the devil when he was being tempted in the desert. It may be hard to admit but Satan encourages our excuses.

When Paul discusses our spiritual armor to defeat evil, the only offensive weapon he mentions is the "sword of the spirit" which is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17). If our spiritual sword is our only offensive weapon and we refuse to use it, what hope do we have in our spiritual battle against Satan.

The Biggest Excuse: “I Don’t Have Enough Time” for Bible Study

The most common reason people give for not studying is "I don't have enough time." We live in a busy, hurried world. We balance work, family, and social activities. We find time for what we think is really important.

Sadly, social media takes up vast amounts of time for many of us. The average American today spends over 2 hours a day on social media. Sports and video games are similar distractions for many people. Sometimes the obstacle isn't unwillingness but simple exhaustion. Even then, a few minutes spent in God's Word can strengthen us more than we expect.

How to Make Time for God’s Word in a Busy World

Why can't we incorporate God's Word into what we already do. Before we leave for work or begin our day, whether by yourself or with your family, take a few minutes to read a small portion of God's Word. If you're with others, spend a couple of minutes talking about what it means. If you are alone, meditate on what you have read.

“The Bible Is Too Hard to Understand” – Practical Solutions

"It's too hard to understand." If you don't understand it, take a few minutes out of your time spent on distractions and read some good online commentaries that can explain it to you. Beware of AI overviews. They may be biased and sometimes incorrect. Be sure to check where your information is coming from. And when you read, read Scripture in context.

Try not to read just one verse. Often when we read scripture out of context it becomes easy to misunderstand. Most Bibles have headings which will help you read the verses that pertain to each other. The translation may use words that we have heard many times but really never fully understood: words like atonement, covenant, or propitiation. Bible dictionaries, online or bound, can help tremendously when we are reading difficult texts.

Why the Bible Still Matters Today – Finding Personal Relevance

"What does this have to do with me today?" One way we know that God's hand is in His Word is that stories from thousands of years ago are still able to speak to us. I firmly believe that the more we pray for the Holy Spirit to guide us while we study, the more we will be able to understand. God's desire is not so much that we become Bible scholars but that we are obedient to what we read.

Our heart is what needs to be changed by the work of the Holy Spirit. That heart change was needed long ago and is needed now. Human beings are not much different today from ages past. They dealt with many of the same temptations, the same family dynamics, and the same doubts and fears. Another thing I believe to be true is that if we slow down and read carefully we may be surprised by how the Bible speaks to us.

Many people who have read the Bible their entire lives recognize that the same passage at different times in their lives speaks differently to them. It's sort of like watching a movie that you loved at twenty and seeing it again at sixty. It often doesn't say the same thing to us.

It's easy to fall into the trap of, "I've heard that story a hundred times." We don't really listen anymore or read carefully. We overlook that turn of phrase that we may not be familiar with. We assume we truly understand it. We can trust the whole Bible to speak to us.

But do we really know the characters in our Bible stories? Do we understand, to the extent possible, what their lives were like? Things happened to them that shaped them into who they are. How did their relationship to God change over their life? The more carefully we observe the people and circumstances in Scripture, the more clearly we see ourselves and God's work in our own lives.

When the Bible Makes You Uncomfortable: Conviction and Transformation

I often hear people say that, "The Bible makes me uncomfortable. How can anyone be as good as it says we are supposed to be?" First, we have to know that our goodness is not what saves us, only Jesus can do that.

Even the most righteous Christians will still, on occasion, fail and sin. The Bible makes us feel uncomfortable because it asks us to repent. It asks us to turn from sin and become a new person. The Holy Spirit speaks to us and convicts us of our sin. Conviction is never God's final goal. His goal is transformation.

Our life, as Christians, is a life of growth in our faith and in the Fruits of the Spirit. We grow in love, faith, patience, kindness, and all of the other evidences of our transformation by God's Spirit. Yes the Bible may make you uncomfortable, but it will also remind you of God's faithfulness to you. It will remind you of His love for you.

God knows us and God sees us, and this brings us hope and joy. As we grow closer to God, we will naturally want to try to know more about who He is. Digging deeper into His Word helps us do that.

Understanding these excuses is only part of the issue. Many people also struggle because the Bible feels unfamiliar in its setting and in the way it is put together. We can turn reading into real study as we understand this.

Why Don't Christians Read the Bible? Understanding Real People

One of the reasons people struggle to understand Scripture is that they forget it happened in real places among real people. Learning a little geography and history can make passages come alive in surprising ways. A little historical background can turn what once seemed confusing into something clear, making Bible study far less frustrating.

As a self-confessed geography nerd, I believe knowing where people lived is important to our understanding. Were they close to the ocean, in a desert, or among massive forests of cedar trees? What was their culture like? Some knowledge of history helps us as well.

When I first started reading the Bible, I remember being so confused by the terms Israel and Judah. I didn't know that after King Solomon died Israel split into two kingdoms: the kingdom of Israel in the North with its capital in Samaria and Judah in the South with its capital in Jerusalem. The ten tribes, often called the Lost Tribes, were in the North while the South was made up of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Jesus was prophesied to come from the tribe of Judah.

Understanding Different Bible Genres Makes Study Easier

When we study the Bible, it is also important to remember that it is made up of different types or genres of literature. We read and understand these types of literature differently. We already do this in everyday life. We don't read a poem the same way we read an encyclopedia or newspaper article. Realizing these differences helps remove one of the most common reasons people avoid studying the Bible: the fear that they won't understand it. Let me briefly summarize them.

Narratives like Genesis develop the characters and stories of people. Books of the Law discuss covenants and specific rules of religious behavior. The book of Proverbs is an example of Wisdom literature. It provides short statements that help us know how to make good decisions and act wisely. Each type of writing serves a different purpose in how God communicates with His people.

Poetic books like the Psalms are songs to God for His praise and worship. Prophetic literature, such as Micah or Zechariah, announce future judgment and hope to the people.

The New Testament continues this same variety of writing, but with a focus on Christ and the early church. In the Gospels we have accounts of Jesus' life from the different perspectives of the writers. Here it is especially important to pay attention to the audience. Who is being spoken to? The epistles are letters written by the apostles to specific people for very specific reasons. These books are better read as a whole so we can understand the entire argument that is being put forward. To really understand them we need to keep in mind what these words would have meant to their original audience and then how we can apply them today.

Apocalyptic literature, like that found in Revelation, and in portions of Daniel and Ezekiel, is literally an "unveiling" of future events. It contains much symbolic and artistic imagery.

Overcoming Obstacles: Be Diligent and Keep Your Sword Sharp

Whatever reason we have had to avoid Bible study in the past, whether lack of time, discouragement, fear of misunderstanding, or simple familiarity, we should ask God to help us overcome those obstacles. We are to be diligent and to present ourselves as "a worker who is not ashamed" (2 Timothy 2:15). We may be rightly exhausted as we go about our daily lives but diligence requires effort and that is what we are called to.

Imagine life 2,000 years ago without all of our modern conveniences. Imagine how difficult the labor must have been. Yet Jesus and the apostles speak to us, as does the Old Testament, about the importance of Bible study. Why don't Christians read the Bible? Certainly as we approach the return of the Lord, the battle we face will grow more difficult. We need to keep our sword sharpened and ready to face what may come.

We keep our sword sharp not simply because we expect a battle, but because through God's Word we come to know the One who loves us, redeemed us, and has promised never to leave us. The hope we find in God's Word is what we are to share with a hopeless world.

Helpful Bible Study Resources: