There’s a right way – and a wrong way – to study the Bible. The right way is to investigate what the Word of God actually says and then allow its plain teaching to shape our beliefs and actions. The wrong way is to make spiritual assumptions and then try to find passages that support them. That’s completely backwards.
Imagine if police detectives did that in their line of work….
A detective would get a call from dispatch notifying him of a crime – let’s say, a robbery. He would jump into his cruiser, flip on the lights, and race over to the scene of the crime…while compiling a mental list of suspects on the way! Knowing nothing about the crime scene, the victim, or the motive, it would be utterly foolish for him to start picking out perps!
Instead, the detective knows he has to conduct an investigation…even if that investigation is a lengthy one. There’s evidence to be collected, witnesses to be interviewed, leads to be followed, and suspects to be questioned. Without an investigation, the officer would end up arresting lots of innocent people before catching the actual bad guy! The detective must first gather the facts by following a tried-and-true process. Only then can he find the crook who fits the facts!
When we study the Bible, we need a solid process, too. Here are a few suggestions:
- Disconnect from the world. Close your laptop. Turn off the TV. Put your phone in the other room…on silent. Ruthlessly eliminate distractions so you can hear God clearly.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you. One of the Holy Spirit’s roles is to teach us all things and remind us of everything Jesus taught. The Holy Spirit speaks with the authority of God – because He is God! – so ask Him to speak clearly.
- Work through the Bible in an orderly fashion. Don’t just bounce around, or open to a random page, or jump into the middle of Ezekiel. Pick a book, and make your way through it from beginning to end.
- Make observations from Scripture. This is the key to solid Bible study. As you study the passage, write down as many observations as you can find in the passage. Focus on “the blank ink on the white page.”
- Let observation drive interpretation. You’ll make lots of mistakes if you skip over observation and go right to interpretation. After you know what the Bible says…you’ll be able to determine what the Bible means.
- Live what you learn. The point of Bible study is not to get smarter. It’s not to look more religious. It’s not even about being able to win arguments. The entire focus of our Bible study must be about learning how live more like Jesus.