HOW TO STUDY THE BIBLE

The Travellers Guide

Scripture(s)
'I am the way, the truth and the life' John 14:6

'And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.' John 1:14

'Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path' Psalm 119:105

'My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. ' John 10:27

'For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ' Philippians 3:20

'Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul' 1 Peter:2-11

Observations
👉🏻 Jesus describes Himself as being the way
👉🏻 It is written that Jesus is 'the Word' (of God aka the Bible) made flesh
👉🏻 The first connection here is that when we read the Word we are literally reading Jesus not just reading about Him.
👉🏻 The second connection here is we will find the way, our way by reading the Word of God (Jesus)
👉🏻 We recognise Jesus' voice, his character, his personality by spending time with Him just like we would do to get to know anybody else. The way we do this is by reading the Word of God, that's spending time with Him (Jesus) it is then that we will be able to recognise that still small voice giving us the direction when we need it.
👉🏻 The Earth is not our home, we are merely sojourners which means temporary residents.
👉🏻 If we visit somewhere where we are unfamiliar with the surroundings, people, culture etc (for example when we go abroad or to a new place) we may rely on a good tour guide, a good old fashioned map or GPS. This is how the Bible describes the World to us, we are not of the World and therefore must rely on His Word to guide us. His Word is our tour guide, map, GPS.

Application
👉🏻 We must stay 'in the Word' and make it a discipline to read it daily. If we neglect to do this we will easily be led astray, our steps shall slide and we will get off track. Potentially we could end up making decisions that will alter the course of our life with consequences God never intended, such decisions could cause us unnecessary heart ache and suffering.
👉🏻 When we keep Gods Word in our hearts we become more sensitive to His voice, His direction each day. It is a promise that if we have 'the law of our God' which is His Word then our steps will not slide. I believe it is important to meditate on His Word rather than simply reading it using a structure like this one...

S.O.A.P (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer)

1. Start a Bible reading plan, there are lots of downloadable ones online or through apps such as 'YouVersion' Bible app.

2. Pray for the Holy Spirit to reveal the hidden things in the Word before you start your reading each day.

3. As you read the reading for the day, read it out loud because 'So then faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.' Romans 10:17

4. Sit quietly and allow the Holy Spirit to quicken to you the verse He wants you to 'takeaway' from that days Bible reading. This will be the verse that has 'stuck out' from the rest of the verses as you were reading. God may give you additional verses that link to that verse, you can include them as I have done with today's verse.

5.Write down the verse(s) and read it/them out loud again, letting it/them permeate in your heart.

6. Write down your initial observations from the verse(s) that you've written down.

7. How can you apply the principles of the verse(s) to your life? Jot them down.

8. Write out a prayer to God summarising all you've taken from the verse you've studied that day and lift it up to Him.

Prayer
Lord I pray you will help me to make time to spend in your Word every day and that you would remove distractions from me that might prevent me from doing so.
I pray that you will help me to remain sensitive to your voice and your direction, give me eyes to see and ears that hear.
Help me to seek and respect the guidance of my parents and those you have raised up to counsel and guide me. Help me to always seek Godly counsel rather than consulting Worldly sources.

In Jesus name,
Amen

'The law of his God is in his heart; None of his steps shall slide.' Psalm 37:31