Why Bible Engagement Is the Key to Solving the Discipleship Decline
The Hidden Crisis Undermining Discipleship in Today’s Church
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
There is a growing discipleship crisis within the Western Church—and it has little to do with a lack of sermons, worship music, or Christian content. In fact, we may be producing more content than ever before. The issue? Our people are not engaging with the Bible for themselves.
Despite increased Bible ownership and record-high downloads of Bible apps, the American Bible Society’s State of the Bible 2025 report describes a "startling, disheartening, and disruptive" drop in consistent daily Bible reading. Barna Group has found that only 9% of born-again Christians hold a biblical worldview, and Lifeway reports that 57% of churchgoers feel unsure how to study the Bible.
The numbers are in, and they tell a sobering story: we are swimming in Christian content and starving for biblical literacy.
Spark a Bible Engagement movement in your church
Download 10 videos based on the upcoming release of “How to Read & Study the Bible for Yourself.” A 30-day church wide campaign to ignite a Bible-reading culture.
A Culture Without a Lamp
I recall the moment I moved out of home and had to cook my first meal. Though I had access to the same ingredients as my mother used, I didn’t know how to put them together and get something nourishing and delicious out of them.
The kitchen is a picture of Bible study. We’ve become accustomed to others "cooking" spiritual meals for us—through podcasts, sermons, and books. But when we need sustenance most, many of us don’t know how to prepare our own food from the Word of God.
We’ve normalized the experience of being served a finished product when it comes to Christian content. But nothing will contribute more to your human flourishing than learning how to read and study the Bible for yourself.
After 20+ years pastoring, I realized something: I spent so much time preparing Bible-centered sermons, but I wasn’t teaching people how to engage Scripture on their own. If we want our people to navigate life’s dark paths, we need to give them more than polished sermons. We need to teach them how to feed themselves.
To see true transformation in our churches, we must reclaim the lost art of being self-feeders of God’s Word.
Five Cultural Challenges Undermining Bible Engagement
1. We’ve Created Consumers, Not Self-Feeders
The modern church has excelled at delivering high-quality spiritual content—sermons, podcasts, devotionals—but has often neglected to train believers to feed themselves from personal reading of Scripture.
When Willow Creek Church conducted a comprehensive study on spiritual growth, one of their top conclusions was that they needed to do more to equip believers to grow beyond the weekend service.
Another church leader echoes this:
"If the only spiritual nourishment our people get is from Sunday morning, they will be malnourished. The goal is to raise up disciples who can sit with the Scriptures on Tuesday and hear from God."
For Millennials and Gen Z, who consume content on-demand in every area of life—from food to fitness to faith—discipleship must also be reimagined for the digital age. These generations are not passive about learning; in fact, Millennials are eager to explore meaning at a deeper level. But without biblical tools and training, they will remain consumers instead of self-feeders.
And with much of their spiritual diet consumed through screens, digital discipleship cannot be a mere afterthought—it must be a deliberate part of our strategy to form Christlikeness.
“ Discipleship is not about growing a big church. It’s about growing big people.”
Spark a Bible Engagement movement in your church
Download 10 videos based on the upcoming release of “How to Read & Study the Bible for Yourself.” A 30-day church wide campaign to ignite a Bible-reading culture.
2. We’re Swamped with Information But Biblically Illiterate
Digital saturation is a hallmark of the Millennial and Gen Z experience. Bible apps, YouTube sermons are at our fingertips yet, biblical depth is at an all-time low.
People are consuming inspirational snippets but don’t know how to apply God’s Word to real life. There is no shortage of spiritual noise. But there is a lack of biblical depth.
Millennials, while highly educated and tech-savvy, lack basic biblical literacy. Even well-known Bible stories are no longer part of their cultural framework. However, they are passionate about discovering truth—especially when it's presented in a way that values depth over hype.
What’s more, digital natives aren’t dismissing spiritual input because it’s online—in fact, the most spiritually formative content for them might be a YouTube video, an Instagram devotional, or a podcast discussion. But these must lead to engagement with Scripture itself.
John Mark Comer puts it this way:
“In a world of outrage, speed, and distraction, the greatest need of our generation is not more noise—but deep, unhurried formation in Scripture”
In short: we must be more intentional, not more visible. And we must equip people to go deeper—not just scroll further.
3. We Have Lost Confidence in the Bible
Amos 8:11 speaks of a famine—not of bread or water, but of “hearing the words of the Lord.” That famine is here.
Today’s churchgoers—especially younger generations—often struggle to trust or understand Scripture. They ask:
“Isn’t the Bible outdated?”
“Do I need a theology degree to make sense of this?”
“Can I trust something written thousands of years ago?”
Instead of engaging the Bible, many Christians are outsourcing their spiritual authority to YouTube preachers, influencers, and culture. Confidence in Scripture has quietly eroded.
"Bible sales are up 22% this year compared to the same period last year, despite a steady decline among young people engaging with Scripture." cbn.com
This highlights a striking contradiction: while Millennials, Gen Z, and other demographics are purchasing more Bibles, fewer are actually daily engaging with Scripture. This clearly illustrates the need for discipleship strategies that go beyond ownership—focusing instead on true Bible engagement.
“The 2025 State of the Bible report shows that 43% of church attenders don't consistently engage the Bible in a meaningful way, even though they wish they did—with ‘not enough time’ and ‘not knowing where to start’ cited as the biggest obstacles.” americanbible.org
If we don’t teach them how to handle God’s Word, someone else will teach them how to ignore it.
4. We Treat the Bible as a Collection of Inspirational Quotes
The digital world encourages bite-sized content. Social media thrives on micro-messages. And while a single verse can be powerful, pulling Scripture out of context can lead to a lack of context and misreading.
“Man should not live by bread alone by every word that comes from the mouth of God”
Millennials and Gen Z engage deeply with content—they research brands, examine causes, and challenge assumptions. They don’t want shallow inspiration; they do want spiritual substance.
But often, we shy away from the parts of the Bible that challenge us, confront our lifestyle, and bring us to full surrender to Jesus. The hard verses matter, but we can teach them with kindness and empathy. The Bible was never designed to be used as a collection of positive quotes.
28% of Americans say the Bible is “the actual word of God, to be taken literally, word for word,” while 21% describe it as “an ancient book of fables, legends, history and moral precepts recorded by man.”
Gallup survey, reported via Baptist Convention of Iowa citing Gallup Poll bciowa.org
This update reflects a significant shift from the late 1970s when nearly 40% of Americans held the Biblical literalist view. About one in five now see the Bible as more of a cultural artifact than divine authority.
These figures offer clear insight into the challenge: while some hold Scripture as authoritative, a growing segment treats the Bible as inspirational but not binding. This disparity reveals a critical gap in confidence and authority perception, reinforcing the need for better discipleship and deeper Bible engagement in the church.
5. We Lack the Bible Study Tools to Interpret and Apply Scripture
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
For many people, especially younger Christians, reading the Bible for themselves feels inaccessible. They open it with good intentions but find themselves lost in ancient laws, difficult genealogies, or confusing language.
A recent study by Lifeway Research revealed that 57% of Protestant churchgoers find it challenging to understand the Bible when they read it on their own.” outreachmagazine.com. They open the Bible, get confused, and give up. They feel they need seminary training or theological degrees just to understand what they’re reading. But Scripture is for the everyday person. And while there are rich tools and methods to aid our understanding, we must first build confidence that God can speak directly to us through His Word.
Millennials and Gen Z are not less spiritual—they’re just less equipped to read the Bible. They need Bible teaching that assumes no prior knowledge. And they need digital, interactive Bible study tools that fit their world—study plans, videos, illustrations, communities, and more.
The opportunity is massive. These generations are not closed—they are spiritually open and actively searching. They are not disinterested—they are overwhelmed. And in a world that moves fast and scrolls endlessly, clarity, accessibility, and spiritual substance will win the day.
Spark a Bible Engagement movement in your church
Download 10 videos based on the upcoming release of “How to Read & Study the Bible for Yourself.” A 30-day church wide campaign to ignite a Bible-reading culture.
The way forward
We don’t need to panic, but we must act. As church leaders, small group facilitators, and spiritual parents, we must lead our people back to the lamp.
The goal isn’t guilt or pressure. It’s confidence and clarity.
Imagine your church where:
Every member knows how to open the Bible and hear from God.
Parents disciple their children with Scripture.
Small groups read, reflect, and apply the Bible together.
Leaders are equipped to handle the Word of truth.
This is possible. And it starts with a renewed emphasis on teaching people not just what the Bible says—but how to read and study the Bible for themselves.
Bible Engagement: The Key to True Spiritual and Emotional Flourishing
Research from the Center for Bible Engagement (CBE) shows that regular Bible engagement—four or more times per week—is the strongest predictor of positive spiritual growth, moral behavior, and emotional well-being across all demographics.
Make it stand out
Those who engage Scripture frequently experience significant reductions in common struggles such as excessive drinking, pornography, anger, and family neglect. They also report less bitterness, discouragement, loneliness, and anxiety.
Moreover, Bible engagement is linked to a more active faith life. Regular readers are far more likely to give financially, memorize Scripture, disciple others, and share their faith. They also report feeling less spiritually stagnant and more connected to God’s will.
Compared to other spiritual practices—prayer, church attendance, or Bible studies—Bible engagement uniquely predicts the deepest transformation and flourishing.
This research highlights the vital role of encouraging daily, personal Bible engagement as a foundation for genuine discipleship and lasting spiritual health.
A Call for a Bible Engagement Revival in Our Churches
The evidence is clear: churches that intentionally prioritize Bible engagement see profound, measurable transformation. When congregations launch Bible revival campaigns, they experience powerful ripple effects. A 30-day church-wide movement in Bible engagement goes beyond passive listening on a Sunday —it helps them engage actively with Scripture in their own homes and hearts. The result? Open Bibles. Changed Lives. For churches facing the discipleship crisis head-on, a Bible revival campaign is essential.
