The Bible
Making the Bible yours
Introduction
The Bible is the foundational element in a Christ-directed life, and it is from the Bible that you learn all of the other basics for the Christian life. As God speaks to you through the Scriptures, you come to know Him and to love Him, to understand and obey His principles for life and ministry.
When you have a vital personal intake of the Word of God, you will grow spiritually.
2 Timothy 3:16-17ESV
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
The "how" of learning and applying the Scriptures to life is something every Christian should know. This lesson covers the five ways to make the Bible yours.
Compare the five methods of learning from the Bible to the five fingers of your hand. If you hold the Bible with only one or two fingers, it is easy to lose your grip. But as you use more fingers, your grasp of the Bible becomes stronger.
This is also true spiritually. If a person memorizes, studies, reads and hears the Word -- and meditates on it, his grasp of the Bible becomes firm and part of his life. As the thumb is needed in any combination with any finger to complete your hold, so meditation combined with hearing, reading, study and memory is essential for a full grasp of God's Word.
Psalm 119:17ESV
Deal bountifully with your servant, that I may live and keep your word.
Hear & Read
1. Hear It
Romans 10:17ESV
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
a. What kind of heart will best hear and use the Word? Read Luke 8:15, and check the correct answer.
Luke 8:15ESV
As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.
An honest and good heart
An alert and cautious heart
An open but indifferent heart
A well-trained, scholarly heart
b. In proclaiming the Word, what can pastors and teachers do? (Nehemiah 8:8)
Nehemiah 8:8ESV
They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.
Most Christians hear the Word of God preached. But only a few learn the profit of absorbing what they hear. To retain what you hear, take notes on the Scriptures used and on the main points of the sermon.
c. Whom did Jesus say would be blessed? (Luke 11:28)
Luke 11:28ESV
But he said, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"
2. Read It
Revelation 1:3ESV
Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.
a. List reasons for daily reading the Bible. (Deuteronomy 17:19-20)
Deuteronomy 17:19-20ESV
And it shall be with him, and he shall read in it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God by keeping all the words of this law and these statutes, and doing them, that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers, and that he may not turn aside from the commandment, either to the right hand or to the left, so that he may continue long in his kingdom, he and his children, in Israel.
b. Write out Revelation 1:3 in your own words.
A daily reading program which will take you systematically through the Bible is something many Christians use as a regular part of their daily devotional time.
Dr. Harry Ironside, when 14, was concerned over not having read through the Bible as many times as he was years old. By the time he was 21 he had caught up. Later in life he was far ahead.
Study & Memorize
3. Study It
Acts 17:11ESV
Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
a. How does Proverbs 2:1-5 indicate we should study the Word?
Proverbs 2:1-5ESV
My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.
b. What should be our goal in studying the Bible? (2 Timothy 2:15)
2 Timothy 2:15ESV
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
Study is more than just careful reading -- it requires writing down what you discover. Reading is faster than study and gives you the overall picture. But study helps you think -- and remember.
Suggested Bible Study Tools (for long-term investment)
- Halley's Bible Handbook (Zondervan Press)
- Unger's Bible Dictionary (Moody Press)
- The Wycliffe Bible Commentary (Moody Press)
- Young's (Eerdman's Press) or Strong's Concordance (Royal Publishers)
4. Memorize It
Psalm 119:9,11ESV
How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
a. In your own words, state what God wants us to do about His Word.
1. Deuteronomy 11:18a
Deuteronomy 11:18ESV
You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
2. Proverbs 7:3b
Proverbs 7:3ESV
Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.
b. Consider Matthew 4:4,7,10.
Matthew 4:4,7,10ESV
But he answered, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'" Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.'"
1. How did Jesus overcome Satan's temptations?
2. Do you see any way you might apply this example to your own situation?
c. In Colossians 3:16, what do you think "Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly" means?
Colossians 3:16ESV
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
d. Write out Psalm 40:8 in your own words.
Psalm 40:8ESV
I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.
"I know of no form of intake of the Word which pays greater dividends for the time invested than Scripture memory."
-- Dawson Trotman,
After 24 hours you may accurately remember:
Retention Statistics
- 5% of what you hear
- 15% of what you read
- 35% of what you study
- 57% of what you see and hear
- But you can remember 100% of what you memorize
Memory Plan
Decide on a memory plan and follow it. You remember an idea best if you express it; in fact, learning is improved as more senses are involved. Expression makes impression.
Steps to Memorize Scripture
- 1. Repeat it.
- 2. Explain it.
- 3. Put it in your own words (personalize it).
- 4. Discuss and understand its meaning.
- 5. Review -- silently and aloud, over and over, looking for correct emphasis and pertinent meaning.
- 6. Review -- with another person. Test each other.
Meditate
5. Meditate on It
Psalm 1:1-3ESV
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
Meditation is prayerful reflection with a view to understanding and application -- giving prayerful thought to God's Word and your life, with the goal of conforming your life to His will.
Know God's Word and Obey It!
Asking these two questions will help you meditate:
Two Guiding Questions
- What is the meaning of this verse based on its context? (There is only one true interpretation.)
- How should this verse affect my life? (There are many applications.)
This kind of meditation on God's Word can be done...
Meditation Can Be Done...
- ...as you hear the Word preached
- ...as you read the Bible in your daily devotional time
- ...as you pray and reflect on what you are studying
- ...as you go over verses you have memorized
a. What promises are made to the person who continually meditates on the Word of God?
1. Psalm 1:2-3
Psalm 1:2-3ESV
But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
2. Joshua 1:8
Joshua 1:8ESV
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
b. Consider Luke 6:45. Do you think meditating on God's Word can affect your speech and actions? If so, how?
Luke 6:45ESV
The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
c. Besides being diligent in learning God's Word, what else should we do in order to understand it? (Psalm 119:18,73,125)
Psalm 119:18,73,125ESV
Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. Your hands have made and fashioned me; give me understanding that I may learn your commandments. I am your servant; give me understanding, that I may know your testimonies!
Review & Goals
This chart is to help you analyze your habits for making the Bible yours. As you fill it in, pray about setting new goals.
Self-Assessment: Rate your current Bible intake and set new goals.
Hearing the Word -- Present weekly program:
Hearing the Word -- New goals:
Reading the Word -- Present weekly program:
Reading the Word -- New goals:
Studying the Word -- Present weekly program:
Studying the Word -- New goals:
Memorizing the Word -- Present weekly program:
Memorizing the Word -- New goals:
Meditation on the Word -- Present weekly program:
Meditation on the Word -- New goals:
Quotes on the Importance of Knowing Your Bible
"I cannot too greatly emphasize the importance and value of Bible study...in these days of uncertainties, when men and women are apt to decide questions from the standpoint of expediency rather than on the eternal principles laid down by God Himself."
-- John Wanamaker,
"The Scriptures were not given to increase our knowledge but to change our lives."
-- Dwight L. Moody,
"Ignorance of the Bible means ignorance of Christ."
-- Jerome,
"I thoroughly believe in a university education for both men and women; but...a knowledge of the Bible without a college education is more valuable than a college education without the Bible. Everyone who has a thorough knowledge of the Bible may truly be called educated, and no other learning...no matter how extensive...can form a proper substitute."
-- William Lyon Phelps,
Suggested Reading
- How to Study the Bible Yourself by Tim LaHaye