How To Unlock Your Bible-Part 2

Part 2: Here are some practical steps for your personal Bible study:
1. Read: What does it say?

Obviously this is where most people fail. You've got to pick it up and read it. You can go to all the Sunday School classes you want, hear all the sermons you want, but this Book will not speak to you until you sit down, open it up and read it for yourself. This is the first step. You read a specific passage and try to understand the story. What is happening? What does it say? First, read! "Every journey begins with the first step" (Old Chinese proverb). Once you take this first step, you're well on your way.

2. Research: What does this mean?

In research you are looking for certain things: People: Who are all the people in the passage? How are these people like people in my world? What characteristics, strengths and weaknesses do they have, that I see in myself? Identify the people and learn something about them. Next, Place: What is the setting of this passage? What are significant details in history, culture, and geography? What are similarities to my world? Next, note the Plot: What is happening in this passage? What is the conflict or tension? Ask yourself, 'What would I have done in that situation?' Again, how is it similar to what's happening in your life and your world today? The plot is easy to unravel in a Gospel or historic book, but it will be difficult in others. But understanding the conflict that underlies a passage will help unlock additional applications. Every book in the Bible either contains a conflict or speaks directly to one. Next is the Point: Before we can determine what something in the Bible means for us today, we must first ascertain the meaning for the original audience. What was the intended message for the original audience? What did the people in the passage learn? What did God want them to do? What was God's solution to the problem? And finally we come to Principles: Here's where we determine what principles are transferable. The principles usually connect with the original point in the passage. In fact, they may even be identical. For example: Jesus told the disciples to love one another as I have loved you. That applies directly to us as it did the disciples. At other times the principle and point will differ. For example in I Corinthians 8:13, Paul wrote about eating meat offered to idols. Paul's point was that there is nothing wrong with the meat, but eating it would harm the tender faith of a weaker Christian brother or sister. Today, in our supermarkets, the meat is not divided up into the "idol meat blessed section" and "the regular meat section". So the meat is not an issue for us in our day. But there are other activities and behaviors that could cause a weaker brother to stumble. For example: Smoking or drinking alcohol could harm the tender faith of a new believer. Therefore, the principle applies. The principle for us is to refrain from those 'gray areas' that would cause a weaker Christian to stumble and may even prevent an unbeliever from being saved. So the questions we ask here are: What is the message for all of mankind? What are the timeless truths? What is the moral of the story? After the research, we then respond.
3. Respond: What should I do?
What does this truth mean for me? What should I change about my values, beliefs, attitudes, or character? What about my thoughts and motives? Do they need to change? What sin do I need to confess? What command do I need to obey? What promise can I claim? What encouragement can I get from this passage?
4. Record: Write it down!
Record your thoughts in a notebook or journal. Make it a personal devotional message to your soul. Then pray. Recite it back to God. Recite back to God what He has spoken to you. Ask Him to help you do that which He just revealed to you. Pray it back to God.