Did you ever notice that when you read a book for a second time, you pick up all kinds of things you missed the first time through? It happens to me all the time. I think it’s partly because when you re-read a book, you know how the whole story flows toward its conclusion. It lets you pick up on early hints about themes that get developed later in the book.
With that in mind, I’ve been encouraging my Connections class to read through the Gospel of John as often as possible. We’re going to look at John theme-by-theme rather than passage-by-passage. When John wrote his Gospel, had a specific purpose in mind: to write so that his readers might “believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” (John 20:31). By reading and re-reading John’s Gospel, the themes he repeats in support of his purpose stand out as they are woven through the whole book.
One thing that helps is to listen to someone read it to you. I happen to own the ESV Listener’s Bible, read by Max McLean, and I have really profited from listening to it. My preparation for teaching this class on the Gospel of John has included listening to it being read over and over again.
Good news! Max McLean’s reading of the Gospel of John just happens to be available for free download. If you’re not interested or able to buy a full audio Bible, this is a great way to redeem your drive to and from work. It’s just under two hours long, so if you have a half-hour commute, you can easily listen to it once or twice a week.
You might also check out all of Crossway’s downloadable ESV MP3 Bibles. I noticed they have another free download of a new reading of John’s Gospel, this time read by David Cochran Heath. I’ve not listened to it yet, but a quick preview shows it’s of a different flavor: McLean’s reading is more expressive whereas Heath offers more of a “just the text” approach.
FYI, you can get the whole bible on mp3 here MP3 Bible. The site offers both the world English translation and the KJV. You may have problems with the translation, but you can’t beat the price. They also have classic audio books and christian audio books there also free.