Science teacher in Covenant Christian High School, and member of Hope PRC in Grand Rapids, Michigan

The following is adapted from the speech the author gave at the RFPA’s annual meeting on September 26, 2024 at Southwest Protestant Reformed Church.

Dear friends and supporters of the RFPA,

To us whom God has graciously given the gift of faith, comes the exhortation of the Word of God to read and to give attendance to doctrine; to grow in grace and knowledge of God; to get wisdom. God has given us means to grow in grace and in knowledge of Him. While reading is not the only means God has given us, reading is one of the best means. As covenant people who desire to grow in knowledge of God, we do well to read and to develop our reading skills.

Listen to the good instruction of Jim Koole, who as the RFPA secretary in 1985, encouraged the RFPA supporters to be readers, especially of the Standard Bearer, when he wrote the following:

With joy in our souls we give thanks to our God for His goodness in giving us another year of publishing the Standard Bearer. It is only because of His covenant faithfulness to us as churches that we can publish a paper that is true to His Word. May we use this paper to gain knowledge of our God, as our editor-in-chief stated in his March 1, 1985 editorial: “May we read it, teach our youth to read it, digest it, learn from it, and become established in the truth.”1

To grow in the knowledge of our God, we ought to use the means God has given us—particularly the means of reading. As Christians, we need to be readers! As supporters of the RFPA, you are readers. But, you and I alike, recognize that in the day and age in which we live, there are plenty of things that distract us and compete with our reading time.

From a statistical perspective, the trends on reading are not good. Consider the findings of Twengee, Martin, and Spitzberg, in their 2018 research paper, entitled, “Trends in US Adolescents’ Media Use, 1976-2016: The Rise of Digital Media, the Decline of TV, and the (Near) Demise of Print.”2 They noted that legacy media (defined as books, magazines, newspapers, TV, movies) has significantly declined in the past 40 years. They examined data tracked for the past 40 years for 10th graders and 12th graders regarding their use of media, and their findings are shocking! In 1976, 60% of 12th graders reported reading a book or magazine every day, whereas in 2016 only 16% of 12th graders reported doing such (p. 338). Furthermore, in 1976, adolescents reported having 2.5 hours per day of screen time. Contrast that with 2016, where 12th graders spent just under 8 hours a day on screens during their leisure time (not including the amount of time behind a screen at school or the workplace, p. 339). That is significant screen time, which did not include “reading” on the device!

Add to these discouraging statistics what Rev. Ron Hanko writes in the introduction to his book Doctrine According to Godliness. He notes that in the church world at large “doctrine is not highly regarded anymore…. Almost nothing of substance is read, and most would consider a book of doctrine too deep in spite of the fact that their fathers and grandfathers, who had far less education, were not only able to read theology, but read it widely and well.”3

With the incredible increase of screen time and the decrease of reading books and magazines, combined with our natures that are not interested in reading doctrine nor inclined to grow in the knowledge of God, we need to hear the encouragement to be a regular reader. In addition, we need to realize that the digital environment in which we live is not helping us—the digital technology is not wiring our brain for the kind of wiring needed to digest what we read. Therefore, the Board of the RFPA asked me to speak on the importance of reading and to encourage you to be readers, doing so from both a physical, natural perspective, as well as from a spiritual perspective.

BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

You were born with about 100 billion neurons in your brain. As a rule, your brain will not make any more neurons. In fact, as you age, neurons actually will die— decreasing the number in your brain. While your brain cannot make new neurons, there are things in your brain that can grow and develop throughout your life.

First, it is important to understand that the insulation around the wire part of the nerve cell (called the axon) can thicken. This insulation is called myelin.4 When a nerve cell is regularly and repeatedly stimulated, it will develop a thicker myelin sheath. As the myelin sheath thickens, the speed at which the electrical signal passes and the efficiency of the transmission increases. This is important because faster and more efficient signal transmission relates to an increase in cognitive abilities, such as increased learning and memory. For this reason we often say, “practice makes perfect.” The more often a nerve is stimulated, the more the myelin layer develops. This leads to better signal transmission, and thus, better execution of the skill. The opposite is also true—less myelin leads to poorer transmission of the signal. If the myelin is damaged, as in the case of multiple sclerosis, the signal does not pass quickly or efficiently, resulting in a lack of muscle control.5

While your brain does not make new nerve cells, we know that, with repeated use of the nerve cells, there is a thickening of the myelination, and thus, an increase in the transmission of signals.

Second, it is important to understand that another part of the nerve cell can grow or develop as it is stimulated. This part is the finger-like extensions at the end of the nerve cell, called axon terminals. As a nerve cell is triggered repeatedly, it produces more axon extensions to reach other nerve cells. This activity of making more axon extensions creates more connections with neighboring nerve cells so that the electrical signal is transmitted broadly to many other nerve cells (creating what are called synaptic/dendrite connections). The result of this is a denser and more complex pathway for signal transmission. This denser and more complex pathway is associated with greater cognitive activity. To illustrate this, consider that a child is born with about 2,500 synapses (connections) per neuron. But as the child develops and has new experiences, these nerve cells grow more axon terminals, forming more synapses. The number of synapses blossoms to 15,000 synapses per neuron by the age of three, due to all the new stimuli the child receives in these early years of life. This process of developing more axon extensions is very active among young children and young adults, but slows as we age. This demonstrates the great significance of faithfully instructing children when they are young! How thankful we are for the publishing work of the RFPA and for the children’s magazine Ignited by the Word! And what a blessing we have with God’s good gift of our Christian schools!

While our brains do not generate new neurons during our life, we know that through regular, repeated activities, the myelin thickens and new axon terminal extensions form. Both of these relate to strengthened cognitive ability, that is, stronger memory and thinking skills.

NEUROPLASTICITY

The third important concept to understand is called neuroplasticity. The brain not only can make new neural connections, but can even rewire itself, that is, it can repurpose nerve cells to communicate with other neurons. This concept is summarized by two important and common sayings: “Neurons that fire together, wire together” and “Use it, or lose it.” Negatively, we know that neural connections which are not regularly used will be “lost” and the neurons will be repurposed for another neurological need (“use it or lose it”). Positively, we know that neural connections that are regularly used will be reinforced and strengthened (“neurons that fire together, wire together”).

There are plenty of examples to illustrate this concept. For example, if one loses his ability to see, the large visual cortex (35% of the brain volume) is repurposed for other senses than vision. For example, many blind people have elevated senses of hearing or touch. This is due to the fact that some of the neurons in the visual cortex are repurposed for the senses of hearing or touch.

Another example, to which many of us can relate, is the rewiring of the brain to learn a new language. Many of our ancestors came to the United States or Canada from the Netherlands or from Germany. Our ancestors arrived in this country not knowing how to speak English. Many of them, who were in their twenties or older when they immigrated, became very fluent in English. The ability to learn a new language— to think in that language, to freely and capably converse in that new language—requires the forming of many new neural connections. What an amazing accomplishment many of our parents and grandparents mastered in learning a new language at a relatively old age! This demonstrates that new neural connections can be made, even in later years. This has important application to our calling and incentive to read, even at an older age. New growth and development are not limited only to the young. “Old” people can yet learn new things—including developing their reading ability. Just like regular physical exercise can lead to improved stamina, so you can slowly improve your reading ability and become a stronger reader with regular practice.

The ability of the brain to make new connections and rewire emphasizes an important principle: what is practiced and reinforced is learned better. What do you want to learn? How to play piano? Drive a stick- shift? Crochet? Speak another language? Do calculus? Whatever it is that you want to learn, reinforce that skill or activity with regular practice, and new and stronger neural connections will be made. And in time, after 10,000 hours of practice of that skill, you will become an “expert” in that field. So regularly practice your piano lessons! Do those practice-driving hours! And develop your mind by reading a book!

It is true, of course, that there are natural gifts and natural wiring in the brain. In some families, even several generations deep, we find strong abilities in art, music, woodworking, or mathematics. And yet, we all can exercise our brains—improving our abilities in all sorts of areas. In this context, let us all read every day, with the incentive that in the way of your reading, stronger neural connections will form, leading to stronger memory, deeper thinking, and stronger problem-solving skills.

Not only has God given each of us a particular set of gifts, but He also calls us to develop those gifts. By sin, laziness, or neglect some might harm their bodies or not develop their gifts as they should. But others, in the providence of God, develop their gifts by diligently using the means God has provided. May we be encouraged to develop our gifts for the glory of God and the good of His church!

BENEFIT OF READING ON WIRING THE BRAIN

What does all this biology and brain development have to do with reading? Reading is important for good cognitive development—for deep thinking. Reading helps us grow in the ability to digest what we read, that is, to evaluate critically and discern what we read. Reading helps develop the kind of mental activity needed to study and grow in doctrinal understanding. In fact, reading is one of the best means to develop the cognitive abilities needed to grow in our understanding of God’s Word.

The reason reading is such a good means to develop cognitive abilities is that reading is a highly complex skill that involves several sections of the brain simultaneously. From studies conducted with students who struggle to read because of dyslexia, we understand that effective readers use three or four major sections or lobes of the brain.

When we read, we use the brain’s memory, concentration, attention, and thinking regions (red dots), vision (green dots) and hearing regions (dark blue dots), language skills (light blue dots), and sections of the brain to create meaning (yellow dots). When we read, all these sections work together, simultaneously!6

Not  only  are  all  those  sections  stimulated when you read, but as they are repeated, stronger neural connections are formed between those areas, strengthening those pathways and skills.7 Therefore, reading stimulates many, many neurons, which results in more myelination and denser connections between neurons in the brain—all of which is associated with an increase in cognitive ability, such as, the abilities to remember, think, reason, understand, comprehend, and discern. These skills are all very important to the Christian who desires to grow in the understanding of God’s Word and in the ability to digest what he reads. From this perspective, we can see why reading should be so important to the Christian.

DANGERS OF DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY

There are few activities that promote the kind of cognitive development needed for the Christian like reading. For example, studies have shown that playing video games activates limited regions of the brain— primarily the regions related to vision and movement.

Research also shows that using the internet requires only cursory reading, hurried and distracted thinking, and superficial learning. As we practice internet skills, such as scanning and multitasking, our “plastic” brains will develop so that these tasks become easier. But this “multitasking gain” comes at a loss. Nicholas Carr, in his book, The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains says, “The constant shifting of our attention when we’re online may make our brains more nimble when it comes to multitasking, but improving our ability to multitask actually hampers our ability to think deeply and creatively…. You become…more likely to rely on conventional ideas and solutions rather than challenging them with original lines of thought.”8

Due to our regular use of screen-based technologies, we can “rotate objects in our minds better than we used to be able to. But our ‘new strengths in visual-spatial intelligence’ go hand in hand with a weakening of our capacities for the kind of ‘deep processing’ that underpins ‘mindful knowledge acquisition, inductive analysis, critical thinking, imagination, and reflection.’”9

FEARFULLY AND WONDERFULLY MADE

Truly we are fearfully and wonderfully made. How complex are our brains! But very importantly, we must understand that we are not just a brain. We must be careful not to reduce man to a bunch of electrical signals and neural connections! We are far more than this. Herman Hanko, in his Biblical Psychology syllabus, emphasizes how complex we are with all our facets of body, soul, spirit, mind, will, heart, emotions, and much more. One important relation is that of the mind and the will. Part of the reason why some things are more difficult to learn than others is that we do not have a desire to learn them. “It is also true that memory is stronger of things which we ourselves enjoy or desire. It is for this reason that the will plays a major role in the memory, and this is a clear example of the interaction between the mind and the will.”10

God has given us a marvelous gift with the brain. And He has given us a means to develop our cognitive abilities that assist us in understanding His Word. We do well to recognize that the ability to focus, to comprehend, and to retain information is improved by regular reading. As good stewards we ought to continue to develop the gifts God has given us, including the ability to think deeply about spiritual things. Let us, therefore, be readers!

But God also works in us the gift of faith. Mysteriously, the Holy Spirit unites us to Christ, works in our hearts that we believe, imparts to us spiritual wisdom, assures us of salvation, testifies with our Spirit that we are sons and daughters of God, and gives us the spiritual eyes and ears to understand His Word. Let us remind ourselves that what we have learned so far about the brain is just a piece of the whole marvelous picture of how we learn and grow as God’s people.

SPIRITUAL BENEFITS

It is clear that reading promotes good cognitive development. Besides being a good steward of God’s gift, why else should we as Christians want to be readers? While we can answer that question from several perspectives, we begin to answer that question by asking another question. Why did John Wycliff and William Tyndale hazard their lives translating the Bible into English so that the common layman could read it? Wycliffe wrote: “The laity ought to understand the faith and, as doctrines of our faith are in the Scriptures, believers should have the Scriptures in a language which they fully understand.”11 The Reformers desired the Bible to be in the language of the people so that the common people could read and understand the doctrines themselves. And, as we read other good material, we are prepared to read and understand the Scriptures themselves. Martin Luther pointed out the importance of literature and reading when he wrote,

I am persuaded that without knowledge of literature pure theology cannot at all endure, just as heretofore, when letters [literature] have declined and lain prostrate, theology too, has wretchedly fallen and lain prostrate; nay, I see that there has never been a great revelation of the Word of God unless he has first prepared the way by the rise and prosperity of languages and letters, as though they were John the Baptists 12

What Luther was teaching is that reading prepares the mind so that we may progress from consuming the milk of the Word to the meat of the Word. We need to read, because reading is one of the best ways to develop cognitive abilities for the goal that we can read and understand the Word of God.

Reading is important for Christians, in the first place, and most fundamentally, because God has revealed Himself to us in the written Word, the Bible. Our desire is to learn more about God, and God reveals Himself to us in the written Word. Our ability to read, in general, is important so that we can read the Scriptures and spiritual writings. Let us, therefore, be readers, so we can be readers of God’s Word!

Second, God has given us the gift of reading by which we can grow spiritually. “But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.” (2 Pet. 3:18). “And as it hath pleased God, by the preaching of the gospel, to begin this work of grace in us, so He preserves, continues, and perfects it by the hearing and reading of His Word, by meditation thereon, and by the exhortations, threatenings, and promises thereof, as well as by the use of the sacraments” (Canons of Dordt, V.14). Let us be encouraged, therefore, to learn to read and develop our skill of reading. There is a great incentive in developing our reading skills because as we learn to read, we develop our ability to think, to reason, and to understand the Word of God! As we do this, in the way of our reading God’s Word, we grow in our knowledge of God and our faith grows richer and stronger! What an encouragement to read! Let us read God’s Word more faithfully than we do. And let us read good Reformed literature that teaches us God’s Word!

There are several other spiritual incentives to read. Reading helps us to grow in our capacity to serve in the church. For example, we grow in our ability to comfort those who need assistance, encouragement, and comfort. When we are regular readers, we also grow in discernment, becoming better able to evaluate critically the teachings of others and to think deeply about spiritual things. Finally, reading helps us grow in our ability to give a reason for the hope that is in us. Reading helps us articulate the truth more clearly both in verbal and written forms. Thus, we become better witnesses to the truth.

WARNING

But there is one warning we should consider. The warning is this. Let us be careful that all these excellent theological works do not become the only thing that we read! The danger becomes that slowly, ever-so-slowly, the infallible Word of God will have a smaller and smaller place in our lives. Luther, who praised the value of literature, also sounded this warning:

Indeed, the writings of all the holy fathers should be read only for a time so that through them we may be led into the Scriptures…. Our dear fathers wanted to lead us to the Scriptures by their writings, but we use their works to get away from the Scriptures. Nevertheless, the Scripture alone is our vineyard in which we must all labor and toil.13

Let us be careful! Do not let good theological works take away from our reading of the Bible. Our theological books must be like John the Baptists, not only preparing the way for us to read the Bible, but as John the Baptist said “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). That is, He (Jesus, the Word of God) must increase, but I (John, and man’s theological explanations) must decrease.

The reduction in our Bible reading can start in small ways. While we may use devotionals and commentaries, we should ask the question: Are we quick to pull out the commentaries when we prepare for Bible study? Are we quick to read, almost exclusively, what Spurgeon, or Table Talk, or Rev. J. Heys wrote on a particular passage? At the end of the day, how much do we actually read the Word of God and personally meditate on what the Word of God says? While reading good Reformed literature is of great importance to us as Christians, let us be reminded of the goal and the emphasis of the Reformers! Read the Word of God!

CONCLUSION

Thanks be to God for the gift of faith and the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts that we may truly know God, having that true, loving, heart-knowledge of God. Thanks be to God for working in us the desire and ability to grow in knowledge of Him.

Let us, therefore, hearken to the call of God to grow in wisdom and to grow in knowledge of Him. Let us read. Let us read good theological materials. In the way of that reading, our minds will be sharpened and equipped to read and digest what we read. As we sharpen our minds, we will be more and more equipped to read the infallible Word of God. And in that way, as we read the Word of God and these other theological works, we will grow in the knowledge of our gracious, covenant God—which is above all else most precious!

1 Koole, James. “Annual Secretary’s Report of the RFPA.” Standard Bearer. Vol. 62, No. 3 (November 1, 1985), 70. (Emphasis added.)

2 Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 2019 (Vol. 8, No. 4), 329-345.

3 Ronald Hanko, Doctrine According to Godliness, (Jenison, MI: RFPA, 2004), 3.

4 https: //www.gosh.nhs.uk/wards-and- departments/departments/clinical-specialties/neuroimmunology-centre-information-parents-and-visitors/what-neuroimmunology/. Accessed 11-19-24.

5 https://www.healthcentral.com/condition/multiple-sclerosis/multiple-sclerosis-myelin-sheath. Accessed 11-29-24

6 https://relay.libguides.com/science-of-teaching-reading-resource-guide/reading-brain. Accessed 11-29-24.

7 https://kids.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/2018.00066#ref4 (This article referenced: Tzipi Horowitz-Kraus, “Reading vs. Playing on a Tablet: Do They Have Different Effects on the Brain?” Frontiers for Young Minds. December 2018). Accessed 11-29-24.

8 Nicholas The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains. W.W. (New York: Norton & Company, 2011), 140.

9 Carr, 141

10 Herman Hanko, Biblical Psychology. Federation of Protestant Reformed Christian School Societies, 1984.

11 https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/magazine/article/archives-why-wycliffe-translated. Accessed 11-30-24.

12 Martin Luther, Letter to Eoban Hess, 29 March 1523. Werke, Weimar edition, Luther’s Briefwechsel, III, 50. https:// thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justin-taylor/luther-on-connection-between-good/. Accessed 11-30-24. (Cited in Leland Ryken, “The Bible as Literature and Expository Preaching,” in Preach the Word, ed. C. Ryken and T. Wilson, [Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2007], 38).

13 “To the Christian ” Luther’s Works, American Edition, vol. 44, p. 205. https://www.ccle.org/luther-on-education/. Accessed 11-30-24.