October 1–31, 2026 · An annual celebration of God's Word
The Word is
in your hands.
This October, celebrate the legacy of the Reformation by reading the Word, studying the Word, and helping give the Word to others.
The challenge: read as much of the Bible as you can, October 1–31. Free. Read with your family, church, or friends at readtheword.app.
How did we get here?
We live in a time when Scripture is more accessible than at almost any point in Christian history. Printed Bibles are inexpensive. The Word is on our phones, at our tables, in our pockets.
Yet our Bibles often go unread.
The Reformers fought to put the Word into the hands of ordinary people. We already have it in ours.
1517
A monk. A church door. Ninety-five theses.
On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther's Ninety-five Theses became an iconic moment in a movement that would reshape the Western church.
The controversy began with indulgences, but the Reformation would force a much deeper question:
Who has the final word?
Sola Scriptura
God has spoken.
One of the great fruits of the Reformation was the recovery of God's Word for God's people: Scripture's supreme authority, biblical preaching, vernacular translation, and the conviction that ordinary Christians should hear, read, know, and believe the Word of God.
Luther's German New Testament is one bridge in that story. It is not the whole story. The subject is not a monk. The subject is the God who speaks.
What will we do with what we've received?
Read the Word.
Study the Word.
Give the Word.
01 — Read
Open your Bible. See how far you can get.
For centuries, Christians longed to possess what many of us leave sitting unopened. This October, open it.
Start in Genesis. Start in Matthew. Pick up where you left off. Read ten chapters or a hundred. During October, read as much of the Bible as you can.
Just read the Word.
02 — Study
Know what you hold.
October is also a month for learning what Scripture says about itself, and for recovering the truths the Reformation put back in the church's mouth.
03 — Give
You can read this sentence because someone translated it.
We inherited extraordinary access to Scripture. Others still wait for the Bible in the language they understand best.
The Word is in our hands. Let's put it in theirs.
The doctrine of Scripture
What do we believe about the Bible?
Isaiah 40:8
The grass withers,
the flower fades,
but the word of our God
will stand forever.
The Word stands.
The Word is in your hands.
What will you do with it?