If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.

I will ask the Father and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth... He abides in you and will be in you. John 14:15-17 Believe me, count as lost each day you have not used in loving God. Brother Lawrence How to Study the Bible Michelle Wolfe 9 December 2009 The Word of God I. The Bible is a. Infallible. In its entirety, there is no untruth in the Bible and it can no fault can be found in it. (Ps 19:7) b. Inerrant. There are no errors in its parts or construction. (Prov 30:5-6) c. Complete. Nothing is missing and nothing in it is lacking. (Rev 22:18-19) d. Authoritative. It is the only source of truth, the plumb line, the Alpha and Omega for everyone. (Is 1:2, Gal 3:10, Jam 2:9-10) e. Sufficient. No saint needs anything else to know God, to grow in relationship to Him, to be perfected unto glory, to have hope and joy. (2 Tim 3:15-16, Rom 15:4, Jam 1:25) f. Effective. Gods word accomplishes His purpose. (Is 55:11, 1 Thess 1:5) g. Determinative. It is the basis of every persons salvation. (Jn 8:47, 1 Cor 2:9-14) 1. How you respond to the Word of God determines the essence of your life and your eternal destiny. (MacArthur) II. III. Authenticity of the Bible The Bible is the source of a. Truth. (Jn 17:17b)

b. Happiness. (Ps 19:8, Rev 1:3, Prov 8:34, Luke 11:28, 1 Jn 1:4) c. Victory. (Matt 4:1-11, Luke 4:33-36, Eph 6:17) d. Growth. (1 Pet 2:2) e. Power. (Heb 4:12, Rom 1:16, Eph 4:23, Rom 12:2b, 2 Cor 3:18, Eph 1:33:20) f. Guidance. (Ps 119:105, Jn 2:27) Principles of Study I. Read. The. Bible. stop reading books penned by men as if they knew something the Holy Spirit couldnt reveal to you, as if they have more relevance to your life than the Word of God a. Old Testament Hebrew is a simple language, so dont be daunted. Read the OT annually, 39 books @ 20 minutes per day. b. New Testament read books like epistles daily; divide the gospels into 5-10 days. Read them repeatedly for an extended period of time. This helps you to slowly uncover the layers of theology and fulfillment of prophecy. c. Prophecy figures of speech and symbols that convey literal truth; it CAN be applied, so read it. Dont be intimidated. (A great resource for the prophetic language and literary style is HTSYB, Arthur, pp 87-101.) II. Interpret the Bible a. Errors of interpretation 1. Dont make a point at the price of proper interpretation always start with Scripture. Ask your question; dont look for your answer. 2. Avoid superficial interpretation it doesnt matter what you think what does the Lord Most High say? It doesnt matter what the Bible means to you, rather it matters what it means for you. 3. Dont spiritualize i.e.: Little Bo Peep preaching (MacArthur) b. Sources of Interpretation

1. Language base your interpretation on root words, but do not become too preoccupied with word studies and spiritualize every letter. Literary styles need to be taken into consideration. (A great resource for language and literary styles is HTSYB, Arthur, pp 87-101) 2. Culture outside, additional study will sometimes be necessary. 3. Geography use maps, both historical and modern. 4. History use study notes, a Bible dictionary. c. Principles of Interpretation 1. Literal Extract the literal, normal, natural meaning. 2. Historical What did it mean to the people to whom it was spoken or written? 3. Grammatical Grammar directs you right to the context. Seek help from outside sources with this if you are unsure. 4. Synthesis Let Scripture interpret Scripture, it cannot contradict itself. 5. Practical Apply it to your relationship with your Abba, Father. Otherwise your study means nothing; it is empty, religious behavior. III. Meditate on the Bible Deuteronomy 6:6-9 a. There is not in the world a kind of life more sweet and delightful than that of a continual conversation with God. (Lawrence) b. Do not be prideful when you study Gods word. c. Do not be lazy when you study Gods word. d. Do not be in a hurry when you study Gods word. e. Expect to learn. The Holy Spirit is your Teacher. (John 14:26) f. Expect to want more, to hunger. Learn not to live on bread alone, but every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. (Matt 4:4) g. Expect amazing things from Gods word. It is the only living book, the only Book that became flesh and walked the earth to save you to the glory

of your Creator (John 1:14). It is more relevant to your life than anything else you will ever read. Nothing else contains truth and answers to your questions. IV. Teach the Bible a. The best way to learn it is to give it away. (MacArthur) b. Deuteronomy 6:7, 11:19; Matthew 28:18-20 Method of Study I. II. III. Prayer If you dont start here, you may as well not start at all. Read! Read and re-read the book to be studied. Identify the type of literature you are dealing with, i.e. history, prophecy, poetry, didactic (teaching). Observe What does the passage say? a. Accurate interpretation and correct application rest on the accuracy of your observations. (Arthur) b. Observation takes time and practice. Observation takes time and practice. c. Method of observation: 1. Identify the context. The context is the obvious, face-value text and will continue to unravel as you study. So that you have a solid foundation when you begin to interpret, remember these things about context when you make observations i. Context rules in interpretation. ii. Context is the surrounding words, phrases, sentences, chapters, books the Bible in its entirety is your context. iii. Only compare Scripture with Scripture. 2. Observe the obvious, the things that are easy to see. i. Identify facts about people, places, and events. Keep notes. ii. Who? What? When? Where? Why? How? 3. Deal with the text objectively. i. Let the text speak for itself, rather let God speak to you.

ii. As you read, let the text show you its repeated emphasis (i.e.: key words, phrases). 4. Get the big picture. Read, re-read, and read again with a purpose. As you read you are actively keeping notes and noting your observations. i. Identify obvious names. Mark them on the text. ii. Identify obvious events. Keep notes. iii. Mark key words in any way that works for you. Mark them the same way throughout your Bible for continuity. Key words reveal the subjects which reveal the theme. iv. Discern the main theme of the book, then go deeper and more specifically into each chapter, pulling out the chapter themes. Keep notes. v. Identify clearly defined segments. They may be divided by subject change, time lapse, etc. Keep notes. 5. Pull out the details. i. Note what you learn from the key words. (5W&H) ii. Look for contrasts, comparisons, terms of conclusion, and expressions of time. iii. Cross-reference (concordance, topical Bible, the reference system in your own Bible, www.biblestudytools.com) IV. Interpret What does the passage mean? a. If you rush into interpretation without laying the vital foundation of accurate observation, your understanding will be colored by your presuppositions what you think, what you feel or what other people have said, rather than what Gods word says. (Arthur) b. Context rules in interpretation. That you always abide by that principle cannot be of more importance. c. Seek the full counsel of the Word of God. (Cross-references help with this.) d. Scripture will never contradict Scripture. Let Scripture interpret Scripture. Cross-reference using a study Bible or concordance.

e. Do not base your doctrine on an obscure passage of Scripture. Base doctrine on the clear repeated teachings in Scripture. f. Interpret Scripture literally. g. Look for the authors intended meaning of the passage. h. Check your conclusions by using reliable commentaries and learned, doctrinally-sound teachers. Make sure your conclusions do not violate other biblical truths. Make sure your conclusions are not prejudiced to one particular doctrine or school o theology, as this often distorts ones interpretations. V. Apply How does the meaning of this passage apply to me? a. Application is not a third step rather, application takes place as you are confronted with truth and decide to respond in obedience to that truth. (Arthur) b. Believe it, honor it, love it, obey it, fight for it, preach it, study it. (MacArthur) c. Teaching, reproof, correction, training in righteousness 2 Tim 3:16-17 d. Examine yourself: 1. What does the passage teach? 2. Does this section of Scripture expose any error in your beliefs or in your behavior? 3. What is Gods instruction to you as His child? e. When applying Scripture, beware of: 1. Applying cultural standards rather than biblical standards. That goes for Christian culture as well as worldly culture! 2. Attempting to strengthen a legitimate truth by using Scripture incorrectly. 3. Applying Scripture out of prejudice from past training or teaching.

Resources An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, W. E. Vine (Moody Press, 1985) The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, Alfred Edersheim (Eerdmans, 1974) The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible (Zondervan, 1976) www.biblestudytools.com concordances, various translations, parallel reading, history, commentaries, dictionaries, encyclopedias, lexicons (word study)

Bibliography How to Study the Bible by John MacArthur How to Study Your Bible by Kay Arthur