The Living Church of God is active worldwide with more than 230 ministers serving more than 400 congregations around the world. The Living Church of God also produces the Tomorrow’s World magazine and television show. In the following article, the Living Church of God reviews the seven keys to Bible study so that Christians can reprioritize the understanding and application of God’s holy Word.
Studying the Bible, the living Word of God, is a practice that aims to renew the minds of Christians and help them believe encouraging and enlightening truth. This is particularly the case in times of difficulty. However, after a 2022 study, the number of Christians who study the Bible daily had fallen to just 10% in America. To counteract this, the Living Church of God has prepared seven Bible study keys to better understand the importance of studying the scriptures.
The Living Church of God reviews these seven collections when it comes to studying the right book in the list below:
- The Bible is still relevant
- The Bible is complete
- The Bible is enough
- The Bible’s position on a subject must be studied in depth
- The context of the Bible must be understood
- The Bible should be proven
- The Bible should not be studied without prayer
Below, the Living Church of God analyzes and explains each of these seven components with the goal of using and remembering them before each study attempt.
The good book is still relevant in 2023
The Living Church of God reminds us that often one of the greatest obstacles to daily Bible study is the idea that it is not a necessary part of living everyday life. After all, even his most recent books were written almost two millennia before the present day.
However, it is important to place the Bible in its proper position in relation to our lives: it is completely relevant for the present. Not only that, but the prophecies of the good book actually predict the future of all humanity and the destiny of our species.
This not only offers hope, but proves that the book is powerful and authoritative. According to Matthew 24:14the Gospel, will be preached throughout the whole world, to all nations, before the end of the age comes.
The Bible is complete
The Living Church of God explains that the Bible is sometimes difficult to understand because those who read it do not realize that the Old Testament and New Testament are meant to work together and not separately. Many focus entirely on Jesus’ words in the New Testament, forgetting that not only did he quote the Old Testament Scriptures, but he was also the one who gave birth to the original law.
In other words, Christ was quoting himself. This is essential to understand because without knowing that the Bible begins in the Old Testament book of Genesis and actually ends in the New Testament book of Revelation, readers will have an incomplete understanding of who God is and of what the Gospel teaches.
The Bible is enough
Another common reason why believers do not study systematically is that they feel they are not equipped to understand it. This is partly true; after all, human beings do not have the power to understand an infinite God on their own.
However, the Living Church of God believes that the Bible is meant to work as a whole – prophecies in the New Testament book of Revelation, like those in Revelation 1:16, can be understood after understanding the symbolism used in the book of the Old Testament. of Daniel, chapter 2, verse 35.
Essentially, the Word of God explains the Word of God; He has provided us with a way to understand the confusing parts of the Bible by studying it more and gaining a better understanding.
The book’s position on a subject should be studied in depth
According to John 10:35, the Scriptures cannot be broken. This means that Scripture does not contradict itself, making it “inwardly true.” It is important that those who are trying to understand a difficult subject through the worldview offered by the Bible know everything it has to say on that subject, instead of relying on one or two verses.
This helps readers avoid confirmation bias, as well as completely understand God and His views on topics.
The context of the Bible must be understood
Speaking of completeness, it’s impossible to truly understand a true statement without considering the context. After all, when we review email interactions for evidence in a legal case, we wouldn’t read a single email in the middle of a long correspondence without making sure we understood the previous emails!
In fact, we would also normally understand who the sender and recipients of each email are, and know a little about their subject. Otherwise, we may draw incorrect conclusions about their meaning in the emails.
The Bible is the same way; if a verse is taken out of context, it may be distorted to mean something it does not, and therefore may be deprived of its relevance, importance, and authority to instruct daily life.
This should be proven
In Thessalonians 5:21, God proclaims that human beings who read the Bible should test what they are taught to see if it is true. Although faith is a gift, it goes hand in hand with the reasoning abilities that God has endowed humans with. For example, in Acts 17:11Bereans who analyzed the scriptures and tested what they heard were called “righteous.”
It will also help the Christian avoid false teachers who might present a convincing argument about what the Bible says but could be easily refuted if a reader carefully studied the context and other aspects of a biblical subject on their own.
The good book should not be studied without prayer
Finally, the most reliable way to change one’s mind about the importance of Scripture, as well as the most reliable way to ensure that one understands what one reads, is to appeal to the author. -even !
The Living Church of God says it is best to pray before every Bible study, as the Psalmist did in Psalm 25:4-5, asking God to show him his ways, to teach him his paths and to lead him in the truth and teachings of God. It is important to recognize the God-breathed authority of the Bible, and part of that means admitting that we do not have the ability to make the Bible say anything, or to understand what it says. truly without His help.
In summary, the seven keys to Bible study include a true understanding of the authority and relevance of Scripture through prayer and the recognition that it is a complete book of the Ancient and the Combined New Testament. Next, it’s testing what they’ve read and deeply understanding the context and coverage of a topic.