There are certain things you’ll hear over and over in the Body of Christ, mostly because we all need the reminders. Of these, probably the most common are to read the Bible and pray daily. Every pastor tells these two things to their congregation constantly, encouraging them to take part in these two parts of the Christian life. But why is that so important?
Before talking about that, let me clarify something else; reading the Bible and studying it aren’t the same thing. We can read the Bible all day long, without really learning much. That’s because the process of reading is usually rather superficial. Reading doesn’t include questioning, researching and referencing. That’s especially true when what we are reading can be ready as a story, such as the Old Testament books of History, the Gospels and the book of Acts. One can read those all day long, enjoying the stories, but not learning anything more than the stories themselves.
In this, the Bible is different than almost any other book you can find. Most books, especially books with a narrative, are meant only for enjoyment. The rare books where the narrative is used to teach a lesson, generally have extremely obvious lessons, which anyone can get, without having to dig deeply into what they are reading or take the time to analyze the message being presented.
While pastors, church leaders and other ministers regularly say that we need to read the Bible, that’s not really what the Bible says. We are told, in one of Paul’s letters to his son in the faith, Timothy, to study the Bible. That may seem like pretty much the same thing, but it is not.
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needed not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth – 2 Timothy 2:15 KJV
It should be noted that not all translations of the Bible use the word “study” here. The New King James, for example, says to “be diligent.” However, the amplified translation uses the word “study,” just as the King James version does. If we look at the original word in the Greek, we find that it contains the additional meanings of “make haste” and “make effort.” The idea that it has to do with studying comes from the rest of the verse, especially the last phrase, “rightly dividing the word of truth.” With the verse being about understanding what the Word of God says, then the translation of that word as “study” makes more sense than the other translations; after all, reading diligently would be more akin to studying, than just reading.
So, just what exactly is studying the Bible?
What makes Bible study different than just reading the Bible is the effort put into discerning the meaning of what is written there. Many verses will have multiple meanings, some of which are rather obvious, while others require some considerable digging and contemplation to understand. The more effort we put into understanding them, the more we are likely to find.
The biggest part of studying is asking a lot of questions; questions based on what you read. Those questions are what cause us to learn, as we seek to find answers to them. So, the more questions we can ask and the more answers we find, the more we end up learning.
I did a study of the Parables of Jesus a number of years ago, seeking to ensure that I understood them. That study lasted about six months and the notes from it ended up being 200 pages long! The parables all have an obvious meaning and understanding, but when we look to apply them to other areas or subjects, we learn additional meanings.
One of our biggest aids in this study process is the Holy Spirit. When we ask the Holy Spirit the questions we come up with, He is faithful, in His role as our teacher, to help us find the answer.
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. – John 14:26
While the Holy Spirit can speak to us directly, we rarely receive our answers this way. Rather, He usually leads us into finding the answer. That might be through our studies in the Bible taking us to other verses, which tie in with the question, it might be through reading or hearing something that some Bible teacher says in regard to our question or it might be through directing us to study some reference, which helps us to find the answer on our own. He is not limited in the method that we use.
Using the Tools Give to Us
This is not to say that we should just ask questions and wait for the Holy Spirit to provide an answer. In many cases our answer will come through our own study. That means digging in, using references and finding things out, under His guidance.
One of my favorite Bible study tools is to look at the original meanings of words used in writing the Bible. The statement above about the word “study” in 2 Timothy 2:15 falls into this category. Sometimes we can find these by looking at different translations of the Bible, but it is even more valuable to use a Bible that is keyed to Strong’s concordance is useful for this, as Strong’s numbering system ties into a dictionary, allowing us to see the various definitions for the words we are studying. Sometimes, that will lead us to different understandings than what we had before.
Please note that the doctrinal point which says that “the bible is perfect and infallible” continues, saying, “in its original form.” What we have isn’t the original form of the Bible, but rather translations of the Bible. The Bible wasn’t originally written in English, no matter what some people say. Going back to check the original meaning is not tantamount to declaring that we don’t believe that the Bible is perfect, but rather, it’s about checking the quality of the translation to see if there might be another understanding.
Besides dictionaries, various other references can provide us with a better understanding of what scripture says, including commentaries, an atlas and books that talk about the culture in Biblical times. The more complete an understanding we can get of what we are studying, the more it can help us.
As I mentioned about my study of the parables of Jesus, we can learn more when we apply verses to areas that may not seem so obvious. This does not in any way negate the original understanding that we have of the verse. Two seemingly different interpretations of the same verse can both be accurate and correct, even though they may not seem to have anything to do with each other.
Take for example what Jesus said about Himself in John 14:6:
I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. – John 14:6
We have a common understanding of this verse talking about Jesus being the only way to get to Father God. That’s obviously what it is talking about. However, to the people He was taking to, who were Jews, it had a very different meaning. You see, the Temple had a gateway, leading into the courtyard. That gateway was called “The Way.” Within that courtyard was the temple building itself, which contained two main rooms: the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. The door leading into the Holy Place was called “The Truth” and the veil, which separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies, was called “The Life.” This was what His audience would have heard Him talking about in this verse. It was a much clearer image than what we have today.
Not only that, but the Temple itself was built of massive stones, stacked one on top of another. There was literally no way of getting through that, short of using a modern military tank. So, when Jesus called Himself “the way, the truth and the life,” saying “no man comes to the Father except through Me” the mental imagery was extremely strong. There would be no saying “all roads lead to heaven” in their minds.
An important part of any biblical study is the direction and purpose of the person studying. If we are only seeking knowledge, we will find it; but that knowledge may not do us much good. On the other hand, if we study the Bible for the purpose of allowing it to do what it is intended to do, it can be a life-changing book.
Study Reveals God to Us
The first thing that studying the Bible does for us is to teach us about God. Through its pages, which we understand were written under the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16), God reveals Himself to us. He tells us about His character, His personality and His works. Through understanding that, we can gain an understanding of why we should worship and serve Him.
We can take the entirety of the Bible as God speaking personally to us. While He is also speaking to everyone else who has ever lived, His message is personal. It becomes even more personal the more we dig into it, seeking to understand.
One example of this is the Old Testament Law, a part of the Bible which few New Testament believers bother to study. But if we believe that “all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16), then that would have to include the Old Testament Law. How does it help instruct us? It shows us what holiness means. Since God is holy, showing what holiness is, teaches us about the character of God.
Study Reveals Ourselves to Us
As we study the Bible, it shows us not only how holy God is, but the holiness He expects us to display in our daily lives. This reveals much more to us than most of us would like to know. But in knowing these things about ourselves, we can much more easily recognize our need for a Savoir, as well as our need for God to work changes in us.
We can think of the Bible as a mirror, showing our true character to us. In the Tabernacle that Moses built, one of the pieces of furniture was the Brazen Laver. This was a bronze basin, which was made from the mirrors of the women who served in the Tabernacle. It was filled with water and placed just before the door leading into the Holy Place. Before the priests could enter into the Holy Place to serve the Lord, they were to stop at the Brazen Laver and wash themselves.
There is some great symbolism here, in that waster prophetically symbolizes the Word of God. So, they were symbolically washing themselves with the Word, from a brass basin made of mirrors. Brass symbolizes suffering, and as such, represents the suffering of Christ on the cross. As they would look into that water, understanding that symbolism, it would help them to reflect on their own lives, seeing the sin contained within themselves, that they may repent of their sin.
We too will find that the Bible will show us our sin and our failings, as we study it. Even things which may not be considered sin will be revealed to us, such as things about our personality. There is no better means of self-reflection, learning about who we are, than studying the Bible.
Study Teaches us How to Live for God
It is when we put those two together, how studying the Bible reveals God to us and how it helps us to understand ourselves, that we reach the true value in Bible study; that it helps us understand how we need to change ourselves, so that we can truly live for God.
There are many people who call themselves by the name of Christ, but are only in it for what they can get from Him. They aren’t as interested in serving Him, as they are in Him serving them in some way. They look at God like some giant celestial vending machine – put in your offerings and your prayers, and God will give you the blessing of your choice. But it doesn’t work that way.
Yes, God is a God of blessing, “who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servants” (Psalm 35:27). But if we are going to use that verse, like any other verse, we need to make sure that we understand what it means. When the Bible talks about prosperity, it’s not necessarily talking about material or financial prosperity. The word translated as “prosperity” most correctly means “completeness, soundness, peace and contentment. In other words, that we have a good life; but that doesn’t say or imply that we will be wealthy. That’s something we add to ourselves, based on our culture.
True blessing from God comes through becoming more and more like Christ; allowing His character to be developed in us. Yes, there is an aspect of that which includes physical prosperity; but that’s as a result, not as a starting point. When we prove to God that we can be trusted with material blessing, using it to bless others and to further the work of His kingdom, then there’s a chance of Him giving us that financial blessing; but I wouldn’t say that He will do it before that, regardless of what other preachers say.
We must understand that God’s biggest goal for our lives is that we come into a right relationship with Him. That’s what salvation is all about. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, there is an exchange that happens. Our unrighteousness is traded for His righteousness. So, when we stand before God, we stand in His righteousness. That word, “righteousness” literally means, “in right standing with God.”
We can and often do, destroy our “right standing with God” through our own personal sin. When that happens, we need to return to Him in repentance, asking not only forgiveness for our sins, but help in overcoming our sin nature. We need His help to do that. That is a lifelong process.
For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. – Romans 8:29
Here we see what living for God really means. While God’s first goal for our lives is that we be saved, His second goal is that we might become Christ-like. He desires to remake us into the image of His Son, not that our personality might become lost, but that our character might become like His. As that happens, it protects us from sin, because we learn how to respond as Jesus would. We become like Him.
This is the most important purpose of the Bible and of our studying it. The more we study, with an intent of allowing the Word of God to bring about change in our lives, the more it will change us. But it is possible to study, without that happening, if we don’t allow the Word of God to do its work in our hearts. We must be willing participants in this process of change; first, through studying the Bible, and then, through asking ourselves how it applies to our personal life.
There’s too much of a tendency to try and apply the teachings of the Bible to others, seeing their failings in its pages and seeing how they need to apply a certain lesson to their lives. Whenever that happens, we must stop and ask ourselves whether that same thing doesn’t apply to us too. The things which seem to offend us the most, causing us to project them on to other people, are often the things we need the most in our own lives.