We all know why Christians should read the bible. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Christians believe that God created the Heavens and the Earth, God is the beginning and the end, and it makes sense to read what He has to say. That's all very well for the committed Christian, but what about agnostics and atheists? The short answer to this question, of course, is that agnostics and atheists should read the bible so that they would then become committed Christians. Which, to me, sounds like a very good reason... but one that is unlikely to be accepted by agnostics and atheists. I've listed some other reasons which, hopefully, sound a little more compelling.
1. The bible is influential.
In the 2001 Australian Bureau of Statistics census, 69% of Australians identified as Christians. 75% of Americans identified themselves as Christians. Christianity is growing rapidly in the Asia, with the largest church in the world located in South Korea. 83 million copies of the bible are distributed each year, it remains the biggest-selling book of all time. There is a very good chance that you will rub shoulders with Christians in your life. There is a high chance that your future boss, or your neighbour, or that cute girl from school/work are Bible-reading Christians.
Additionally, if you live in a Western society, no matter how secular your society is now, the country would have been founded on Christian beliefs. The pioneers were Christian. The founding fathers were Christian. The constitution was written by Christians, those initial creeds and laws based on the creeds and laws of the Bible. Like it or not, no matter who you are, where you are, your life and surrounds has been affected, in some way, by this book.
2. The bible is a literary must-read.
Book shops love to circulate the "must-read" lists... the BBC published a list of 100 must-read books in their list The Big Read. I've even seen a book titled "1001 Books To Read Before You Die". (Obviously written by someone who loves lists, and nerdier than even I). It is not surprising to find that many of the authors on these lists (such as Shakespeare, Tolkien, Lewis, Dickens, Dostoevsky, to name just a few) wrote with either subtle references to the bible or with biblical themes. Being such a timeless classic book, the bible has shaped both English literature as well as the English language. This is a book that should feature at the top of every "must-read" list. (Except for the BBC's Big Read list, which contains fictions only...)
3. Go Straight to the Source.
Once I was telling an agnostic friend of mine about my faith, and tried my best to answer some of his questions. After the discussion, he told me about the last Christian who had tried to answer his questions. Apparently, his friend faltered and couldn't find answers to most of his questions... and the only answer he could come up with was to sigh and say: "Sharing the gospel is so hard."
Unfortunately, sharing their beliefs is a daunting and difficult experience for most Christians... because most Christians believe it is a matter of life and death, and so he or she wants to do it to well, but at the same time expose as little of him or herself to ridicule as possible. Additionally, the Christian is not someone to whom God has given the answer to all your questions and doubts. Your Christian friend is merely someone who has satisfied all of their own personal questions and doubts, by the grace of God. Pay attention to your friend's testimony - this is a unique, powerful story of redemption and victory. But if you still have questions that your friends can't answer, you need to go to the Source. You may not find the answer to your all questions, but you may find answers that make your questions seem dim in comparison.
A word of advice, though, about going to the Source. You need to approach God (and God's word) with an open, quiet and inquisitive heart, if you want to reap maximal utility from your reading. Be willing to find God, and have the courage to accept Him if you do. If you approach the Bible simply looking for "loopholes" or something to add to the ammunition in your argument against your Christian friend, you may or may not succeed, but I would suggest you're wasting your time.
4. The Bible is timeless and relevant.
Many religious texts, including some Christian books, describe people and events that are mystical and unworldly... or simply displaced from reality. But simply flip through the even first book of Genesis - you will find that God does not leave out any ugly details. He is relentlessly blunt, and makes no apologies for the worldly human-ness of His characters. Genesis tells of theft, murder, incest, rape, war, famine, slavery... these are not dressed-up, idealised characters... these were real people, who accepted or rejected God's offer of salvation or redemption.
The book is painfully raw, its protagonists experiencing and expressing the full range of human experience... from the exuberant psalms of David, to the lamentations of Jeremiah, you will find words and stories relevant to who you are and where you are today... and you will find how God dealt with people who felt the way you do.
5. The Bible transforms lives.
Nearly six years ago, an atheist who couldn't bear to hear her friends talk about God, picked up a bible and read it from cover to cover, for some of the reasons listed above. The transformation didn't happen over night, and God is still working on me (thankfully) now... but somewhere between Genesis and Revelation, my life was changed for ever. The scriptures are God-breathed, it was written for your benefit... to teach, guide, and to issue you a challenge to follow Him. You can not miss this. I imagine you may not feel ready for your life to be transformed yet... that's fair enough, I wasn't ready either; no one ever is. But the fact is that God is relentlessly, unbendingly existant, and expectant, whether you feel ready or not. Your indecision or lack of 'readiness' does not change the fact that God IS.
I guess my point is, that if you want to make an "informed" decision about God and His role in your life, you can not do so without seeing what He has to say, without reading His story from creation to fall to redemption.
Where to start:
I started from Genesis and read all the way to Revelation - and I still hold the belief that everyone should read the full story of God at least once in their lives... although of course, I must admit, in my first reading I skipped through parts of Numbers, Deuteronomy and Leviticus... and of course, I realise that the Bible is a big book and many people have not read anything longer than the feature article in a newspaper.
If you are one of those people, I would suggest starting with the Gospel of Luke. Unique among the other writers, Luke was a gentile (non-Jewish) physician, and the book was written for gentiles like you and me. You may want to go to the Gospel of John for a more 'spiritual' presentation of the same story, and of course Genesis to see how it all began.
If you don't have a copy of the bible, many churches will either lend or give copies away. Bibles are quite cheap from Christian book stores. Online bible can be found on http://www.biblegateway.com/
Ok, now go!
