Category: Bible Study

how to study your bible… even without a bible study

Posted on by hammfam

Bible and coffeeI’m increasingly aware of what seems to be a dependence upon formal Bible Studies in order for many Christians to be faithful to study the Bible regularly.

I’m involved in a fabulous women’s Bible Study, which is not only teaching women a book of the Bible each semester, but also giving them the tools to study the Bible on their own. But sometimes I wonder if we don’t know that we have these tools for self study. Repeatedly, I will hear women say, “I’m so glad we are starting Bible study again. I haven’t been consistent in reading my Bible since the last study.”

My two older children were involved in a Middle School Bible study last semester, which had them faithfully studying daily. Now that the study is over, they are struggling to be in the Word daily on their own.

Are we doing a disservice to the church if Christians are only studying the Bible when there is a formal Bible study to be a part of? Perhaps the real test should be, “What do participants of our Bible Study do the morning after the study ends?”

We are blessed to have the opportunity to participate in so many excellent Bible studies, but do these leave many Christians intimidated to study God’s Word on their own?  Why is this? Is it the lack of structure and accountability when there is not a group to study with?  Is a lack of discipline? Or perhaps do we not know how to study on our own?  I would argue that often we have the tools to do so, but maybe don’t realize how simple it can be.

Here is what I have found helpful.  Many Bible study teachers have broken up the study of God’s Word into 3 parts – observation, interpretation and application.

Yes, we often need help with the interpretation piece. There are scholars and commentaries to help us understand background and context in order to interpret passages accurately. That is why the gift of teaching is so important to the church. God’s people need to be taught things they wouldn’t be able to understand on their own. This is clearly a benefit of being in a formal Bible study, and we will learn things there that we would never pick up on our own.

However, we do not necessarily need a teacher to observe the text. I am convinced there is so much to be learned from the simple practice of observation. Using the grammar tools we learned in school, there are many gems to be discovered in God’s Word that do not require a teacher or commentary to unearth.

Here are some observation tools:

  • Look for adjectives that are associated with God – what is He like? What are His attributes seen in the text? What names are given to God?
  • Look for verbs associated with God. What is God doing in the text? Make a list of God’s actions. God is active!
  • Are the verbs in the past, present or future tense? This is usually significant.
  • Look for verbs associated with man. What are we being called to do? Make a list of responses/actions.
  • Make a list of contrasts you see in the text.
  • Note repeated words or ideas.
  • Look up the definition of important words in the English dictionary.  Look for synonyms and antonyms.
  • What is the context of the passage? What comes before it? After it? Who is speaking? To whom?
  • Copy a verse that seems significant to you.

Application will flow from both observation and interpretation. There will be some applications that can only come after the text has been interpreted by a teacher or scholar. However, many applications can be applied after making observations. For example, when we read that God is holy, we can apply the text by responding to God’s holiness in worship, even if we don’t understand all the implications of God’s holiness that might come with the help of scholarly interpretation.

Here is a very simple Bible Reading plan I put together for my children, which could easily be adapted for any use. This could be taped in the front of a journal and be a guide to you in studying God’s Word on your own.  Maybe it can be a tool to use between participation in formal Bible studies.

My guess is that there are more tools in our tool-boxes for studying God’s Word on our own than we realize.  Let’s take out the simple tool of observation and put it to work towards the regular and faithful study of the Bible… even without a Bible study.

Tell the Next Generation

Posted on by hammfam

family pic“And there arose another generation who did not know the Lord or the work that He had done for Israel.” –Judges 2:10

I spent the fall studying the book of Joshua with a group of ladies. We marveled at the Lord’s faithfulness seen as promise after promise was fulfilled, and God worked on behalf of His people. We are preparing to study Judges this spring, and will be greeted right away with this tragic verse. There are two things seen here that the next generation did not know – the Lord, and the work that He had done.

One of the greatest fears of Christian parents is that their children would not know the Lord; that despite all our efforts of teaching and modeling the Gospel to our children, it would fall on deaf ears. However, ultimately, we know that we cannot guarantee that our children, the next generation, will know the Lord – it is God’s work to change hearts and bring about a saving knowing of Him. We trust and cling to the sovereign goodness of God to save our children.

But the great tragedy in these verses is that the generation following Joshua did not know the work that God had done.

This next generation somehow did not know about God parting the River Jordan or the miracle of the sun standing still. They did not know about God fighting for His people and giving them victory over the Canaanites – city after city after city. God displayed His might time after time for the people in Joshua’s day. Yet they did not tell their children? The next generation did not know the Lord or the work that He had done? It seems incredulous! How can that be?

But could we not be guilty of the same thing? Are we faithful to tell our children the great and mighty works that the Lord has done in our lives? Have they heard our “sun stands still” and “battle of Jericho” stories? Do they know our testimonies of how God gave us new life? Do they know of God’s faithfulness in the grand occasions and in the day-to-day “the Lord will fight for you” moments?

Psalm 78 similarly exhorts parents, to “tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done… so that they should set their hope in God.”

We are to continually tell our children who God is (His might) and what He has done (His deeds and wonders).

What are some ways we can tell of His works?

  • We can tell by speaking about God in the day to day of life rather than segmenting our “religious talk” to certain conversations. 
  • We can tell by testifying to God’s faithfulness towards our family – in keeping His promises to us, providing for our family, and His presence with us in both our joys and trials.
  • We can tell with stories of God’s work historically by reading of great men & women of faith before us. 
  • We can tell with stories of God’s work globally by learning about other cultures and how He is God of all the nations.
  • We can tell by supporting and praying for missionaries; by having them over for a meal when they are in town, and inviting our children to linger at the table and hear their stories.
  • We can tell by taking our children on mission trips with us, allowing them to see first hand the wonders God is doing worldwide.
  • We can tell by bringing our children to the worship service with us so that we can worship and learn about God together.
  • We can tell by talking as a family about what we are learning in church, bible study, and Sunday school.
  • We can tell by finding ways to serve as a family, allowing our children to experience the joy in serving and giving to others.
  • We can tell by seeking opportunities for our children to witness baptisms and to hear testimonies of God’s saving work.

Ultimately, the goal of all this telling is that our children, the next generation, would “set their hope in God.”  We tell, we proclaim, we testify as a means of grace that the Lord might use in saving our children.

Oh, that it would never be said that our children do not know the works of the Lord because we have not told them.  May we trust Him to save as He pleases among the next generation, but never tire to faithfully make known the works that He has done – His deeds, His might and His wonders.