Characteristics of the Five Lane Reading Plan

1. Balanced Food
   The Bible contains such varied elements as History, Biographies, Poetry, Prophecies, Gospels, Letters and Revelation. It is doubtful whether there is any other one book which maintains such variety in content. Those who use this reading plan will read from all the five sections at the same time in a parallel manner. This will help the reader to have a balanced diet every day which includes all the ingredients found in the content of the Bible.
2. Habit Forming
   Bible reading is limited to a few favorite verses or chapters to a begining reader. They read only these portions each time they read the Bible. As a result they miss great treasures from God's Word. This plan helps the reader to overcome this pattern of reading. Instead it makes Bible reading a daily habit. That helps him to have a strong urge to read the Bible everyday whether he is feeling like reading or not.

   Moreover, if at all there occurs a break in their reading, they will find no difficulty in restarting their reading. This is because there is an exact plan and precise goal in this reading plan that makes this possible. It also helps to utilize your reading time fully and effectively.

3. Enjoy Parallelism
   This reading plan makes extensive use of one of the main characteristics of the Bible. It is the fact that important truths are recorded in two or more places in the Bible. So the right interpretation of the Bible is found in the Bible itself. But it is the Holy Spirit, the real author of the Bible, who reveals it to the reader (John 14:26, 16:12-15).

   Since the reader reads from all the five sections at the same time in a parallel manner, it becomes easy for the reader to identify the inter-related passages in the Bible. When the reader finds such inter-related passages he will feel the Bible come to life. The reading also becomes exciting as you keep discovering truths that lay unnoticed before.

   Examples to show the inter-relatedness of scriptures in different sections:

   1. An example which speaks of the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross
      1. Section 1:

         Exodus 12 ---the Passover Lamb (Ref. 1 Corinthians 5:7 ``for Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.'')

      2. Section 2:

         2 Chronicles 30 & 35 -- Hezekiah and Josiah (Ref. 2 Kings 23:21 to 23) celebrate the Passover

      3. Section 3:

         Psalm 22 ---exact descriptions about the events on the day of crucifixion

      4. Section 4:

         Isaiah 53 ---the sufferings and death of Jesus foretold

      5. Section 5:

         Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23 & John 19 -- the sufferings and death of Jesus described

   2. An example of description of sin
      1. Section 1: Exodus 20:13,14 & Deuteronomy 5:17,18 says not to commit murder or adultery
      2. Section 2: 2 Samuel 11 to 12:25 records David violating both these commandments and confessing his sins to God
      3. Section 3: Psalm 51 is David's prayer of repentance over these sins
      4. Section 5: Matthew 5:21--32. Jesus reinforces the commandments that say not to commit murder or adultery
   3. The three references to the person of Melchizedek in the Bible
      1. Section 1: Genesis 14:18 to 20
      2. Section 2: Psalm 110:4
      3. Section 5: Hebrews 6:20 to 7:28

   When you read from the five sections at the same time in a parallel manner, inter-related passages like quoted above will interlock and interlace in your mind. This will give you a really satisfying Bible reading as well as open your eyes to the treasures hidden in God's Word.

4. Fresh Experience (every time)
   This reading plan has yet another special feature. There is difference in the total number of chapters in each section. Because of this, each consecutive time you read the Bible, the portions you will be reading from the five sections at one time will not be the same. In other words, each time you read the Bible according to this plan, passages that you will be reading at one time will be different from the last time reading.

   Example: The first time you read the Bible you will be reading Genesis 1, 1 Samuel 1, Psalm 1, Isaiah 1 and Matthew 1 at the same time (or within two or three days' time). The next time you reach Genesis 1 (Section 1), you will be reading the last part of Job (Section 2), Psalms somewhere around the 35th to 45th chapter (Section 3), the Prophets somewhere in Zechariah (Section 4) and the letters of John (Section 5). Exact portions may vary slightly according to the reading plan you follow.

   So you can see that every time you will read the Bible you will be reading different portions at the same time. It is highly doubtful whether you will be repeating the same combination of reading portions even once in your lifetime. This peculiarity of the reading plan keeps Bible reading a fresh experience always. Please see ``What to do when a section ends'' for more details.

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