I Read the New Testament in Two Months—Here’s What I Learned

Reading Fast Changes How You See Scripture

I just finished reading through the entire New Testament in two months.

Normally, I take my time—soaking in each passage, breaking it down, and letting it marinate. But this time, I joined a group of guys on a plan that moved fast. Three chapters a day, every day to finish through the New Testament in roughly 2 months (phew!)

It was a totally different experience. And I learned some things I probably wouldn’t have caught if I had gone slow.

1. Big Themes Pop More

When you read fast, you don’t get stuck in the weeds of one verse or chapter. Instead, you start seeing patterns. Themes emerge that might have gone unnoticed in a slower read.

For example, when I went through Romans, I wasn’t picking apart every passage about sin. Instead, I found myself stepping back and thinking about the entire theme of sin—how deeply it wrecks humanity and how massive God’s redemption really is.

It made me realize that sometimes, we get so focused on individual verses that we miss the big picture of what God is saying through His Word. God communicates through individual verses as well as larger movements in scripture.

Having those large themes hit my heart was nice.

2. Listening (Not reading) the Bible Hits Different

With such a fast pace, there were times I couldn’t sit down and read. So I started listening to the Bible instead.

And honestly? It was interesting and nice.

I was a bit hesitant at first however I was left with this thought:

For most of church history, people didn’t read the Bible—they heard it. It was read aloud in communities, and people absorbed it that way. When I listened, I caught things I wouldn’t have noticed otherwise—emphasis, emotion, tone.

I used the Dwell app, which made it easy to switch translations, choose different narration styles, and even follow along with text. Some guys in my group didn’t love audio, but for me, it brought the Word to life in a new way.

3. My Personal Takeaway: The Bible Warns About False Teachers A Lot

Okay here’s my personal takeaway from reading the New Testament.

The New Testament warns about false teachers a lot.

Jesus talks about it. Paul talks about it. Peter, John, Hebrews—it’s everywhere. Almost every book has a warning about staying anchored in truth.

That hit me hard. Coming from a more charismatic background, where there’s sometimes less emphasis on biblical rigor, I realized just how serious the Bible is about this. Bad theology isn’t just “bad ideas”—it leads people astray. It destroys lives.

This reminded me that being rooted in biblical truth isn’t optional—it’s essential.

Final Thought: It Was a Win (But now back to slower reading)

At the end of two months, I came away with a fresh perspective on Scripture. A lot of the guys in our group want to do it again—maybe a little slower this time.

But now I’m curious—how do you read the Bible? Do you like to take it slow and dig deep, or do you ever go for the big-picture approach? Hit reply and let me know.

You were made for goodness,
Phil