tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post4741110541029994294..comments2024-03-10T10:40:32.319-07:00Comments on Pyromaniacs: The public reading of Scripture: ten pointed pointersPhil Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00649092052031518426noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-44370596276988162732014-08-18T15:03:37.233-07:002014-08-18T15:03:37.233-07:00Very helpful article, thank you! I have been reque...Very helpful article, thank you! I have been requesting we add this to our service for some time. I would like to know how others plan the readings. Do you systematically start at Genesis and march through book by book? Do you skip genealogies? How long a passage is read? Both OT and NT each week?<br />Thanks for your input.TheHikingMonkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03897120089391264390noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-77682051838928945112014-07-21T11:50:45.018-07:002014-07-21T11:50:45.018-07:00I am coming a little late to comment due to being ...I am coming a little late to comment due to being out of town last week, but I have to say that I found this post not only helpful and encouraging, but it also rightly installed a fresh dose of the fear of God. <br /><br />A few years ago my pastor asked me to do the Old Testament scripture reading each Sunday. He also encouraged me to provide a short introduction to the passage each week. And right here in your post is a reference to Nehemiah 8:8 which provides a Biblical precedent for doing so which I had not noticed before.<br /><br />Preparing these two to three sentence introductions has been quite a learning experience for me, especially as we go through the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah. Normally I read the passage through a couple times to see if I can get the meaning and then consult several commentaries to confirm (or not) my take. Then I try to put some context into a couple sentences so that when the scripture is read, the people will have an idea of who is speaking and why. The introduction also gives the congregation time to find the text in their Bibles. <br /><br />I found every one of your pointers to be right on the money. BTW, I end the readings with this: "May the Lord bless the hearing of his word." <br /><br /> St. Leehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238671101561121436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-81932471637959322142014-07-19T06:48:11.771-07:002014-07-19T06:48:11.771-07:00Thanks so much, Dan. That's very encouraging t...Thanks so much, Dan. That's very encouraging to hear.DJPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16471042180904855578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-39213435118323994352014-07-19T06:43:53.891-07:002014-07-19T06:43:53.891-07:00As a person who reads Scripture in worship gatheri...As a person who reads Scripture in worship gatherings and trains other to do so, I think you've provided everything needed to help others prepare for this task. Great article.Dan Kassishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10733029087353408001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-47879920434865656232014-07-18T13:20:46.411-07:002014-07-18T13:20:46.411-07:00"Take your time. This is a vital part of the ..."Take your time. This is a vital part of the service, not a bit we rush through so we can get to the meat. It's God's Word! Announce it, wait for the majority of page-turning to stop. Then read in an unhurried pace. Don't verbally drag your feet like a zombie, but don't race like a dragster. It isn't an auction." <br /><br />Ok, I'll take the heat on this. Ladies, please try and slow down a little bit. I suppose that it seems cliche or stereotypical, but it seems to be the ladies that tend to rush a reading. Maybe only the men should read. Ooooooooooops, sorry. I guess my point here is that if you read and you actually listen to yourself and feel like you are reading too fast (male or female) then practice.<br /><br />Maybe some specific tips?<br />1. If you read a passage that does not include the entire context, then practice reading the whole context. Read the whole chapter or several chapters out loud, not just the paragraph.<br />2. Read to your spouse or someone. Read it to them more than once on more than one day.<br />3. Have someone else read it and time them. Then read it aloud and compare the times. Did I read it in half the time the other person read it?<br />4. Practice particular phrases reading to yourself. Maybe even silently. This is a good reason to read it multiple times on multiple days. On following days you can practice what wasn't quite right on previous days. Memorize the difficult phrase and say it aloud during the week before reading.<br />5. Be prepared. Bring a copy with the right sized font. I wear reading glasses. I don't like to wear my reading glasses when I'm reading up front because then I can't see the congregation. So I print out a copy in really large font. Then I can read like when I was 25 years old again. Sometimes.<br />6. Do it. If your church has readers, volunteer to read. Maybe the pastor or person who schedules the readers doesn't know that you would like to do it.<br />7. In churches with good sound people, don't shout. Try to find your own voice and trust them to project it if necessary.<br />8. And yes, pray! Ok, then pray some more.Larry Geigerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13158449612437822789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-8345632267357634232014-07-18T12:12:37.462-07:002014-07-18T12:12:37.462-07:00Two random thoughts:
I've often wished we had...Two random thoughts:<br /><br />I've often wished we had something akin to cantors, people who dedicate themselves to the reading of the Word, not the way it usually happens in Sunday School - a monotone recitation without even taking cues from punctuation - but purposefully, even dramatically. <br /><br />Way back in the day, our church did an annual "event" where the Bible was read aloud in the auditorium continuously for 24 hours a day, beginning to end. Volunteers all over the church signed up, no age limit (parents were encouraged to bring their children to participate). My dad coordinated it, so we spent a good amount of time there even when it wasn't our hour. It was powerful. Even when signing people in a 3AM. One of my favorite memories.JGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03116405895683599572noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-84894864998298176752014-07-18T10:45:59.184-07:002014-07-18T10:45:59.184-07:00Back in the day, at the bible College I attended, ...Back in the day, at the bible College I attended, an elective offering was a class called "Oral Interpretation". It was a 1-credit-hour course that taught you how to do this very thing -- to read the Scriptures publicly, effectively.SammyBoyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11702628523621623736noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-77264815627579878672014-07-18T09:27:04.140-07:002014-07-18T09:27:04.140-07:00Excellent. Mostly ditto for *family* reading as w...Excellent. Mostly ditto for *family* reading as well. <br /><br />"This is the Word of God." What a great great thing we have.Terry Rayburnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00722632954331009294noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-52445315170673256892014-07-18T08:26:46.794-07:002014-07-18T08:26:46.794-07:00Indeed, I am so glad the church I attend (I almost...Indeed, I am so glad the church I attend (I almost said, "MY church" -- the horror!) takes a portion of the morning worship to read a chapter in the Scriptures. We stand in honor of God's Word, and follow with a pastoral prayer. And it IS a part of the worship service, not just a break between musical numbers. This should be required reading of every pastor. Thanks, Dan! May your weekend be blessed.Sharonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14534421623031122881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-41371085293636689192014-07-18T08:23:35.308-07:002014-07-18T08:23:35.308-07:00Very helpful, brother. Thank you!Very helpful, brother. Thank you!Zach Putthoffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09109504469538185752noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-22687562619747923792014-07-18T07:34:35.287-07:002014-07-18T07:34:35.287-07:00I sometimes wonder if pastors of charasmatic or NA...I sometimes wonder if pastors of charasmatic or NAR churches were to do this, would it change their view of Scripture, and the supposed "prophesies" they receive?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-70122530646309952342014-07-18T07:15:05.066-07:002014-07-18T07:15:05.066-07:00Recently I was struck by Revelation 1:3 along thes...Recently I was struck by Revelation 1:3 along these lines: Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.20s and 30s Adult Bible Fellowshiphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08281423274924941609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-23106131135924187422014-07-18T06:53:17.553-07:002014-07-18T06:53:17.553-07:00A couple things:
1) I +1 Frank's comment. Thi...A couple things:<br /><br />1) I +1 Frank's comment. This was just refreshing and encouraging. Hopefully, it won't prove too divisive, as well.<br /><br />2) As to your closing, another idea that came to mind is when the reader/preacher says, 'And all the people said ...' and then we can all say 'Amen.' (nothing wrong with your ideas.)<br /><br />3) And as for your give full and meaningful inflection point: <a href="http://www.changedbythegospel.com/2011/10/video-sunday-hebrews-recited-by-joel.html" rel="nofollow"> target="_blank">Check out this video of a guy reciting Hebrews from memory.</a>Michael Coughlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01151414777657994736noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-60634562192202677062014-07-18T05:42:53.482-07:002014-07-18T05:42:53.482-07:00Great guidelines, Dan. I remember one of the firs...Great guidelines, Dan. I remember one of the first sermons I heard by MacArthur was on Genesis 3 where he read the serpent asking Eve if God really said she couldn't eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He said it in the same way that anybody trying to lure somebody into doing something wrong would do so and it made sense. This book is God's communication to us in a form we can understand because He made us and understands how to best communicate with us. I think a lot of problems with that stem from people just thinking of God as being far off instead of being imminent.<br /><br />I like the way the other points bring out the reverence we should have for God and His Word, too. A very balanced post that all of us should consider. Surely we all read the Bible in public at some time or another...Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13987985549747283669noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-11492293218755318642014-07-18T05:09:15.718-07:002014-07-18T05:09:15.718-07:00Day = made.
Goodnight, everyone!Day = made.<br /><br />Goodnight, everyone!DJPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16471042180904855578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-71783024378575650802014-07-18T05:07:57.565-07:002014-07-18T05:07:57.565-07:00Sometimes it's the bare-bones practical posts ...Sometimes it's the bare-bones practical posts which get overlooked. By a lot, this is the most important blog post anyone reading will read this week.<br /><br />Nice work, DJP.FX Turkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16798420127955373559noreply@blogger.com