How To Study the Bible

Reverend Leo H. McCrary II

Today I want to share with you some of my helpful tips on how to study the bible. These are the ways I learned to study and the things I do when I study to understand scripture today.

Studying scripture is something that we as genuine believers should certainly do.  Paul wrote (2 Tim. 2:15), “Study to shew yourself approved unto God, a workman not the need not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”  In other words, be diligent and do your best to be the genuine believer that God will approve of. The work that we as believers do should be work that we would not be ashamed of because the work is true and of God.  Without sound knowledge of scripture, it is hard for a believer to do such work.

To try to do the work of the Lord without studying would be like trying to perform a job without any training whatsoever.  What I mean by this is that we may have an idea for what the job calls for but we don’t truly know what to do because we have not been trained.  Sadly, we see many believers doing just this thing in our world today – they are trying to do the work of the Lord without any training (studying of scripture).  This believer often ends up in confrontation based off of what they think they know or what they think they have heard.

Sadly, many believers believe that it is enough to simply go to church on Sunday and will rarely study the bible.  They will listen to the preacher preach but not jot down any notes or scriptures that the preacher has referenced.  As a preacher, this often bothers me when I preach and can see that people are not jotting the scripture that has been referenced.  You see, a sermon is not necessarily bible study. Sermons are typically for encouragement of the spirit so, we definitely need to take time to study scripture.  Churches offer bible study and that is certainly a good start, but we can also learn how to study scripture ourselves.  So, I want to take a moment today to share some tips on how to study the bible.

Find the right translation

The bible can already be very intimidating to some.  Most of the intimidation comes from just how confusing some of the words can be.  So, my first piece of advice would be to find a translation that suits you! Whether you are reading a physical copy of the bible or using a phone or PC, you need to be able to understand what you’re reading.

Let’s use this example from Proverbs 16:1-3 – I used this scripture a  few days ago for one of my daily “Food for Thought”.

The preparations of the heart belong to man,But the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. ² All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, But the Lord weighs the spirits. ³ Commit your works to the Lord, And your thoughts will be established.

Proverbs 16:1-3 NKJV

Nowadays, I prefer to use the New King James Version (NKJV), while my brother prefers to use the International Children’s Bible (ICB). Here’s how this same scripture reads with the ICB translation.

People make plans in their hearts. But only the Lord can make those plans come true. ² A person may believe he is doing right. But the Lord will judge his reasons. ³ Depend on the Lord in whatever you do. Then your plans will succeed.

Proverbs 16:1-3 ICB

As you can see, they read differently but they are both getting the same point across.

Some of us will stubbornly stick with a translation, for whatever reason, but not be able to understand what we are reading.  Doing this can make reading scripture incredibly frustrating. If reading scripture is frustrating, then how in the world will you even begin to be able to study scripture.  You see, there’s a great difference between simply reading scripture and studying scripture.  So, I at least want you to be able to at least read scripture without being intimidated with confusing words.  So, before we can even begin studying, we need to find a translation that makes reading scripture both easier and enjoyable.

Keep a dictionary and thesaurus handy

Even with the right translation, there may be words that we do not know the meaning of so, certainly keep you a dictionary or thesaurus nearby.  The beauty about living in 2019 is that you can use Google to find the definition of most words along with their synonyms. Again, I think it is very important that you do everything possible to remove confusion that comes with words.  Scripture can already be hard to understand but to have words we do not know the meaning of in scripture makes it doubly tough.

Pen and paper – take notes!

As I just stated, there’s a big difference between reading and studying – this is something that I continue to push on believers.  When reading, many folks simply glance at the text and can overlook things.  Not to pick on the level of someone’s reading, but other readers will try to read so fast that they will blow through commas which leads to even more confusion.  Studying, in my opinion, is a deeper dive into scripture that will help to answer questions and connect the dots.

We should be ready to make a notation of what we have just read in our studying of scripture.  Some of us have study bibles that come with commentaries, but we often get too reliant on the commentary of another person.  Commentaries are definitely helpful, so if you do not own a commentary or a study bible that comes with commentary – get one!

Commentaries are great for assisting us in our studies but we do not want to become overly reliant on the commentaries. It would be like getting somebody else to do your homework for you while you were in school. (You can’t learn that way). So, use the commentary for assistance but don’t become overly reliant on them – make your own commentary on scripture.  (We need to learn how to note what we saw in the scripture – what was important to us.)

Writing is a great means in being able to help us with remembering something, right?  So, we should be ready to write in our bibles (nothing wrong with doing that) or write on a piece of paper.  Take a highlighter with you to church and highlight scripture(s) that the preacher references so that you can take a deeper dive into the scripture.

Context, context, context

One of the things that happens a lot with scripture is that scripture often gets taken out of context.  (Due to a lack of studying.) So, when we study a scripture, passage of scripture, chapter, or even a person in the bible, we must study the entire context of scripture!  To illustrate what I mean by this, let’s use a scripture that we are all familiar with – John 3:16.  We all know John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.”

We have heard this scripture said so much that we can quote it word for word.  However, can you really breakdown what this scripture is saying to somebody. Could you tell somebody who said this?  Are you able to say who this is said too and the purpose of why this was said?  There is so much here in John 3:16 that many preachers will tell you that this scripture is all a believer needs to live by and share!

Jesus says what is recorded in John 3:16 to Nicodemus.  Nicodemus was a Pharisee (John 3:1) who came to Jesus at night (John 3:2) wanting to be taught.  Jesus was teaching Nicodemus of being born again (John 3:3) and John 3:16 is the climax of the lesson.  Jesus teaches Nicodemus that anybody can be saved through their faith in the only begotten Son.  These are just a few of the things that we get just by studying John 3:16.

Honestly, we could go even deeper into John 3:16.  For example, we could study about the love of God from this scripture.  We see that the Lord loves the world, but we are told just how great His love is for the world in that He gives us His only begotten Son.  We could also study about the idea of one perishing, right?  I would write down or make a note that asks, “what is meant by perishing?  What would lead to someone perishing?” Then, I would make a note that this scripture is about faith so, not having faith in the Son, would lead to one perishing.  I would then seek to cross-reference this scripture to find common scriptures that could better explain what is meant by perishing.

Questions and an open mind

There is nothing wrong with questioning.  Asking questions, in my opinion, is the start of studying.  Having questions show a sign of interest and curiosity. We have to keep that kind of open mind when it comes to our study of scripture.  The worst thing we can do is question scripture and assume that something is wrong with the scripture.  What is likely wrong is our understanding and so, because we don’t understand scripture, we will assume that the problem is with the scripture.  No, we should ask, what is the problem with me and why can I not understand the scripture. Our minds cannot be closed off when it comes to our study of scripture.

Be guided by the Spirit

We should let the Holy Spirit guide us in our studies.  Jesus tells us that the Holy Spirit will guide us in all truth (John 16:13).  So, we should consult with the Lord in our studies and also allow Him to reveal to us the meaning of what we are studying.  Some will not understand this because they do not believe, but the Spirit will certainly guide those who are faithful in their study.

Find a good brother or sister in Christ

Lastly, it is good to have a good brother or sister in Christ be your study partner.  The beautiful thing about scripture is that what one may see, the other may see something differently.  This should not lead to debate, but it should lead to really good studying.  When I teach a class, or lead a study, I love to have an open discussion about scripture.  An open discussion leads to new ideas and questions, which allows for an even deeper study with more minds thinking spiritually on a subject.

And have fun!

Admittedly, my tips for studying scripture is definitely not rocket science.  That said, these tips are ways that have helped me when it comes to studying scripture.  I was blessed in that my dad was a pastor so I was always able to ask him questions and we would have great discussions about scripture.  Studying scripture should be fun and something that brings great joy and understanding to your spirit.  If you have questions about a scripture and cannot find an answer, definitely ask your pastor.  We enjoy any opportunity we get to be able to discuss scripture!