Learning the Bible

Growing closer to God is a three-legged stool that has your name on it in His throne room. After all, you are His child, and we all have our special privileges, being the King's kids. My stool is bright green with whimsical flowers painted on it...but I digress.

The three legs are the Bible, prayer, and fellowship with other believers. If you're reading this blog, it's likely that you know me, so as part of your group of believers, I want to share with you how I learned about the Bible.

I loved reading as a child, and in college I majored in English because it allowed me to read books instead of textbooks. I know how to approach a book and learn about it, and since the Bible is like 1300 pages, it is not the easiest text to grasp. When I was younger, I decided that instead of memorizing a bunch of verses, I would try to learn the Bible's structure; I learned what kind of book each one was, who wrote it, why and when(ish). I love history, so I tried to imagine what life was like for all the people in the time they lived in, how different the culture was in say Moses' day compared to King David compared to Jesus. I read the NIV Study Bible, which had commentary on verses giving cultural and historical details that made the text make more sense. I wanted the whole book in my head. If you want to study the Bible this way, find an edition that has introductions at the beginning of each book with background information. It's really helpful. My husband and I also read Jesus & His Times, a Reader's Digest book that discussed history, politics, religion, education, geography, etc. in Jesus' day. Anything that makes it come alive to you is good.

The second "process" that I used to help learn the Bible was just curiosity. I remember sitting in a women's Bible study when I had been a Christian about 15 years. When in the course of the discussion, I would think of a different verse that seemed to shed light on what we were talking about, I would look it up. Not just think, "Oh, that says blah," but physically find it (which helped me learn where things are a little better) and read the context. Sometimes I didn't remember the verse accurately, and looking it up made the reference irrelevant--or even more interesting. This is still the primary way I grown in my knowledge of the Bible: connecting verses, strengthening my memory and familiarity with the Word, following my curiosity.

The third way to learn the Bible better is to do what it says. It is one thing to have knowledge, but you must also look up and ask, "In light of what I read, now what do I DO?" Trying to apply the Bible makes you curious about how God works in YOUR world, which makes you think of something you read in Ruth, which you look up, which further makes you curious about what you should do on Tuesday, which stirs you to ask the Father, and as you pray you think of a verse in Luke, etc. Obedience leads to growth as a Christian like nothing else. But you must know what God says in His revealed Word. He will not primarily approach you in personal revelation until your brain is saturated with the truth He has already given. It is through this truth that He chooses to speak to us. Know the Bible and you know Him better.