Friday, February 25, 2011

Lets Start the Gospel of John - and the Four "P's

John 1:1-18 Stop! Look! Listen! Bible Study

Lets actually use what we have discussed over the past few weeks and do a little Bible Study!! (I always use a NKJ version – so some of your wording may not be the same as mine.) We will begin with just a few verses and progress on to entire chapter studies. As you study please keep a list of resources you might use….internet, concordance, Bible dictionary, etc…. you might need to go back and find these later.

These may be very familiar verses to some of us, but lets look at them with new eyes.

STOP! Ask:
Which Bible translation am I using, and why?
Who wrote this book and why? In many of the New Testament books and letters the author will actually tell why he wrote it…. (hint hint - John 20:30-31 and 21:24-25). Keep this in mind as we study each chapter – we will ask “How did the author make his point/purpose in these verses?”

Read the verses. Slow down and read each verse. Make note of any words/concepts you do not understand – you will research these in the ‘LOOK’ phase. (For example – do you know what “Word” and “Light” mean? Why a capital “L”? ) This is the general overview section.

LOOK! Here is where you do your main research. Begin by reading it again. Again look for words you do not understand; also look for special words like “because”, “for,” when it means because, and “but.” These words all signal important information, or relationships.

Research the words/concepts you noted that you do not fully understand.
Ask and answer questions from what you have read; for example: Who is the He/Him mentioned (should be written in caps)? Re-read these verses and replace the name of the person where the He or Him as in the sentence. This makes the verses come alive with understanding.

Who is this John in these verses? John the author, or someone else?
If I was doing this study I might also write downto research “bosom of the Father, and ‘begotten.”

How is 2 Tim. 3:16-17 applied to these verses?

Do you see any “practice” “principle” “precepts” or “progressive revelation”?(If you missed the class when we discussed this....it is posted at the end of this lesson)

How did the author make his point/purpose in these verses?

LISTEN! This is the most important section of our study. Why bother to study if we are not going to “Listen” and apply God’s Word to our lives?
Always ask:
What is God trying to say to me?
What if these verses had been left out of Scripture?
How can I apply these verses to my life today in 2011?


Four Ps of Bible Study

We learn from Scripture by other ways than there being direct commands or statements. These are the "four p's"

As we study Scripture, look for the “Four P’s.” Not all sections of Scripture that you study will have each, or even one of these...but Look for:


Practice what is the ongoing custom or tradition that is repeated? What can we learn from this that will influence our understanding of the story? The practice of male leadership. Jesus prayed. Practice is something tangiible that can be seen; an action. The point is we are given an example to follow. “Practice” also teaches us something about history….manners and customs… Why is it important to look for these?

Precept a specific rule, command, instruction. Are any given? Thou shalt not kill. Wives and husbands are told to love each other and to be submissive to each other….”husbands love your wives as you love yourself and as Christ loved the church…” Why is it important for us to look for these precepts?

Principle a belief, a standard. A general truth. A fundamental assumption. "Principle" is not tangible. A generally acceptable rule of action or behavior, i.e. moral principles. General biblical principles might include the Trinity (the word “trinity” never appears in Scripture”, the sovereignty of God (as seen in the story of Esther – thought never called the sovereignty of God…. Why is it important for us to look at any principles?

Progressive Revelation information that is unveiled a little at a time. Genesis through Revelation slowly unveils teachings of the Messiah to come. Daniel and Joel, and others, give us some information, but it does not all come together until the book of Revelation. The Gospels unveil the Messiah. Revelation then ties up all the loose ends with the actual unveiling of the King of Kings who returns again to the earth for one last time.
Much of prophecy is ‘progressive revelation.’ Why is looking for progressive revelation important?


Go to my Feb. 19 post that suggests resources you might use for study/research.

Monday, February 21, 2011

2 Tim. 3:16-17

It is important to understand these verses because we will use the verse in each of our studies...it will appear iin the "LOOK!" section of our technique.


Stop! Look! Listen!


General Outline – 2 Tim. 3:16-17

We will go into much detail for each section at a later date


STOP! LOOK! LIISTEN! This technique can be used on a chapter, an entire book, or even just one verse. Let’s practice one verse… These verses are two of the most often quoted verses in the church. Why?

STOP! Pray before you begin

1. Which translation are you using and why? Does it matter?

2. Ask why I am studying this topic? What do I already know about it?

3. Who is the author of this section of Scripture? Why did he write it?

4. General reading and overview of the entire chapter/book for general information. Read slowly and purposefully. Read every word.

5. Stop! at - “because” “for, “so that,” and 'but'... etc… what is being said?

6. Pick out key words and concepts that you do not understand. Just make a list. Do you understand all the words in this verse? How will you go about doing research in the LOOK section?

LOOK!
1. Read it again.

2. Research the study words/concepts from the Stop! section. What does the word actually mean…”all”, “inspiration,” “doctrine, “reproof,” “correction,” “righteousness,” “thoroughly equipped” etc… Some of you will want to look these words up in a concordance, or word study book, dictionary, etc… What do these words really?

3. Look Left! Look Right! What verses came before? What verses came after? How do they all fit together?

4. These verses are two of the most often quoted verses in the church. Why?

5. What do these verses say about Scripture that should make you want to study it more, and to apply it to your life?

LISTEN!

1. Read it again

2. Why did God give us this verse?

3. What if these verses had been left out of Scripture?

4. How do I apply these verses to my life today?

Go to my Feb. 19 post that suggests resources you might use for study/research.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Online Resources

Good sties for reference. I might use these when I research.

http://www.ewordtoday.com/comments/mcgee/ J Vernon McGee****

www.biblegateway.com Matthew Henry****

http://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries....... Lists several writers….AND you can do an actual word search if you us the ROBERTSON’s Word Picture. Stick with men you know like Henry and Scofield. ****

http://www.biblebb.com/brefindex/joh.htm Commentary by CH Spurgeon****

**** Know who you are reading on the internet. Don’t forget there will be cult writers, whose doctrine we do not follow, that have as many websites as mainline Christians. These are examples of a few I know and trust. There are others writers and sites. Let me know if you find any other good sites.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Romans 12 - Stop! Look! Listen!

Here is a 'general' outline of the SLL technique for our study this week. We will go into much more detail in each phase....this is just a beginning. Do what you can. Please do at least look over what sort of things we are looking for/studying, and please do read over the entire chapter 12 of Romans.

Stop! Look! Listen!
General Outline – Romans 12

(We will go into much detail for each section at a later date)

STOP! Pray before you begin.

1. Which translation are you using? Why?

2. Ask why I am studying this topic/book? What do I already know about it?

3. Who is the author of this section of Scripture? Why did he write it?

4. General reading and overview of the entire chapter/book for general
information. Read slowly and purposefully. Read every word.

5. Stop! when God explains something with - “because” “for, “so that,” etc…

6. Pick out key words and concepts that you do not understand. Just make a list.

7. Scan the horizon – where does this take place? Is geography important?


LOOK!

1. Read it again.

2. Research the study words/concepts from the Stop! section.

3. Look Left! Look Right! What came before? What came after?

4. Ask questions. Make charts as necessary.

5. How does 2 Tim. 3:16 apply?



LISTEN!
1. Read it again.

2. Why did God give us this story?

3. What if this story had been left out of Scripture?

4. How do I apply this story to my life today?

Sunday, February 6, 2011

First Part of the SLL Study

Psalm 119: 1-40
“STOP” Study
Bible Study is hard work, it is not casual, recreational reading. We do not have to be Biblical scholars to find out the meaning of what God has to say to us. With help of the Holy Spirit, some time, a few study techniques, and diligence, even a layperson can understand Scripture.

One simple method of personal Bible Study is the “Stop – Look – Listen” technique. Many of us grew up with our parents teaching us to “Stop-Look- Listen” as we cross a busy street. This little childhood phrase can guide our steps not only across the street, but in our personal Bible Study. It is easy to remember, and we can “take it” with us anywhere!

The STOP! phase is first. Here you get an over view of your verses and begin to note what is important, and perhaps what you do not really understand.

STOP! Pray before you begin.

1. Who wrote what you are reading? Why was it written? What is the ‘background’ of what you are reading?

2. Read Ps 119: 1-40. Read it slowly and purposefully. Read every word (now that sounds silly, but most of us rush through our reading and miss out on some important words.)

Ask why I am studying this topic/section of Scripture? What do I already know about this topic/Section of Scripture?

General reading and overview. Write! Write! Write! Take notes. The more your write and interact with your study, the more you will remember.

Stop when God explains something with the words- “because” “for, “ so that,” “but”, etc… and look closely at the verse.

Pick out key words and concepts that you do not understand. Just make a list. For instance, may Bibles will note these words in Ps119 vs 1 “Aleph”, vs 9 “Beth” vs 17 “Gimel, vs25 “Daleth”, vs 33 “He”….do you know what these mean?

7. Look for repeated words or phrases – these are keys to understanding.

8. Scan the horizon – where does this take place? Is geography important?(There is no mention of geography in Ps 119)

Remember….this is just the first step in ‘digging deeper’
In the next step we will do the research needed, we will ask/answer questions, etc….. Also, I am going to teach you how to ‘have fun’ studying Scripture!!