These posts will give you tips on how to get the most out of your Bible study

STT: Memorize

Memorize it. That’s it. That’s the tip. Believe it or not, a key component to your Bible study is memorization. I know, we think memory verses are for kids, and we have way too much to remember NOW. Adding Bible verses will cause a total system shutdown.

What if it was easy?

Foolproof?

Would you be willing to give it a try?

Kay Arthur has the easiest method to memorize Scripture I’ve ever run across. All you have to do is read. She says read the Scripture three times, out loud, in the morning, at midday and before bed. Just read. Look at it the whole time. Don’t worry about trying to remember it. In seven days, the verse will be locked in your memory.

Give it a try and let me know how it works for you. The benefits are great!

Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You! Psalm 119:11 (NKJV)

If you want more out of your Bible study, this book can help.

Study Tip: Making the Old Stories New

By Paula Wiseman

Making the Old stories new title graphic

This time of year highlights one of the toughest aspects of Bible study. Reruns. Not to take away from the wonder and glory of the Easter story, but I know from teaching my boys on Sunday morning that it’s a challenge to come up with a new angle before they glaze over. My ten-year-olds have studied this lesson at least four times in their young lives, twice with me. So how can we breathe new life into the old, old story?

1. Read it out loud, maybe in a new translation. This forces you to slow down and pay closer attention to what you read. You can’t skip or skim, and your brain stays engaged.

2. Follow the action. Pay attention to what the people do. Often when we read, we key on the conversations, but the Easter story is full of action and movement. Sometimes I even imagine what the bystanders were doing.

3. Details, details. One of my favorite details in the Easter story is a quick sentence in John 13:30. Jesus has just spoken to Judas, “What you do, do quickly.” Judas leaves immediately, and the verse ends with “And it was night.” Not just a report of the time of day, but a statement rich in implication.

How do you keep familiar stories fresh?

My son’s favorite way to revisit favorite stories is to stage them with Legos. Here’s his Lego Good Friday. (He was disappointed that he had to use Persians for the Romans. I told him folks would understand.)

Study Tip: What Interpretation Isn’t

By Paula Wiseman

For our final look (for now) at how to interpret Scripture I'm gonna split some semantic hairs.

Often times I've heard teachers or have seen study guide questions that ask what a particular passage "means" to you. Beware. While I believe the questions are asked innocently enough, there's a distinction worth making. The "meaning" doesn't change. No matter who reads it or when, God's word doesn't change.

What does change, what is personal, is how it applies to your life.

Let's look at some verses that we don't need much interpretation to understand. Philippians 4:6-7 says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God which passes all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

Some applications might be:

I need to give thanks more when I pray
I need to ask God to meet my needs rather than trying to do everything myself
I should quit worrying
God gives peace when I give Him my worries

Whatever I "take away" from Bible study is application, not a new interpretation.

Study Tip: Resolving Contradiction

By Paula Wiseman

The main rule for interpreting Scripture is a simple one.

Scripture never contradicts Scripture.

Period. If you run into an apparent contradiction, then examine your context clues to resolve it. Let's look at an example.

Paul says in Romans 4:5 "But to him who does not work, but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness." But then James 2:14 says, "What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?" It looks like Paul says if you have works, you can't be saved, while James implies you can't be saved without them.

I won't take the time to go through all the verses here, but I encourage you to read Romans and James to what I say. However if you take a step back and read the verses in the bigger context, you'll see that Paul and James are talking about two different things even though they use the same word.

(We do this too. I could say, "He even rode his bike to work." Did I mean a bicycle or a motorcycle? Without context, there's no way to tell. However, if you'd heard the sentences before, it would be easy to tell. "He's really proud of that Harley." Vs. "He's trying to save money.")

Back to Paul and James- reading the verses in context, you find out that Paul is talking about what folks to merit salvation rather than relying on Gods grace alone. If you aren't trying to work your way to heaven, but trust solely on God, then that faith saves.

James is talking about the things we do after we're saved that give evidence of that change. (Jesus uses the idea of "fruit" for the same concept.) James' point is that faith that doesn't produce anything may not be genuine faith after all.

Have you run into seeming contradictions? What was the resolution?

Study Tip: Recognizing Context

By Paula Wiseman

Eyeglasses on an open book

Usually in the study tips, we focus on observation – looking at what the text says, noticing markers or other key words. For the next several posts, we'll look at INTERPRETATION, ways to help discern what God's word MEANS.

The most important consideration for interpreting Scripture is its context. Context includes everything that goes "with" the text. Think of it as the setting or the backdrop for the words. It includes the passage, chapter, book and testament where the Scripture is found.

(Now before you quit reading, thinking this sounds complicated, let me reassure you. You interpret words based on context all the time. For instance, let's say you told me you were coming for dinner, and I said, "Great!" while I smiled and pumped my fists. You would interpret that to mean I was excited about having you as my guest.

However, if I said, "Great!" with a frown and I rolled my eyes, you'd interpret that entirely differently. In each case, the words were the same, but the body language gave you a context in which to interpret them. Piece of cake.)

Here's a verse: "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High." Isaiah 14:14

At first reading, that sounds like a pretty good thing, maybe even a promise of what we'll achieve one day, but in order to correctly interpret it, we need to take a step back and look at the verses around it.

When we go back and read v. 12-13, we find out that it's Lucifer (that is, Satan) talking, and if we keep reading, we learn that he will be brought down to the lowest depths for trying to carry out his boasts.

Some questions to ask as you look at context –

Where does the topic or conversation begin and end? It may be several chapters before or after your current passage.
What prompted the topic? Was there a situation or a question?
What type of book is the passage in? Prophecy that may have metaphors and symbols? A history book or a gospel narrative? Or a doctrinal epistle?
Who is speaking? What is the occasion? Who is the audience?

Becoming aware of context is the first step. Next week we'll look at more context clues.

Study Tip: Keeping it fresh

By Paula Wiseman

Study Tip Tuesday Keeping it fresh title graphic

One of the keys to getting something from your study time is staying engaged. This is easier said than done with some passages. I have a good friend who is a pro when it comes to Bible study, but she has absolutely no interest in the tabernacle, and will read over those descriptions. Genealogies, lists, building details, battles all present challenges in keeping focused. However, I find one of the toughest kinds of passages to study are the very familiar. In other words, how do you go about keeping it fresh when you study something you’ve read often?

Two weeks ago, I had to teach David and Goliath for Sunday school. I’ve been in church since I was a kid and I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say I’ve heard or read this story thirty or forty times. Here are some ideas to keep the story (or any story) fresh.

1. Read it out loud – We have a tendency to read ‘over’ things we think we know. (This is what makes me a terrible proofreader for my own stuff.) Reading out loud forces us to slow down and pay attention to each word. You also get the added benefit of hearing the words as well as reading them. If you’re in a class, try reading in parts rather than verse by verse. Have someone read David’s dialogue, someone for Goliath’s, Saul’s and any of the other people and then have a narrator fill in.

2. Details – David makes a point of describing his efforts to protect his father’s sheep. Then Scripture tells us he takes his shepherd’s staff and put 5 stones in his shepherd’s bag. What’s the connection? I think David was going out to protect his Father’s sheep- Israel- from an attacker. Oh and some folks believe the reason he picked up 5 stones was because Goliath had 4 brothers. David may have figured he’d have to whip them too before the battle was done. (2 Samuel mentions the deaths of Goliath’s brothers in battle.) Picking up on these little details will go a long way to keeping it fresh.

3. Other characters – We have a fair idea what the battle was like from David’s and from Goliath’s perspectives, but what about Saul’s? Or David’s brothers? Or the foot soldiers on either side? Do you think the witnesses told that story for the next 30 or 40 years? I bet they did.

4. My teacher’s materials had an exercise that went through the story identifying whose power each person was relying on. (The only person who gained a victory was the only person relying on God’s power and not his own. Hmmm.)

God’s word is living, and it is a limitless well of wisdom and insight. Ask Him what new angle He can give you on some of these old, familiar stories.

Study Tip: Making the Old Stories New