Welcome Back! Let’s continue our with our series titled
“How to Study the Bible”
for our Christian walk with our Lord Jesus Christ…
How to Study the Bible (Part 3)
Interpreting the Bible
Once we
read the Bible and know what it says, the next step is to find out what it
means. Only when we've correctly interpreted a biblical passage can we then
correctly apply it to our lives and bring glory to God through faithful obedience to His Word!
Interpreting the Bible
The Old Testament book of Nehemiah shows us the “science” of
interpretation at work:
Now all the people gathered together as one man in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded Israel. So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could hear with understanding on the first day of the seventh month. Then he read from it in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate from morning until midday… – Nehemiah 8:1-3a
Reading
the Bible is where our "understanding" begins:
…before the men and women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law – Nehemiah 8:1-3b
And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. Then all the people answered, “Amen, Amen!” while lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground – Nehemiah 8:5-6
The people responded to the "reading"
of Scripture as they "worshiped"
the Lord.
Verse 8 is the key:
So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading – Nehemiah 8:8
That's what's involved in interpreting the text. To “understand”
our “reading” we must read “distinctly”
from “the book”
– the Word of God!
The Apostle Paul also admonished young Timothy in this same manner:
Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine – 1 Timothy 4:13
Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth – 2 Timothy 2:15
This is what “rightly
dividing the word of truth” is all about! Sound “reading”
leads to sound “exhortation” which leads to sound “doctrine.”
Anything less leads to misinterpretation –
which is the mother of all kinds of mania. For example, some cults teach
their followers that since the Old Testament patriarchs practiced
polygamy, so must they. Others say that women
should suffer in childbirth as a divine punishment and to not use
anesthesia. Such foolish misinterpretations arise when one doesn't "understand"
what the Bible is really saying in context of the specific situation at hand...
We must be "diligent" students of the Word of God regarding “all things pertaining to life in godliness” in Jesus Christ:
His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to
life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory
and excellence – 2
Peter 1:3
Thank you for reading! Don’t miss next week’s continued investigation of
How to Study the Bible…
May the Lord Jesus Christ continue to bless you with His perfect love,
mercy and grace!
Keep looking up and sharing the Gospel while there is still time…
Hallelujah and Maranatha – come quickly Lord Jesus!
We are not guaranteed tomorrow – tomorrow may be too late! If you haven't yet made that most important decision of your life, won't you make Jesus Christ your personal Lord and Savior today - before it's too late? Today is the day of Salvation!
If you have been blessed by this message or have a specific question, prayer request or testimony, please send me a note to: encouragingconcepts@live.com
I love hearing from you. Keep reading Encouraging Concepts!
Blessings!
Shane K. Morin <><
Encouraging Concepts
Truth for Today
"Living Life From a Biblical Worldview"Lighthouse Publications <><
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