Shortlink: reformlet.com/doer
Why do so many Christians believe that reading more Scripture would make them more faithful? Many treat spiritual guilt like a hunger that can be satisfied by consuming more chapters, even while ignoring the truth already revealed. This mindset trades obedience for the pursuit of more information. It treats information as transformation. And God is not honored by a fuller reading log if the heart remains unchanged.
How Scripture Confronts Us
The Bible itself warns against this error. Jesus confronted the religious teachers who searched the Scriptures diligently yet refused to come to Him in obedience. John 5:39–40 shows that reading cannot replace repentance or faith. Paul described those who are always learning but never arriving at a knowledge of the truth in 2 Timothy 3:7. James commanded believers to be doers of the Word, not hearers only, because hearing without obedience produces self-deception in James 1:22. Scripture reading is a gift that leads to holiness only when it is joined with submission. The issue is never whether believers should read less. The issue is that reading without obedience cultivates pride and false assurance. True devotion bears fruit. Real knowledge produces repentance, obedience, and transformed affections.
Semper Reformanda
Objection: “Scripture reading is always good. Even if someone struggles to obey, it is better for them to read more than less. God can work through His Word over time, so urging obedience too strongly risks discouraging people from reading at all.”
Response: Scripture never separates hearing from obeying. Jesus confronted people who read the Word while refusing to submit to it. James teaches that hearing without doing is self-deception. The Spirit works through the Word, but He never sanctifies rebellion. Reading without repentance does not soften the heart. It confirms hardness. Encouragement must be rooted in truth, and the truth is that the Word demands obedience from every hearer.
Objection: “Learning more Scripture can never harm maturity. People fall into legalism when they are pushed toward obedience too quickly, so it is safer to let growth happen naturally through more study.”
Response: The apostles never treated delayed obedience as safe. Jesus said the wise man is the one who hears His words and does them. Paul rebuked the Corinthians for their failure to move beyond knowledge into holiness. Scripture warns that knowledge without obedience produces arrogance rather than maturity. The danger is not that obedience is urged too quickly. The danger is that obedience is delayed at all.
Truth That Withstands
Christian maturity is not measured by how much Scripture is consumed, but by how faithfully its truth is obeyed. God is pleased with hearts that submit, repent, and walk in His ways. Reading is a means to that end. Obedience is the evidence of genuine devotion.