HOW TO STUDY GOD'S WORD Session 1

The purpose of this series on “How to Study God’s Word” is so folks can see how easy it really is and also to encourage each and every person, believer or unbeliever to study. The purpose is NOT for debate, although I know there are differing ideas and beliefs on this subject. If you feel the urge to debate, please be so courteous as to do the work, spend the time, and write your own series on studying God’s Word and post it on your page for your friends to learn.

I don’t have a Master’s degree on this subject and I certainly don’t claim to know it all. But it is a passion of mine and has been for thirty years now. (Wanted to know God’s Word for as long as I can remember) It’s been a passion of mine from the very moment someone made me aware that I could learn God’s Word, and I could understand it, and I could study it all by myself! What a revelation! I believe it’s the second most valuable thing I ever learned and I am extremely thankful to those who taught me.

The purpose of learning to study God’s word is so we can know the truth because it is the truth that will make us free. It is God’s will that we are not only saved, but ALSO that we come unto the knowledge of the truth, (I Timothy 2:4). Studying makes it possible for us to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

I’m going to keep this study very simple in the beginning and progress over time. Will be posting one series a week with homework each week. Please post what you learn, any questions you may have, and comments on your progress. I want to encourage everyone to share this experience and learn from one another.

So let’s get started!

We’re going to start with learning how to do a simple word study. That is, select any one word describing a topic you are interested in, such as marriage, love, kindness, forgiveness, etc.  In some form or fashion every subject you are interested in and every question you need answers for are in God’s Word. He left nothing out! He has provided us ALL THINGS that pertain to life and godliness through our knowledge of him, (II Peter 1:3).

HOW TO DO A WORD STUDY:

1.)  Go to http://www.biblegateway.com/ I suggest you add this to your favorites list because it is a handy tool for doing research.

2.)  On the left of the Home page you will see three different categories you can search under, “Passage Lookup,” “Keyword Search,” and “Topic Index.” Click on Keyword Search and type in the word you are interested in researching.

3.)  Next, go to the dropdown where it says, “Select Version” and select the version of the bible that you want to use. Personally, I prefer The King James Version, The New International  Version, and The Amplified Bible. Note: Each version will have different scriptural usages for each word so don’t be surprised if the KJV has scriptures using the word you selected and the NIV has different scriptures using the word you selected. But they are ALL versions that have been translated by men or women into English. That is the reason for the different usages of words.

4.)  Now click on search and it will give you every usage of that translated English word. Read each scripture and most importantly, THE CONTEXT in which the scripture is written.

“CONTEXT” IS IN MY OPINION THE MOST IMPORTANT RESEARCH PRINCIPLE!

BIBLICAL PRINCIPLE #1 CONTEXT

The devil misquoted scripture when he tempted Jesus all because he used the scripture out of context, (Matthew 4:5)! That is how important “Context” is in rightly or wrongly dividing the Word Of Truth! The “Context” in which a specific word is written will define the word being researched. The scriptures previous to the particular word, the scripture in which the word is written in, and the scriptures after the one in which the specific word is written in will provide you with the biblical meaning of a particular word.

Let’s say you choose to research the word “Gift.” There are different kinds of “Gifts” which is evident in Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic in which The Word of God was written by holy men of God who were moved by the Holy Spirit. However, in English, those different types of gifts are only evident in the context in which the word “Gift” is written. CONTEXT, CONTEXT, CONTEXT!

The Word of God is like a fine woven tapestry. Each word is connected to all the other words and it all fits perfectly together. Pulling one scripture out from among the others is like pulling out a thread in the tapestry. It all falls apart when one thread is removed.

HOMEWORK: Select a word you would like to study that has between 15 and 30 scripture usages. Don’t overwhelm yourself with a word with too many usages. Let’s keep it simple in the beginning. As you read each scripture, practice using the “Context” research principle. Work on understanding the biblical meaning of the word you have chosen through the “Context” in which it is written. And take notes as you go along. Even if you learn something other than the word you are studying, write down what God showed you. It is for YOU!

HAPPY RESEARCHING! I am praying for you.

P.S. During the week, please share what you are learning by posting comments here. ALL questions are welcomed and encouraged.

HOW TO STUDY GOD'S WORD Prelude

My grandson is almost a month old now. Since birth, he has been fully dependent on his mother for food since he is not capable of feeding himself. Milk from his mother’s breast is the only thing his young body can digest. However, it won’t be long before he will be holding his own bottle. And then shortly after that, his mother will put solid food on his tray and he’ll be able to feed himself with his hands. Before you know it, he’ll hold an eating utensil to pick up his food and eat. At age six or seven, he’ll probably have the ability to take the food provided for him and put it on his plate. By the time he’s in his teens, he just might be cooking a little bit for himself and his family. And as an adult, he’ll be preparing his own food and feeding himself.

“What does this have to do with studying God’s word you ask?” The process of how one grows physically, the food they eat and how they learn to feed themself correlates with their spiritual growth in The Word. How we develop spiritually from the milk of The Word served and prepared by others to partaking of the meat of The Word prepared by ourselves and served by God directly relates to the food we eat and our physical growth.

God expects us to “Grow-up” in Him. He expects us to be able to feed ourselves rather than depend on others to feed us all the time. He wants us to depend on Him first to supply whatever we need in order to be sustained rather than completely dependent on other people.

It is not God’s intent that we remain babies. Nor is it His intent that we live solely on milk and other people. He wants us to mature as believers to a point where we desire and seek the meat of The Word for ourselves.

“Be diligent to present YOURSELF approved to God, a worker (worker of The Word of God) who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” II Timothy 2:15

“Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.” I Peter 2:2

“We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand.  In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!  Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.  But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.” Hebrews 5:11-14

You’ve probably heard the old saying, “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime”—Author unknown

When we learn how to study God’s word, we can be fed for a lifetime! The spiritual food that sustains us will be readily available at all times.

Jesus answered, "It is written: Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4

God’s word is vital nutritional food for life. He desires for us to grow up in Him! He wants us to partake of the meat of His Word, study it for ourselves, rightly divide His Word and allow it to sustain us for life. Let’s eat!!

HOW TO STUDY GOD’S WORD Session 1 tomorrow.