Abc's of bible study

THE ABC's OF BIBLE STUDY
ABC's
Warren E. Berkley

ATTITUDE
If you have a strong desire to find out what's right,
and to live as you should before God, that attitude
will serve you well as you read and study the Bible.
This desire becomes the motive that keeps you "on
task," as you seek to discover the right way of the
Lord.
“Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with the
whole heart” (Ps 119:2)
“Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and
receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your
souls” (James 1:21)

BALANCE
You should give attention to all the Word of God.
There may be certain topics you develop a special
interest in, and some passages may be especially
relevant to current needs.
But you need to have a good, overall knowledge of
all the Word of God.
“For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole
counsel of God. (Acts 20:27).

COMMANDMENTS
In your study, you will come across
commandments; imperative statements which
require action, and originate in divine wisdom.
Carefully look into the context, and discover who
the commandment is directed to.
If the commandment applies to you, decide right
then that you will obey.
You have commanded us To keep Your precepts diligently. Psalms
119:4.
Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have
the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the
city. Revelation 22:14.

DILIGENCE
Diligence means great effort and care.
If you read the Bible carefully, and study the
context, define words and consult references– that
requires effort, but pays great dividends.
Pray as David did: “Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous thing
from Your law” Psalms 119:18.

EXAMPLES
All through the Scriptures, there are examples.
We read of people who did good things, and afford
us excellent illustrations of what's right.
There are also stories of good people who took
wrong turns, and sinned against God.
In other words, there are good examples and bad
examples.
We should study these, and let them instruct us.
“.. nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor
extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God” 1 Cor. 10:6.
The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me,
these do, and the God of peace will be with you. Phil 4:9.

FAITH
Effective Bible study requires belief in God, trust in
Jesus, and full confidence in the truth of God's
Word.
Mere intellectual or academic interests will never
yield the fruit that is generated by faith.
“So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”
Romans 10:17.
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes
to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those
who diligently seek Him” Hebrews 11:6.

GOD
One vital accomplishment of Bible study is to learn
about God.
There is really no other way to find out who God is,
what He is like, how He reacts, and what He has
promised, except in the Scriptures.
“Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who
fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His
goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off” Romans 11:22

HELP
Don't ever hesitate to ask for help.
Have you ever been in a preacher's office?
The walls are lined with hundreds of books, and their
purpose is to help the preacher understand the Bible.
Dictionary books, concordances, commentaries and
reference works simply imply that we may need some
help.
There is no shame in asking for help.
So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and
said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31And he said,
“How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to
come up and sit with him. Acts 8:30-31

IMPLICATIONS
As you go through the written Word of God, not only
will you learn from examples, and find commands
that apply to you, there are also implications.
Don't call just anything an implication, but when
the information in the text leads to a conclusion,
accept it and consider it to be part of God's
revelation.

JESUS
"...God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son...,"
John 3:16.
This good news is the theme of the Bible– Look for
this everywhere!
In Old Testament prophetic passages, the psalms
of David, the institutions of the Mosaic system, the
gospel accounts, Acts, the epistles and the
Revelation of John — Jesus is everywhere.
Look for Him, and let every new experience of Bible
study bring you closer to Him.
“And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the
firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the pre-
eminence” Colossians 1:18

KNOWLEDGE
Your object is to acquire a knowledge of God's
truth.
“that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being
fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God”
Colossians 1:10

LOVE
LOVE the truth.
Paul spoke of some who would perish, and he said
they were deceived:
"because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be
saved," (2 Thess. 2:10).
Therefore, a love for the truth is an essential
quality of a good Bible student.

MATURITY
Growth to maturity in Christ can never be realised,
apart from Bible study.
As you learn of Christ, and study His will and apply
what you learn, you involve yourself in a process
that produces maturity.
“Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all
wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus”
Colossians 1:28

NOURISHMENT
Understand, that you cannot have spiritual life
without the divine food that sustains that life.
"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds
from the mouth of God,” Matt 4:4.
12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone

to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you
have come to need milk and not solid food. 13For everyone who
partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he
is a babe. 14But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is,
those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both
good and evil. Hebrews 5:12-14
Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all
evil speaking, 2as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word,
that you may grow thereby, 3if indeed you have tasted that the Lord
is gracious. 1 Peter 2:1-3

OBEDIENCE
Honouring Christ and pleasing God by obeying the
Word of God — let that be your constant object.
And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation
to all who obey Him, Hebrews 5:9
24“Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I

will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:
25“and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and

beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26“But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do

them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand:
27“and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and

beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.” Matthew
7:24-27

PATIENCE
Do you sometimes think it would be great to sit
down with your Bible today, and have complete
knowledge by noon tomorrow?
That's not reality.
Be patient with yourself, keeping studying, and
you'll add more to your store of Bible knowledge
after every session.
Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in
anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you.
Philippians 3:15

QUESTIONS
Use questions to learn about a text.
“Who wrote this …”
“Who was it written to …”
“What are the historical circumstance …”
“Are there are other passages that will help me understand this ...”
“What is there in this passage that I need to apply …”
“How does this passage help me understand other parts of the
Bible…”
etc. etc.

REVIEW
Don't ever finish or "get through" with any portion
of Scripture.
Go back and review.
Start over again with key passages, and you may
learn something you missed before.
I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Philippians 1:3
“Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle (in both of which I
stir up your pure minds by way of reminder)” 2 Peter 3:1

STUDY
There is a difference between reading and study!
When you read, that's your first contact with the
information.
Next, you should think about that information:
"What did it mean to them?
What does this mean today?
How do I apply this today?
How does this passage or teaching relate to other parts of the Bible?
When you study, you apply the mind God gave you,
to the book He gave you.
“Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the
Lord is” Ephesians 5:17

TRACKING
Track promises and prophecy.
When you find a promise:
“And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between
your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall
bruise His heel.” Genesis 3:15.
or a prophecy:
Who has believed our report? 1And to whom has the arm of the Lord
been revealed? Isaiah 53
in the Old Testament, follow those passages to
their fulfilment.

UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES
Especially when you read the stories in the Old
Testament, don't just regard those passages as
historical narratives.
Look for underlying principles that transcend
dispensational boundaries.
“For whatever things were written before were written for our
learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures
might have hope” Romans 15:4

VERSIONS
Bible book stores shelves are running over with all
sorts of different versions and translations of the
Bible, some good and helpful; others, twisted and
inaccurate.
Consulting several English translations can be
helpful, but don't get too far away from the
standard translations—(King James, New King
James, American Standard, New American
Standard).

WORDS
Don't deceive yourself into thinking that "word
studies" and definitions are boring or
unnecessary.
The fact is, God has chosen to communicate with
us through words.
We need to know what those words mean.
Use a good Bible dictionary, consult references,
and respect the Biblical significance of the words
you read.
“These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom
teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things
with spiritual” 1 Corinthians 2:13

X
X marks the spot.
Systematic reading all the way through the Bible is
a great help to your understanding.
Read a portion, mark an "X" in the margin, or put the
date, then continue at that place next time.

YOURSELF
We may be tempted, in our Bible reading and study,
to immediately think of others – how they need
this; how others have violated what the passage
says.
Our first concern must be, self-examination.
Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test
yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?
—unless indeed you are disqualified. 2 Corinthians 13:5

ZEAL
As you read and study and gain knowledge, be sure
that knowledge is accompanied by the zeal to
teach and practice the truth of the gospel.
Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they
may be saved. 2For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God,
but not according to knowledge. 3For they being ignorant of God’s
righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have
not submitted to the righteousness of God. Romans 10:1-3.

©Warren E. Berkley 1999
Presented by the Cape Rd Church of Christ,. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

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