Most Christians know they ought to study the Bible. Many of those don’t really know how. Here are a few thoughts that will hopefully help to point you in the right direction.
1. Read for the big picture.
The Bible is essentially the story of Creation, Redemption, and New Creation. Reading a few verses or even a couple of chapters won’t give you the 30,000 foot view you need of this epic narrative. It’s important to make the effort to take in large chunks of the Bible in a short amount of time. The Bible contains 1,189 chapters. Many Bible reading programs are based around reading 3-4 chapters daily so you can get all the way through the Bible in one year. This is NOT what I’m talking about. I’m talking about working through the entire book of Genesis in a couple of days (50 chapters), or the first five books in a week, or all four gospels in three days. You don’t have to sustain this kind of pace all the time, but it’s important that you regularly zoom out to take in broad, sweeping sections of the Bible in compressed time frames. There really isn’t another way to get a feel for the big picture. I use an mp3 audio Bible to accomplish this. You’d be amazed how many chapters you can take in just while driving.
2. Dig deep into short passages.
This has several components. When I want to focus in on a single chapter or shorter passage, I begin by reading through it slowly, multiple times, in order to build familiarity. This part of the process might take several days. I will often take a single key verse or phrase from the passage and commit it to memory. I do this so I can meditate on this passage. Meditation is an essential part of the process. I’ve written about how to do that here. You can learn correct information from scripture without meditation, but meditation is a key to growing in revelation. Next, you will want to get some good Bible study software. I use Logos. There are several other software packages available for purchase within various price ranges. E-Sword is an amazingly powerful program you can download for free. There are also several web-based tools. Most programs offer online tutorials. You will learn much about how to study simply by watching those. Begin by learning to use commentaries, word study tools, and theological dictionaries.
3. Read books by other students of the Bible.
Don’t just read books that are easy to read. Find books by authors who will stretch you, who have done their own homework and don’t merely share their conclusions, but share their process. Read authors who interact with scripture in their writing and give you a glimpse into their own approach to study. One way to find these authors is to look through the bibliography of some of the books you’ve already read and benefited from. Learning to read the writers that your favorite authors read is a great way to expand your horizons.
4. Teach someone else.
Teach a Sunday School class, or a small group Bible Study. Teach your own children. Take a friend to coffee and ask them if you can share a few ideas from scripture you’ve been looking at these days. It doesn’t have to be a formal setting. My point is that teaching is a great catalyst for learning. The process of working through articulating an explanation really helps to solidify ideas and concepts.
5. Apply what you’ve learned.
Do the things the Bible tells you to do. Live the life you see modeled by those who follow God in the pages of the Bible. Do they hear God’s voice? Then listen. Do they pray for the sick? Then heal. Do they grow in kindness and service? Then be nice. A merely academic approach to scripture that doesn’t result in revelation and application is of very little value, if any at all. Often it’s actually harmful. Faith always leads to relationship with Jesus. Since Jesus is King, relationship with Jesus always results in increasing obedience. Don’t just be a hearer/reader. Be a doer.
What do you think?
- What Bible study tools work well for you?
- Do you use an audio Bible? Which one?
- Which of these ideas is a next step for you?
7 Comments
This is good stuff. Took me years to discover these simple yet effective tools.
That’s great, Jeff. Now it’s just about making the time. That’s always my biggest challenge.
Love this post. Point # 1 is huge! Many have no idea how to understand scripture and it’s content in the metanarrative. In an era of postmodernism influenced preaching I often don’t understand certain individual passages until I ask the question “how does this relate to the metanarrative, the big story of salvation and Jesus as king”? That forces me to take the focus from me and circumstance in applying scripture.
“That forces me to take the focus from me and circumstance in applying scripture.” I love that Michael. So important to see how the big picture is always about God.
Do you have any suggestions for those of us who have become used to being “entertained”. What I mean by that is I am so used to sitting in front of the TV or a magazine, or a blog “lol”. When I was a teen I watched the movie Wayne’s World. I could hit the mute button and say line by line the entire movie from memory. That being said, I know I have the power of memorization or the “gift” of memorization. Yet, when I read God’s word I some how grow a form of amnesia and when I walk away from it, it becomes difficult to even recall even general topics of that which I have just read, let alone memorizing verses. I have wrote versus on index cards, read over and over them. Still If you were to ask me today “name a few your favorite bible verses”, I would not be able to name more than 2 or 3 “with scripture references.
So here is what my theory is on this, I believe because I have become so familiar with being entertained, when I have to step out and actually try to fill my mind with God’s word it is as if I am force feeding myself versus being fed naturally “watching tv/movies”. I really think the term boob tube is correct because it turns us into a boob.
I am going to try the principals you have listed above and I thank you for your posts and insight. You have been a huge inspiration to me and my walk.
Blessings…
Arthur, Thanks for sharing in such an open way. If I were you, I would try some different ways of learning. Get an audio Bible. Use it to listen to big sweeping sections of scripture, but also try using it to listen to a single chapter repeatedly. Also, you might invest in some of Dr. Caroline Leaf’s materials on toxic thinking and her learning theories. Also, if you find that you are able to retain and learn other things, and simply struggle to learn and retain scripture, you might consider that you are actually dealing with spiritual opposition.
Alan
Wow Pastor Alan. What a solid approach to scripture. You confirmed my approach to scripture all while giving meaning and understanding of each action.
Blessings