Every reading, study and application of the scriptures must begin with prayer. So, here are the 5 steps to studying a book of the Bible with tips and examples so that you can spend a fruitful time deepening into the Word of God. Here is an example of my studies in the book by James. It examines how James echoes the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5) and how that shapes our understanding and application of the Gospel that Jesus proclaimed.
Our study in the first two steps should lead us to be able to organize our conclusions from Scripture into a well-expressed summary or doctrinal statement. This helps us develop a grid or filter so that we can examine truths outside the Bible. It is also beneficial to others, since we can easily show them our belief in any given doctrine of Scripture. It should be noted that these first three steps are the development phase and are a repeated and ongoing process.
Our conclusions of God's Word will be refined as we grow in our knowledge and understanding of God's Word. Repeated study of the texts will provide new ideas and a deeper understanding of the meaning that God intends. Using the summary statement of beliefs should help us have a biblical worldview. Step 1 - Reading Start by developing a plan for how you will approach reading the Bible.
Just by reading the Bible you become familiar with its subjects, history and contexts. There is simply no substitute for reading the Bible. Step 3 - Evaluate You have been reading and asking the question: What does the Bible say? So you've been interpreting, asking the question: What does the Bible mean? Now is the time to consult other people to make sure you have the right interpretation. Remember, the Bible never contradicts itself.
Step 5 - Correlate This last stage connects the doctrine you have learned in a particular passage or book with the divine truths and principles taught elsewhere in the Bible to form the big picture. Always keep in mind that the Bible is a sixty-six part book, so its truths and principles are taught over and over again in a variety of forms and circumstances. By correlating and cross-referencing, you'll begin to build a solid doctrinal foundation on which to live. I have honestly been looking for suitable methods to study the Bible and I think this is the best one I have found so far.
If you follow these steps, you will surely find many other things in the book that you will want to study further. The first thing you want to do in your Bible study lessons is to read the entire chapter once without stopping. Be sure to get your free Bible study worksheets to help you do your own study of any chapter of the Bible. I wrote it more for a beginning audience (article on the SOAP Bible Study Method), but I plan to write a follow-up once those readers have a chance to try the method themselves.
Audio Bibles gives me a new perspective on the flow of a book and I will notice things other than what I am reading. Many passages of scripture may seem easy to understand, especially to those who read the Bible frequently. But how is that possible? With all the different interpretations of the Bible, how can a group of Christians claim to be certain in their interpretation of the Word of God? The answer is found by analyzing how we approach the Bible. In just over three years, a person could do an intensive study of the entire Bible, taking one chapter a day.
I've been reading the Bible verse by verse, reading Gill's statement for each verse as I go along. And the more I understand, the more unshakable is my conviction that the Bible is the living, authoritarian and infallible Word of God. Comparing other passages in the Bible that teach about prayer will prevent you from making mistakes regarding the true nature, conditions, and results of prayer according to God's will. When studying the historical passages of the Bible, like most of the Old Testament or parts of the Gospels, each verse can have only one simple meaning.
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