The B-I-B-L-E, Part 4

If the Bible is going to transform our lives, it will involve immersing ourselves in its story. But to read the Bible for all its worth we must first learn how to read the Bible as it presents itself to us.

You Deserve
Hillsong Worship

The Passion
Hillsong Worship

Jesus Over Everything
The Belonging Co

Nothing Else
Cody Carnes

Romans 12:1-2
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

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Rules to Reading
Rule #1: Don’t read your bible literally, read it literarily.

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Types of Biblical Literature
1. Narrative/Story
2. Poetry
3. Prose/Discourse

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Rules to Reading
Rule #2: The Bible was written for us, but not to us.

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Romans 15:4
For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

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A passage cannot mean to you what it did not mean to the original audience.

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The rule in bible reading is: context, context, context.

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Ben Witherington
“A text without a context is just a pretext for whatever you want it to mean.”

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Questions to Ask When You’re Reading

Who?
Who wrote it? Who is the primary audience? Who are the characters of the writing?

What?
What kind of passage am I reading? What are the big ideas? The main idea? What is the plot? What is the conflict? What is the principle?

When?
When was the passage written? Does the passage point backwards or forwards to other times/places?

Where?
Where is the passage being written? What places (nations, peoples, places, buildings, etc.) are mentioned? What is their significance?

How?
How does the author communicate ideas? How is the author trying to persuade the reader?

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Rules to Reading
Rule #3: The Bible was intended to be read slowly, carefully, and over the course of a lifetime.

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Psalm 1:1-3
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.

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What type of literature is the author using? Narrative, Poetry, Prose/Discourse
What is the author conveying? Who, What, When, Where, How?
Next week we will deal with ‘How does this apply to my life?’

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