On the subject of the Bible being read during corporate worship, at the beginning of 2009 we started reading one chapter a week (lectio continua), in addition to the passage on which the sermon was based.
So far we’ve experienced the blessing of hearing Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude and now are hearing Revelation. (Don’t think I’ve left any out.) Generally we’ve heard a chapter a week, sometimes chapters have been divided over two weeks.
A resource which I’ve found helpful is a set of “brief introductions to each section, each book, and each chapter of the Bible for use in the lectio continua public reading of Scripture” produced by the Independent Presbyterian Church of Savannah, Georgia and its pastor, Terry Johnson.
You can find a pdf of the outlines here: Liturgical Introductions To Scripture. We print them in the service outline without making any direct reference to them when reading.
As mgpc generally expresses a preference for an address to the children, lately I’ve started using a theme from the continuing reading as the basis for that talk.
But I don’t want to overdo it. The Scriptures do not depend on someone to explain them, the Holy Spirit gives them an inherent power that does not lean on human support.
There is a biblical role for both the preaching of Scripture and the hearing of Scripture read in corporate worship.
There is a whole page of interesting links to resources for those who lead and organise worship services at the Independent Presbyterian Church webpage.
Dig around the website. They even explain how a Presbyterian church can be independent.
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