by Julius Mbuthia
There are various ways in which you can do a personal Bible study. You can choose on one method or combine the various methods outlined below.
Methods of study
1) Inspired study: This is the kind of study you do when the Lord leads you to study a particular topic in the Bible, book of the Bible or particular passage or verse.
2) Cover to cover: This is the kind of study that involves reading the entire Bible starting from the book of Genesis to the book of Revelation.
3) Study by Topic: This involves studying the Bible with a specific topic in mind. You can do a topic study like on healing by checking up every place where the word healing appears in the Bible and learning more about the topic.
4) Random study: This involves opening the bible to any passage of scripture and reading it. This type of method should not be encouraged especially for one who wants to do serious bible study.
When studying
1) Have a good bible: A good Bible is one you can easily understand, one that does not distort the original meaning of the scriptures and one that does not omit Bible verses by making them footnotes. It is prudent to have different versions of Bibles so as to cross reference the scriptures as they appear in other versions for better understanding.
2) Have a good notebook to jot down that which you learn. You should study the bible in the hope of knowing God, yourself and others better. It is therefore wisdom to have a good notebook where you can write down some of the things you learn as you study the Bible. Treasure your notebook and store it well.
3) Seek out key words out of every passage and seek to understand their meaning while at the same time looking for other scriptures that build on the words that you have picked out as key in the passage. This is necessary because scripture interprets scripture. No one scripture can stand on its own. It must have other scriptures to back it up. Indeed the testimony of any scripture must be built on the witness of two or three other scriptures. It also helps if you are studying the New Testament to find the parallel of the same in the Old Testament. It is often said that the Old Testament is revealed in the New Testament while the New Testament is in the Old Testament concealed.
Comments