Why Every Christian Needs a Bible Study Plan

When you come to the Bible, what do you read? Do you have a method that helps you decide where you’ll open your Bible each day, or are you more of a *faith-opener*?

What’s a faith-opener? It’s the person who approaches the Bible, prays that the Holy Spirit will speak to them, and then randomly opens to a passage.

Now, I’m not saying the faith-opener approach is wrong. God is certainly able to use any portion of His Word to speak to His people. But if you want to grow in your understanding of Scripture, receive the whole counsel of God, and consistently read the Bible in its proper context, you’ll probably need a more intentional system than simply opening to a random page.

I remember being the faith-opener. If I’m honest, I’ve followed just about every Christian cliché at least once in my spiritual life—it’s a long story. Let’s just say that when I first got saved, the Word Network was a pretty popular thing. Come to think of it…that might explain why I’m a little cynical now.

Although I recognized the importance of reading the Bible early in my Christian walk, I lacked both the discipline and the foresight to approach it with a plan. I simply opened to a random place each day. Part of that was probably because I attended one church—or, more accurately, a string of churches—where the spiritual diet consisted almost entirely of topical sermons or short sermon series. While there is certainly a place for topical teaching, it didn’t teach me how to work through entire books of the Bible for myself.

In a recent post, I highlighted five Bible study resources that dramatically improved my personal study time. I still remember discovering each one and how every resource made my time in Scripture more productive and rewarding. Back then, I would have been incredibly grateful to find someone offering practical Bible study tips and accessible resources for everyday believers. If that sounds like you, you can find that post here.

Like the old saying goes, “You don’t know what you don’t know.” That’s really the heart behind this recent series of articles. I’m writing to the person who, like me not too long ago, simply doesn’t realize there’s a better way to approach God’s Word. From that perspective, I’d like to explain why having a Bible study plan matters and offer a few practical approaches that have transformed my own time in Scripture.

The Whole Counsel of God

The first point I’d like to make is the importance of receiving the **whole counsel of God**.

If you’ve never heard that phrase before, it comes from Acts 20:27, where Paul explains why he is innocent of the blood of those under his ministry. He declares that he faithfully proclaimed everything God had given him to preach.

Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God. Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. (Acts 20:26–28, ESV)

Theologically, the phrase *whole counsel of God* refers to the entirety of God’s revealed truth. When I encourage Christians to pursue the whole counsel of God, I’m simply saying that our approach to Bible reading should eventually expose us to the entire biblical witness—not just our favorite passages or familiar books.

Personally, I’m an advocate for an exegetical approach to both preaching and personal Bible study. I believe the most effective way to study Scripture is one book at a time. Choose a book and work through it from beginning to end. This naturally keeps every passage in its context. You’ll become familiar with the book’s overarching themes, its flow of thought, and the author’s purpose. Then, when you begin digging into individual verses, you’ll interpret them within the larger context rather than in isolation. That’s foundational to faithful exegesis.

The Devotion–Deep Study Distinction

One practice that has greatly helped me is distinguishing between devotional reading and deep study.

This may be common knowledge for some people, but before developing this system, it was completely foreign to me. Once again, “you don’t know what you don’t know.”

I intentionally separate these two activities because I’m naturally analytical. Whenever something catches my attention, my instinct is to stop and take a deep dive into the text. I love chasing theological questions, tracing themes, following cross-references, and digging into word studies. For years, however, that habit kept me from ever reading through the entire Bible.

My wife says it’s because of my ADHD—but what does she know? She’s not my doctor. (Lol.)

The truth is, I had to develop the discipline not only to read the Bible every day, but also to simply keep reading. No deep dives. No chasing cross-references. No word studies. No rabbit trails.

Just read.

Read the text in its context. Become familiar with the overall story of Scripture and the flow of the particular book you’re reading.

That may not be your struggle, but it certainly was mine.

Devotional Reading

When Christians talk about having a devotional time, they’re usually referring to a daily time of prayer and Scripture reading. If it isn’t already obvious, I strongly encourage every believer to set aside time each day to be with God through prayer and His Word. In my experience, consistent spiritual growth is difficult apart from this daily habit.

What matters for our discussion is **what** you’re reading during that time.

Written devotionals can certainly be helpful, but they should never replace reading Scripture itself. Instead, I recommend following a Bible reading plan that will eventually take you through the entire Bible.

If you’re just beginning, don’t feel pressured to finish within a specific timeframe. Developing the habit is far more important than checking boxes on a calendar. You might choose a reading plan without dates or simply ignore the calendar altogether. That way, if you miss a few days, you can pick up where you left off without feeling discouraged.

In another post, I discuss several Bible reading plans that I’ve either used personally or seriously considered. I also share practical advice for building the habits necessary to actually finish one. If you’re interested, you’ll find links to both of those articles.

The important thing is this: during your devotional reading, simply follow your plan. Resist the urge to chase every interesting rabbit trail. Read the passage before you, allow God to speak through His Word, and continue moving forward.

One of the primary ways God matures His people is through the consistent intake of His whole counsel over time.

Deep Study

The second part of my approach is setting aside separate time for deep study.

This is where you open your study Bible, consult commentaries, examine cross-references, perform word studies, and wrestle with difficult questions. This is the time to slow down and spend hours examining a single passage—or even a single verse.

That’s precisely why I believe devotional reading and deep study should remain distinct. If you try to combine them every day, you’ll constantly sidetrack your reading plan. Deep study is absolutely necessary, but so is consistently reading through Scripture. It’s not an either-or proposition; it’s a both-and.

Unlike my devotional reading, I never place a deadline on deep study. I’ll stay in the same book for weeks or even months if necessary. The goal isn’t speed—it’s understanding.

At the same time, I believe it’s important to approach deep study with a purpose. Start with a question you want to answer or an objective you want to accomplish. Simply wandering through the text and chasing rabbit trails may still teach you something, but you’ll usually gain much more when your study has direction.

In a future post, I’ll explain the study method I personally use, so I won’t give everything away just yet.

Final Thoughts

That’s it.

If you’re already following a system like this, you may be wondering what all the fuss is about. But if you’ve never intentionally separated your devotional reading from your deep study, I encourage you to give it a try.

This simple distinction completely transformed my time in God’s Word. It helped me read through the entire Bible consistently while also giving me the freedom to study deeply without feeling like I was falling behind.

My prayer is that it does the same for you, helping you grow not only in your understanding of Scripture but also in your love for the God who gave it.