Can you open the Bible to a random page and find something that speaks to you? Absolutely.
But is that the wisest way to study Scripture? Not really. And I say that as someone who's done it more than once.
When I had just turned 21, I found myself in a bit of a scripture reading dry spell. I was still reading Scripture here and there – okay just while I was at church – but I wasn’t engaging personally. I wasn’t letting the Word dwell in me richly (Colossians 3:16). For three months, I coasted. Until one rainy day, something shifted.
I spent the day in a cabin. No Wi-Fi. No commentaries. No podcasts. Just me, a cup of tea, my old NIV, and a royal blue comforter wrapped around my shoulders. The fireplace crackled as I sat at a big round table and asked God to meet me through The Bible.
I let the Bible fall open. Totally randomly. My eyes landed on a paragraph break in Galatians. And I started to read.
Within minutes, I was in tears. Every word felt like it had been written just for me. That moment was beautiful, raw, and real. I still remember it vividly. I believe the Holy Spirit met me there.
But the truth is… I had no idea what Galatians 3 was actually about.
That passage, which spoke so deeply to me in the moment, is one of Paul’s most theologically dense arguments in the New Testament. He’s not just offering personal encouragement; he’s dismantling religious gatekeeping and announcing the radical truth that Gentiles are included in God’s family by faith (Galatians 3:6-9).
He’s quoting Genesis 15, Deuteronomy 27, and Habakkuk 2:4. He’s confronting the idea that righteousness comes through the law. He’s revealing a bigger story than anything happening in my life at that time. A story that includes ethnic reconciliation, social liberation, and theological revolution (Galatians 3:28).
Back then, I didn’t know any of that. I just knew it felt like God saw me. And in a way, He did.
God can and does speak through all kinds of things—a donkey (Numbers 22), a whisper (1 Kings 19), a burning bush (Exodus 3), and even a verse that catches your eye at just the right moment. But that doesn’t mean we should build our whole relationship with Scripture around moments like those.
The Bible Isn't a Fortune Cookie
Let’s be honest. Most of us, at some point, have flipped open the Bible hoping to find a divine word about our breakup, our job interview, or our spiritual confusion. We want clarity. And God is gracious and often does reveal answers to our seemingly random searching.
But the Bible isn’t a mystical fortune cookie. It’s not designed to work like a magic 8 ball or vending machine. It’s a sacred, intricate library (yes, library!) written by dozens of authors in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, across multiple cultures and centuries. It deserves more than a flip-and-guess.
The Bible is both divine and deeply human. It contains poetry, prophecy, letters, law codes, and apocalyptic visions. It has metaphors, chiasms, allusions, and idioms that don’t always translate neatly into English.
Studying Scripture requires more than sincerity; it takes effort. In 2 Timothy 2:15, Paul urges believers to be workers who rightly divide the word of truth.
And honestly? That’s a good thing.
Because it means Scripture invites us into lifelong dialogue, not just one-time inspiration. Bible verse vending machines aren’t helpful in a long term relationship.
Yes, the Bible speaks to our questions about identity, trauma, hope, gender, injustice, and grief. It is relevant.
When we reduce it to inspirational snippets, we can end up making ourselves the main character of a story that was never just about us.
If we’re only reading it to find ourselves, we will miss God. If you make Scripture only a mirror instead of a window, it stops challenging you. And Scripture should challenge you. It should change you.
Yes, God met me at that wooden table with Galatians 3. But now I know He wasn’t just comforting me. He was calling me deeper. Into a story not just about me—but about the reconciling, liberating, boundary-breaking love of Jesus for the world.
So don’t just open the Bible. Enter it. Let it reshape your imagination. Let it push back on your assumptions. Let it draw you into God's unfolding story of freedom.
Because the Bible isn’t tame. It’s alive (Hebrews 4:12). And it’s holy ground.
So, How Should We Read It?
I have an entire article linked here for you to read how I recommend studying the Bible. I understand Bible Study is not a one size fits all but I believe there is a reverence we can all carry when approaching it.