Study
By Cassie Troja
What does it mean to study the Bible?
Chances are that you have been told many times to read your Bible on a regular basis and you would love to build on that habit, but you don’t really know where to start. Reading the Bible is a wonderful practice, but you want to dig deeper. What does it mean to really study the Bible? CS Lewis said, “We have to be continually reminded of what we believe. Neither this belief nor any other will automatically remain alive in the mind. It must be fed.” Studying the Bible can be one of the most rewarding habits you ever develop! Here are some tips and resources to help you get started feeding your mind with God’s Word.
First of all, pray. Start and end your study time with prayer. One of the roles of the Holy Spirit is to help us to understand the Bible. In Isaiah 55:10-11, God declares that His ways and thoughts are not the same as ours but that His Word will not return void. This means that God has promised to help us understand the Bible, and He sent the Holy Spirit to help (John 14:16, 15:26, 16:13-14). So pray and share your questions, doubts, and your joy with God as you dig deeper into His Word. Ask for His help as you seek His truth.
As you study, it’s also crucial you keep a few things in mind: understand the context in which each chapter and book were written, who the author was and who their intended audience was, and what each passage reveals about God’s character. Get in the habit of reading chapters or sections of verses. If you read one verse on it’s own, you risk taking it out of context and misunderstanding the original message. So what are some practical tools to help us determine and understand things like the context, author, audience, etc?
For starters, find a good study Bible! The ESV Study Bible by Crossway is a great start. 95 Bible scholars spent years compiling over 20,000 study notes, 80,000 cross references, and many diagrams and maps. These resources are already built into the Bible itself, so it’s not only helpful but also convenient. It doesn’t have to be the ESV translation, as long as it is a trustworthy translation. For example, I often like to read the ESV and the NLT together as this helps me compare translations and notes. Although the two versions were translated differently, they are both faithful to the original documents and both help us to have a better understanding of the context.
Another resource is a good commentary, survey, or book study. Each of these will help you have a much deeper understanding of the context. Crossway’s Knowing the Bible series and NavPress’s LifeChange series are wonderful examples of studies that take deep dives into individual books. Norman Geisler wrote two wonderful surveys—one focusing on the Old Testament and one on the New Testament. If you can find it, there’s an older book entitled What the Bible Is All About by Dr. Henrietta Mears that provides a wonderful overview of each book in light of the role it plays in the overall redemption story of the Bible. All of these are examples of wonderful resources to help you as you seek to study the Bible in-depth.
One last resource that is widely underused in our culture: seek out a mentor. Ask your parents and/or leadership to help connect you with someone who would be willing to meet with you regularly. This should be someone who is willing to help answer your questions and seek answers with you when they don’t know. They can also help hold you accountable for studying your Bible, help you find biblically sound resources, and pray for you regularly. A mentor should be someone who is more mature in their faith than you and with whom you feel you can freely discuss and ask questions. The Bible is full of examples of mentoring relationships from Moses and Joshua to Paul and Timothy. A mentoring relationship can be a valuable resource in your Christian growth. I know for a fact that there are plenty of people at Fellowship Bible Church who would be willing to help, so don’t be afraid to ask!
All these resources sound great, but what should your study time actually look like? You might already be very busy and wondering how you’re supposed to fit all this into your schedule. Well, the short answer is…you have to make time. There’s no easy way around it. You have to intentionally make time; this is crucial to your relationship with God. In order to really reap the benefits, I recommend setting aside at least 30 minutes every day. You need time to dig into a chapter of the Bible, take notes, maybe journal or write in a study guide, and pray. Keeping a prayer or gratitude journal can be helpful as well, but it’s not necessary.
It helps to have a designated place you like to go that is quiet and has space for you to read and write comfortably. Most Bibles now have bookmarks built in—don’t be afraid to use it as you dig into cross-references (which I highly recommend!) and study materials! Don’t be afraid to spend extra time in passages that are difficult or that pique your interest. It is more important to dig in and really try to understand the scriptures than to meet some arbitrary timeline in a reading plan. I’ve been known to spend a whole week on one chapter!
No matter what, you should set aside at least 30 minutes of focused, uninterrupted time for studying the Bible and praying. Maybe leave yourself a buffer period at the end too, because once you get started, you may find yourself going much longer as your hunger for God’s Word grows. And it will grow—through prayer and regular study, it will grow!
REFLECTION
If you’re looking for where to start, consider starting with the book the church is currently studying (right now it’s Luke at FBC). This is a great way to get more insights and potentially answer questions you may have from the sermons each week. Ask the Impact leadership or one of the pastoral staff which book is coming next so you can get resources to prepare.
It takes 30 days to establish a habit. Challenge yourself to read at least one chapter of the Bible every day for 30 days. Use a free chart or Bible reading plan for guidance and check off each day as you complete it. Journal about your experience.
What is your biggest struggle when it comes to making time to study the scriptures? Identify one practical step you can take tomorrow to address this obstacle. Yes, it’s that important. Maybe it’s getting up earlier, going to bed earlier, talking to someone about how to construct a productive quiet time that works for you, cleaning off that desk so you have space—whatever it is, take the first step.
Read Psalm 63. Who wrote it, when, and why? What does this Psalm tell us about God?