One of the most priceless treasures God has given us is His Word. If you want to live a vibrant and victorious life as a Christian, you must be a serious student of the Word. But some believers regard the Bible as being too hard to understand.
How can you benefit from the Bible if you can’t understand it? First of all, God never intended for the Bible to be incomprehensible. Why would anyone convey a message to you that can’t be understood? As the Author, God used holy men to convey truths and guidance to us to incorporate into our lives. They are useful only to the extent that we can understand them.
Having been a preacher and teacher of the Word of God for over 40 years of my life, I have seen the life-changing impact the Bible can have upon a person’s life. In a nutshell, that is my main purpose in Christ—to help believers live a more wholesome life for Christ through His Word. So, in this post, I want to share the following pointers that I believe will substantially improve your Bible study time:
1. Get a Good Bible Translation.
Countless versions of the Bible exist today. Many may sound good, they may be easy to understand, but they seriously deviate from the manuscripts. If you are serious about studying the Word of God, you need to have a good translation. Too many versions are merely paraphrases of the manuscripts used to produce them.
So, what is a reliable translation of the Bible? It is one that is rooted in a literal translation of the holy manuscripts as opposed to merely a paraphrase of the same. In this regard, some of the most trustworthy Bible versions are the King James Version (KJV), the New King James Version (NKJV), the New American Standard Bible (NASB), and the English Standard Version (ESV).
In Paul’s second letter to Timothy, he advises Timothy to rightly divide the Word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15). You need to use a Bible produced by translators who have heeded the same advice. Those who do otherwise give themselves more liberty than anyone should take in publishing God’s Word.
2. Study One Book at a Time.
Perhaps you have been using a plan to read through the Bible in a year. The ones I have seen are not based on reading through an entire book of the Bible at a time. Instead, two chapters from the Old Testament may be combined with a chapter or two from the New Testament for a particular day.
I believe that is an inefficient way to do comprehensive Bible study. It is vital that you grasp the flow of thoughts from one chapter of a book to another. The most effective way is to study an entire book of the Bible before proceeding to another book. This is the best way to get the proper context of the Scriptures.
That does not mean you have to read through the entire Old Testament (OT) before proceeding to the New Testament (NT). For instance, for many years, I have been reading through the Bible by alternating between the OT and the NT books. For instance, start at Genesis, then Matthew, then Exodus, then Mark, then Leviticus, Luke, etc.
Of course, with 39 books in the OT and only 27 in the NT, I finish reading through the NT first. For instance, after I have read the last book of the NT, I have only read through the book of Daniel in the OT. I then start over in the NT while finishing through the OT, still alternating between the OT and the NT.
That has been my approach the last couple of decades. However you choose to do Bible study, you will get a more comprehensive understanding of each book if you study book by book.
By the way, it is often recommended for new converts to read the Gospel according to John first. It contains important, fundamental teachings of Christ. And it does not contain the parables found in Matthew, Mark and Luke’s records of the gospel. New converts may find it hard to understand the parables in the beginning.
3. Pray and Trust God for Understanding.
Commentaries and other Bible study aids and are helpful, but don’t become dependent upon them. Some of these are tainted with the unbiblical beliefs of the author(s).
Moreover, a powerful benefit exists in digging in the Word and depending on the Holy Spirit to give you understanding. It is His role to illuminate our understanding. But we must put a demand on the process by studying and praying for understanding.
God blesses us with understanding to the extent that we set our heart on understanding the Bible. The more we seek understanding, the more He will grant the same. About that, Jesus said, “Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given” (Mark 4:24, KJV).
So, there you have it; three steps to more effective Bible study. I have been a student of all the points I share in this post for tens of years. My life has been immensely blessed thereby. It is my hope that they will do the same for many who read and apply the pointers in this post as well.
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