Reading and studying large sections of Scripture in sequence – a time-honored practice in the Reformed tradition – provides a way to hear and understand the words and stories of the Bible in their broader theological, historical, cultural and literary contexts.
Reading or hearing these passages aloud has a number of benefits: Scripture takes on a whole new dimension when you can hear its rhythms, its cadences and its poetry, features often overlooked when only read silently; the oral / aural presentation of these texts is probably closer to the way their intended audiences received them, in most cases, and is the way most Christians have experienced them throughout the history of the church; we are more accountable – and potentially more responsive – to the Word of God when we hear it in a public, communal setting, within a group of witnesses who can testify to the power of the Word in their own lives and can help us discern what the Spirit is saying to the church today.
This chart provides approximate reading times for each book of the New Testament, and for several combinations of New Testament books.