Quotes & Sayings


We, and creation itself, actualize the possibilities of the God who sustains the world, towards becoming in the world in a fuller, more deeper way. - R.E. Slater

There is urgency in coming to see the world as a web of interrelated processes of which we are integral parts, so that all of our choices and actions have [consequential effects upon] the world around us. - Process Metaphysician Alfred North Whitehead

Kurt Gödel's Incompleteness Theorem says (i) all closed systems are unprovable within themselves and, that (ii) all open systems are rightly understood as incomplete. - R.E. Slater

The most true thing about you is what God has said to you in Christ, "You are My Beloved." - Tripp Fuller

The God among us is the God who refuses to be God without us, so great is God's Love. - Tripp Fuller

According to some Christian outlooks we were made for another world. Perhaps, rather, we were made for this world to recreate, reclaim, redeem, and renew unto God's future aspiration by the power of His Spirit. - R.E. Slater

Our eschatological ethos is to love. To stand with those who are oppressed. To stand against those who are oppressing. It is that simple. Love is our only calling and Christian Hope. - R.E. Slater

Secularization theory has been massively falsified. We don't live in an age of secularity. We live in an age of explosive, pervasive religiosity... an age of religious pluralism. - Peter L. Berger

Exploring the edge of life and faith in a post-everything world. - Todd Littleton

I don't need another reason to believe, your love is all around for me to see. – Anon

Thou art our need; and in giving us more of thyself thou givest us all. - Khalil Gibran, Prayer XXIII

Be careful what you pretend to be. You become what you pretend to be. - Kurt Vonnegut

Religious beliefs, far from being primary, are often shaped and adjusted by our social goals. - Jim Forest

We become who we are by what we believe and can justify. - R.E. Slater

People, even more than things, need to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone. – Anon

Certainly, God's love has made fools of us all. - R.E. Slater

An apocalyptic Christian faith doesn't wait for Jesus to come, but for Jesus to become in our midst. - R.E. Slater

Christian belief in God begins with the cross and resurrection of Jesus, not with rational apologetics. - Eberhard Jüngel, Jürgen Moltmann

Our knowledge of God is through the 'I-Thou' encounter, not in finding God at the end of a syllogism or argument. There is a grave danger in any Christian treatment of God as an object. The God of Jesus Christ and Scripture is irreducibly subject and never made as an object, a force, a power, or a principle that can be manipulated. - Emil Brunner

“Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh” means "I will be that who I have yet to become." - God (Ex 3.14) or, conversely, “I AM who I AM Becoming.”

Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether or not they are worthy. - Thomas Merton

The church is God's world-changing social experiment of bringing unlikes and differents to the Eucharist/Communion table to share life with one another as a new kind of family. When this happens, we show to the world what love, justice, peace, reconciliation, and life together is designed by God to be. The church is God's show-and-tell for the world to see how God wants us to live as a blended, global, polypluralistic family united with one will, by one Lord, and baptized by one Spirit. – Anon

The cross that is planted at the heart of the history of the world cannot be uprooted. - Jacques Ellul

The Unity in whose loving presence the universe unfolds is inside each person as a call to welcome the stranger, protect animals and the earth, respect the dignity of each person, think new thoughts, and help bring about ecological civilizations. - John Cobb & Farhan A. Shah

If you board the wrong train it is of no use running along the corridors of the train in the other direction. - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

God's justice is restorative rather than punitive; His discipline is merciful rather than punishing; His power is made perfect in weakness; and His grace is sufficient for all. – Anon

Our little [biblical] systems have their day; they have their day and cease to be. They are but broken lights of Thee, and Thou, O God art more than they. - Alfred Lord Tennyson

We can’t control God; God is uncontrollable. God can’t control us; God’s love is uncontrolling! - Thomas Jay Oord

Life in perspective but always in process... as we are relational beings in process to one another, so life events are in process in relation to each event... as God is to Self, is to world, is to us... like Father, like sons and daughters, like events... life in process yet always in perspective. - R.E. Slater

To promote societal transition to sustainable ways of living and a global society founded on a shared ethical framework which includes respect and care for the community of life, ecological integrity, universal human rights, respect for diversity, economic justice, democracy, and a culture of peace. - The Earth Charter Mission Statement

Christian humanism is the belief that human freedom, individual conscience, and unencumbered rational inquiry are compatible with the practice of Christianity or even intrinsic in its doctrine. It represents a philosophical union of Christian faith and classical humanist principles. - Scott Postma

It is never wise to have a self-appointed religious institution determine a nation's moral code. The opportunities for moral compromise and failure are high; the moral codes and creeds assuredly racist, discriminatory, or subjectively and religiously defined; and the pronouncement of inhumanitarian political objectives quite predictable. - R.E. Slater

God's love must both center and define the Christian faith and all religious or human faiths seeking human and ecological balance in worlds of subtraction, harm, tragedy, and evil. - R.E. Slater

In Whitehead’s process ontology, we can think of the experiential ground of reality as an eternal pulse whereby what is objectively public in one moment becomes subjectively prehended in the next, and whereby the subject that emerges from its feelings then perishes into public expression as an object (or “superject”) aiming for novelty. There is a rhythm of Being between object and subject, not an ontological division. This rhythm powers the creative growth of the universe from one occasion of experience to the next. This is the Whiteheadian mantra: “The many become one and are increased by one.” - Matthew Segall

Without Love there is no Truth. And True Truth is always Loving. There is no dichotomy between these terms but only seamless integration. This is the premier centering focus of a Processual Theology of Love. - R.E. Slater

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Note: Generally I do not respond to commentary. I may read the comments but wish to reserve my time to write (or write off the comments I read). Instead, I'd like to see our community help one another and in the helping encourage and exhort each of us towards Christian love in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior. - re slater

Showing posts with label Introduction to Bible Study. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Introduction to Bible Study. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

How to Read the Bible like the young Psalmist (Psalm 119)


I Love the Bible: B
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2014/07/15/i-love-the-bible-b/

by Scot McKnight
Jul 15, 2014

“How can those who are young keep their way pure?,” asks the psalmist in the opening line of the Beth lines of Psalm 119 (v. 9a). Some think the entire psalm is the journal reflections of an ancient Israelite as life progresses. What impresses me is other verses in this great psalm that give context to the concern of this young man to get started when young.

Notice the following verses (culled from Derek Kidner):

1. Some are skeptical: 119:126: “your law is being broken.”
2. Some seek the psalmist’s life: 119:95: “The wicked are waiting to destroy me.”
3. Some smear the psalmist’s name: 119:69: “Though the arrogant have smeared me with lies.”

Notice that this causes the psalmist pain: he is sensitive about the words being said (“Take away the disgrace I dread” — v. 39); he feels humiliated (“Though I am lowly and despised” — v. 141); and, he is exhausted by it all (“My soul is weary with sorrow” — v. 28).

Sometimes he lashes out against them — “Indignation grips me because of the wicked” — v. 53; and sometimes he loathes them — “I look on the faithless with loathing” (158).

So, the young man asks, how does one make it when the whole institution seems to be against the person committed to God? “By living according to your word” (119:9b). Not just by reading it; not just by listening to it; but by “living” it. The word “live” here comes from shamar — “to keep or observe.”

Start when you are young, the psalmist is saying, and what he means is start observing and keeping the Word.

In spite of what everyone else thinks. The genuinely counter-cultural person is observant.

“With all my heart,” the psalmist says in 119:10, “I have turned to You; do not let me stray from Your commandments. In my heart I treasure your promise.”

Commitment to God, a life absorbed in Torah, begins in the heart. And when the commitment begins in the heart (13x in Ps 119), Torah produces wisdom rather than just knowledge. Such commitment, because it opens one entirely to the presence of God, purifies in-and-with love.

Here are some observations:

1. Heart commitment implies inside-out, total revolution.

2. Heart commitment implies “faith seeking understanding.”

3. Heart commitment implies trust in God rather than self.

4. Heart commitment implies vulnerability to God — an admission of what the self is really like.

5. Heart commitment implies treasure in God and turning from sin.

6. Heart commitment implies finding instead of wandering.

x. Others suggestions? (Try to stick to Ps 119:9-16.)

Psalm 119:12-13 expresses the psalmists commitment — to learn the law and to rehearse the rules., thus:

Praise be to you, O LORD; teach me your decrees. With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth.

Here the young psalmist blesses God (baruk) and petitions God to be the teacher; then the psalmist states that he will “rehearse/recount” all the laws (mishpat).

What I hear is this: the heart set on God learns the Torah — by reading it regularly, listening to it longingly, and loving it with life. Do you regularly read the Bible so that you listen to it? Or is it just something to analyze, study, break apart?

The Torah students begin sessions with this prayer: “Blessed are you, O YHWH; teach me your laws.

The pleasure the psalmist speaks of in Psalm 119:14-15 is not simply the mental exhilaration of study and discovery — the sort of thing many experience when they chance upon something previously unseen in the Bible, which I think is grossly overrated for Bible study.

No, the pleasure of the psalmist is otherwise. We sell ourselves short if we equate the “statutes” and “precepts” and “decrees” of these verses with the words on the page of the Bible. The psalmist finds these words to be communication from God; discovering these words as establishing relationship with God; and therefore the words as interpersonal [between God and the young psalmist]. In knowing them as communion with God the psalmist exhilarates.

Notice the words of pleasure:

I rejoice in following your statutes
as one rejoices in great riches.
I meditate on your precepts
and consider your ways.
I delight in your decrees;
I will not neglect your word.”

The psalmist rejoices (shis) and delights (sha’ashu’im) — as one does in great riches. Exhilaration.

This exhilaration transcends knowing as cognition: It is the absorption in Torah and being absorbed by Torah, it is delight in knowing and being known, it is delight in both knowing and doing. I like how it begins in v. 14: “in” the way (derek) of your statutes — not just knowing but the knowing-doing in relationship with God; in the way of communing in in knowing-observing.

A meditation on the experience of the psalmist in Psalm 119; esp vv. 1-16. I take the key idea of this psalm to be absorption. I see this in three directions:

First, the psalmist is absorbed in the Torah as communication from God so that the psalmist is absorbed in God. Over and over the focus is on “Your” word, statutes, precepts, laws, regulations, and teachings. The psalmist delights in God, in hearing from God, and in knowing that God communicates through the Torah to God’s people.

Second, the psalmist is absorbed by the Torah. Not only is the Torah the object in which the psalmist delights; the Torah is the subject that overwhelms the psalmist so that one is caught up in-and-by the wordy presence of God. Not only is the psalmist studying to learn, but the psalmist is being studied by the Torah so that it becomes the “other” that addresses the psalmist.

And, third, the psalmist is absorbed toward others. This wordy presence of God in Torah, the authority of God that comes to the psalmist in the Torah, directs the psalmist’s life toward others. That means, the psalmist speaks about others, to others, and for others. The psalmist summons others to the Torah, to listen and learn.

Why? Because the Torah, this wordy presence of God, is not just words on a paper and not just propositions to be analyzed, but the missio Dei — it is the atoning presence of God among us. As we hear and listen and receive and observe and do and share and summon, we are caught up into the missio Dei [of God] in this world.

[The Word of God is His] missio Dei, so if we are absorbed in it and by it, we will be caught into its fundamental missional direction of speaking to us so that we might hear God and speak to God and speak to others on behalf of God.



Wednesday, September 5, 2012

St. John's Video Timeline Project - Interviews with Scholars on the Bible, Church, and Historical Eras


 
 
 
St. John's Video Timeline Project
 
 
 
 
 YouTube Timeline - http://www.youtube.com/stjohnsnottingham

Direct Timeline Website -  http://www.stjt.org.uk/
 
 

THE ORIGINS OF THIS MULTIMEDIA PROJECT
 
Over a number of years The Revd. Dr Tim Hull has approached distinguished scholars to talk to camera on their area of expertise.
 
We are very thankful that so many have graciously and generously agreed to this request. Originally these interviews were used purely to enhance teaching and learning for our college students or those doing distance learning with St John’s, but more recently we have been developing a project that put these interviews (and many more to come) into interactive timelines.
 
We are also very thankful to a number of organisations and educational trusts that are currently supporting the development of these timelines.
 
The scholars who have been interviewed over the years, many of which appear on these timelines, are: Tom Wright, Anthony Thiselton, Keith Ward, Karen Kilby, Richard Bauckham, Larry Hurtado, Loren Stuckenbruck, Stephen Travis, Richard Burridge, James Dunn, Ian Paul, Graham Stanton, Denis Alexander, Elizabeth Fisher, Rodney Holder, William Lane Craig, Ben Fulford, David Wilkinson, Bruce Winter, David Clough, David Fergusson, Richard Swinburne, John Hedley Brooke, Rachel Muers, Gavin D’Costa, Nick Spencer, Tom Greggs, Steven Shakespeare, David Cheetham, Andrew Shanks, Mike Higton, David Firth, Paul T Nimmo, Walter Moberly, Peter Harrison, Hugh Williamson , David Fergusson, Paula Gooder ,David Shepherd,Thomas Renz, Stephen Williams, Christopher Rowland, Clive Marsh, Christopher Insole, John Cottingham, Simon Oliver, Stephen Plant , Richard Briggs, George Pattison, David Ford, Thomas Renz, Russell Re Manning and Stephen Mulhall.
 
This project continues to grow, in fact we are in the process of arranging interviews with Darren Sarisky, Steve Holmes, John Binsom, Jonathan Tubb, Stephen Mulhall, Paula Gooder and more.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Methods of Bible Study

http://www.biblestudytools.com/resources/methods-of-bible-study.html
by Rev. R. A. Torrey

: Click on the link above to obtain related scriptures


First of all make up your mind that you will put some time every day into the study of the Word of God. That is an easy resolution to make, and not a very difficult one to keep; if the one who makes it is in earnest. It is one of the most fruitful resolutions that any Christian ever made. The forming of that resolution and the holding faithfully to it, has been the turning point in many a life. Many a life that has been barren and unsatisfactory has become rich and useful through the introduction into it of regular, persevering, daily study of the Bible. This study may not be very interesting at first, the results may not be very encouraging; but, if one will keep pegging away, it will soon begin to count as nothing else has ever counted in the development of character, and in the enrichment of the whole life. Nothing short of absolute physical inability should be allowed to interfere with this daily study.

It is impossible to make a rule that will apply to everyone as to the amount of time that shall be given each day to the study of the Word. I know many busy people, including not a few laboring men and women, who give an hour a day to Bible study, but if one cannot give more than fifteen minutes a great deal can be accomplished. Wherever it is possible the time set apart for the work should be in the daylight hours. The very best time is in the early morning hours. If possible lock yourself in with God alone.

2. Make up your mind to study the Bible. It is astounding how much heedless reading of the Bible is done. Men seem to think that there is some magic power in the book, and that, if they will but open its pages and skim over its words, they will get good out of it. The Bible is good only because of the truth that is in it, and to see this truth demands close attention. A verse must oftentimes be read and re-read and read again before the wondrous message of love and power that God has put into it begins to appear. Words must be turned over and over in the mind before their full force and beauty takes possession of us. One must look a long time at the great masterpieces of art to appreciate their beauty and understand their meaning, and so one must look a long time at the great verses of the Bible to appreciate their beauty and understand their meaning. When you read a verse in the Bible ask yourself What does this verse mean? Then ask: What does it mean for me? When that is answered ask yourself again: Is that all it means? and don't leave it until you are quite sure that is all it means for the present. You may come back at some future time and find it means yet a great deal more. If there are any important words in the verse weigh them, look up other passages where they are used, and try to get their full significance. God pronounces that man blessed who "meditates" on the Word of God "day and night." Ps. 1:2, 3. An indolent skimming over a few verses or many chapters in the Bible is not meditation, and there is not much blessing in it. Jeremiah said: "Thy words were found and I did eat them." (Jer. 15:16.) Nothing is more important in eating than chewing. If one doesn't properly chew his food, he is quite as likely to get dyspepsia as nourishment. Don't let anyone chew your spiritual food for you. Insist on doing it for yourself. Any one can be a student who makes up his mind to. It is hard at first but it soon becomes easy. I have seen very dull minds become keen by holding them right down to the grindstone.

3. Study the Bible topically. Take up the various subjects treated in the Bible, one by one, and go through the Bible and find what it has to say on these subjects. It may be important to know what the great men have to say on important subjects; it is far more important to know what God has to say on these subjects. It is important also to know all that God has to say. A great many people know a part of what God has to say--and usually a very small part--and so their ideas are very imperfect and one-sided. If they only knew all God had to say on the subject, it would be far better for them and for their friends. The only way to know all God has to say on any subject is to go through the Bible on that subject. To do this it is not necessary to read every verse in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. It would be slow work, if we had to do that on every subject we took up. This would be necessary were it not for Text Books and Concordances. But in these we have the results of the hard work of many minds. Here we have the various passages that bear on any subject brought together and classified for use, so that now we can do in a few hours what would otherwise take months or years. The topical method of Bible study is simplest, most fascinating and yields the largest immediate results. It is not the only method of Bible study, and the one who pursues it exclusively will miss much of the blessing God has for him in Bible study. But it is a very interesting and fruitful method of study. It is Mr. Moody's favorite method. It fills one's mind very full on any subject studied. Mr. Moody once gave several days to the study of "Grace." When he had finished he was so full of the subject that he rushed out on the street and going up to the first man he met he said: "Do you know anything about Grace?" "Grace who," the man asked. "The Grace of God that bringeth salvation." And then Mr. Moody poured out upon that man the rich treasures he had dug out of the Word of God. That is the way to master any subject and to get full of it. Go through the Bible and see what it has to say on this subject. This is easily done. Take your Text Book and turn to the subject. Suppose the subject you desire to study is "Prayer." On pages 198-200 will be found a long list of the various passages of Scripture that bear on this subject. Look them up one after another and study them carefully and see just what their teaching is. When you have gone through them you will know far more about prayer than you ever knew before, and far more than you could learn by reading any books that men have written about prayer, profitable as many of these books are. Sometimes it will be necessary to look up other subjects that are closely related to the one in hand. For example, you wish to study what the teaching of God's Word is regarding the atonement. In this case you will not only look under the head "Atonement" on page 23, but also under the head "Blood" on page 30, and under the head "Death of Christ," on page 60. To do this work a concordance is not necessary but it is often very helpful. For example, if you are studying the subject "Prayer" you can look up from the concordance the passages that contain the words "pray," "prayer," "cry," "ask," "call," "supplication," "intercession," etc. But the Text Book will give most of the passages on any subject regardless of what the words used in the passage may be. Other passages will be found in the section on Bible Doctrines under their proper headings.

There are four important suggestions to make regarding Topical Study of the Bible.

First: Be systematic. Do not take up subjects for study at random. Have a carefully prepared list of the subjects you wish to know about, and need to know about, and take them up one by one, in order. If you do not do this, the probability is that you will have a few pet topics and will be studying these over and over until you get to be a crank about them, and possibly a nuisance. You will know much about these subjects, but about many other subjects equally important you will know nothing. You will be a one-sided Christian.

Second: Be thorough. When you take up a subject do not be content to study a few passages on this subject, but find just as far as possible every passage in the Bible on this subject. If you find the Text Book incomplete make additions of your own to it.

Third: Be exact. Find the exact meaning of every passage given in the Text Book on any subject. The way to do this is simple. In the first place note the exact words used. In the next place get the exact meaning of the words used. This is done by finding how the word is used in the Bible. The Bible usage of the word is not always the common use of to-day. For example, the Bible use of the words "sanctification" and "justification" is not the same as the common use. Then notice what goes before and what comes after the verse. This will oftentimes settle the meaning of a verse when it appears doubtful. Finally see if there are any parallel passages. The meaning of many of the most difficult passages in the Bible is made perfectly plain by some other passages that throws light upon them. Then parallel passages are given in the margin of a good reference Bible and still more fully in "The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge," a volume worthy of a place in the library of every Bible student.

Fourth: Arrange the results of your topical study in an orderly way and write them down. One should constantly use pen and paper in Bible study. When one has gone through the Text Book on any subject, he will have a large amount of material, but he will want to get it into usable shape. The various passages given on any topic in the Text Book are classified, but the classification is not always just the one best adapted to our individual use. Take for example the subject "Prayer." The classification of texts in the topic is very suggestive, but a better one for some purposes would be: 1st. Who Can Pray so that God Will Hear? 2nd. To Whom to Pray. 3d. For Whom to Pray. 4th. When to Pray. 5th. Where to Pray. 6th. For What to pray. 7th. How to Pray. 8th. Hindrances to Prayer. 9th. The results of Prayer. The passages given in the Text Book would come under these heads. It is well to make a trial division of the subject before taking up the individual passages given and to arrange each passage as we take it up under the appropriate head. We may have to add to the divisions with which we began as we find new passages. The best classification of passages for any individual is the one he makes for himself, although he will get helpful suggestions from others.

There are some subjects that every Christian should study and study as soon as possible. We give a list of these:

Sin.

The Atonement (of the Blood of Christ).

Justification.

The New Birth.

Adoption.

Sanctification.

Holiness.

Assurance.

The Flesh.

Cleansing.

Faith.

Repentance.

Prayer.

Thanksgiving.

Praise.

Worship.

Love: To God, to Jesus Christ, to Christians, to all men.

The Future Destiny of Believers.

The Future Destiny of the Wicked. (Found under "Punishment of the Wicked," page 213; "Death of the Wicked," p. 61).

The Character of Christ.

The Resurrection of Christ.

The Ascension of Christ.

The Second Coming of Christ: The fact, the manner, the purpose, the results, the time.

The Reign of Christ.

The Holy Spirit. Who and What He is; His Work.

God. His Attributes and Work.

Grace.

Messianic Prophecies (under head, "Prophecies Respecting Christ," page 207).

The Church.

The Jews.

Joy.

The Judgment.

Life.

Peace.

Perfection.

Persecution.

4. Study the Bible by chapters. This method of Bible study is not beyond any person of average intelligence who has fifteen minutes or more a day to put into Bible Study. It will take, however, more than one day to the study a chapter if only fifteen minutes a day are set apart for the work.

First: Select the chapters you wish to study. It is well to take a whole book and study the chapters in their order. The Acts of the Apostles (or the Gospel of John) is a good book to begin with. In time one may take up every chapter in the Bible, but it would not be wise to begin with Genesis.

Second: Read the chapter for to-day's study five times. It is well to read it aloud at least once. The writer sees many things when he reads the Bible aloud that he does not see when he reads silently. Each new reading will bring out some new point.

Third: Divide the chapters into their natural divisions and find headings for them that describe in the most striking way their contents. For example, suppose the chapter studied is 1 John 5. You might divide in this way: 1st Division, verses 1-3. The Believer's Noble Parentage. 2nd Division, verses 4, 5. The Believer's Glorious Victory. 3rd Division, verses 6-10. The Believer's Sure Ground of Faith. 4th Div., verses 11, 12. The Believer's Priceless Possession. 5th Div., verse 13. The Believer's Blessed Assurance. 6th Div., verses 14, 15. The Believer's Unquestioning Confidence. 7th Div., verses 16, 17. The Believer's Great Power and Responsibility. 8th Div., verses 18, 19. The Believer's Perfect Security. 9th Div., verse 20. The Believer's Precious Knowledge. 10th Div., verse 21. The Believer's Constant Duty. In many cases the natural divisions will be longer than in this chapter.

Fourth: Note the important differences between the Authorized Version and the Revised and write them in the margin of your Bible.

Fifth: Write down the leading facts of the chapter in their proper order.

Sixth: Make a note of the persons mentioned in the chapter and of any light thrown upon their character. For example, your chapter is Acts 16. The persons mentioned are: Timothy, Timothy's mother, Timothy's father, the brethren at Lystra and Iconium, Paul, the Jews of Lystra and Iconium, the apostles and elders at Jerusalem, a man of Macedonia, Luke, some women of Philippi, Lydia, the household of Lydia, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination, the masters of this damsel, Silas, the praetors of Philippi, the Philippian mob, the jailor of Philippi, the prisoners in the Philippian jail, the household of the jailor, the lictors of Philippi, the brethren in Philippi. What light does the chapter throw upon the character of each?

Seventh: Note the principal lessons of the chapter. It would be well to classify these: e. g., lessons about God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, etc., etc.

Eighth: The Central Truth of the chapter.

Ninth: The key verse of the chapter if there is one.

Tenth: The best verse in the chapter. Opinions will differ widely here. But the question is, which is the best verse to you at this present reading? Mark it and memorize it.

Eleventh: Note the verses that are usable as texts for sermons or talks or Bible readings. If you have time make an analysis of the thought of these verses and write it in the margin, or on the opposite leaf if you have an interleaved Bible.

Twelfth: Name the chapter. For example, Acts 1 might be called The Ascension Chapter; Acts 2, The Day of Pentecost Chapter; Acts 3, The Lame Man's Chapter; etc. Give your own names to the chapters. Give the name that sets forth the most important and characteristic feature of the chapter.

Thirteenth: Note subjects for further study. For example, you are studying Acts 1. Subjects suggested for further study are, The Baptism with the Holy Ghost; The Ascension ; The Second Coming of Christ.

Fourteenth: Words and phrases for further study. For example you are studying John 3. You should look up words and expressions such as, "Eternal life," "Born again," "Water," "Believer," "The Kingdom of God."

Fifteenth: Write down what new truth you have learned from the chapter. If you have learned none, you had better go over it again.

Sixteenth: What truth already known has come to you with new power?

Seventeenth: What definite thing have you resolved to do as a result of studying this chapter? A permanent record should be kept of the results of the study of each chapter. It is well to have an interleaved Bible and keep the most important results in this.

5. Study the Bible as the Word of God. The Bible is the Word of God, and we get the most good out of any book by studying it as what it really is. It is often said that we should study the Bible just as we study any other book. That principle contains a truth, but it also contains a great error. The Bible, it is true, is a book as other books are books, the same laws of grammatical and literary construction and interpretation hold here as hold in other books. But the Bible is an entirely unique book. It is what no other book is--The Word of God. This can be easily proven to any candid man. The Bible ought then to be studied as no other book is. It should be studied as the Word of God. (1 Thes. 2:13.) This involves five things.

First: A greater eagerness and more careful and candid study to find out just what it teaches than is bestowed upon any other book or upon all other books. We must know the mind of God; here it is revealed.

Second: A prompt and unquestioning acceptance of and submission to its teachings when definitely ascertained, even when these teachings appear to us unreasonable or impossible. If this book is the Word of God how foolish to submit its teachings to the criticism of our finite reason. The little boy who discredits his wise father's statements because to his infant mind they appear unreasonable, is not a philosopher but a fool. When we are once satisfied that the Bible is the Word of God, its clear teachings must be the end of all controversy and discussion.

Third: Absolute reliance upon all its promises in all their length and breadth and depth and height. The one who studies the Bible as the Word of God will say of every promise no matter how vast and beyond belief it appears, "God who cannot lie has promised this, so I claim it for myself." Mark the promises you thus claim. Look each day for some new promise from your infinite Father. He has put "His riches in glory" at your disposal. (Phil. 4:19.)

Fourth: Obedience--prompt, exact, unquestioning, joyous obedience--to every command that is evident from the context applies to you. Be on the lookout for new orders from the King. Blessing lies in the direction of obedience to them. God's commands are but signboards that mark the road to present success and blessedness and to eternal glory.

Fifth: Studying the Bible as the Word of God, involves studying it as His own voice speaking directly to you. When you open the Bible to study it realize that you have come into the very presence of God and that now He is going to speak to you. Every hour thus spent in Bible study will be an hour's walk and talk with God.

6. Study the Bible prayerfully. The author of the book is willing to act as interpreter of it. He does so when we ask Him to. The one who prays with earnestness and faith, the Psalmist's prayer, "Open Thou mine eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of Thy law," will get his eyes opened to see beauties and wonders in the Word that he never dreamed of before. Be very definite about this. Each time you open the Bible to study it for a few minutes or many, ask God to give you the open and discerning eye, and expect Him to do it. Every time you come to a difficulty lay it before God and ask an explanation and expect it. How often we think as we puzzle over hard passages, "Oh if I only had so and so here to explain this." God is always present. Take it to Him.

7. Look for "the things concerning Christ" "in all the Scriptures." Christ is everywhere in the Bible (Luke 24:27) be on the lookout for Him and mark His presence when you find it.

8. Improve spare moments in Bible study. In almost every man's life many minutes each day are lost; while waiting for meals or trains, while riding in the car, etc. Carry a pocket Bible or Testament with you and save these golden minutes by putting them to the very best use listening to the voice of God. The Topical Text Book can be easily carried in the pocket as a help in the work.

9. Store away the Scripture in your mind and heart. It will keep you from sin (Ps. 119:11. R. V.), from false doctrine (Acts 20:29, 30, 32. 2 Tim. 3:13-15), it will fill your heart with joy (Jer. 15:16), and peace (Ps. 85:8), it will give you the victory over the Evil One (1 John 2:14), it will give you power in prayer (John 15:7), it will make you wiser than the aged and your enemies (Ps. 119:100, 98, 130.) it will make you "complete, furnished completely unto every good work." (2 Tim. 3:16, 17, R. V.) Try it. Do not memorize at random but memorize Scripture in a connected way. Memorize texts bearing on various subjects in proper order. Memorize by chapter and verse that you may know where to put your finger upon the text if anyone disputes it.

A Guide to Bible Study

http://www.biblestudytools.com/resources/guide-to-bible-study/
An Introduction to the Bible

: Click on the link above to obtain related scriptures

The study of the Bible is absolutely necessary to the development of the Christian life. This study, by J. W. McGarvey, was designed to afford suggestion and assistance to those who desire a fuller and more accurate knowledge of the Bible.

These files are public domain and are a derivative of an electronic edition was originally available at:
http://www.mun.ca/rels/restmov/texts/jwmcgarvey/guide/GBS00.HTM.


Introduction

Chapter 1: Definitions

Chapter 2: Divisions of the Old Testament

Chapter 3: The Original Text and Its Preservation

Chapter 4: Outline of the Pentateuch

Chapter 5: Israel's History from the Death of Moses to that of David

Chapter 6: The Reign of Solomon and the Divisions of the Kingdom

Chapter 7: The Two Kingdoms

Chapter 8: The Kingdom of Judah Continued

Chapter 9: Other Pre-Exilian Prophetic Books

Chapter 10: The Poetical Books

Chapter 11: The Books of Exile

Chapter 12: The Post-Exilic Books

Chapter 13: Divisions of the New Testament

Chapter 14: The Gospels and Acts

Chapter 15: The Epistles of Paul

Chapter 16: The Catholic Epistles and the Apocalypse

Chapter 17: A Brief Review

Chapter 18: Questions

Appendix 1: Early Translations of the Scriptures

Appendix 2: Translations of the Scriptures into English

Appendix 3: Extra Canonical Books

Appendix 4: Outline of the History of Israel

Appendix 5: Leading Prophets of the Old Testament

Appendix 6. Important Events in the Life of Christ

Appendix 7: Outline of the Journeys and Labors of the Apostle Paul

Appendix 8: Chronological Order of the Books of the New Testament

An Outline of the Fundamental Doctrines of the Bible

http://www.biblestudytools.com/resources/doctrines-of-the-bible.html
By David Allen Reed

: Click on the link above to obtain related scriptures

1. Concerning God
     A. His Being
          1. Attributes
          2. The Trinity
     B. His Works
          1. Creation
          2. Providence
          3. Angels

2. Concerning Man
     A. Created
     B. Common Origin
     C. Compound Being
     D. Offspring of God
     E. In God's Image
     F. Under Law

3. Concerning Sin
     A. Its nature
     B. Its extent and penalty

4. Concerning Redemption
     A. Introductory and General Statements
     B. The Person of the Redeemer
          1. Truly God
          2. Truly Man
          3. Truly God and Man
     C. The Work of the Redeemer As
          1. Prophet
          2. Priest
          3. King
     D. The Work of the Holy Spirit in Redemption
     E. The Work of Redemption Viewed In Its Relations to the Believer
          1. The Union Between Christ and the Believer
          2. Related Doctrines
               a. Repentance
               b. Faith
               c. Regeneration
               d. Justification
               e. Adoption
               f. Sanctification
     F. The Union Between Believers: The Church and Its Institutions
     G. Eschatology
          1. Death, and the state of the soul after death
          2. The resurrection
          3. The second advent and the general judgment
          4. Heaven and hell

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Overview of Study Bibles

From BibleGateway.com is a helpful link giving the entire Bible on one page for a quick and easy lookup of Bible verses.

http://www.biblegateway.com/versions/English-Standard-Version-ESV-Bible/#booklist
You may pick whatever version of Scripture you wish but the ESV (English Standard Version) is my preferred study bible at present, having used the NASB (New American Study Bible) through bible college and seminary; and the standard KJV (King James Version) in my "pre-birth/pre-revolutionary" days of Christianity.

Here's the Wikipedia link for a fuller discussion of the ESV:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Standard_Version


And the ESV home site with John Piper's recommendation and the Standard Bible Society's mission statement:

http://www.esv.org/

I wanted a study bible which was both literal and idiomatic and for the present the ESV is the guide for me. My NASB was perfect but getting dated and the NIV (New International Version) lost too much in the translation and gave me shaded subjective viewpoints (still, I thought the OT side of the NIV more helpful than the NT side, but hey! the OT is in Hebrew which is a lot less specific as a language than the Koinonia Greek of the NT!).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koinonia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Testament

I had studied Attic Greek ahead of Koinonia Greek and had become at-home with it before learning the Hebrew language in all its forms and beauty. For those looking for the actual manuscripts of the OT & NT Scriptures try these books which I used in sem (you'll want the hardcover edition for the Hebrew bible because of the many pages it will have in the volume):

The Greek New Testament With Greek-english Dictionary
by B. Aland (Editor), K. Aland (Editor), J. Karavidopoulos (Editor),
B. M. Metzger (Editor), C. M. Martini (Editor)

http://www.amazon.com/reader/1598561693?_encoding=UTF8&ref_=sib%5Fdp%5Fpt#noop

Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (Hebrew Edition)
by Karl Elliger (Editor), Willhelm Rudolph (Editor)

http://www.amazon.com/Biblia-Hebraica-Stuttgartensia-Hebrew-Elliger/dp/1598561634/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1254888436&sr=1-4

(Don't forget a good lexicon and concordance to use with these tools for word studies)