School of the Foundations of the Christian Faith “The Creator and His Creation.” Lesson 13. How to Read the Bible Properly. The school consists of 22 lessons. The school was founded by the Christian Bible Institute.
The Bible will be of no benefit to a person if they do not read, study, and apply it in practice. Therefore, study this lesson very carefully; it will help you take practical steps and use methods for studying Scripture. Pray that the Lord will give you grace to understand His Word and apply it practically in your life.
See what God said to Joshua, showing him the absolute connection between reading the law and success in his actions:
Joshua 1:6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land that I swore to give their fathers. Joshua 1:7 Be strong and very courageous. Carefully observe the entire Law that My servant Moses gave you. Do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may prosper wherever you go. Joshua 1:8 Keep the words of the Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on them day and night, so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. Then you will prosper and succeed.
I. Reading the Bible
Joshua 1:8 Keep the words of the Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on them day and night, so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. Then you will prosper and succeed
God revealed His truth to people using language they could understand (Hebrew in the Old Testament and Greek in the New Testament). For God’s truth to become clear, it must be diligently studied.
- The Bible must be read carefully. The Bible is written rationally and clearly, and contains an immense wealth of God’s truth. To understand this truth, we need to read the text carefully, paying attention to every word. Pay attention to what is said about God and the characters’ relationship with God, and to what is said about God’s commands or promises of blessings. Try to understand the meaning the author wanted to convey to his readers.
- The Bible must be read regularly. You will not be able to understand the Bible correctly unless you know its overall content well. The better you know the Bible’s overall content, the easier it will be for you to understand the meaning of individual passages. We constantly need spiritual food, so we need to read the Bible daily. To make the right decisions in life, we need constant access to God’s truth.
Reading the Bible is the best way for us to communicate with God. God speaks to us through the Bible. A Christian is a person who listens to what the Lord says and obeys Him.
There are different methods of reading the Bible:
- Reading the entire Bible in one year
- Reading one book of the Bible at a time
- Reading for research and study
II. Bible Study
Josh. 1:8 Let the words of the Book of the Law always be on your lips; meditate on them day and night, so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. Then you will prosper and succeed
To understand the truth of the Bible and know how to apply it in life, we need to study it. God conveyed the meaning of His truth through human language.
There are simple rules for studying the Bible:
Observation: What do I see?
Pay attention to who the people involved were and to whom their words were addressed. What circumstances was the author in when writing this text? Look for key words in the text. Determine the relationship between the words in the sentence and the paragraph. Read, write things down, and meditate.
Interpretation: What does it mean?
If you want to understand a biblical text, you will have to «bombard» it with questions. Look for the answers to your questions in the text itself. Try to determine the meaning of the paragraph (verse) in context. In other words, look at what the author says before and after it, and how what he says in this verse relates to everything stated above and below. Correct interpretation is impossible unless you determine the meaning of your text in context.
When reading the Bible, answer the following questions:
- Whom do these words belong to?
- To whom are these words addressed?
- State in your own words the overall meaning of what is said here.
- What does this text say about God, His actions, and His qualities?
- What commandments or instructions are found in this text?
- How does the principle presented in the text apply to you today?
- What will you do to practically apply the truths you have discovered in your life?
Example 1
Ps. 1:1 Blessed is the person who does not follow the counsel of the wicked, does not stand in the way of sinners, and does not sit in the company of mockers, Ps. 1:2 but delights in the Lord’s Law and meditates on His Law day and night. Ps. 1:3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields fruit in its season, and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. Ps. 1:4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff driven by the wind. Ps. 1:5 Therefore, the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. Ps. 1:6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
- Who do these words belong to?
These words belong to David—“A Psalm of David”
- To whom are these words addressed?
To everyone. This is a general prophetic word speaking about eternal values.
- State in your own words the general meaning of what is said here.
A person who avoids sin and remains in the Word will have a fulfilling and fruitful life that brings blessing at all times. A person who remains in sin and wickedness will be unstable in life and receive eternal condemnation.
- What does this text say about God, His actions, and His qualities?
God blesses the righteous and judges the wicked.
- What commandments or instructions are found in this text?
There are no direct instructions, but there are lessons we can learn from it:
- In order to have blessing, we must avoid sin and its influence
- In order to have strength and fruitfulness, we must meditate on the Word of God and continually obey it.
- How does the principle presented in the text apply to you today?
- Identify areas of your life through which sin and wickedness enter your life or influence you.
- Examine your personal spiritual attitude toward Scripture. How much time do you practically spend abiding in it?
- What will you do to practically apply the truths you have discovered in your life?
Outline practical steps to avoid every influence of sin and wickedness in your life. Make a specific plan for when and how much you will read and study the Bible.
Example 2
Luke 5:4 When Jesus had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down the nets for a catch.” Luke 5:5 Simon replied, “Master, we have worked all night and caught nothing, but because You say so, I will let down the nets.” Luke 5:6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to tear. Luke 5:7 They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. Luke 5:8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” Luke 5:9 For he and all his companions were gripped with awe at the catch of fish they had taken.
- Who do these words belong to?
The Evangelist Luke describes an event that took place involving Christ and His disciples
- To whom are these words addressed?
Theophilus, Luke’s friend
Luke 1:1 Since many have undertaken to compile an account of the events that have taken place among us, Luke 1:2 based on the reports passed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the Word of God, Luke 1:3 I too decided, having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, Luke 1:4 so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.
- Put into your own words the overall meaning of what is said here
Jesus Christ performs a miracle that is incredible to Peter and his friends. This miracle leads them to a profound realization of who is standing before them. The divine power manifested by Christ fills them with fear and awe.
- What does this text say about God, His actions, and His qualities?
- Christ cares about the physical lives of His disciples
- Christ controls the fish, commanding it to appear where it does not usually swim
- When people come to know God more closely, they are filled with awe as they realize His holiness and their own sinfulness
- God teaches people lessons through the circumstances of life
- What commandments or instructions are found in this text?
There are no direct commandments, but there are lessons we can learn from it:
- Obeying God even when it seems useless
- The need for a clear awareness of who God is
- The need to understand our own sinfulness
- How does the principle presented in the text apply to you today?
- Consider the areas in which it seems impossible and pointless for you to obey
- God’s commands
- Is there a deep understanding of God’s greatness in your life that fills you with awe before Him?
- How aware are you of your own sinfulness
- What will you do to apply the truths you have discovered practically in your life?
- Make a practical plan for how you will submit to God in the areas where you are currently unable to submit.
- Determine where and under what circumstances you will meet with God so that you may know His greatness more deeply and see your own sinfulness and need for Him.
III. Applying the Bible
Even the most accurate interpretation of the Bible will not lead us to success if the revealed truth is not applied practically in our lives.
At the application stage, you ask the question: “How will this work in my life?”
Joshua 1:8 Let the words of the Book of the Law always be on your lips; meditate on them day and night, so that you may carefully observe everything that is written in it. Then you will prosper and succeed.
The task of those studying the Bible is to understand the principle presented in the biblical text and determine how it can be applied practically in life today.
2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness,
When you study the Bible, ask yourself these questions:
- What does this text teach you?
- What does it convict you of?
- How does it suggest you address your problems?
- What is the general instruction in this text that is necessary for your spiritual growth?
When reading and studying the Bible, we must remember the main purpose for which it was written:
John 20:31 But these things have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing, you may have life in His name.
Therefore, we must approach reading and studying the Bible prayerfully, in humility before God, and ready to submit ourselves to His will.
Whenever you begin studying a passage of Scripture, consider it from the perspective of the bigger picture:
- What do I see?
- What does this mean?
- How does this work?
The Bible is God's revelation, intended to transform our character into the character of Christ. And the lives of those who put the principles of this revelation into practice are changed.
Review Questions:
- Name the three main principles for studying Scripture.
- From 2 Timothy 3:16–17, we can understand that all Scripture is useful for…
- What is the main purpose of writing the Bible?
Source: Christian Bible Institute
