President's Blog

Reading the Book of Philippians Only Takes 17 Minutes!

What is the most common excuse for not reading Scripture on a regular basis?

“I just don’t have enough time!”

However, we fill our schedules with what we value and hold in high esteem. In a recent conversation with someone I care about, I mentioned that they need to be in God’s Word regularly if they are ever to hear from the Lord. This person has been struggling not so much with the existence of God, but with the personal nature of God. They feel distant from the Lord. Reading and meditation on God’s Word is the prescription.

Reading many of the 66 books of the Bible does not actually take that long. You can gain a ton of wisdom in an hour and a half by reading through Proverbs. Almost half of the books of the Bible take less than 30 minutes to read, based on a slow reader’s speed of 100 words per minute. That is one episode of your favourite program on Netflix or BritBox.

To encourage all of us to recommit ourselves to reading and meditating on God’s Word, I have listed each book and the estimated time to read it. Thanks to the work of Chance Faulkner, reading the Bible in one year is an attainable goal when you look at these times:

Shortest to Longest

3 John – 219 words, 2.2 minutes

2 John – 245 words, 2.5 minutes

Philemon – 335 words, 3.5 minutes

Obadiah – 440 words, 4.5 minutes

Jude – 461 words, 4.6 minutes

Titus – 659 words, 7 minutes

2 Thessalonians – 823 words, 8 minutes

Nahum – 855 words, 8.5 minutes

Haggai – 926 words, 9 minutes

Habakkuk 1,011 words, 10 minutes

Jonah – 1,082 words, 10 minutes

2 Peter – 1,099 words, 10 minutes

Zephaniah – 1,141 words, 10 minutes

2 Timothy – 1,238 words, 12 minutes

Malachi – 1,320 words, 13 minutes

Joel – 1,447 words, 15 minutes

1 Thessalonians – 1,481 words, 15 minutes

Colossians – 1,582 words, 16 minutes

1 Timothy – 1,591 words, 16 minutes

Philippians – 1,629 words, 16 minutes

1 Peter – 1,684 words, 17 minutes

James – 1,742 words, 17.5 minutes

Song of Songs – 2,020 words, 20 minutes

Ruth – 2,039 words, 20 minutes

Micah – 2,118 words, 21 minutes

1 John – 2,141 words, 21 minutes

Galatians – 2,230 words, 22 minutes

Lamentations – 2,324 words, 23 minutes

Ephesians – 2,422 words, 24 minutes

Amos – 3,027 words, 30 minutes

Hosea – 3,615 words, 36 minutes

2 Corinthians- 4,477 words, 45 minutes

Ecclesiastes – 4,537 words, 45 minutes

Zechariah – 4,855 words, 48 minutes

Esther – 4,932 words, 49 minutes

Hebrews – 4,953 words, 50 minutes

Ezra – 5,605 words, 56 minutes

1 Corinthians – 6,830 words, 68 minutes

Romans – 7,111 words, 71 minutes

Nehemiah – 8,507 words, 85 minutes

Daniel – 9,001 words, 90 minutes

Revelation – 9,851 words, 98 minutes

Proverbs – 9,921 words, 99 minutes

Mark – 11,304 words, 113 minutes

Job – 12,674 words, 126 minutes

Judges – 15,385 words, 153 minutes

John – 15,635 words, 156 minutes

Joshua – 15,671 words, 156 minutes

1 Chronicles – 16,664 words, 166 minutes

2 Samuel- 17,170 words, 171 minutes

Matthew – 18,346 words, 183 minutes

Acts – 18,450 words, 184 minutes

2 Kings – 18,784 words, 187 minutes

Leviticus – 18,852 words, 188 minutes

Luke – 19,482 words, 194 minutes

1 Kings – 20,361 words, 203 minutes

1 Samuel – 20,837 words, 208 minutes

2 Chronicles – 21,349 words, 213 minutes

Deuteronomy- 23,008 words, 230 minutes

Numbers – 25,048 words, 250 minutes

Isaiah – 25,608 words, 256 minutes

Exodus – 25,957 words, 259 minutes

Ezekiel – 29,918 words, 299 minutes

Psalms – 30,147 words, 301 minutes

Genesis – 32,046 words, 320 minutes

Jeremiah – 33,002 words, 330 minutes

(Source: https://ca.thegospelcoalition.org/columns/roundtable/how-long-does-it-really-take-to-read...11/26/2018)

Recently I heard from two Fellowship churches who hosted a sermon series challenging their congregation to read the New Testament in 30 days. Another church preached each book of the Bible Sunday by Sunday, over the course of one year.

Why not consider doing something similar in your church, small group or personal life this next year?

“Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”

Joshua 1:8 NIV