HOW
TO STUDY GOD’S WORD
GOD’S HELP : To understand God’s word we need God’s help. God has promised His help to all those who ask for His help in prayer. God says in Jeremiah 33:3 “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know”. And so David prays in Psalm 119:18 “Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.”
LONGING FOR GOD’S WORD : Our soul must long for the word of God as deer pants for streams of water .Psalm 42:2 says “My soul thirsts for God ,for the living God. When can I go and meet with God.” Our hunger and thirst for the truths of God will surely be filled. Our love for the scriptures will lead us into a joyful time of meditation.
PEACEFUL TIME : We must choose a time when we can concentrate, meditate and spend quiet time with the scripture. The psalmist says in Psalm 119:148 “My eyes stay open through the watches of the night that I may meditate on your promises.”
UNDERLINE : Underlining the important verses or highlighting them will serve a ready reference and will help us to track them later. Making notes of important events, people and circumstances is helpful for a clear understanding of the scripture.
SEVEN FAITHFUL HELPERS: There are seven faithful helpers which helps us to understand a passage thoroughly. WHO, WHEN, WHERE, HOW, WHY, WHAT ,WHICH. While reading a passage we must ask ourselves
Who said it?
To whom was it said?
When did this happen?
Where did it take place ?
How did it happen?
Why did it happen?
What do I learn about God, His laws and His people?
Which decisions do I need to take today?
TIME AND EFFORTS: When the Israelites were wandering in the desert God fed them with manna. Manna was not readymade food dropped from heaven. This seed like substance had to be gathered, grinded and then cooked. All this took time and efforts. The word of God is food to our souls. In order to feed ourselves with this daily bread we need to spend unhurried time with the scriptures and take extra efforts to understand it.
WISDOM-GOD’S GIFT: The Ethiopian
eunuch was reading the scriptures without understanding.
MILK AND SOLID FOOD: The word of God is milk for infants and solid food or meat
for the mature .The infants crave for pure spiritual milk so that they may grow
in their salvation (1 Peter 2:2)
As we grow we eat solid food and
do not merely survive on milk because survival on milk stunts our physical
growth. In the same way for consistent spiritual growth, the mature must train
themselves in righteousness, obedience and faith through the scriptures.
CONNECT
THE PASSAGES : We must study a
passage of the scripture in the light of other passages. The Old Testament
should be studied in the light of the New Testament and vice versa. What is
concealed in the Old Testament is revealed in the New Testament. The worldly
things in Old Testament take spiritual meanings in the New Testament. For
example Sabbath means rest day in OT but it means Eternal rest in NT.
TREASURE HUNT
: We must dig deep into the earth
to find gold and dive deep into the sea to find precious stones. Truths in the
Bible are like hidden treasure (Proverbs 2:4,5). We
must dig deep into the scriptures with
perseverance in order to find the hidden treasure. Isaiah 34:16 says “Search from the book of the Lord and
read”
PRACTISE PATIENCE
: We often try to hear God’s voice
in the scriptures but fail to give a patient ear. We miss His clear directions
and guidance because of lack of patience. Hurried Bible readings can lead to a disaster.
We need to practice patience and spend
peaceful and quiet time in meditation to hear the voice of God.
SEARCH ME O LORD
: While meditating we must allow
God to search our heart and mind so that we may be convicted of our sins
however small they may be. This will happen only if we humble ourselves before
God, keep our conscience clean and hide nothing from our Creator. The psalmist
says in Psalm 139:23 “Search me, O God and know my heart; test me and know my
anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the
way everlasting”
MEMORIZING VERSES: The ants store its provisions in summer for its times of
need. Memorizing verses is like storing grains during harvest for the difficult
times ahead. If the word of God is written in our hearts then we are
strengthened by them in our times of weakness and suffering. (Psalm 119:28).
The memorized verses also help us to counsel others and justify the truths of
God. When tested by satan, Jesus took help from the word of God. He quoted the
word of God and satan fled away. If the word of God is engraved on our heart
and mind, it will surely see us through trials and temptations. God says in
Isaiah 55:10 “My word shall not return to me without fruit”
STUDY AIDS: To get fresh insights and a wider perspective of things,
referring to other versions of the Bible is profitable. Nowadays study Bibles
is available which provide backgrounds, history, circumstances and information
about the author which helps us in understanding the scripture.
SOWER AND THE SEED: God sows the seed of the word in our hearts. Let us not
give opportunity to satan to steal the word of God. Let us remove the rocks of
hatred, envy, anger and faction from our hearts so that the word may penetrate
deep inside and we may not fall away when trouble or persecution comes. Let not
the worries of life and desires of this world choke the word making it
unfruitful. Let the word be sown in good soil made fertile with love, hope,
faith and humility so that we read the word, accept it and produce a crop a
hundred fold.