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The Bible Is Not Boring

August 8, 2016 By Ryan Higginbottom

anonymous (2014), public domain

The Bible is boring. Many people outside the church take this as given. For them, reading the Bible is like watching C-SPAN or counting blades of grass.

But, let’s be honest—Christians feel this way at times. And we’re unlikely to study a book we don’t find interesting.

We need to consider some important questions.

Is the Bible boring?

No, the Bible is not boring. Let’s not confuse a bored reader with a boring book.

The Bible is God’s word. If God is the creator and sustainer of every atom that exists; if he is infinitely holy, good, wise, and glorious; if he is the very definition of love; then everything about him must be interesting.

OK, so why does the Bible seem boring?

If God’s word seems boring, there’s either a problem with the reading or the reader.

For some, the Bible seems dull because they assume they know what it says. They think they’ve heard all the stories and learned all the rules. Instead of “living and active,” the Bible sounds repetitive and bland.

For others, the Bible appears boring because they read the text without engaging with it. We are meant to meditate upon the Bible, to read it with the expectation that God will meet with and change us.

Additionally, the Bible feels irrelevant if we forget who we are. We are created and corrupt. We depend on God both for life and salvation. When we lose our sense of ongoing need, we won’t be thrilled by God or what he’s done for us.

What should we do if the Bible seems boring?

First, we should acknowledge our need for God’s help. Even redeemed people need God’s Spirit to desire what is of supreme value. In other words, we should pray. (Read what John Piper suggests you pray when the Bible seems boring.)

Next, don’t confuse difficult with boring. The Bible is hard to understand in some places, but that doesn’t make it dull. In fact, like your backyard garden, Bible study is often most rewarding when it makes you sweat.

Further, not every Bible passage should be studied in the same way. A physics textbook is not a detective novel, and Proverbs is not Revelation. While you might spend several days looking carefully at the first ten verses of Ephesians 1, you won’t treat 1 Chronicles 1 the same way.

Some of the hardest parts of the Bible are the genealogies, the construction of the tabernacle, and the apportionment of the promised land to the tribes. Ask yourself, why did God include these chapters? What purpose do they serve? (This short article at Desiring God tackles Joshua 13–21 and the apportionment of the land.) We must do our best to read the Bible in context and seek the author’s intention in each passage.

Finally, when the Bible seems stale we might be tempted to import excitement. Maybe we’ll use a flashy study guide or dig around for some never-before-seen insight. If we chase ideas that are new or novel because we are afraid the Bible won’t hold our interest, we need to get back to the basics of Bible study.

Observe the text carefully. Ask questions, think about the author’s train of thought, and look for the main point. Connect the passage to the big story of the Bible, the gospel of Jesus Christ. And, with God’s help, apply the passage to yourself.

The goal of Bible study is the worship of God which spills over into all of life. As God transforms you, it might be uncomfortable, stretching, or disruptive. It will all be very good. But it certainly won’t be boring!

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How Cross-References May Cause You to Flap Your Wings Without Achieving Liftoff in Your Bible Study

August 5, 2016 By Peter Krol

My ministry’s Board of Directors recently met with a consultant, who, among other things, warned us to watch out for “wing-flapping reports” from the Chief Executive. Such reports deftly avoid reporting on tangible progress toward required objectives, and they do so by describing the flurry of activities undertaken by the organization during the reporting period. “We did this event…and this conference…and began this program…and updated these employee benefits…and connected with all these people…and we just did a great job, didn’t we?” Such wing-flapping isn’t usually sinister; it merely flows from a lack of clarity regarding results and production. When we’re unsure what we ought to produce, we seek assurance instead from how busy we were.

Of course, this concept taught me an invaluable lesson about leadership and accountability, but, surprisingly, it also taught me about Bible study. I’ve attended countless Bible studies that were busy, active, and engaging—but that also left me feeling like we didn’t get anywhere. We can spend lots of time in Scripture and make use of many resources, but do we know God through Jesus Christ any more deeply than when we began? We flap our wings and feel great about it. But there’s something more to be done.

And while I could nominate many potential culprits in the “wing-flapping Bible study” cartel (search engines, commentaries, and word studies come quickly to mind), there is one chief culprit I see more than any other: cross-references.

How Cross-References Get Us to Flap Our Wings Without Achieving Liftoff

Sinclair Ferguson wrote an excellent commentary on the book of Daniel. In fact, it’s the only Daniel commentary I’ve read that I’m happy to recommend as promoting OIA Bible study. I love this commentary, and you should check it out if you study Daniel.

But notice how the good Dr. Ferguson flaps his wings a bit, filling the page with cross-references without moving his argument forward. On Daniel 5, he writes:

From all we know of Belshazzar, he had fallen into the sin of Rehoboam. He once sought the advice of his elder statesmen and was counseled: “If you will be a servant to these people today, and serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever.” Rehoboam rejected this counsel, however, and consulted those who had grown up with him (1 Kings 12:7-8); the result was the division of the tribes into two camps, Israel to the north and Judah to the south. Similarly, Daniel’s counsel appears to have gone unheeded and eventually unsought. Finally, however, he was brought into Belshazzar’s presence. (pp.117-118)

A lengthy catalog of Daniel’s credentials is provided by the queen…. He had “light and understanding and wisdom” and “an excellent spirit, knowledge, understanding, [and abilities to interpret] dreams, solv[e] riddles, and explain enigmas” (vv.11, 12). This description is reminiscent of the prophetic description Isaiah gave of the Messiah [quotes Isaiah 11:2-3].

Daniel had a share in the Spirit of the Messiah just as surely as what Christians now experience is a share in the Spirit of the Messiah and a taste of the powers of the age to come (cf. Heb. 6:5). No wonder there were so many ways that Daniel resembled Christ. This was what the queen tried to express. Daniel was in fellowship with another world; he knew God. (pp.119-120)

Why did Daniel refuse the king’s offer? Probably there were two reasons for his refusal. (1) It was important for him to make plain that spiritual gifts cannot be bought. Instinctively we are reminded of Simon Magus [quotes Acts 8:18-20]…. (2) It was important for him to make plain that God’s servants cannot be bought [quotes 1 Thess. 2:4-5]. (pp.120-121)

Alan Vernon (2010), Creative Commons

“Similarly…This description is reminiscent of…Instinctively we are reminded of…” Such is the language of wing-flapping cross-references. Unfortunately, after romping our way through 1 Kings, Isaiah, Hebrews, Acts, and 1 Thessalonians, we don’t know the text of Daniel any better. But we certainly feel like we’ve accomplished something. Ferguson is much more helpful when he sticks to the text at hand, applying his marvelous insights to analyze, explain, and apply it for us.

What This Looks Like in Practice

I once led a Bible study attended by a sweet, godly older woman. She had been walking with Christ for decades, and she was very familiar with God’s word. Week after week, however, she left me wondering whether she wanted to study the Bible with us.

We might be studying Matthew, and she’d want to jump to Romans. Or we’d study a Psalm, and she’d try to take us to 1 Peter. Much of our discussion was a tug-of-war between her, wanting us to turn to different passages, and me, asking whether the cross-reference would help us with the passage at hand.

One week, I experimented by giving her the reins. When she wanted to pull us to a new passage, I went with her. Once we got there, she read it, and I asked her what it meant. For her answer, she said it reminded her of another passage. So we went there. After reading it, she took us to yet another passage. This went on until we read a passage that reminded her of the original one, and we ended up back where we had begun.

With each jump, we read the text and treated its message as self-evident. When it made us think of something else, we were off. After an hour of such discussion, one thing was clear: We had not understood the message of any of these passages. But because we flipped so many pages and moved so quickly, some people felt we had accomplished something spectacular.

Now I don’t think cross-references are inherently unhelpful. There are times when they are good and necessary in Bible study. More on this next week.

But I do get nervous when someone treats “cross-references” as a standard step in Bible study. Or when someone wants to leave the current passage without good reason to do so, or without having first put in the time to get the point. In most cases, the original audience didn’t have access to all the cross-references (or the full canon of Scripture). But they still could understand and apply the text’s main point. So should we.

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Two Ways to Outline a Bible Passage

July 29, 2016 By Peter Krol

mkorsakov (2014), Creative Commons

There must be high demand for Bible outlines, since they show up everywhere. Almost every study Bible outlines each book. Almost every commentary has a central outline. Most sermons and study guides outline their passages. And most introductory essays on books of the Bible share a few key topics: date, author, audience, key themes, and—you guessed it—outline.

We generate and consume Bible outlines in massive quantities, but have you ever considered what goes into creating an outline? How do you know if the outline is accurate or not? And what makes some outlines better or worse than others, at least for specific purposes?

Let’s assume you’re already convinced it’s worth your time to pay attention to structure. (If you need more convincing, see how structure shapes the meaning of a passage and 10 reasons why we should take note of structure.) How does that structure translate into a formal outline? What should you look for in an outline? Why are some outlines of the same text so different from one another?

Outline #1: Observational

The first way to make an outline is to summarize what the passage says. This type of outline takes the bare facts of a passage and puts them in order.

For example, here is part of an outline of Job from the Gospel Transformation Bible:

III. The Intervention of Eliphaz (Job 4:1-5:27)
IV. Job’s First Response to Eliphaz (Job 6:1-7:21)
V. The Intervention of Bildad (Job 8:1-22)
VI. Job’s First Response to Bildad (Job 9:1-10:22)
VII. The Intervention of Zophar (Job 11:1-20)
VIII. Job’s First Response to Zophar (Job 12:1-14:22)

This outline contains some important observations. Job’s speeches alternate with those of his 3 friends, who each speak in turn. If you continue through the outline, you’ll see that Eliphaz and Bildad each speak three times, and Zophar speaks only twice. But Job has a response to each one of their speeches.

This outline gives you a straightforward, clear grasp of the text’s structure. Similarly observational outlines for other books of the Bible might go like this:

Luke:
I. Jesus’ Birth (Luke 1-2)
II. Jesus’ Galilean Ministry (Luke 3-9)
III. Jesus on the Way to Jerusalem (Luke 9-19)
IV. Jesus in Jerusalem (Luke 19-21)
V. Jesus’ Suffering and Death (Luke 22-23)
VI. Jesus’ Resurrection (Luke 24)

Proverbs:
I. Introduction (Prov 1-9)
II. Proverbs of Solomon (Prov 10:1-22:16)
III. Sayings of the Wise (Prov 22:17-24:34)
IV. Hezekiah’s Collection (Prov 25-29)
V. Proverbs of Agur (Prov 30)
VI. Proverbs of King Lemuel (Prov 31:1-9)
VII. The Virtuous Woman (Prov 31:10-31)

These outlines tell you exactly what happens in the text, and they’re great for helping you get your bearings in a book. But they don’t say much more than the foundational what.

Outline #2: Interpretive

The second way to make an outline is to describe what the passage means. This type of outline takes the main points of a passage and shows their logical flow.

For example, here is part of an outline of Job (same section as above) from the ESV Study Bible:

B. The friends and Job: can Job be right before God? (Job 4:1–25:6)

1. First cycle (Job 4:1–14:22)

a. Eliphaz: can mortal man be in the right before God? (Job 4:1–5:27)
b. Job: life is futile (Job 6:1–7:21)
c. Bildad: the wisdom of the sages (Job 8:1–22)
d. Job: how can a mortal be just before God? (Job 9:1–10:22)
e. Zophar: repent (Job 11:1–20)
f. Job: a challenge to the “wisdom” of his friends (Job 12:1–14:22)

This outline goes beyond bare observation and shows the flow of ideas from one speech to the next. The chief benefit of such an outline is that it gives you not only the what but also the why. It focuses not only on summaries but also on main points (do you know the difference?). The chief weakness of such an outline is that it’s more likely to be mistaken or even off-center, since it’s not as clearly based on the surface of the text.

Different Outlines for Different Uses

In some cases, the observational outline will be more useful. Such cases include the first pass through a book overview, a detailed review to confirm the validity of an interpretive outline, or a quick compass check to find your place in a book (I’m slogging through Isaiah 25 and need to be reminded of the larger sections).

In other cases, the interpretive outline will be more useful. Such cases include teaching or preaching, concisely organizing the main points or train of thought, or moving toward application.

Let’s say you’re studying Mark 15:1-20 to teach to others. You might begin your own study with a simple observational outline:

Jews deliver Jesus to Pilate (Mk 15:1-5)
Pilate delivers Jesus to be crucified (Mk 15:6-15)
Soldiers mock Jesus (Mk 15:16-20)

But I hope you don’t teach the passage that way. That outline doesn’t help anyone to understand why Mark wrote these things. Something like this will be more useful for teaching:

Don’t mistake this King’s identity (Mk 15:1-5)
Don’t miss this King’s release (Mk 15:6-15)
Don’t abhor this King’s mockery (Mk 15:16-20)

Can you see the difference? Do you see how you can get from one outline to the other? Can you see benefits to each one? Why do you think some outlines are better than others?

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In Theological Controversy, What Do You Spew?

July 8, 2016 By Peter Krol

Last week I argued that our best hope in controversy is to continue in the Scriptures. And yet, the Scriptures are what we so quickly abandon or ignore. When the right hook of controversy knocks out our teeth and adrenaline kicks in, what do we spew? Do we spew Scripture? Or do we spew such things as wit, history, or theology? What we spew betrays what we trust in to carry the battle.

Lesley Mitchell (2011), Creative Commons

My inspiration for this post comes from the currently raging controversy among conservative theologians regarding the Trinity. In this controversy, all agree that Jesus submitted to his Father’s will during his incarnation. But is such submission a part of the Father/Son relationship from all eternity, or not? If you’d like to learn more, see the two helpful summaries by Wyatt Graham (here and here). My goal is not to enter the discussion itself, but to reflect on how it has played out so far.

The Scriptures demand a few rules of engagement for theological controversy. If we’re willing to listen, the Scriptures can equip us for a good, good work.

1. Debate is necessary but not sufficient.

We must be alert (Acts 20:29-31) and always ready to defend our hope when we are attacked (1 Pet 3:14-17). We ought to hone our skills at explaining our theology from the Scriptures (Acts 17:2-3). But remember from 2 Tim 2 (last week) that we must avoid the childish passion for quarreling. We cannot rely on well-crafted words, careful argumentation, or higher education to carry the battle. Such things are necessary—I’m not saying we can go without them!—but they are not sufficient. One can be a clear speaker, witty writer, and pedigreed academic—and still be dead wrong. He who meditates on the testimonies of God will end up with more understanding than all his teachers (Ps 119:99).

2. History is necessary but not sufficient.

Let us not fall into the error of ignoring the past (Ps 106:1-13). But let us also not fall into the equally damaging error of living in the past; it is not from wisdom that we do this (Eccl 7:10). We must learn from history, but history alone cannot carry the battle.

3. Theology is necessary but not sufficient.

The Bible teaches many important truths about God, like dots on a grid. And we love to draw connections between those dots to make them all fit together. This work of dot-connecting, we call “systematic theology.” And we must do this, or our thinking will not be rational and our teaching will not be clear. But let us be careful to defend tenaciously the dots of Scripture and not the hand-drawn lines of men. We must consider theology, but theology alone cannot carry the battle.

4. Bible verses are necessary but not sufficient.

Jesus clearly submitted his will to his Father’s will in the garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:36). But was Mark’s intention in this passage to teach us about the eternal nature of the Trinity?

Jesus clearly had all glory together with the Father before the world existed (John 17:5). But did Jesus the pray-er (or John the narrator) have in mind exactly what later creeds would call “the unity of the Godhead” in which “there be three Persons of one substance” (Westminster Confession of Faith)?

Please note: I am not questioning the confessional understanding of the Trinity. I am simply questioning how we use Bible verses to defend our positions. The Jehovah’s Witnesses are proof that people can use many Bible verses to support conclusions that are simply false. When we spew, we must spew Bible verses. But let them be Bible verses in context, and according to the intentions of the original author for his original audience.

We’re on much stronger ground when we argue from the main points of passages instead of from possible implications of philosophical presumptions from standalone verses. And when the dots are hard to connect, there’s no shame in declaring: “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable” (Ps 145:3).

How We Use the Scriptures in Theological Controversy

June 30, 2016 By Peter Krol

Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners. (Matt 9:13)

The fact stands undisputed: When two or three gather in Jesus’ name, there will be wars and rumors of wars. Thus, any two prospective marriage partners can be compatible, because every pair of sinners will in the end find themselves incompatible. No church is the perfect church; as soon as you join it you ruin it. And the problem with any ministry position is never the position; it’s the people. Always the people.

Chris Messina (2006), Creative Commons

So we should not be surprised when theological controversy erupts within our Christian communities. God has made everything beautiful in its time, including love and hate, war and peace (Eccl 3:1-11). Even our most trusted confidants will let us down, and we must decide in advance to simply chill out. “Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you” (Eccl 7:21).

Especially, those who are teachers in the church must “flee youthful passions”—and easy to overlook is that most naïve and youthful passion we have for foolish, ignorant controversies that only breed quarrels (2 Tim 2:22-23). The Lord’s servant must remind people of these things and “charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers” (2 Tim 2:14). “The Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind…correcting his opponents with gentleness” (2 Tim 2:24-25).

So the Lord expects controversy. He expects us to face it and not flee. He expects us to be strong and act like men, and not childishly bluster and bully our way through it. But how does one correct without quarreling? How does one desire mercy without condoning deception? How does one guard the good deposit with tenacious, aggressive, and overbearing…humility?

Have You Never Read?

The missing component in much controversy is the Scripture, and shame on us for it.

As foretold long ago, evil people and impostors are going on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived (2 Tim 3:13). Not enduring sound teaching, people continually accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions. They quickly turn from listening to the truth and wander off into myths (2 Tim 4:3-4). Now, more than ever, we need soldiers, sprinters, and shepherds who will preach the word, being ready in season and out of season, who reprove, rebuke, and exhort with complete patience and teaching (2 Tim 4:1-2).

We’ll be ready to fight (and fight clean) only when we continue in the Scripture (2 Tim 3:14). To continue in the Scripture, we must believe the sacred writings are able to make us wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus (2 Tim 3:15)—salvation from sin when we first believe, of course; but also salvation from sin today, tomorrow, and the next day as well. To continue in the Scripture, we must expect the Bible to equip us for every good work (2 Tim 3:17)—including the good work of engaging in theological controversy. To continue in the Scripture, we must trust the Bible alone to help us recognize and resist the rapidly mutating deceptions of our day (2 Tim 3:10-13)—new and sophisticated deceptions that deserve old and uncomplicated answers.

Jesus often asked his quarrelsome opponents: “Have you not read…?” (Matt 12:3, 12:5, 19:4, 21:16, 21:42, 22:31, Mk 12:26). And when Jesus’ own disciples were uncertain what to make of the empty tomb, Jesus considered their problem to be one of foolishness and disbelief of what the prophets had spoken (Luke 24:25-27). From beginning to end, with any group of people, Jesus clung to the Scriptures. If he’d had a pull string, his predictable mantra might have been “It is written.”

I think most of us know these facts conceptually. But when the right hook of controversy knocks out our teeth and adrenaline kicks in, what do we spew? Do we spew Scripture? Or do we spew such things as wit, history, or theology? What we spew betrays what we trust in to carry the battle. More on this next week.

Feature the Bible in Corporate Worship

June 27, 2016 By Ryan Higginbottom

anonymous, public domain

What role does the Bible play in weekly, corporate worship? What role should it play?

When discussing worship, it’s easy to get stuck in controversy. Some of those conversations may be worthy, but today I offer a simple proposal: We should feature the Bible during our corporate worship services.

Why Feature the Bible?

By “feature” the Bible, I mean use it everywhere possible. I suggest this for two reasons.

First, worship elements recorded in the Bible use the Scriptures. From reading and explaining the law (Neh 8:1–8) to sermons (Acts 2:14–36, Acts 3:11–26, Acts 7:2–53, etc.) to testimony (Acts 26:4–29) to sacrament (1 Cor 11:23–26) to singing (Eph 5:18, Col 3:16), we see God’s word all over the place.

Second, consider the alternative. If the Bible is not the dominant voice during worship, we default to the voices of men. Even casual readers of the Bible should hesitate to prefer man’s words to God’s. The Scriptures are a corrective, a true north. Though we fill our minds with nonsense and lies, the Bible teaches and reminds us what is true. In particular, the Scriptures tell us what God is like and why we should worship him.

How Does This Promote Bible Study?

This post falls in a series on Bible-study culture within the church. We help ordinary people learn how to study the Bible when the gatherings and relationships of our churches are chock-full of Bible study.

As a church features the Bible in corporate worship, the congregation becomes familiar with it. They hear it, say it, and sing it. The Bible becomes more accessible. People taste the truth and hunger for more. The same Scriptures that abound on Sunday morning then spill over into personal and small group Bible study.

How to Feature the Bible During Worship

There are at least five occasions within the worship service where the Bible can take center stage.

1. Read and Hear the Bible

Your pastor probably reads a passage from the Bible before preaching his sermon. But we should read and hear the Bible frequently as we worship.

Because we forget so often, we need to be reminded who God is, what he requires, and what he has done for his people through Jesus Christ. The words of Scripture teach us, reprove us, correct us, and train us in righteousness. They equip us for every good work. (2 Tim 3:16–17)

God’s people need to say and hear God’s word. Worship leaders should include solo readings, unison readings, and responsive readings throughout the service.

2. Preach the Bible

The Bible should be the starting point for every sermon ever preached. We ignore the Bible and rely on the wisdom, storytelling, or cleverness of man to our own peril.

I’ve written previously on preaching and listening to sermons. Check out these three posts for a deeper dive.

3. Pray the Bible

Let the Bible fuel corporate prayer. This doesn’t have to be perfunctory or predictable, but it does require preparation.

When I lead prayer, I use the familar ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) structure, and I choose portions of the Bible appropriate for each section. I do not read these Bible verses to the congregation, but I pray them to God. Each unit of prayer has this form: “God, you said this, so we praise you/confess/thank you/ask you for this in response.” (For a guide to praying this way in personal devotions, I recommend The Heart of God, by Kenneth Boa.)

4. Sing the Bible

Our singing during corporate worship should be based on the Bible.

If what we sing should be true, we must rely on the Bible. The lyrics of our songs should be taken from or inspired by Scripture. The pastors or elders of the church should oversee all musical choices so the congregation is singing what is true and good and beautiful, and not just the latest Jesus-is-my-boyfriend number from the radio.

5. See the Bible

The Protestant church has traditionally recognized two sacraments: baptism and the Lord’s supper. These are signs and seals of the covenant that God makes and keeps with his people.

However frequently these sacraments are celebrated, the Bible should be present. The sacraments are not dusty liturgical elements to be endured; they are ways God engages our senses to remind us what is true. As we see and feel and taste the sacraments, we should hear the words from the Bible reminding us of their meaning.

Conclusion

It might seem that I’m recommending a worship service full of Scripture. That you might not hear or sing or say much of anything besides the Bible. That you’ll get so full of the Bible it will be oozing from your pores when you leave the building.

Now you’ve got it.

This article on the 9 Marks website was very helpful in preparing this post.

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How to Encourage Your Friends to Study the Bible

June 13, 2016 By Ryan Higginbottom

How many people in your church regularly study the Bible on their own? Beyond devotional or five-minutes-a-day readings, how many dig deep into God’s word?

Regular attenders of a good church hear lots of Bible teaching through the sermon and Sunday school classes. They might see Bible study up close in a small group. But far too many Christians opt for easier practices in their own devotions.

Personal relationships are a powerful part of a church community. Underneath programs and structures, most of a church’s ideals and habits are communicated through friendships. This includes personal Bible study.

Cheryl Holt (2014), public domain

What Comes First

Two things must be in place before you can encourage someone at your church to study the Bible.

First, you need a real friendship. The closer your relationship, the more powerful your voice in their life. Good friends trust that your suggestions have their best interests in mind.

You also need shared values. Your encouragement to study the Bible will only be effective if your friend shares this goal. (Here’s an article explaining why we study the Bible.)

On one level, both of these requirements take care and effort on your part. But true Christian friendship and a love for God’s word also require spiritual intervention. Our first order of business, therefore, is prayer.

Study the Bible Together

If your friend is a new Christian or is unfamiliar with the Bible, they’ll need guidance as they begin. Give them resources that explain an easy-to-follow Bible study process. At this blog we advocate the Observation-Interpretation-Application (OIA) method, and the best place to start reading is here. (Peter’s book would also make a great gift for a beginner.)

Once your friend knows the main components of Bible study, help him dive in. If you attend or lead a small group, take him along. If that would be uncomfortable, offer to study the Bible one-on-one. Suggest some preparatory work, and talk through the passage together when you meet. (Our OIA worksheets might be helpful at the start.)

Your goal with a new Bible student is to strap on the training wheels and help him pedal down the driveway. Give him an example and some practice. Help him understand the main point of a passage. Show him how to see Jesus in any passage and remember him in application.

Talk About It

While some of us have new Christians to train, all of us can think of more veteran Christians who could use Bible study stimulation. (We can all use help in this area!) These folks know how to study the Bible but no longer do so regularly.

Some friends might benefit from a weekly get-together to study through a short book or passage. But, since you’re aiming to strengthen individual Bible study, most encouragement you’ll give will take place in informal conversations, not scheduled meetings.

As a matter of habit, talk about Bible study with your friend. This might seem unusual at first, but it doesn’t have to be awkward. Simply ask what they’re studying and learning, and be willing to share yourself. Thank God for what he teaches you, and speak honestly when you’ve neglected the Bible.

If your friend admits a distance from the Bible and your prayers and questions don’t help, you’ll need to take a more direct approach. In love, emphasize the importance of God’s word. Ask direct questions about his habits and patterns of behavior, but don’t stop with his actions—point toward his heart.

Despite the protests, we won’t change into diligent students of the Scriptures if we just get up earlier, turn off the TV, or try harder. Our behavior follows our hearts (Matt 15:18-20), so if we genuinely want to worship and interact with God, nothing will stand in our way. Your friend needs to recognize and repent of the desires that overshadow and quench his love for God. Help your friend identify and kill these idols.

Don’t forget the gospel in these conversations! Over and over, remind yourself and your friend that your success or failure with regular Bible study does not determine God’s love for you. For Christians, God’s love is secure, full, and free because of Jesus.

We All Need Others

We all need reminders and support to study the Bible. Even regenerate hearts follow the gaze and desires of the old man at times. We need others to tell us the truth, pray for us, and point us in the right direction.

Take a minute to think about your friends, and pray for them. Pray for strong relationships, ample opportunities, and rich conversations. Pray that God would use you to point them to his word.

Build Bible Study Culture Through Small Groups

May 30, 2016 By Ryan Higginbottom

Building a Bible study culture in your church is a huge job, only possible by the grace of God. Because such a culture is reflected in every area of church life, this hard work requires creativity and a long-term view. But the effort is worth it.

anonymous (2012), public domain

While a Bible study culture begins with church leaders, it is caught and carried forward from the pews. Godly leaders point down the road and give their people provisions for the journey.

Leaders must grasp the opportunity small groups present. As Christians meet to discuss and study the Bible, these groups become a powerful culture-making tool.

So, how exactly do small groups build a Bible study culture?

1. They show your values.

As a church creates, supports, and advertises small groups, it highlights their importance and advances their purpose. Church leaders promote small groups so their people will grow in Christ. The more people who engage in Bible study, prayer, encouragement, and fellowship, the better.

By building this ministry on a foundation of Bible study, your church repeats its reliance on the Bible. We want to know God through the study of his word.

This strengthens the Bible study culture in your church by establishing a common aim. If everyone knows the destination and the essential tools to get there, the swell of the crowd will attract attention, questions, and others drawn by the vision.

2. They help you grow.

Christians grow as they study the Bible. Perhaps this is obvious, but it bears repeating.

We need to know God, what he is like, what he has done for us in Jesus, and what he calls us to as his ambassadors. As we understand and apply the Bible, we renew our minds with truth and repent of our idolatry. We believe the truth and trust in God to greater degrees, and his Spirit produces increasing fruit in our lives.

We are animated examples, living proof both of the goodness of God and of his work through his means. As we grow, love abounds in the church, and we trace this overflow back to God, his grace, and the study of his word.

3. They provide hands-on training.

Small group studies offer unique opportunities to sharpen Bible study skills. The flexible and informal nature of these groups make them an ideal training ground.

Though most meetings focus on studying a specific passage, the group can take short detours for direct instruction in Bible study skills. The leader can structure his questions to make explicit the Bible study components of observation, interpretation, and application. (These ingredients form the core of the OIA Bible study method.) Group members have the chance to ask honest questions about the Bible and to interact with the responses. Perhaps the greatest training tool is the ongoing example of friends studying the Bible together and helping each other apply it.

This training builds a Bible study culture in obvious ways. You’re gathering forces. More people are equipped to model Bible study skills and pass them on to others. More people can serve as resources to those getting started.

Your Turn

Small group Bible studies have many benefits. Consider attending or even leading one. As you do so, pray that God would use your group to bless your church in building a Bible study culture.

Bible Study Begins With Church Leaders

May 16, 2016 By Ryan Higginbottom

anonymous, public domain

Leaders set the tone. A greedy, money-grabbing CEO will find his employees less than generous. Those who work for a patient, caring boss are likely to follow suit. Like a river into a lake, the culture of an organization flows downhill from the leadership.

Over the past five months, I’ve written about the importance of a Bible study culture within the local church. Today we examine the fount of that culture: the church leaders.

A Call to Prayer

If a healthy Bible study culture begins with church leadership, we should consider this important question: How can we encourage our leaders in their Bible study?

Above all, we should pray. We must plead for our leaders, that they would love God by reading and studying his word.

It’s easy to take this for granted. Surely my pastor studies the Bible; that’s part of his job! But a pastor’s life can quickly fill with meetings, hospital visits, phone calls, and administrative tasks. A pastor can wake up on Friday and realize he’s been “doing ministry” all week without much of a devotional life. Most pastors feel this tension acutely and know their weakness.

Church members can support their pastors by praying! We need our leaders to prize the Bible and give it serious, studious attention. The battle lines are spiritual, and we can pick up arms by folding our hands in prayer.

A Call to Sunday School

Sunday mornings are busy, especially for pastors and elders. But leaders can point to the importance of the Bible by the way they use the Sunday school hour.

Elders are often called to counsel or teach on Sunday morning, and preachers occasionally need before-service time to collect their thoughts. These are important callings.

But, whenever possible, elders should be with their people, learning with and from them. They should participate in the classes, join the discussions, and help people think through and apply God’s word. In this, leaders show they need to learn and that the Bible is as important for them as they say it is for everyone else.

Use the Bible During Elder Meetings

When the elders of the church meet, time is precious. There are events to plan, finances to discuss, requests to consider. Taking 20 minutes to study the Bible might seem like a waste.

It isn’t!! In fact, it might be the best use of your time together.

Studying the Bible brings a purpose and direction that’s hard to match. You see the gospel clearly and you break free from guilt, performance, and a hundred other wrong ideas about relating to God. What could be more important for a leadership meeting than passion for and unity around the most important truths in the world?

Personal Bible Study for Leaders

An elder might attend Sunday school and participate during elder-meeting studies, but what happens at home? Our priorities are revealed in our personal time, so how can we encourage our church leaders to study the Bible in private?

If we know our leaders well enough to converse with them (and we should), the answer is simple: Ask questions and give encouragement.

Ask your elders how you can pray for them. Mention you’d be glad to pray for their devotional life, since consistency and depth can be difficult, especially for leaders. Pray consistently and follow up after a week or two.

Ask your elders what they’re learning in their personal study time. Ask in humility, eager to learn.

Gracious, Christ-like leaders welcome these questions and ask them of each other. They admit to seasons of spiritual dryness and stretches of inattention to the Bible. They are glad for the support, encouragement, and prayers of others in the church.

Persevere in Doing Good

A robust Bible study culture in a church begins with the leaders. With grace, love, and courage, let’s persevere in our prayers and encouragement for them.

Two Concerns About Gospel-Centered Materials

May 2, 2016 By Ryan Higginbottom

Over the last ten years or so, we have seen an explosion in books, sermons, and teaching materials focused on the gospel of Jesus Christ. What a glorious, precious development!

The Blessings of Gospel-Centered Resources

Giovanna Orlando (2010), public domain

These publishers, writers, and speakers focus on the central story of the Bible: Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection. Jesus himself taught that all the Scriptures pointed to him (Luke 24:27).

Instead of extracting broad, moral lessons from the Bible, these authors and speakers connect the passage, book, or character to Jesus. They look for themes within the text which anticipate or flow out of Jesus’s saving work. Further, they show how the gospel is essential to our growth in Christian faith and obedience.

As a result, we have seen the adjectives gospel-centered, gospel-driven, and gospel-powered (and others) used in relation to parenting, work, marriage, productivity, and many other aspects of the Christian life. Like many others, I have been strengthened in my faith and walk with God through books which fall under this umbrella.

I thank God for this abundance of helpful resources. And I am grateful for the writers, publishers, speakers, and organizations that loudly and joyfully proclaim the central importance of the gospel of Jesus.

Two Cautions

We should use all of God’s gifts appropriately. Oranges are great for your health, but your body would object if you ate only oranges. In the same way, I have two concerns about using only gospel-centered resources in our churches.

1. Creating unhealthy dependence

As Christians, our central written resource is the Bible. And most gospel-centered writers love the Bible.

But when a writer is eager to connect his topic to the gospel, he may focus on Bible stories, characters, or themes and not the Bible text itself. His readers will see evidence of Bible study but may not learn to study the Bible themselves.

Making disciples demands both teaching and equipping. If our training materials never pass along Bible study skills, the next generation will be hungry on the dock instead of baiting hooks in the boat (and showing others to do the same).

Books and curricula that show gospel connections without instruction in how to find these connections can create an unhealthy dependence. Younger Christians especially may develop a reliance on materials which, while terrific, are not the word of God.

2. Missing the Trees for the Forest

Don’t miss the forest for the trees! This warning lifts our eyes from the details to the bigger picture. But the details are still important! How can we know the forest if we don’t examine the trees?

When we’re over-eager to connect a passage to the Bible’s large, gospel story, we miss some of God’s purpose in that passage. We need to give each part of the Bible its due. Consider two illustrations.

Do you know the story of the creation and fall, or do you know Genesis 1–3? To explore the difference, ponder this: What was the name of the person who first ate the forbidden fruit? Those who know only the bigger story might say “Eve.” But those with eyes on the text will say “the woman.” Eve wasn’t named until after the fall and the curse (Genesis 3:20). Names are crucial in the Bible, so we gloss over an important detail if we call her Eve (mother of the living) throughout the story.

For another example, consider Genesis 22, when God commands Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. Those on the lookout for gospel nuggets might rush to note how Abraham’s faith and willingness to sacrifice his son teaches about God’s willingness to do the same. But a closer reading reveals a different angle. God calls Isaac Abraham’s “one and only son” three times in this chapter. But Isaac wasn’t Abraham’s only son! (Don’t forget Ishmael!) This doesn’t make God a liar, of course, but points to the covenant promise. God promised Abraham blessings specifically through Isaac (Genesis 17:21), and God reaffirms this in Genesis 22:15–18 after Isaac’s life is spared. By grace, Abraham trusted God and knew that if Isaac died God would restore his life (Hebrews 11:17–19). This story is more about promise and resurrection than sacrifice and death.

The process of correlation involves understanding Bible passages as part of a single whole. (Check out our posts on healthy correlation.) When handling God’s word correctly, we should study the passage at hand, draw out the main points, and connect those main points to other passages and themes of the Bible.

Though all the Bible points to Jesus, the connections are not always obvious. When we smooth over the details and nuances of individual passages, we miss much of God’s instruction for us.

Conclusion

Resources that explain and trumpet the gospel of Jesus Christ are a great blessing to the church. Embrace these works, but cling to the Bible above them all. If we want to create a Bible study culture in our churches, we cannot use gospel-centered materials by themselves.

Thanks to Peter for his help planning this post.

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