The Power of Bible Study
On a missionary trip for a series of Pastor’s Conferences, I looked out the airplane window and I saw clouds, some thick and some scattered, I know that we have all seen clouds whether from the ground or the air. But there was something different about what I saw, there was a beauty to the different types and sizes. The Lord put on my heart a comparison of clouds to studying the Bible.
Many years ago, I was fortunate enough to visit the island nation of Cyprus. We landed in the middle of the night so we could not see any features of the land. This was my first trip overseas and could not wait to see the different culture. I woke up at dawn and went onto the little balcony of the house we were staying at. The fog was so thick, I could not see the yard that was under the balcony. But over the course of the next forty-five minutes to an hour. I watched in amazement as God slowly revealed the town to me. I told the group I was traveling with and for the next several mornings they all got up early to try to watch the fog roll out. However, there was not a single fog the rest of the trip. I felt that same amazement looking at the clouds on that flight.
How does this translate to studying the Bible? When we start to study the Bible, it is like dense clouds. Sometimes it is so thick that we want to give up and go watch TV. However, if we are patient the clouds will start to dissipate, and things will start to get clearer. I am not saying that if you sit and stare at your Bible it will all start to make sense. I am saying that if we dedicate ourselves time in His word that we will start to see more and more in His word that we never realized is there. The more we are in His word the more the clouds thin out. Now I am not saying they will go away, in fact at one point I was looking out the window and saw an amazing sight of what looked like a pattern of small clouds, each one blocking a part of the terrain below. I thought about how the Lord will reveal what we need to see when we need to see it. It we were to see the whole picture we would be lost, and our minds blown at the information overload we would be experiencing. So where do we start? There are a few basics that have to addressed before we can start effectively studying scripture.
First, we have all heard that we cannot take things out of context, but what does that really mean? Scripture paints a story, not a story that instructs us what we should be doing or how we are supposed to do it. In fact, scripture shows that we are all different and we have different gifts and talents and that we when we dwell in unity things are better (Psalm 133:1). I have had non-believers tell me that the Bible wants us all to be mindless clones, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. What the Bible reveals to us is the most important question. Why are we supposed to treat people with love? It is not how but why, that is key. How does that tie to context? The why changes when things are taken out of context, in fact if we take it out of context, we in turn control the purpose as opposed to God had already ordained as the purpose of the passage. So, we have to look at the whole passage and realize that there is not a single part of scripture that is not there for a reason.
Second, we have to look at the plain text as it was written, what I mean by that is we have to set aside what we already think we know, and let the Spirit guide us. I have been studying the Bible for over thirty years and the one thing I know for sure is that I feel like I have barely scratched the surface. There were times where I would bypass passages “because I already know that one”. A few years ago, I took a Bible Mastery course and discovered that what I “already knew” was incomplete at best and misguided at worst. So, I went back to the passage and tried to remove all preconceived beliefs of what God was teaching me. When we go back to plain text, we will see that some points we were assigning to things that had a different meaning to the original audience. Would Jesus teach His disciples about spreading the word on the internet? He would only use examples that applied to the audience.
Third we have to be ready to be changed, scripture has a purpose of shaping us at the core. For that to happen we have to be honest with ourselves with how we act and feel. God uses this to mold us into His image. How do we change? We have to find the application of what we are studying in our own lives. If we are only willing to change the surface, we may say that we need to forgive more, if we want to change, we have to look at our own heart to see who we have not forgiven in our heart. The forgiveness example is easy example that is actually hard to apply. We all struggle with things like forgiveness, but when we allow the Lord to change our core, we become a little closer to His image.
Last overall point, when we study scripture, we should be seeking Jesus, this is where the “Why” comes into play. Some may call it theology, but the question of “why we are here?” Has been in front of us the whole time. The key is that we have to find it ourselves, it is like a hidden treasure buried in a field. The more time we invest in studying the Bible, the more the Lord will reveal to us and we will forever be changed.
Like clouds that can appear to be dense, they can dissipate to reveal a beauty in creation that can take our breath away. Whether it is terrain we have never seen, to the molding of a servant heart that finds the joy in serving others. The time we invest in scripture, can not only change us, but it has the ability to reach farther than we can imagine. A pastor may not see immediate results from his sermon, but it goes so much farther than they can imagine. A Sunday school teacher may teach a lesson that they think went well, without realizing that a life may have been changed forever when they remember that lesson later in life. God can use any of us at any time to impact someone else, so are you ready for the Lord to use you?
