Since I started a small Bible study group last Fall I’ve been asked lots of questions about how to read and understanding the bible. It took me a while to figure it out but once I found my rhythm it got easier to continue to move forward. As I began to hear from God I got excited about my discoveries. I felt like an Archaeologist inching my way toward the elusive lost Ark. I’m hoping this post will shed some light on the subject for you and encourage you to jump in and keep digging.
While there isn’t a one size fits all formula I’m hoping this is at the very least a start. In this post I want to clarify what I believe is the difference between reading the Bible and studying the Bible. In the next post I’ll share some practical and the spiritual aspects of Bible study (from my perspective, of course).
Reading vs. Studying
Reading
There is great value in reading the Bible and a devotional thought, especially during difficult times. In the midst of a trial you might take refuge in Psalm 23 while others might remember grandparents keeping their bibles open at home to Psalm 91 and follow suit. In the midst of adversity or fear these verses can be comforting. I don’t know about you but I personally love the idea of God commissioning His angels on my behalf (Psalm 91:11) so I also keep Psalm 91 posted on my door as a reminder for my family that God is our refuge. When my girls were toddlers I read bible stories to them so they would hear the names of the great heroes of our faith and to get them started in understanding our faith and accepting the Bible as the true Word of God. Before I even understood the concept of studying the Word I spent lots of time reading devotionals written by trusted names like Joyce Meyer, T.D. Jakes and the leadership of my church.
Studying
There is also a distinction to be made between reading and studying the word. I now study the Word to understand the character of God; knowing Him intimately speaks directly to my faith and my “walk”. To get a true understanding of any of the scriptures I have to first consider context (the time and culture). When and where was the text written? What was the message and in what context was it spoken?
When Jesus said he was going to make the disciples “fishers of men” do you think He was inviting them to go out with fishing nets and poles to scoop people up? (HA! What a visual.) Sounds silly right? What He was doing was using imagery and language the disciples could understand and relate to. Keep in mind that the time, geography and culture will affect the text in the same way that today’s lingo changes from generation to generation and from neighborhood to neighborhood.
I’d like to demonstrate how the meaning of scriptures can change when you go from seeing them at face value to understanding them in context. When God gave me Psalm 46:10 I assumed that “be still” meant I should just shut up and sit still. It seemed almost obvious. God wanted me to stop badgering my husband with questions about why our relationship was falling apart, and to stop talking to the people around me, to stop seeking a solution to my problems on my own and to just trust Him. I began to write down all the lessons I had learned and what my interpretation of “be still” meant. I knew there had to be more but I wondered if I would ever discover the full story behind Psalm 46:10 (who said it, why and when).
One year later, Easter week in fact, April 20, 2011 (I’ll never forget that day), my kids were off from school and I was off from work. I was sitting at my kitchen counter with my girls and I was still searching for answers online when I came across a pdf file that someone from India posted online about Psalm 46. He explained what was happening at the time. The Assyrian army, led by what appears to be one scary dude, Rabshakek, was attempting to take out King Hezekiah as he plundered his way through Judah. This pdf file directed me to Isaiah 36-37 for the full story. I grabbed a highlighter, a pen and a post it (basic study tools) and raced over to Isaiah. I sat there and wept as I read. I could not believe what I was reading. Everything that God had shown me that year, everything I knew He was telling me, all the lessons He had taught me and had already written about were all spelled out in Isaiah 36-37.
Then I discovered Strong’s Concordance. My brother-in-law encouraged me to research the original Hebrew meaning of words to truly understand what was lost in translation. The Hebrew language is complex but given what I had just discovered I knew I couldn’t stop researching and what I found blew me away. To be “still” literally means “RAPHAH”. According to the Concordance it is interpreted as follows: 7503 raphah raw-faw’ a primitive root; to slacken (in many applications, literal or figurative):–abate, cease, consume, draw (toward evening), fail, (be) faint, be (wax) feeble, forsake, idle, leave, let alone (go, down), (be) slack, stay, be still, be slothful, (be) weak(-en). See 7495.7495 rapha’ raw-faw’ or raphah {raw-faw’}; a primitive root; properly, to mend (by stitching), i.e. (figuratively) to cure:–cure, (cause to) heal, physician, repair, X thoroughly, make whole. See 7503.
The lesson
Yes, He wanted me to stop talking, whining and complaining (I’m sure I made it very hard for Him to even hear His choir of angels singing in heaven with all my yammering). He wanted me to stop looking at myself and to my resources to try to heal the troubled waters of my soul. He wanted me to STOP STRIVING to fix it so that He could heal me. He wanted me to know who my real enemy was and to be aware of his tactics (mind games). He wanted me to back up enough to see what He was capable of doing. The Kings forces were certainly outnumbered; the Assyrian army was fierce and everybody knew it. But, here’s the beauty in this story, in one night God breathed over the Assyrian army and 185,000 enemy soldiers were instantly snuffed out. King Hezekiah didn’t have to do a thing. He didn’t have to stress about being outnumbered, about not having enough horses, or about not having the skills to stand up against Rabshakek. God alone did what King Hezekiah couldn’t do and that was the lesson God was teaching me. I didn’t have to fight; God wanted me to trust Him and to know Him well enough to know that He would take care of me despite the mighty obstacle ahead of me.
As my girls were sitting there that afternoon wondering what was wrong I was barely able to explain what had just happened. I pulled out a roll of Bounty (talk about crying a river!). I began to show them the scriptures and compared them to my notes from the outline of the book I was writing. While I always protected them and tried not to let them to see me crumble in my weakness I was so glad they were sitting there with me to witnesses what God had just revealed to me and how he did it. They saw firsthand, how God revealed Himself via His word. I would have missed that if I had just accepted the text at face value and didn’t pursue God for more. In my weakness He would work all things out, he would heal me!
While it took me an entire year of searching to discover the common tools used for Bible Study (Strong’s Concordance, Bible Commentaries, dictionaries and other online Bible references) I know that, for me, this was how it was supposed to happen. It seems as though God wanted me to know that I was hearing Him clearly and it wasn’t until every chapter of my book had been outlined that I discovered this gem, written by a man on the other side of the globe. Because of that experience with God, through His word, I love studying and researching.
YES, YOU CAN STUDY ON YOUR OWN with the help of the Holy Spirit (check out John 14:26). I’m not very adventurous but every time I open the Bible I wonder what He’s going to show me next, what golden nugget or treasure chest I’m going to discover and how it’s going to change my thinking or adjust my life’s path.
It’s a constant adventure. Join me!