CBR - Communal Bible Reading

Reading the Bible together out loud

Big Picture Stuff
Practical Stuff
Tips & Resources

CBR Big Picture Stuff

What comes to mind when you think of reading the Bible? For many people, it means reading alone silently during a personal devo or a daily quiet time. But for thousands of years, Scripture was exclusively read aloud to a community of believers.

In the time of Moses, the law was regularly and repeatedly read aloud to the people (Deuteronomy 31). In the time of King Josiah, there was repentance and renewal when the law was rediscovered and read aloud to the people (2 Kings 22-23). When God's people returned home after a long exile, the scribe Ezra read Scripture aloud to men, women, and all the children old enough to understand (Nehemiah 8). Jesus read to people from the scroll of Isaiah when he was in the synagogue (Luke 4). In the early churches, there was regular public reading from the books of Moses and the prophets (Acts 4). Paul instructed Timothy to focus on reading God's Word to believers (1 Timothy 4). And in the Revelation of Jesus Christ, John wrote, "God blesses the one who reads the words of this prophecy to the church, and he blesses all who listen to its message and obey what it says, for the time is near" (Revelation 1:3).

Reading Scripture aloud in community has a long and storied history. Reading the Bible alone is a powerful experience, but it's worth (re)discovering the joy and power of reading and hearing God's Word with others.

CBR Mission

  • To create time and space for God's children to meaningfully engage with his written Word by hearing it read aloud in community.

CBR Vision

  • That people develop a hunger for God's word as they hear it read aloud.
  • That people are engaged, compelled, instructed, encouraged, and guided by God's word as they hear it read aloud.
  • That people become more like Jesus (that is, grow in their own discipleship) in part as a result of hearing God's word read aloud.

CBR Values

  • Community: Our faith is not isolated. Followers of Jesus are a family and God speaks to us collectively.
  • Aurality: When we attentively listen to God's Word we can actively experience God's truth.
  • Quantity: Hearing longer sections of Scripture provides a bigger picture of God's story and prevents viewing the Bible as a collection of soundbytes, isolated verses, or slogans.

CBR Practical Stuff

CBR can take place anytime you gather with others to read and study the Bible. It can be part of a small group meeting, followed by extended discussion and learning. It can also be its own event that happens regularly during a semester or year (reading one chapter or one episode from a book of the Bible until completing it) or a single marathon event (it takes less than two hours to read the book of Mark aloud).

Here's one possible way to structure an ongoing CBR event.

Opening Prayer

Invite the Lord to be present in both the reading and listening. Ask him to lead everyone to truth and understanding. Thank him for the gift of his Word.

Reading Round 1

Big Picture Listening: Everyone except the reader just listens without following along in Bibles.

Reading Round 2

Directed Listening: Choose one of the following.

  • Guided Listening: Choose something specific to listen for, such as:
  1. Descriptions of God
  2. Descriptions of Jesus
  3. Instructions
  4. Warnings
  5. Promises
  • Receptive Listening: Listen for the Lord's direction, guidance, prompting.
  • Inquisitive Listening: Write down any questions you have about the passage.
  • Reflective Listening: Write down what the passage is revealing in your heart or mind. In others words, write down how the passage is "reading" you.

Reflection & Response

  • Invite each person to share a thought, question, observation, or insight from what they heard.
  • As a group, settle on one main idea or truth you will remember from the passage.

Closing Prayer

Thank the Lord for his Word. Ask him to work its truth into people's heart, minds, and actions.

CBR Tips & Resources

  • Be sure the reader is familiar with the passage beforehand.
  • Plan to read-listen for a length of time that best fits your group.
  • Use the same translation for each reading round so people can dig in and experience deeper learning, or use different translations for each round so people have the chance to hear things in a new way.
  • Listening to an audio Bible is convenient and allows everyone to participate in the experience. We recommend Streetlights​ (audio version of New Living Translation with hip-hop music tracks).
  • Listening to a live reader allows for interaction and real-time adjustments within the context of relationship.
  • Rotate readers to allow more participation.
  • Provide printouts of just the selected passage with extra spacing between lines so people have space to take notes, write questions, or doodle their thoughts.