The simplest way to read and study the Bible is to read it very much like you would a novel, meaning starting at “In the beginning” (Genesis 1:1) and ending with “The Grace of the Lord Jesus be with you all” (Revelation 22:21).
Reading the Bible verse by verse from beginning to end in a year is a great way to get an overview of what the Book as a whole has to say, and it is something every believer should strive to do at least once. But there are more effective ways to take from the Bible the personal applications God wants each Christian to have. In order to help you achieve those goals, try one or more of the following tried and true methods of Bible study.
The Deductive Bible Study
This method means picking a certain subject or topic as your starting point, then going through the Bible and finding Scriptures that address it. One of the advantages of the deductive approach to Bible study is that it gives the reader a good Biblical overview of a particular topic as well as more personal applications. That’s because it takes the different things that are said in the Bible on a particular word or topic so gives you the BIGGER PICTURE at what God has to say about those topics.
When you using this Method, you will absolutely, need a good concordance as well as a thesaurus. That will allow you to look at synonyms (words that mean the same as the ones you are looking at) as well as variations of particular words and phrases.
Inductive Bible Study
Studying the Bible inductively means taking a passage of Scripture and reading it, pondering it, and asking questions about it until you are able to draw conclusions about what that test is saying in and of itself.
The first thing you should do when conducting an inductive Bible study is to simply read what the text says and think about what it means. Ask how this text applies to you and how you can practically and effectively apply this text to your life. It’s very important to take time during an inductive Bible Study to ASK GOD to teach you what He wants you to learn through the particular passage you are looking at.
It is so important that you understand the context of the text you are looking at. Context means everything when it comes to studying anything, particularly the Bible. Without knowing the context, it’s impossible to take your studies a step further and understand what a particular passage says in general and what it says to you individually. When Making sense of what a passage means, it’s always best to ask yourself questions like:
What is God telling me and how is He encouraging and strengthening me through this passage?
What promises can I see in this passage?
What changes does this passage show me I need to make in my life and how does God want me to make them?
Who are the main characters and what are the main events in the text?
How, What, when, and where?
When you begin your study of the Bible, no matter what method you use, it’s important that you ask God to speak to you through what you are reading and meditating on. So go to the source of all Scripture and ask Him to open your heart, your ears, and your eyes to what it’s really saying.
Devotional Study Method
The primary focus of this Method is deepening our relationship with God. If you study the Bible using this method, you’ll need a Bible as well as a notepad and writing utensil. Go to the passage you wish to study and read it several times over, all the while making notes of observations and questions that come to mind. Then take the passage and rewrite it in your own words while at the same time personalizing it. When you study the Bible using this method, its words and messages jump off the pages and become words and messages spoken to you personally.That makes it easier to apply these things to your own life, which in turn brings you closer to God Himself. It’s like reading the Bible as if God wrote it as a personal letter to you and you alone.
Character, Event, and Place Studies
When you read the Bible and see a name, a place, or an event, you can know that it’s in there for a reason. God talks about them so that we could learn from their examples good and bad and from how He instructed and responded to them. When we use this reading method we find encouragement and a warning to listen to and obey God, knowing that there is blessing in obedience and folly in turning away from Him.
When you study the Bible characters and events, look at the details, the things they said, the things they did, how God instructed and corrected them, the events that took place around them and ask yourself what significance they all have when it comes to having a better understanding of God’s Word and of God Himself, the things that they did, and what God did for them.
Keyword Study
Keywords are those singular words and their variations that give a certain text life and meaning. This study method is excellent way to find out what God has to say in the Bible about certain subjects, such as love, forgiveness, sin and blessing. This is a simple way to study the Bible, because all it involves is going to a concordance and finding out where particular words appear in Scripture.
When you do keyword studies, make sure that you look at a word in context so that you aren’t looking at a homonym, which is a word that is pronounced the same but means something different.
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