Session 6: Part 3 Studying the Bible Prayerfully, Obediently, and Logically

Session 6: Part 3(pg109-138)

Challenge Review/Ice-breaker:

Share with your group how inviting people to keep you accountable and pray with you regularly has impacted your time spent with the Lord.

Videos:

Part 3: Studying the Bible Prayerfully and Obediently

Part 3: Studying Logically

Discussion/Prayer:

“Let’s not forget what the Bible is: God’s Word. It is His words to us, so we should be mindful of His authority as He conveys His purpose and will to us. When we read the Bible we are hearing the voice of God.”(110)

1. What approach do you use in reading the bible? (study like a text book, decipher like a code book, read like a novel or biography, etc)

1. What have you incorporated into your bible reading to help you understand, enjoy, or apply it to your life?
2. Does the way you approach reading the bible impact the way you view the authority of scripture?

Read Psalm 119(1-8, 9-16, 57-64)

“ But whatever else we do with the Bible, we cannot fail to read the Bible devotionally. As we study the Bible to teach, correct, or encourage other people, we need to let God’s truths saturate every aspect of our minds, hearts, and lifestyles.” (111)

3. How does the way we read the bible influence the way we apply it to our lives?
4. What are some obstacles we face in enjoying God’s Word and applying it to our lives?

2. How does scripture affect the way you pray?

1. What are some practices you’ve incorporated into your life to help you use scripture in prayer?

Read 1 Corinthians 2:10-16, Hebrews 4:12, Romans 8:26-30, Isaiah 55:11

2. Why/How does praying scripture grow our intimacy with Christ?

“Perhaps the strongest reason for saturating our Bible study in prayer is that we desperately need the Spirit to make our lives align with the truths we are studying. We don’t need statistics to convince us that churchgoers tend toward hypocrisy. We all know people who are passionate about the truth but don’t seem to understand the concept of practicing what they preach. What we need is the Spirit to keep us from becoming one of them.”(115)

Read 1 Cor 13:1-2

3. What type of attitudes, habits, distractions in general keep us from obeying God’s Word?

“Too many Christians study the Word of God as if gaining knowledge is the sum total of our mission on this earth. But according to Paul, knowledge can be completely worthless and even harmful: knowledge puffs up, but love builds up...If we’re not putting what we know to work in our lives, then our knowledge will simply make us more arrogant. There’s a terrifying irony here: your study of the Bible could actually lead you further away from the Lord.” (115-116)

1. What is the last thing you remember God commanding you to do that you are not doing?
2. How can your intentional discipleship group help you to begin obeying today?

“If we are going to study the Bible as the very words of God, then we need to believe what it says. We need to study the Bible with absolute faith. When we read that God works all things according to the counsel of His will (Eph. 1:11), then we need to believe it and live as though it were true. “ (118)

Read James 1:22-25

4. How does disobedience to God’s Word affect they way non-Christians view us? What does a Christian’s disobedience to God’s Word say about their faith in Jesus?

Read 2 Timothy 2:15

“ God calls us to love Him with our minds (Matt. 22:37), so it is an act of worship to use our minds to understand His thoughts, which in turn will lead us to love Him even more.”

5. How does your approach to bible reading analytic/devotional affect the way you view studying the bible?

“ As Christians, we claim to base our lives upon the teaching of the Bible. But what if we misunderstand that teaching?”

1. Why is it important to do in depth, analytic bible study?

6. How taking into account the context of a passage by reading to comprehend complete ideas in sentences and paragraphs impacted your understanding of scripture?

1. What are some approaches to bible reading that will help a person gain a more complete picture of the bible as a whole?

“Sometimes when we talk about “what this passage means to me,” we are actually talking about application, rather than interpretation. With interpretation, we are asking what the passage is saying and what it means. With application, we are applying that meaning to our specific situation. Ultimately, each passage has one meaning, but it might have many different applications...Application depends on our specific life situations, so we may all read the same passage and walk away with different applications. Interpretation, on the other hand, is all about discovering what God has actually said and what He intended to communicate. We should all read the same passage and walk away with the same meaning.”(128)

7. What is the difference between biblical interpretation and bible application?

“The main things are the plain things, and the plain things are the main things.”(Alistair Begg)

1. What does the above statement tell you about a good way to approach bible reading to help with correct biblical interpretation?
2. What will make it hard for you to first understand the plain/main things of God’s Word?
3. How can you help yourself and others focus on grasping the main/plain truths of scripture?

8. How does understanding the type of genre we’re reading in scripture help us understand what it says and means?
9. What are some other considerations will help a person better understand what God is communicating through scripture?

Individual Challenge:

What is one thing you’ve been exposed to in the reading that you have either never done or do poorly.  Incorporate this practice into your time spent with God this week. Share with your intentional discipleship group.