My Daily Pause

I am teaching Bible class this morning and answering the question, “How do I study the Bible?” Since this is a site that centers on Bible study, I thought I would post the outline and notes as reference for future posts.

The blessings associated with reading the scripture do not come from a casual glance. Like anything, it takes some hard work and dedication to gain an appreciation and understanding of the Bible. We could say Ignorance breeds contempt in reference to anything, but it probably holds true with the Bible more than anything.

We Required to Study

Romans 10:17 says that our faith come from hearing the word of God. Basically, if we are not digging into God’s word, then we are not growing our faith!

Some Scripture that proves the need to study:

• 2 Timothy 2:2 – We have to be able to teach the word
• 2 Timothy 2:15 – Study makes us approved people of God
• 2 Timothy 3:16 – The Bible is God’s final word for how to live
• 2 Timothy 4:2 – We should be able to respond with God’s word
• Acts 17:11 – The Bereans were called noble for studying the scriptures
• Revelation 1:3 – Blessings are given to those that study and act on the scriptures

Personal Organization

Personal Bible study is a habit. If it were a bad habit, everyone would do it! In order to establish a habit, the rule of thumb is that it needs to be repeated for 21 days. It probably takes far fewer days to break the habit, so we have do as much planning and setup as we can to insure our success. We can treat our Bible study just like a meeting at work and schedule it on our calendar. This is the fist and biggest step to making the commitment.

Here are the basic steps to help you get organized:

• Decide on a time – set an appointment
• Decide on a place – A nice comfortable place free of distraction that will help you get into the flow of study
• Decide on a time frame – an easy beginning of say 15 minutes will eventually turn into more as you grow!
• Decide on a structure – Important. What are you going to use your time doing? Have a plan going in as to what you will accomplish during your study time
• Choose a Bible reading plan or Bible study. – Rather than randomly flipping open your Bible and reading, you need a plan, like the one in the header of this site, or another of your choosing. You might also decide to follow a topical Bible study guide similar to what we might use in Sunday School
• Pray – James 1:5 reminds us to ask God for the wisdom we lack. Be sure to invite him into your Bible study
• Consider adding worship to your study – Some simple praise and song during this time would add to the benefit of study
• Consider a Journal – I began using this site to journal my thoughts as I do my daily reading and it has really paid dividends to my understanding and retention of what I read. While writing something publically might not be your thing, a personal journal will give you the same benefit.
• Commit – This has to be a firm appointment with God, it cannot be a hit or miss activity or it will never stick.
• Be flexible with yourself – If you find after all of the above steps that what you are doing isn’t clicking, start over at #1 and rethink where you are in your maturity and adjust the plan accordingly. The ultimate goal is to take where you are and grow from there.

Tools

While you can (and should) just start with just your Bible, you’ll need a few items to help you along the way as you get more and more serious about your study:

• Bible – A word for word translation is best for Bible study, especially as you mature. KJV, NKJV and ESV are my main choices for this. The ASV and NASB are also good for this purpose too.
• A Concordance – I mean a really good one like Cruden’s Complete Concordance
• A Dictionary – I honestly recommend Webster’s American Dictionary from 1828! It gives reference to how words are used in the Bible, especially when used with the King James Version
• Strong’s Numbers – This helps you get down to the original words in the Hebrew and Greek to better understand what the passage is telling you.
• Commentary – While not required by any means it can help to get an explanation of how other Bible scholars understand a passage. Always remember to compare what they say strictly to the Bible using your other tools!

This is a lot for one sitting! Over time we’ll use this as a building block for more on how to study God’s word.

Guarding against false teaching is a challenge now just like it was when Paul sent Timothy out to preach. (1 Timothy 1:3)

The first line of defense in protecting the gospel is your ears. Whether you are studying with a person you know well or someone new, listen to what they teach:

• It should harmonize with what you already know.
• If it doesn’t, then either you are wrong or they are.
• This becomes a study point and an opportunity for growth and correction.
• Ideas that are new to you aren’t necessarily wrong, but are also study points.

Of course to recognize new, false, different or wrong ideas, you have to be well grounded in the scriptures. This takes some work and commitment, but it is a part of loving God. (John 14:15)

How do we get that grounding?

• Study
• Attending church AND the Bible study sessions.
• Daily Bible reading
• Daily Bible study

If we were all like the Bereans, (Acts 17:11-12) we would all be quick to pick out false teaching and there would be just one church that looks like the church in the Bible.

Daily Bible reading for May 25

Psalm 144
Numbers 30
Obadiah 1-14
1 Timothy 1

That the man of God may be complete, furnished completely unto every good work. –  2 Timothy 3:17

Biblepalooza

As I write this, I am still fresh from a Bible reading experience I wanted to share with you.

At my church, we have been experimenting with extended Bible reading sessions. We call it Biblepalooza because we totally go for it and read through large portions of the Bible in one sitting. So far we have met twice and read large portions of Scripture as a group. Several of the men take turns reading aloud while the rest of the group follows along. Since the main goal of this site is to develop Bible reading skills and habits, I have given a lot of thought to the impact this has had on the participants and some tweaks I would recommend to another group that wants to try it.

Length of Session

By extended session, I mean we read for hours at a time. The first time we started around 6 on a Friday evening and read until after 1 am. The reading included Luke, Acts, Hebrews and selections from Daniel, Psalm 119 and Isaiah 53. The second time (today) we read through the Minor Prophets (Hosea – Malachi) and it took a little less than four hours.

I know you think I’m going to say that the shorter session was better. It was easier for sure, but in all the important ways, the longer session was the better one.

There is something about God’s word that just doesn’t happen with short, bite sized daily devotional readings. When complete books of the Bible are read at a time, without comment, without stopping, in context – it moves you! I want to think that the followers of this site are veracious Bible readers, but when was the last time you sat and read an entire book in one sitting? When comparing the shorter session today with the previous one – I was left wanting more. Once we got going, I was entirely focused and hearing each and every word. I wasn’t ready to stop so soon once I reached that state of mind.

It only makes sense – most people who read novels for fun, read for hours at a time. It would be difficult to follow a murder mystery in 10 minute sessions.

Bible Version

I know everyone has a favorite version, but it is very important to choose one version and everyone use it for this exercise. That state of mind I was just talking about above is very fragile and disappears when the reader’s text doesn’t agree with yours. We had this happen in both of our sessions and I noticed the restlessness of the group almost immediately. I was lucky enough to have a matching version loaded in my Kindle both times, but not so for everyone. We used the NKJV and had very good results from it in terms of the ability of the readers to read aloud smoothly and crisply.

Comments and Section Headings

Be sure to make this a pure reading session of God’s word. The NKJV and others have introductions to each book, section headings, and other such distractions, but they are not part of the Bible. When doing a Bible study these tools are fine. When doing a straight reading these things are intrusions on the Spirit’s communication to us.

Commentary by the readers is tempting, especially among the experienced Bible teachers. It is in our nature to make sure your students are getting what they are being taught. I promise you there is no need for it in a session like this. When totally immersed in the purity of God’s word, comments from outside of it are nothing short of abrasive. Once again, it is definitely a distraction to that special state of mind.

As we do more sessions, I’ll add to this write-up any new thoughts or ideas I have, but don’t wait on that. Get started and plan your own reading soon!

Paul never missed an opportunity to do a Bible study. (Granted, his Bible was in his head, put there by the Holy Spirit) In fact, even when he was in jail he converted the jailer  (Acts 16:31-34) During his travels Paul made sure he was somewhere to worship with the saints on the first day of the week. (References throughout Acts) Paul knew this was how to build churches and Christians (Acts 20:32)

As you prepare to attend Bible study (Sunday school, Wednesday evening service) at the next opportunity, (especially if you are deciding whether to go) think about these reasons you should be there, ready to participate:

1. It is a rewarding privilege
   
2. If we don’t, we cast our vote to stop scheduling it.
   
3. Our influence and contributions to the Lord’s work is dependent on attending.
   
4. It helps lead the lost to Christ.
   
5. Jesus would attend if He were here.
   
6. It’s not optional.
   
7. It stabilizes our homes.
   
8. It part of the example we set.
   

not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. – Hebrews 10:25 ESV

If the Hebrew writer’s words aren’t enough, here’s a few extra:

1. It is a rewarding privilege that only children of God have.
2. If we don’t, we cast our vote to stop scheduling it.
3. Our influence and contributions to the Lord’s work is dependent on attending.
4. It helps lead the lost to Christ.
5. Jesus would attend if He were here.
6. It’s not optional.
7. It stabilizes our homes.
8. It part of the example we set.

Can you think of others?