Bible Study

WONDERFUL WORDS OF LIFE
By Homer Duncan

Philip P. Bliss has written,
“Sing them over again to me, Wonderful words of Life;
“Let me more of their beauty see, Wonderful words of Life.
“Beautiful words, wonderful words ,wonderful words of Life.”

These Wonderful Words of Life are found in a Book. Yes, that Book is the Bible. Think of it! The great, sovereign God of all the universe has been pleased to reveal Himself to us in a threefold way:

He reveals Himself through nature (Psalm 19:1-6).

He reveals Himself through His Son (Hebrews 1:1-3).

He reveals Himself through the Bible (Psalm 19:7-14).

God regards His Word so highly He magnifies it above His Name (Psalm 138:2).

The Lord Jesus said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words will never pass away” (Matt. 24:35).

He said, “The words I speak unto you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).

Of this Book Dr. J. Vernon Mc Gee has written:

“Learn it;
“Love it;
“Live it.”

Henry Ward Beecher said, “The Bible is God’s chart for us to steer by; it shows us where the harbor is, and how to reach it.”

Charles Haddon Spurgeon said, “Nobody ever outgrows the Scriptures; the Book widens and deepens with our years.”

It has been said, “Other books were given for our information; the Bible was given for our transformation.”

“The Bible differs from all other books. To grow in an understanding of its meaning, one must live its teaching.”

An unknown author has written: “This Book contains the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners and the happiness of believers. Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding, its histories are true, and its decisions immutable. Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, and practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you and comfort to cheer you.

“It is the traveler’s map, the pilgrim’s staff, the pilot’s compass, the soldier’s sword and the Christian’s charter. Here is paradise restored, heaven opened and the gates of hell disclosed.

“Christ is its grand object, our good is its design and the glory of God its end. It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet. Read it slowly, frequently, prayerfully. It is given to you in life, and will be opened in the judgment. It will be remembered forever. It involves the highest responsibility, will reward the greatest labor, and will condemn all who trifle with its sacred contents.”

THE BIBLE IS –

I. THE BIBLE IS THE PLENARY VERBALLY INSPIRED, INFALLIBLE, INERRANT WORD OF THE ONLY TRUE AND LIVING GOD
“Plenary” means that the whole of the Scripture is given by divine inspiration.

“Verbally” means the very words (not merely the thoughts or concepts) of the Bible inspired.

“Inspired” means “God breathed.” The Bible is the Word of God; the very words are God’s words. The human writers became the human instruments by which God’s Word comes to us. The words the human authors wrote were precisely what God, the divine author intended us to have.

“Infallible” means the information (historical, geographical, scientific and spiritual) in the Bible is true.

“Inerrant” means the Bible (as given in the original autographs) is without error. If there is one single error in the Bible it is not inerrant.

God’s Word is pure (Psalms 12:6; 119:149; Prov. 30:5). This can be said of no other book. Since all other books have been written by men, flaws and mistakes can be found in them. But, God’s Word is pure and without error.

Since God is eternal (Psalm 90:2), His Word is eternal (Psalm 119:89; 1 Peter 1:25). Other books come and go; sooner or later they are laid aside. Heaven and earth will pass away, but God’s word abides forever (Matt. 24:35).

II. THE BIBLE IS THE INCORRUPTIBLE WORD OF GOD
By Dr. Henry M. Morris

“Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth forever” (1 Peter 1:23).

Everything in this world is under the “bondage of corruption” (Romans 8:21). The
Apostle Peter stresses the inorganic world is composed of “corruptible things as silver and gold” (1 Peter 1:18). The organic world is based altogether on “corruptible seed” (1 Peter 1:23). The term “corruptible” simply means “decaying.” The phenomenon of ubiquitous corruptibility is essentially what scientists have called the law of increasing entropy.

In the new earth there will be “no more curse” (Revelation 22:3), and this “corruptible must put on incorruption” (1 Cor. 15:53). Those who inhabit the new earth will have been “begotten again… To an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away” (1 Peter 1:3-4).

Everything in the new earth will be incorruptible, while everything in the present earth is corruptible–with one exception! There is one incorruptible thing in the present world, and it is by that thing that those who under the bondage of corruption, lost in sin, are translated into the incorruptible world of everlasting righteousness.

Through the incorruptible Word, the Holy Scriptures, which reveal the Living Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, a believer is born again. “The Holy Scriptures are able to make us wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15).

How indescribably precious are our Bibles! “Forever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven… Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage an heritage forever… The righteousness of thy testimonies is everlasting… Concerning thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou has founded them forever… Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth forever” (Psalm 119: 89, 111, 144, 160). “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Matthew 24:35). (1)

III. THE BIBLE IS GOD’S LOVE LETTER TO US (John 3:16; 1 John 3:16; Rom. 5:8)
Many people in this sin-cursed, hate filled world are starving for a little bit of love. It is a wonderful thing to discover God loves us and gave His Son to die in our place. It is wonderful to discover that there is nothing in all of the universe that can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord (Rom. 8:38, 39). How do we know God loves us? He proved His love for us in the giving of His Son to die for us.

THE LOVE OF GOD

“The Love of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell;
“It goes beyond the highest star, and reaches to the lowest hell;
“Could we with ink the ocean fill, and were the skies of parchment made,
“Were every stalk on earth a quill, and every man a scribe by trade;
“To write the love of God above would drain the ocean dry;
“Nor could the scroll contain the whole, though stretched from sky to sky.
“Oh love of God how rich and pure! How measureless and strong!
“It shall for ever more endure, the saint’s and angel’s song.

Charles Wesley wrote, “Jesus lover of my soul, let me to thy bosom fly, while the nearer
waters roll, while the tempest still is high.”

Shortly before George Matheson’s wedding it was discovered he going blind. His fiancée decided not to marry him. Years later he wrote, “O Love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul on Thee; I give Thee back the life I owe, that in Thine ocean depths its flow may richer fuller be.”

UNREAD LETTERS

Suppose you had been gone from home for several months, and every week you had written to your loved ones, but when you got back home you found your family had not
opened the letters you sent to them. How would you feel? How do you think God feels when we neglect the love letter He has sent to us?

IV. THE BIBLE IS THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT
Christians are told to put on the whole armor of God (Eph. 6:11). We are to take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (Eph. 6:17). Yes, the Bible is the very Word of the only true and living God. It is sharper than a two-edged sword (Heb. 4:12). When Stephen spoke to the Sanhedrin, they were cut to the heart (Acts 7:54). We need to learn to wield the sword of the Spirit in the power of the Holy Spirit as did Eleazar, the Ahohite, when he “smote the Philistines until his hand was weary and his hand stuck to the sword” (2 Sam. 23:10).

V. THE BIBLE IS THE FOUNDATION OF OUR FAITH (Ps. 11:3; 2 Tim. 2:19)
“How firm a foundation ye saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!” Since we are building our lives on the foundation of God’s eternal Word, we should know what we believe and why we believe it. All of man’s thinking is based on the shifting sands of human speculation. I encourage you to build your life on the solid foundation of God’s eternal Word.

VI. THE BIBLE IS THE SOURCE OF OUR FAITH
“So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17). Since there is only one way to be saved, and that is by faith (Rom. 3:28; 5:1), we shall do well to be sure we have the right kind of faith. Since there is only one way to live the Christian life, and that is by faith (Hab.2:4; Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Heb. 10:38), we shall be shall be wise to be strong in faith giving glory to God (Rom. 4:20). We are justified (declared righteous) by an act of faith; we live the Christian life by a constant attitude of faith. We are to run with patience the race set before us, looking (continuous action) to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith (Heb. 12:2). One of the greatest secrets in the Christian life is learning to keep our eyes fixed on Christ. Faith only operates when we are occupied with Christ. Our faith is nurtured by the Word of God. If we are to feed on Christ, we must constantly be in the Book.

VII. THE BIBLE IS GOD’S ROAD MAP FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN
If you are going to make a journey you have made many times before, you do not need a road map. However, if you are going to be traveling over unknown territory, a road map will help keep you from getting lost. If you will go by the road map you will stay on the right road. The Bible tells us, “There is a way which seems right unto man, but the ends thereof are the ways of death” (Prov. 14:12). Notice the Bible does not say the road that seems wrong leads to death, but the way that seems right leads to death. We cannot go by our feelings or emotions; we must measure everything by the Bible. Being sincere is not enough, we must be on the right road if we to reach the right destination.

Let us suppose a man who had been lost in the mountains for several days stumbled on
metal box which contained map and a compass. What would you think of this man if he disregarded the map and the compass and continued his aimless wanderings? Are we not like such a man if we go through life disregarding the Bible?

VIII. THE BIBLE IS THE RULE OR STANDARD BY WHICH WE DETERMINE WHAT IS RIGHT AND WHAT IS WRONG
“To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because
there is no light in them” (Isa. 8:20). Hundreds of voices clamor for our attention; each one claiming to be the right one. How can we know which religion or philosophy is right? We must be reminded that Satan is a master at mixing error with the Word of God. At the present time hundreds of false voices clamor for our attention.

How can we know what is morally right or wrong? In a world where everything is considered to be relative we need an authentic standard of values. Everything we believe must be tested by the Word of God or we shall go astray. We are created in His image, to be conformed to the image of His Son. We must not twist His Word to conform to our desires and the intimidating pressures of the world system.

IX. THE BIBLE IS THE WATERSHED THAT DIVIDES BIBLICAL CHRISTIANITY FROM ALL FALSE CULTS, PAGAN RELIGIONS AND ATHEISTIC PHILOSOPHIES
Every Scriptural sign strongly indicates we are rapidly approaching the end of this age. The coming of the Lord draws near. As we approach the end of the age the intensity of the battle between God and Satan increases. “The Philistines stood on a mountain on one side and the Children of Israel stood on a mountain on the other side, and there was a great valley between them” (1 Sam. 17:3). Most people in the world are not aware that a gigantic battle is being fought between God and Satan for the minds and souls of men. The deciding issue is “What think ye of Christ? Whose Son is He” (Matt. 22:42). The Bible and the Bible alone gives the right conception of THE CHRIST, the Son of the living God (Matt. 27:22).

X. THE BIBLE IS FILLED WITH TRUE AND UNSEARCHABLE RICHES (Luke 16:11; Eph. 3:8)
God is rich in grace (Eph. 1:7, 2:7); He is rich in glory (Eph. 1:18, 3:16; Phil. 4:19 Rom. 9:23); He is the possessor of all things in Heaven and in earth (Gen. 14:19, Deut.10:14).

All Christians are children of God (Gal. 3:26), but that is not all; they are heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:16,17).

What a contrast between the riches we have in Christ and the riches of the world! The Bible speaks of deceitful riches (Matt. 13:22) and of uncertain riches (1 Tim. 6:17). All of the riches of this world will come to nothing (Rev. 18:17). The time is coming when the riches of ungodly men will eat their flesh like fire. Their silver and gold will be corroded; they will weep and howl for the miseries that are coming on them (James 5:1-3).

God’s great salvation is “without money and without price” (Isa. 55:1). The Spirit of God asks us, “Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy?” (Isa. 55:2).

The things of God are free, but they are not cheap. If we are to discover the unsearchable riches of Christ in the Word of God you must seek for them as you would for hidden treasures (Prov. 2:4). Ponder this statement well.

XI. THE BIBLE IS FILLED WITH MANY WONDERFUL LIFE SUSTAINING PROMISES
It is not enough to sing “Standing the on the Promises,” we must learn to stand on them.

I had the privilege of attending the Moody Bible Institute in the summer of 1934. While I
was there my money ran out, and I was deeply distressed. In my distress I went to see Mr. A. F. Gaylord, the business manager of the school, hoping he would give me a job. He gave me something far better; he gave me Deuteronomy 31:8. “And the LORD, He is the One who goes before you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.” I have stood on this promise for more than 50 years.

Isaiah 41:10 has sustained me many times when I have been assailed by Satan. “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with the right hand of My righteousness.”

The good Lord has given me the privilege of teaching the Word of God in many countries. Exodus 33:14 has sustained me through many dangers. “My Presence will
go with you, and I will give you rest.”

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths” (Prov. 3:5,6).

“But the path of the just is like a shining light, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day” (Prov. 4:18).

Read Psalm 40:1-5; Rom. 8:36-39; 2 Cor.9:8; Phil.4:6,7. I gladly share these wonderful
promises with you, but you must discover your own promises and learn to stand on them.

THE PURPOSE OF THE BIBLE
By Dr. John F. John F. Walvoord

According to the written Word of God, one supreme purpose is revealed in all God has done or will do, from the beginning of creation to the farthest reaches of eternity. This supreme purpose is the manifestation of the glory of God. For this purpose angels were created, the material universe was designed to reflect that glory, and man was created in the image and likeness of God. In the inscrutable wisdom of God, even sin was permitted and redemption was provided with a view toward the realization of this supreme purpose.

For God to manifest His glory is in keeping with His infinite perfections. When man attempts to glorify himself, it is always sinful because man is so imperfect. For God to manifest His glory is to express and reveal truth which has infinite blessing for the creature. Because God is infinite in His being and absolute in His perfection, He is worthy of infinite glory, and it would be an injustice of infinite proportions should His creation withhold from Him the full expression of that honor and glory which are rightfully His.

In manifesting His glory God is not self-seeking, but rather is expressing His glory for the benefit of His creation. The revelation of God to His creation has provided them with a worthy object for love and devotion, has given them ground for faith, and peace of mind, and has given man assurance of salvation in time and eternity. The more man comprehends of the glory of God, the greater is the blessing that accrues to man.

Since the Bible is God’s message to man, its supreme purpose is His supreme purpose – which is, that He may be glorified.

The Bible records:
1. That “all things…that are in heaven, and that are in the earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him and for Him” (for His glory, Col. 1:16). Angels and men, the material universe and every creature, are all created for His glory. “The heavens declare the glory of God” (Ps. 19:1).

2. The nation of Israel is for the glory of God (Isa. 43:7, 21, 25; 60:1,3,21; 62:3; Jer. 13:11).

3. Salvation is unto the glory of God (Rom. 9:23), even as it will be a manifestation of the grace of God (Eph. 2:7), and is now a manifestation of the wisdom of God (Eph. 3:10).

4. All service should be unto the glory of God (Matt. 5:16; John 15:8; 1 Cor. 10:31;
1 Pet. 2:12; 4:11,14). The Bible itself is God’s instrument by which He prepares the
man of God unto every good work (2 Tim. 3:16-17).

5. The Christian’s new passion is that God might be glorified (Rom. 5:2).

6. Even the believer’s death is said to be to this one end (John 21:19; Phil. 1:20).

7. The saved one is appointed to share in the glory of Christ (John 17:22; Col. 3:4).

Taken as a whole, the Bible differs in its subject from any other book in the world. It stands supreme as reflecting the place of man and his opportunity for salvation, the supreme character and work of Jesus Christ as the only Savior, and gives in detail the infinite glories that belong to God Himself. It is the one book that reveals the Creator to the creature and discloses the plan by which man in all of his imper-fections can be reconciled and in eternal fellowship with the eternal God. (2)

WHAT THE BIBLE DOES FOR US

I. THE BIBLE REVEALS THE TRUE AND LIVING GOD
The most noble pursuit of life is to know, to love, to worship and to serve the only true and living God. It is not enough to know about God, we must come to know Him in a personal way. The Lord Jesus said, “And this is life eternal, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3).

God is love (1 John 4:8). He loves us and He wants us to love Him. The first and great commandment is, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your sould, and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37).

We are to worship God. The Lord Jesus said, “But the hour is coming and now is, when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him” (John 4:23).

We are to serve God. We are not saved by serving God; we are not made acceptable to Him through our service, but when we come to Him; when we begin to understand His wonderful love for us, we exclaim with Isaac Watts, “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.”

II. THE BIBLE REVEALS THE LORD JESUS CHRIST
The pre-existent Christ, the Babe of Bethlehem, the Man of Galilee, the Christ of Calvary is the central character of the Bible.

Over 700 names and titles are given to Him in the Word of God. His name is above every name, and His name is the only name whereby men can be saved.

He is the First and the Last; the Alpha and the Omega. He is the Great Creator; the first Born of all creation. He is the only begotten Son of God and the first born from the
dead. He is the Son of God; He is God the Son, and He is the Son of man. He is the God-man. He is the Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

He is the bread of life, the water of life, the way, the truth and the life. He is the
resurrection and the life. He is the Rose of Sharon and the Lily of the Valley. He is the Sun of righteousness, and the Bright and Morning Star.

He is a merciful and compassionate High Priest. He is the Great Physician; the healer of broken hearts. He is the good Shepherd; the Great Shepherd and the Chief Shepherd. He is my Shepherd. He wants to be your Shepherd.

He is coming again as King of Kings and Lord
of Lords.

He, the marvel of the ages, is Lord of all. He wants to be your Savior, your
Lord and your life. He wants to be your all in all. If we fail to discover Him, if we fail to be brought into a vital relationship with Him, we have failed to discover the meaning of life. One of the main reasons why the Bible was written is that we might discover what life is all about.

III. THE BIBLE IS THE MEANS OF OUR SALVATION
“The law of the LORD is perfect converting the soul” (Psalm 19:7). “Of His own will He
brought us forth by the word of truth” (James 1:18). “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which lives and abides forever” (1 Peter 1:23).

We are justified by faith (Rom. 3:28; 5:1): we are saved by grace (Eph. 2:8); we are saved by hope (Rom. 8:24); we are saved by the Gospel (1 Cor.15:2), but in the final analysis we are saved by Christ, and by Christ alone (Matt. 1:21).

The Spirit of God and the Word of God bring us to the living Christ and enable us to put our trust in Him. There is no half way salvation. We are either completely saved or we are completely lost. “He that has the Son has life; and he that has not the Son of God has not life” (1 John 5:12).

We are saved by inviting the living Christ to come into our heart. “He came unto His own and His own received Him not, but as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name” (John
1:11,12).

The Lord Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hears my voice, and opens the door, I will come into him, and will dine with him, and he with Me” (Rev. 3:20).

IV. THE BIBLE PROVIDES SPIRITUAL FOOD FOR OUR GROWTH
It is milk. “As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby” (1 Peter 2:2).

It is bread. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4).

It is meat. “You are such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that uses milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But strong
meat belongs to those that are of full age, even those who by reason of use, have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil” (Heb. 5:12-14).

The Bible is honey. It “is sweeter than the honey and honey comb” (Psalm 19:10).

But why does God want us to grow? Is He concerned about our physical and spiritual size? Most assuredly not. God wants to mature, to develop spiritually. He wants us to
grow up to the “measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13). His primary purpose in saving us is to conform us to the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29). He wants us to be fruit-bearing, reproducing Christians (John 15:2,8).

V. THE BIBLE IS THE MEANS OF OUR CLEANSING
The Lord Jesus said, “Now you are clean through the word I have spoken unto you” (John 15:3).

“Christ loved the church and gave Himself for it, that He might sanctify and cleanse it by the washing of the water by the word” (Eph. 5:26).

“How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. With
my whole heart have I sought You; oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word have I hidden in my heart that I might not sin against You” (Psalm 119:9-11).

D.L. Moody said, “This Book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from the Book.”

Thomas a Kempis said, “I would always be in a nook with the Book.” The Bible has a purifying effect on those who read and BELIEVE it. We need the constant cleansing of God’s Word.

“O cleansing Word, O precious Word,
Your promises are true;
They keep and purify my heart;
Your truths are ever new.”
”If you pore over God’s Word,
His cleansing power will pour through you.”

VI. GOD’S WORD GIVES GUIDANCE
Since men have rejected the light of life, the world we live in is filled with darkness and
despair. The darkness deepens as we approach the end of the age. Though the Lord Jesus, Himself, is the Light of the world, He has left us His Word that we might be filled with the knowledge of His will.

We cannot be led of the Lord when we walk in self-will, but when we present our bodies to Him as a living sacrifice, we can prove what is the “good and acceptable and perfect will of God”
(Rom. 12:2).

VII. GOD’S WORD GIVES PEACE
“Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them” (Psalm 119:165). People all over the world are seeking for peace of mind. Alas! Most of them are looking in the wrong place. They try drugs, pleasure, success, and all kinds of religions and religious experiences to no avail. Oh, that they would turn to the Lord, and to His Holy Word!

VIII. THE BIBLE GIVES MEANING TO LIFE
The Bible is the only Book in the world that answers these three questions: 1. Where did we come from, 2. Why are we here 3. Where are we going?

1. The Bible tells us where we came from.
”In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). It tells us, “God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them” (Gen.1:27). Modern science tells us that man is the highest product of evolution. Who are we to believe? There are those who tell us that both creation and evolution must be accepted by faith. Even though this is true in a limited sense, God has given us strong, substantial evidence for believing Him and in His Word. We do not have to accept the Bible by faith. We have strong substantial evidence for believing it is the Word of God. Evidence that the Bible is the Word of God is discussed in the next section. However, circumstantial evidence is the best evidence
evolutionists can produce. (3)

Atheists, agnostics, skeptics and scoffers will sneer when I remind them God has said, “The fool has said in his heart there is no God” (Psalm 14:1). I choose to agree with God’s appraisal rather than theirs. When any man tries to tell me that a watch just happened, I think something is wrong with his mental apparatus.

We have a God who delights in manifesting Himself to His children. “The Lord Jesus said, “He who has my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And He who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will manifest Myself to him (John 14:21).

2. The Bible is the only Book in the world that tells us why we are here; it is the only
Book that gives meaning and purpose to life. Think it through for yourself. Where can you find meaning in life apart from the living Christ as revealed in the Word of God? Read the testimony of King Solomon in the book of Ecclesiastes. He had everything any man could desire, but concluded that all was vanity and vexation of spirit.

God’s great purpose is to save men (Luke 19:10), and to conform them to the image of
Christ (Rom. 8:29). The Westminister Shorter Catechism states, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.” The natural man and the carnal believer do not like such definitions. They want to be free to do their own thing; they do not want to be bound by the restraints of God; they walk after the desires of their sinful nature. Some who live in this way come to their senses and are made to realize that physical and temporal things cannot satisfy the longings of the human heart. With Augustine they
discover man is restless until he finds rest in God.

3. The Bible is the only Book in the world that tells us where we are going. Apart from the Bible the best any man can do is to speculate about the future, but with the Bible, and by following the teachings of the Bible we can be sure of eternal life now, and of an eternal home in Heaven (John 5:24; 1 John 5:13).

HOW WE KNOW THE BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD

I. THE BIBLE CLAIMS TO BE INSPIRED OF GOD
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof,
for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Tim. 3:16).

“For prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spoke as they were moved (borne along) by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21).

“For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard of us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectually works in you who believe” (1 Thess. 2:13).

Many times the Bible is called “The word of the LORD,” and “the Word of God.” Over 2500 times in the Book we have such expressions as, “Thus saith the LORD,” “The LORD spoke unto Moses, and “The Word of the LORD came unto me, saying…’

II. FULFILLED PROPHECIES PROVE THE BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD
These prophecies can be divided into three categories: prophecies concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, concerning the Nation of Israel, and prophecies concerning the nations of the world. For a discussion of this subject read WHY I BELIEVE THE BIBLE by M.H.D. Sr., and my book HOW FIRM A FOUNDATION. (4)

III. THE UNITY OF THE SCRIPTURES PROVES THEM TO BE THE WORD OF GOD
The Bible was written by more than 40 men from all walks of life over period of 1500 years, and yet it has one continuous theme throughout. It would be impossible to get 10 (much less 40!) scientists or college professors to write a book in which all of them agreed on any given subject.

IV. THE SCIENCE OF ARCHAEOLOGY PROVES THE
BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD.
Skeptics and scoffers have ridiculed many of the statements in the Bible, but again and again the spade of the archaeologist has turned up evidence to verify the historical accuracy of the Bible.

V. THE UNIQUENESS OF THE SCRIPTURES PROVE THEM TO BE THE WORD OF GOD.
On one occasion the Pharisees sent officers to arrest the Lord Jesus, but before arresting Him, they stopped to listen to Him teach. After listening to Him they returned to the Pharisees without arresting Him. The Pharisees said, “Why have you not brought Him?” The officers replied, “Never man spake like this man.”

In the same way, when we study the Word of God, we are compelled to admit, “No other book in all the world speaks like this Book” (John 7:32-46).

VI. THE TRANSFORMING POWER OF THE BIBLE PROVES IT IS THE WORD OF GOD.
God’s Word is a fire which convicts the sinner of his sin, and burns the dross out of the
believer’s life (Jer. 23:29). It is like a hammer which breaks the rock in pieces (Jer. 23:29). The hearts of the hardest sinners are broken when the Word of God is applied in the power of the Holy Spirit. Tens of thousands of transformed lives demonstrate the validity of the transforming power of the Word of God. Read chapter 12 of my book HOW FIRM A FOUNDATION.

FIVE VITAL DOCTRINES CONCERNING THE BIBLE

I. THE DOCTRINE OF DIVINE REVELATION
God reveals Himself in three ways:

1. Through nature (Psalm 19:1-6; Rom. 1:18-21).

2. Through the Lord Jesus Christ, the Living Word (Hebrews 1:1-3).

3. Through the Bible, the written Word (Psalm 19:7-14; Gal. 1:11,12; Eph. 1:9; 1 Cor. 2:9-14).

Though the Bible is not a complete revelation of God, it contains all that God desires for us to know about Him, and it contains far more that we will ever be able to comprehend. (Deuteronomy 29:29 tells us, “The secret things belong to the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong to us and our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.”

II. THE DOCTRINE OF SUPERNATURAL INSPIRATION
The Bible is the plenary verbally, inspired, infallible, inerrant word of the only true and living God. The two greatest verses in the Bible on the inspiration of the Scriptures are: “All Scripture is given by inspiration (God breathed) of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Tim. 3:16), and “For prophecy came not in old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spoke as they were moved (literally borne along) by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21).

SIX FALSE THEORIES OF INSPIRATION

1. The naturalistic theory teaches the Bible is a human product void of any supernatural element.

2. There two distinct theories of partial inspiration. First, there are those who accept the parts of the Bible that appeal to them, and reject the parts that do not appeal to them. For example, most would agree the 23rd Psalm is inspired, but they reject
those parts of the Bible that teach about hell, judgment and the wrath of God. The weakness of this position should be evident. Who knows what part is inspired and what part is not inspired? This position makes us to be judge of the Book rather
than letting the Book judge us (John 12:48).

The second theory is held by those who teach the Bible is inerrant in spiritual matters,
and in doctrines concerning salvation, but that it is errant in historical and scientific matters. The June 17,1988 issue of CHRISTIANITY TODAY reported one of the
leading spokesmen for the Methodist Church’s evangelical wing as saying that conservative Methodists hold to the “the authority of the Scriptures in matters of faith
and practice, not geology.” This statement is an example of New Evangelicals who are divided as to whether or not the Bible is inerrant.

3. The gracious theory teaches the Bible is inspired in the same way as Browning or Tennyson. The writings of Paul are compared to the writings of Calvin and Luther.

4. The dynamic theory teaches that God inspired the thoughts of the writers,
but not their words.

5. The dictation theory teaches that the Bible was written just like a businessman would dictate a letter to his secretary. If this view were correct there would be no difference in the writings of Paul, Moses or David.

6. The Neo-orthodox view of inspiration teaches the Bible is not the Word of God, but
that it becomes the Word of God only as it is comprehended and its truth is realized by the individual reader.

III. THE PRESERVATION OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES
Yes, inspiration without preservation is worthless, but we must be honest in seeking to
determine the method God used to preserve the Scriptures.

The issue is not what God could have done to preserve His Holy word, but what method did He use? Since He is omnipotent, He can use whatever method He wishes to use. A detailed discussion of this problem is beyond the scope of this book. The position we take is best stated in this poem:

I paused last eve beside the blacksmith’s door, And heard the anvil ring, the vesper’s chime,

And looking in I saw upon the floor Old hammers, worn with beating years of time.

“How many anvils have you had?” said I, “To wear and batter all these hammers so?”

“Just one,” he answered. Then with twinkling eye: “The anvil wears the hammers out, you know.”

And so, I thought, the anvil of God’s Word For ages skeptics’ blows have beat upon,

But through the noise of falling blows was heard The anvil is unchanged; the hammers gone – – John Clifford

IV. THE ILLUMINATION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Without splitting hairs, it is safe to say the doctrine of illumination and the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit are one and the same.

In the Upper Room Discourse (John 13-17) the Lord Jesus gave us very important instructions concerning the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit. He said,

“But the Comforter (perhaps “Helper” is a better translation, but “The Divine Enabler” is theologically correct) which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26). Notice the promise, “He shall teach you all things.”

“I have many things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them now. Howbeit when He the Spirit
of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: For He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will show you things to come. He shall glorify me: for He shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you” (John 16:12-14). Notice the clear cut promises in these verses:

1. “He will guide you into all truth.”

2. “He will show you things to come” (one reason why some Bible students do not understand Bible prophecy is that they do not depend on the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit).

3. “He shall glorify me.”

4. “He shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you.”

There are those who teach that since these promises were given to the Apostles, we (you and
I at the present time) have no right to claim them. The extent to which we may claim these promises may indeed be limited, but to deny them completely would render God and the things of God unknowable, thus defeating the purpose of His written Word (John 20:31). Those who limit the illumination of the Holy Spirit to the Apostles will not have the privilege of being taught by the Spirit of God.

I must emphasize I am not talking about receiving a new revelation; I am talking about illumination.

The Apostle Paul verifies this position in the second chapter of First Corinthians, which is the greatest chapter in the Bible on the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit. He writes, “But as it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love Him” (1 Cor. 2:9).

This a great verse to use at funerals, but Paul is not talking about the future glories that await us. He is talking about the “Here and Now.” How do I know this to be true? The next verse tells us so.

“But God has revealed them to by His Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep things of God” (1 Cor. 2:10).

“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God: that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God” (1 Cor. 2:12).

What is one of the principal reasons why God gives us the Holy Spirit? “That we might know the things which are freely given to us of God.”

No matter how many degrees a man has he will not understand the Bible until he learns to be
taught by the Spirit of God.

An uneducated washwoman who is taught by the Holy Spirit will have a better understanding of
the Bible than the highly sophisticated, multiple degreed scholar from Oxford who has not learned
to be taught by the Holy Spirit.

Yes, strong language, I know, but true.

V. THE DOCTRINE OF INTERPRETATION

One of Satan’s tricks is to make people believe the Bible is written in such deep, profound, mystical language that ordinary people cannot understand it. The Catholic church misinterprets “No prophecy is of any private
interpretation” to mean that the individual Christian does not have the right to interpret the Bible, but that it must be interpreted by the Roman Catholic Church. That is not what this verse means; it means we are not to interpret any verse of Scripture by itself, but in the light of other Scriptures.

The student’s understanding of the Scriptures depends on the method of interpretation he uses. There are two principal schools of interpretation: allegorical and literal. Angus-Green defines an allegory as “Any statement of supposed facts which admits of a literal interpretation, and yet requires or justly admits a moral or figurative one, is called an Allegory.”

Bernard Ramm defines the literal method “that method that gives each word the same exact basic meaning that it would have in normal, ordinary, customary usage, whether employed in writing, speaking or thinking.”

There are allegories in the Scriptures, and there are passages to be taken in a literal sense. Our problem is to determine what we are to take literally and what we are to take spiritually.

However, this is not a major problem for the Spirit taught believer. For example, when the Lord Jesus said, “I am the vine,” we know He did not mean He was a literal vine. When He said, “I am the door, we know He did not mean He was a literal door. When He said, “Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, you
have no life in you” (John 6:53), we know He was not speaking literally about eating His flesh and drinking His blood.

John Calvin helps with these words, “Let us know then, that the true meaning of Scripture is the normal and obvious meaning, and let us embrace and abide by it resolutely.”

David L. Cooper gives this splendid advice:
When the plain sense of Scripture makes common sense, seek no other sense; therefore, take every word at its primary, ordinary, usual literal meaning unless the facts of the immediate context, studied in the light of related passages and axiomated and fundamental truths, indicate clearly otherwise.

In interpreting the Bible, the following suggestions will be helpful.
1. Keep in mind the overall purpose of the Bible. The Bible is a harmonious whole, therefore one portion will not contradict another portion. Unbelievers tell us, “The Bible is filled with contradictions.” I tell them, “Show them to me”. When I hand them my Bible, they start thumbing through it, hand it back to me and say, “I can’t find them now.” I know of many apparent contradictions in the Bible, but when we “rightly divide the Word of truth” the apparent contradictions disappear.

2. Keep in mind to whom the passage is addressed. A good rule is “All Scripture is not to me, but all Scripture is for me.”

3. Study each verse in the light of the context. The “context” is the material before or after the passage that is related to it.

4. If you have difficulty understanding some particular verse, make an effort to get a correct translation of that verse.

Dr. T. Norton Sterrett gives this helpful advice:

Interpret any given passage in the light of Bible teaching as a whole. This is another way of saying, “Interpret Scripture by Scripture.” If you follow other principles of interpretation faithfully (as far as you know) but the resulting interpretation contradicts general Bible teaching, then you know the isolated interpretation is wrong. The Bible does not contradict itself. The Bible is essentially revelation, giving only one message about God.

This means we must get to know the whole Bible. Such knowledge will not come in one day, but will come by reading regularly, systematically, prayerfully, and reading over and over again.

We will find this message in the whole Bible, not in just a few passages.
The message of the Bible on a particular subject can be found by studying all the passages of the Bible on that particular subject. If we fail to study all the passages, we may miss what the Bible is saying.

Suppose you going through the jungle. You come to a small river cutting across your path that is very difficult to
cross. If you know nothing about the general area you will try to cross the river, But, if you know the whole area, you know that a quarter of a mile to the right, the river makes bend and reverses its direction. So you can simply walk around the bend and do not need to cross the river at all. Some general knowledge will save you from great difficulty, even from danger. This demonstrates the great value of the overall view. (5).

HOW SATAN ATTACKS THE WORD OF GOD

The Bible is the foundation of the Christian faith. We sing, “How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in His excellent Word.” No structure can be stronger than the foundation upon which it is built. No matter how magnificent the superstructure may be, when the foundation gives way the building falls with it.
”If the foundations are destroyed, What can the righteous do?” (Psalm 11:3).

Everything we know and believe about Christ, the Living Word, depends on what the Bible, the written Word of God tells us. We believe in the virgin birth of Christ, the atoning death of Christ, the resurrection of Christ, the Second coming of Christ, all because the Bible tells us of these things. If the Bible is not true, we have no way of knowing what to believe about Christ or about salvation.

Satan knows the Christian faith will crumble in ruins, if he can destroy the foundation on which it is built. For this reason Satan makes his first attack on the Word of God. He whispers now as he did in Eden, “Hath God said?” (Gen. 3:1).

Consider 13 ways Satan attacks the Word of God.

I. SATAN SOWS SEEDS OF DOUBT IN THE HEART OF THE UNCONVERTED
All men are believers. Of their own will, they choose to believe Satan’s lie, or they choose to believe the truth of God. God is a God of truth. Satan is a liar and a deceiver. He is the master counterfeiter. For everything God has
that is genuine, Satan has counterfeit. His ministers are not thugs and thieves in the hell holes of sin, but they are “gentlemen and scholars” who often preach in our pulpits and teach in our schools (2 Cor. 11:13-15).

II. SATAN SEEKS TO SOW SEEDS OF DOUBT IN THE HEARTS OF THOSE WHO ARE THE TRUE CHILDREN OF GOD
“The just shall live by faith” (Hab. 2:4; Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Heb. 10:38). These verses tell us that there is but one way to live the Christian life, and that is to live by faith. All else is spurious. Since this is true, Satan attacks the believer’s faith in every way possible. He seeks to get us to doubt our salvation; he causes us to doubt the inspiration of the Scriptures; he seeks to get us to doubt the resurrection of Christ. When testings and trials assail us, he seeks to get us to doubt the goodness of God.

Since faith only operates when we are occupied with Christ, Satan does everything possible to get us to take our eyes off of Christ (Heb. 12:1). He seeks to get us to look at others , their sins, their faults, their successes. He seeks to get us to get our eyes on our feelings, our emotions, yes, our failures. He seeks to cause us to be occupied with the things of this world, with making money, with pleasure, with sin, with folly. I have said enough to give you an understanding of some of the ways in which Satan attacks the faith of those who believe in Christ.

III.SATAN ATTACKS THE CHURCH OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST
Though the Lord Jesus is building His church and has promised that the gates of Hell will not prevail against it (Matt. 16:18), Satan, the great destroyer, is seeking in every way possible to destroy the church.

IV. SATAN IS SEEKING TO DESTROY THE FAMILY
f you are informed at all, you are aware of the many ways he is seeking to do this.

V. SATAN SEEKS TO DESTROY EVERY MINISTER OF THE GOSPEL.
We can praise God for the great host of true servants of God who have remained true to Him in spite of all the Devil can do, but you are aware of Satan’s success in destroying many ministers in different ways.

VI. SATAN ATTACKS THE LITERAL INTERPRETATION OF THE WORD OF GOD
Much vital truth has been lost to the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ because some have believed they are not to take the bible in a literal sense. Every bible-believing Christian has faced scorn and ridicule for interpreting the Bible in a literal manner. They are called “literalists” and “obscurantists.” See the
section on interpretation for further comment.

VII. SATAN TWISTS AND PERVERTS THE WORD OF GOD
He has done this from the very beginning of the New Testament Church. For example, the Judaizers said, “It is fine for you to believe on Jesus Christ, but you must also keep the law if you are to be saved.”

The Apostle Paul replied, “If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that you have received, let him be accursed” (Gal. 1:9).

The Gnostics taught that Christ was not a real person, but merely an apparition. The Apostle John replied, I know this is not true. “We have looked upon and handled the Word of life” (1 John 1:1).

Arius (256-336) denied the Trinity and taught that Christ was a creature of God. Jehovah’s Witnesses base their doctrine on this heresy.

Every cult perverts the Word of God. Instead of determining what the Bible actually teaches, they search for proof texts to substantiate their doctrine.

VIII. SATAN ADDS TO THE WORD OF GOD
The Roman Catholic Church is the prime example of this. The one cardinal error of the Catholic Church is that it puts the authority of the Church above the authority of the Bible.

Dr. R.C. Sproul has written,

Rome has placed along side the Scripture the traditions of the church as a supplement to Scripture and, consequently, a second source of special revelation beyond the scope of Scripture.

It has been a continuous assertion of the Roman Catholic Church that since the church established the extent and scope of the New Testament and Old Testament canon there is a certain sense in which the authority of the Bible is subordinate to, and dependent upon the church’s approval. (6)

When any Christian group goes by their traditions, in stead of going by the Word of God, they have “made the Word of God of no effect” by their traditions (Matt. 15:6).

The Mormon Church adds the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, the Pearl of Great Price, and latter day revelations to the Word of God.

The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society boldly proclaims the Bible cannot be understood apart from their literature.

Christian Scientists depend on the Bible and SCIENCE AND HEALTH by Mrs. Mary Patterson, Eddy,
Baker, Glover, Fry.

IX. SATAN TAKES FROM THE WORD OF GOD
When Jehudi read Jeremiah’s prophecy before King Jehoiakim, the king cut the pages with his penknife and cast them into the fire (Jeremiah 36:23). Modern critics do the same thing when they cut out portions of the Bible which do not suit them. When men get to the place where they think they are wiser than Almighty God, they are in trouble.

The Church of the Lord Jesus Christ is attacked from many foes from without, but it is her foes on the inside that do the most damage. The so-called science of Higher Criticism arose in Germany in the early part of the 19th century. These men studied the Bible, not to love it and to practice its teachings, but in order to destroy it. For example, they sought to prove Moses did not write the Pentateuch. Since they rejected the supernatural element in Christianity, they sought to prove that Daniel could not have written his prophecies, but that they were written at a later date after the prophetic events had taken place. Fallen man is easily puffed up with pride, and it was not long before the false teaching of these German scholars spread to England and then to America.

This false teaching gave rise to what is now called “modernism” or “liberalism.” Modernism is simply a denial of the supernatural in the Christian faith. This view ties in with we have already said about the partial view of inspiration.

Christian people need to be aware that the enemies of the Word of God are enemies of God. Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892) has been called the prince of preachers. The enemies of the Gospel literally hounded him to his death. A few days before his death he wrote:

Numbers of easy-minded people wink at error as long as it is committed by some clever man and good-natured brother who has so many fine points about him. Let each believer judge for himself, but for our part we have put a few fresh bolts on our door, and have given orders to keep the chains up, for under color of beggin the friendship of the servant, there are those who aim at robbing the master. These preachers are not mistaken friends, but enemies of Christ. There is no use employing circumlocutions and polite terms of expression. Where Christ is not received and the cleansing of His blood as the justifying merit of His righteousness, He is not received at all. Those who know and love the truth of God cannot have fellowship with that which is diametrically opposed thereto, and there can be no reason why they should pretend that they have such fellowship. My counsel has always been “come out from among them.” I have felt that no protest could be equal to that of distinct separation.

X. SATAN SEEKS TO DISCREDIT THE BIBLE THROUGH SO-CALLED SCIENTIFIC THEORIES
Many sincere people believe that modern science contradicts the Bible. This is not true. The Bible and science are in perfect harmony since God is the author of both. The conflict comes between theories of science and theories about the Bible. There are those who claim the theory of evolution to be a proven fact of science. The truth of the matter is that modern science could never have developed if evolution is true. Evolution is based on a hit or miss random process.

Most, if not all, of early outstanding scientists were Bible-believing Christians. Since they believed in a personal God who did things in a reasonable and rational way, they were able to reason in a logical manner, and thus develop modern science.

XI. SATAN ATTACKS THE BIBLE THROUGH NEO-ORTHODOXY
Neo-orthodox theologians deny the Bible in itself, objectively, is revelation. They maintain that revelation does not occur until or unless there is an inward, subjective human response to that Word. Scholars like Emil Bruner, for example, have insisted that the Bible is not itself revelation, but merely a witness to that revelation which is found in Christ.” (7)

Every major denomination has been infiltrated by such teaching.

XII. SATAN ATTACKS THE BIBLE THROUGH NEW EVANGELICALISM
New Evangelicals are divided on the issue of inerrancy. Most Bible-believing Christians take the position that when the inerrancy of the Scriptures is denied, one vital doctrine of the Bible after another, over a period of years, will also be denied. This is called “the domino theory.” Dr. Harold Lindsell demonstrates the truth of the domino theory in his book THE BATTLE FOR THE BIBLE. (8)

The Southern Baptist Convention is now in a major battle over this issue. The Fuller Theological Seminary has repudiated the doctrine of inerrancy, and the domino theory is being demonstrated. (9)

XIII. SATAN ATTACKS THE BIBLE THROUGH THE NEW AGE MOVEMENT
Multitudes, including many preachers, are being deceived by the New Age Movement. In his book DARK SECRETS OF THE NEW AGE, Texe Marrs writes,

Demonic spirits who appear as invited guest of human contacts wage war against the Word of God. The Bible instructs Christians to test the spirits to determine whether they are of God or Satan (1 John 4:1-3). We are told light and darkness cannot coexist (2 Cor. 6:14).

Using Biblical guidelines, we can know that the clever spirits who are deceiving New Age believers are of Satan, because they continually spread false doctrines that go against the Scripture.

In examining the utterances of these demons of the New Age, we find that among their many lies they consistently teach eight spiritual falsehoods.
1) A personal God does not exist.
2) Jesus is not the only begotten Son of God, and is not the only Christ.
3) Jesus did not die for our sins.
4) There is no such thing as sin and evil.
5) There is no Trinity of Father-Son-Holy Spirit.
6) The Bible is filled with errors.
7) There is no heaven and no hell.
8) Every man is God, and one’s godhood can be realized through the attainment of a higher consciousness. (10)

WHAT WE ARE TO DO WITH THE BIBLE

We are to believe it and obey it; we are to take it in and we are to give it out.

I. WE ARE TO BELIEVE THE BIBLE
“If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He testified of His Son” (1 John 5:9).

Though we receive the witness of men about many things, at times it is difficult to know who to believe and what to believe. We cannot believe everything we read in books (not even in school textbooks). We certainly cannot believe everything we read in the newspapers. We cannot believe everything we
hear on the radio, we cannot believe everything see on television. Satan is a liar, a deceiver and a distorter of truth, but God is a God of truth. Since He is a God of truth, we can have complete confidence in the Bible. In an earlier section we have seen His Word is a standard by which we can know what is true and what is false. “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to
this Word, it is because there is not light in them” (Isa. 8:20). We can always have confidence in what the Bible says. “God said it; I believe it; that settles it!”

If the fact that God said it doesn’t settle it for you, then you are walking in carnality and rebellion instead of by faith.

If you are quenching the Holy Spirit through unbelief, you are in much the same position as the natural man who does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, in fact, they are foolishness to you (1 Cor. 2:11,14).

Do you find yourself disbelieving the preaching of God’s Word because it is not what you want to hear, or because science or society contradicts what God’s Word says?

Sad to say, my friend, but you are neither walking in the light by faith, in these areas.

As you read Hebrews 11, you see faith, fruitful faith. You see an assured hope for the
future (v.1), an acceptance of God’s interpretation of the unseen past (v.2) and the confidence to trust and obey Him now (v.6).

You may be learning about God’s Word, but if you are not believing it, you shall not live it consistently

II. WE ARE TO OBEY THE BIBLE
We are not saved by obeying the Bible; if we had to obey the Bible in order to be saved, none of us would be, or could be saved, for the simple reason that none of us are able to obey all of the Bible.

Does this mean obedience is not important? Most certainly not! Obedience is the key to understanding the Bible. The importance of obedience is stressed throughout the Word of God. Samuel told King Saul, “To obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams” (1 Sam. 15:22). Read the entire 15th chapter of First Samuel.

The Lord Jesus taught, “Not every one that says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of my Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 7:21).

The Apostle Paul, the great champion of grace, said, “Those things which you have both learned, and received, and heard and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you” (Phil. 4:9). In his letter to Titus, he repeatedly stressed the importance of good works (1:16; 2:11,12; 3:8).

Some have thought there is conflict between Paul and James in the matter of faith and works. Not so! Paul writes from God’s standpoint; James from the human standpoint: “You see then” (James 2:24).

Martin Luther said, “We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that that saves is not alone.”

Faith is the root; works the fruit. If we profess to have faith but do not have works it is a dead faith, and a dead faith cannot save. In Matthew 3:8 John the Baptist told the religious leaders to bring forth fruit consistent with repentance. A changed life is to be expected following profession of salvation.

Obedience is essential if we are to understand the Word of God. The Spirit of God does not give new light and understanding until we act on the light He has given. Illumination is dependent on our obedience. It is only as we obey and practice what we read that the Holy Spirit is able to lead us into the deeper truth of God.

If we have been born again by the Spirit of God, we are new creatures in Christ. We enjoy and experience the very life of the risen Christ. If Christ lives in us, His life will be made manifest through us, and we shall find joy
and delight in doing the will of God.

“Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey.”

III. WE ARE TO ASSIMILATE (TAKE IN) THE BIBLE
We assimilate the Bible in the following ways:
1. By hearing it,
2. By reading it,
3. By studying it,
4. By memorizing it,
5. By meditating on it.

1. We Are To Hear the Word of God.

Multiplied millions of people all over the world do not have the privilege of hearing the Word of God. In America we can hear the Bible preached and taught in churches every Sunday. We can hear it over the radio and by TV. We can hear it by cassette. We can hear it in Bible Study classes. Christians in America should be grateful for the many privileges they have of hearing the Word of God.

2. We Are To Read the Word of God.

Some Christians have the habit of hurriedly reading a few verses of the Bible each day. They are on a starvation diet. Since they read in a legalistic way, and since their mind is not on what they read, they get little or nothing from what they read. Little or no blessing is received from the Bible when it is read in a cold intellectual manner. The Bible speaks primarily to the heart. The sinner can be saved as he reads the Bible with an honest heart and an open mind. As he reads, he will be convinced the Bible is the Word of God, and he will find the Lord Jesus to be a wonderful, all sufficient Savior.

The book of Nehemiah stresses the importance of reading the Bible. “And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spoke to Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded Israel. And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women, and all who could hear with understanding, upon
the first day of the seventh month. And he read from it facing the street that was before the water gate from morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law” (Neh. 8:1-3).

“So they read in the book of the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading” (Neh. 8:8).

We sin against God when we fail to give the Bible top priority in our lives. Ignorance of the Bible among the children of God, even in Bible-believing churches is appalling. Ask God to enable you at least to read the
Bible through once a year. When we read the Bible we should seek a quiet place where God can speak to our
hearts.

3. We Are To Study the Bible.

The Bereans of old give an excellent example how to study the Bible. “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so” (Acts 17:11).

We can learn several lessons from their example. (a) We are to study the Scriptures. They “searched the Scriptures.” We are not primarily to study “about” the Bible; we are to study the Bible. Many ministers spend four years in seminary studying about the Bible, but they never study the Bible itself. Hence they have no message. (b) We are to search the Scriptures. If we are to know the deep things of God we must dig
for them as hidden treasure. (c) We are to study daily. They “searched the Scriptures daily.” Jesus taught us
to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” Just as we need physical food daily, so also we need spiritual food daily. (d) We are to study to find out exactly what the Bible says, and not what we think it says. The Bereans “searched the Scriptures daily whether these things were so.”

If we are to understand the Holy Scriptures, we must rightly divide them (2 Tim. 2:15). Skeptics often sneer about the contradictions in the Bible. If the Scriptures are not “rightly divided” many contradictions can be found. If they are not “rightly divided” we have a hodge-podge of hopeless confusion. We must distinguish
between law and grace. We must distinguish between the Jew, the Gentile and the Church of God. We must distinguish between salvation and rewards; between the two comings of Christ; between the two resurrections and between the seven judgments.

On the one hand we must be careful to “rightly divide” the Word of God, but on the otherhand we must be careful not to wrongly divide it. A sane dispensational study is the key that unlocks the prophetic Scriptures, but when this method of interpretation is pushed to the extreme it is used as atrick of Satan to rob us of truth we need from the Word of God.

There is a right way and wrong way to study the Bible. All of the cults use the wrong method. The right way is to come to the Bible with an honest heart and an open mind to seek to be taught by the Holy Spirit to know and understand God’s message for us.

The wrong way is to come to the Bible with preconceived notions about what we think the Bible teaches and then to search the Scriptures to find proof texts that seem to support our position. Jehovah’s Witnesses are masters at using this method. They do not really study the Bible, but study literature put out by the Watchtower Society teaching Watchtower doctrine. It is impossible to know the message of the Bible and to be a Jehovah’s Witness. They know their doctrine far better than the average Christian knows the message of the Bible, and this is one of the reasons why they are able to make so many converts from untaught Christians.

Many Christians study their Bibles with colored glasses on. They have Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, or some other kind of denominational glasses, and everything they read is colored by their glasses. It does not matter what we think the Bible says; it does not matter what our church or denomination thinks it says, All that matters is, “What saith the Scripture?” (Rom. 4:3).

Dr. Martin R. De Haan gives the following rules for studying the Bible:

1. The Rule of First Mention is: “The first time a word, a phrase, an object or an incident is mentioned in the Scripture, it gives a key to its meaning anywhere else in the Bible it may occur.”

2. The Rule of Triple Approach means all Scripture has three approaches or meanings: (a) all Scripture has one,
and only one primary interpretation; (b) all Scripture has many practical applications; (c) many Scriptures have
in addition a prophetic revelation.

3. The rule of Cumulative Revelation is simply this. The full truth of God’s Word on any subject must not be gathered from an isolated passage, but from the cumulative revelation of all Scripture which bear on this one same truth.

4. The Rule of Common Sense. Rid yourself of the idea that the Bible is a dark difficult book. God wrote it to be understood by simple folks just like you and me. Use common sense and read it like you would any other book, magazine or newspaper. Surely there are many figures and metaphors in the Bible, so are there in all literature. Take it all literally except where your common sense tells you it is to be taken figuratively or symbolically.”

Dr. James M. Gray states the Law of Double Reference in this way: “It is that peculiarity of the writings by the
the Holy Spirit, by which a passage applying primarily to a person or event near at hand, is used by Him at a later time as applying to the Person of Christ or the affairs of His kingdom.”

WHAT KIND OF A DUCK ARE YOU?

Rev. D.C. Enger in “Our Daily Bread” shares this interesting information.

There are two kinds of ducks, puddle ducks and divers. Puddle ducks such as mallards and redheads, simply paddle around the edge of marshes and feed in the shallow water. They eat only what they can reach from the surface. Diver ducks, however, able to dive surprising depths in the lake to feed from the plants at its bottom. Mergansers and canvasbacks are typical of this group, some of which can dive to depths of 150 feet for their food.

There are two kinds of Christians in their relationship to knowing God through the study of the Scriptures. Some, like puddle ducks, stay near the surface, satisified with the nourishment they find in
the shallows. Others, however, are like divers. Following the example of the Psalmist, they plunge deeply into the Word through study, reflection, and meditation “day and night.”

What about it? Have you established a satisfying, deepening study of God’s Word? Or, are you
content to stay near the surface? Perhaps, like ducks that dive, you should begin going a little deeper. (11)

4. We Are To Memorize the Bible.

David said, “Thy word have I hidden heart, that I might not sin against Thee” (Psalm 119:11). I encourage you to memorize hundreds of the great verses in the Bible. Perhaps you think you cannot do this, but
you can. If you make Bible memory a hard, legalistic task you are not likely to memorize many verses. I suggest two ways of memorizing the Word of God which I trust will be a blessing to you.

You will want to begin by memorizing some of the great verses. Get a pack of 3×5 blank cards. Write, or type the reference on one side of the card, and the text on the other side. For example, on the front side
of the card you will put John 3:16 in the center of the card, and the back side you will write or type:

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

To begin with, prepare 10 or 12 cards in this manner. Other good verses to start with are: John 5:24; John 17:3; John 19:30; Acts 1:8; Acts 16:31; Romans 1:16; Romans 5:8; Romans 8:28…. These verses are just suggestions as a starting point for you. Pick out verses that strike a responsive cord in your heart. Pick out verses you want to memorize; verses that you will be glad you have memorized.

Spread out five or six cards on a table with the reference side up. Read the reference, and turn the card over and read the text. Do not strain to memorize, just read it (of course, having your mind on what you are doing), read it two or three times. Then put it down on the table with the reference side up. Pick up the next card and do the same with it. Spend 15 or 20 minutes each day doing this, and you will be surprised how many verses you will learn. Perhaps you will want to carry the cards in your pocket and read them as you have a few moments of spare time.

It is good to memorize the great verses of the Bible, but as you mature and make progress, you will want to memorize entire chapters of the Bible. Perhaps you will begin with the Psalms, Psalm One or the Twenty third Psalm.

5. Meditate on the Word of God.

The most important way of assimilating the Bible is meditation. We are to meditate on it day and night. If we do this, God promises we will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth fruit in its season (Psalm 1:2,3).

The best illustration of meditating on the Word of God is a COW chewing her cud. Dr. J. Vernon McGee has written:

To meditate is to ruminate, to bring to mind and consider over and over. Ruminating is what a cow is doing when she is chewing her cud. You know how the old cow goes out of a morning, and while the grass is fresh with dew she grazes. Then when the sun comes up and the weather is hot, the old cow lies down under a tree, or stands there is in the shade. You see her chewing and you wonder what in the world is that cow chewing. She will chew there for an hour or two. Well, she is meditating, friend. She is bringing the grass she ate of a morning (we are told that a cow has a complex stomach) out of one chamber and is transferring it to another. In the process she is going over it again, chewing it up good. You and I need to learn to do that in our thought processes. We are to get the Word of God, read it, have it out where we can look at it, then think about
it, meditate on it. (12)

Since the Christian life is a supernatural life, it is utterly impossible to live such a life in our own strength. If we are to live the life God intends for us to live, we must have daily input from the Bible. When we fail to do this, we fall back on our own resources, and as a result we fail again and again.

IV. WE SHOULD GIVE OUT THE WORD
We should be so saturated with the Word of God that it will spontaneously flow from our lives. There are two seas in the Holy Land. Both are fed by the Jordan river. The Sea of Galilee is one of the most beautiful spots on earth; much of our Lord’s ministry was centered around it. There are several towns and villages on its
shores.

The Dead Sea is about fifty miles south of the Sea of Galilee. It is all its name implies. It is dead. There are no fish in it; there are no communities on its shores.

How can these two seas be so different when the same river feeds both of them? The difference is this: the Jordan flows into and out of Galilee thus keeping it fresh and sweet. The Jordan flows into the Dead Sea, but there is no outlet from it. Hence, it is dead.

As Christians we are like one of these seas. If we only take in the Word of God, we shall be like the Dead Sea. But, if like Galilee, we both take in and give out, shall be fresh and vibrant.

When the missionaries were driven out of China in 1947, there were about a million Christians in China. At the present time it is estimated that there are as many as fifty million Christians. What made the difference?

A Chinese graduate of the Bible School in Wuchow wrote, “Now I know why we are not having revival. China is like the Dead Sea, always receiving and never giving. Ever since Robert Morrison brought us the Good News in 1807, we have been getting missionaries and money from abroud, but not sending any of our sons and daughters in return.” This realization prompted the start of the Chinese Foreign Missionary Fellowship. (13)

A similar situation existed in India prior to their independence from Britain. The Indian Christians were always on the receiving end. Now (1988) India has dozens of missionary societies with 4,200 missionaries. (14)

All of us cannot give out the Word of God in the same way. We must find God’s appointed channel for us, and then use it. Not all are called to preach in the strict sense of the word. We cannot all be pastors of churches, traveling evangelists, radio or TV preachers. We cannot all be foreign missionaries. Not all are
called to be Bible teachers; all do not have the gift of teaching.

But, every Christian should be a witness for Christ. The Lord Jesus said, “You shall receive power after the Holy Spirit comes on you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

We are to witness with our lives, and by word of testimony. If our lives are not consistent (this does not mean we have to be perfect), men will mock our words. A witness is one who tells what he knows. We cannot be witnesses for Christ unless we know Him. We will not witness for Christ unless we experience the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. When we try to witness in the energy of the flesh, it is a grievous burden to us. It is a delight to witness with the help of the Holy Spirit. As we are faithful in witnessing to those around us, the sphere of usefulness will be enlarged.

The printed page (Gospel tracts, Gospel booklets, etc.) is one of the most effective means for giving out
the Word of God. It is effective because many people who will not go to church or listen to a preacher, will read a tract or booklet. It can be read over and over again until the message is comprehended. The Spirit of God has used the printed page to bring many to a saving knowledge of Christ.

Over a million people are learning to read for the first time every week. It is imperative that we give them good gospel literature. The demand for such literature is much greater than the available supply.

The person who gives out the Word of God is promised eternal rewards. “Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him” (Psalm 126:5,6).

METHODS OF BIBLE STUDY

Martin Luther said he studied his Bible like he gathered apples. First he shook the whole tree and got all he could in that way. Then he shook the large limbs and got all he could. Then he shook the individual branches, and finally he looked under every twig and under every leaf.

We must first study the Bible as a whole, then we are to study it book by book, then chapter by chapter, then verse by verse, and finally word by word.

I. BIBLE SURVEY

This section has four divisions :
A. An overview of the entire Bible
B. A Book by Book Summary of the Bible.
C. Bible Synthesis
D. Prepare a simple outline of each book.

A. AN OVERVIEW OF THE ENTIRE BIBLE

The Bible has two distinct divisions. The old Testament (or old Covenant) has 39 books; the New Testament (or New Covenant) has 27 books. Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible; 117 is the shortest. Most of the old Testament was written in Hebrew (a part of Daniel was written in Aramic); the New Testament was written in Greek.

The complete Bible has been translated in 303 languages (1987); the N.T is in 607 languages, and at least one portion into 1,884 languages (1988). (15)

The sixty-six books of the Bible can be divided into a Pentateuch of Pentateuchs. (This word is from the Greek word “Pente,” meaning five, “Teukhos,” meaning book.)

1. The Pentateuch
a. Genesis
b. Exodus
c. Leviticus
d. Numbers
e. Deuteronomy

2. The Historical books
a. Joshua
b. Judges and Ruth
c. The book of Kings (First and Second Samuel and First and Second Kings).
d. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther
e. First and Second Chronicles

3. Poetical Books
a. Psalms
b. Job
c. Song of Solomon
d. Ecclesiastes
e. Proverbs

4. Prophetical books
a. Isaiah
b. Jeremiah with Lamentations
c. Ezekiel
d. Daniel
e. Minor Prophets

5. New Testament
a. The Gospels
b. Acts of Apostles
c. Paul’s Epistles
d. General Epistles
e. The Revelation

B. A BOOK BY BOOK SUMMARY OF THE BIBLE

Genesis is the book of beginnings. The account of creation is recorded. The story of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph is given.

Exodus is the book of redemption. The Children of Israel are delivered from Egypt; their wilderness wanderings are recorded; the Tabernacle is constructed.

Leviticus is the book of the Priesthood and Offerings.

Numbers gives a census of Israel at the beginning and the end of their wilderness wanderings.

Deuteronomy repeats the giving of the Law.

Joshua has two distinct parts: the conquest of the land, and the division of the land.

Judges, as the name implies, records the rule of 13 judges.

Ruth can be thought of a pleasant postscript to Judges.

First and Second Samuel are a history of Israel from Samuel through the reign of David.

First and Second Kings give the reign of the Kings from Solomon to the end of the kingdom.

First Chronicles starts with Adam and carries us to the end of the kingdom which is recorded in Second Chronicles.

Ezra records the rebuilding of the Temple.

Nehemiah records the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem.

Esther, the last of the historical books of the Old Testament, records events when the Jews were captives in Persia.

Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and the Song of Solomon are the poetical books of the old Testament (and, for that matter, of the entire Bible).

Job, one of the great master pieces of literature, deals with the problem of human suffering.

Psalms is the greatest book ever written on praise.

Proverbs is filled with practical instructions, especially for young men.

Ecclesiastes is closely related to Proverbs.

The Song of Solomon is the expression of pure marital love as ordained by God, and it is a picture of Christ and His church.

Isaiah through Malachi are prophetic books.

Isaiah, the greatest of the writing prophets, gives abroad sweep of prophetic events from the first coming of Christ through the second of Christ, and through the millennial reign of Christ to the New Heaven and the New Earth.

Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, seeks to call the Nation of Israel to repentance.

Lamentations can be thought of as a postscript to Jeremiah.

Ezekiel ministers primarily to the Jews in exile during the Babylonian captivity. He vividly prophesied some of the events which are taking place in our day.

Daniel is of the most amazing books in the Bible. Chapter two gives pre-written history from the Babylonian Kingdom through the second coming of Christ.

Hosea’s prophecy tells of the unfaithfulness of Israel.

Joel’s prophecies sweep from events in his day to the time of God’s wrath and judgment during the Great Tribulation.

Amos, the herdsman prophet, emphasizes that justice is inseparable from godly living

The theme of Obadiah is judgment on Edom.

Jonah, the best known of the minor prophets, typifies Christ as the Sent-One, raised from the dead and carrying salvation to the Gentiles.

Micah is best known for its prophecy giving the birthplace of the Lord Jesus (5:2).

Nahum is sequel to the book of Jonah.

Habakkuk is best known for the tremendous truth, “the just shall live by his faith” (2:4).

Zephaniah vividly describes the wrath of God during the Great Tribulation.

Haggai rebukes the Jews for their delay in rebuilding the Temple.

The 14 chapters of Zechariah cover the events beginning with the rebuilding of the Temple and concluding with the millennium.

Malachi is important because it predicts the ministry of John the Baptist.

There are 400 silent years between the two Testaments. They are called “silent years” because no voice of any prophet was heard.

The New Testament opens with the four Gospels giving events about the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Matthew, Mark and Luke are called the synoptic Gospels because they give the overall view of the life of Christ.

Matthew presents Christ as King; Mark presents Him as servant, Luke presents Him as the perfect man, and John presents Him as God. The heart of each of the Gospels is the death, burial and resurrection of Christ.

The book of Acts gives the history of the church from Pentecost through the death of the Apostles.

Romans through Hebrews (assuming that Paul wrote Hebrews) give the Pauline Epistles.

Romans is the great doctrinal book of the Bible. It is of the greatest importance that every believer have a working knowledge of this book.

The main thrust of First Corinthians is the correction of errors brought about by the carnality of the believers in Corinth.

A variety of themes are dealt with in Second Corinthians.

Galatians effectively deals with legalism.

Ephesians is of prime importance. The Church is presented as the body, building and bride of Christ. It is the key book in the Bible on prayer-warfare.

Philippians is the joy book.

Colossians warns against the false doctrine of Gnosticism.

First Thessalonians is a very practical book. Every chapter ends with a reference to the second coming of Christ.

Second Thessalonians teaches that “our gathering together unto Him” (2:1) will precede the Day of the Lord.

First Timothy, Second Timothy and Titus, the pastoral epistles, give vital instruction concerning the ministry.

Philemon vividly illustrates the doctrine of imputation (v. 18).

The book of Hebrews presents the present priestly ministry of Christ, and contrasts the better things of Christ with the good things of Judaism.

James stresses practical Christian living.

In First Peter the key thought is the suffering of the Christian.

Second Peter warns against false teachers.

First John is the great book on the assurance of salvation.

The message of Second John centers around the “truth” in its relation to Christian living.

Third John presents a glimpse of church life at the close of the first century.

Jude stresses the importance of contending for the faith.

The last book in the Bible is THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST. It is the great prophetic book
of the New Testament. Just as Genesis is the book of beginnings, Revelation is the book of endings. We see Christ in all of His glory.

C. BIBLE SYNTHESIS

This method was popularized by Dr. James M. Gray, a former president of Moody Bible Institute. This is the method of the telescope, of seeing the Bible as a whole. Dr. Gray gives the following rules:

1. Begin where God began with the book of Genesis.
2. Read the Book, do not study it in the usual sense.
3. Read the Book continuously, that is at a single sitting without noticing chapters or verses.
4. Read it repeatedly.
5. Read it independently without commentaries.
6. Read it prayerfully depending on the Holy Spirit.

In Bible survey you are to read, not to study. Let the reading be a pleasure to you. Do not strain to remember; you will remember far more than you realize. Do not try to understand everything you read; if you do not understand what is said, pass it by. As you continue to read, you will gain understanding. Your understanding of the Scriptures will be deepened as you learn to use the other four methods of Bible study. Bible synthesis is introductory or preparatory for the other methods of Bible study.

D. PREPARE A SIMPLE OUTLINE OF EACH BOOK

A simple outline of the book you are studying will help give you the overall picture. I find that many commentaries and study Bibles have such a complicated outline it is of no help to me. For this reason I seek to make the outline as simple as possible. For example, I divide the Gospel of John into two parts: chapters 1-12 the public ministry of Christ; chapters 13-21 the private ministry of Christ.

You can divide the book of Acts into parts: 1-12 the ministry of Peter; 13-28 the ministry of Paul.

I realize such outlines are not perfect, but they are workable, and that is more than said for some of the outlines prepared by some scholars.

The book of Romans has five natural logical divisions. (I learned this outline from Dr. Norman B. Harrison when I first started preaching). I. Sin (1:1-3:20), II. Salvation (3:21-5:21), III. Separation (chs. 6-8), IV. Sovereignty (chs. 9-11), V. Service (chs. 12-16). Or, to state the same outline in a different way… I. What we are by nature, II. How to become a Christian, III. How to live the Christian life IV. Why Israel is (temporarily) set aside, V. How to serve God. Or, to give the same outline from a theological standpoint, I. Condemnation, II. Justification, III. Sanctification, IV. Dispensation, V. Application.

I have shared the above material with you to give examples of how to outline different books in the Bible.

II. BIBLE ANALYSIS
This is the method of the microscope. The details of the book you are studying are examined. In synthesis the Bible is studied as a whole; in analysis it is taken apart and each section is examined.

After you have arranged the book in outline form, seek to arrange each chapter of the book you are studying under separate headings.

For example, the first chapter of Romans has two distinct divisions; 1-1:17 is the introduction to the entire book. Verses 18-32 tell us of God’s wrath and His judgment on sin. Chapter two has two distinct divisions: 1-16 tells us the so-called good man is just as much lost as the wicked, ungodly man. Verses 17-29 show that even the religious man is lost (even the Jew with a God-given religion). Chapter three has three distinct divisions: 1-8 give the advantages of the Jew; 9-20 sums up the previous three sections and show that all are lost; in 21-31 you have the central passage in the Bible on the doctrine of justification by faith. (For further detail on the study of the book of Romans read my booklet HELPFUL HINTS ON ROMANS.)

After you get the overall picture of the chapter in your mind, you will study the chapter verse by verse. Depend on the Holy Spirit to give you an understanding of what He is saying to you. Tie the verse you are studying with other verses in other portions of the Bible. All of the Bible is inspired of God, but some verses are of greater importance than others.

Many verses can be used as sermon outlines.
For example, Romans 1:16.
“I am not ashamed.” Give reasons why you are not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ.

“Of the Gospel.” Study 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 to be sure you have a clear understanding of the Gospel. Study Galatians 1:6-12 to be sure you are not preaching a false Gospel.

“Of Christ.” There is no end to what you can say about the person and work of Christ. On the
one hand, look to the Lord to enable you to bring out the most important facts, but on the other hand do not try to bring out every thing you know about Christ, unless you are making a specific study about Him.

“It is the power of God.” Stress each word, IS, POWER (Greek dunamis-English word dynamite)
OF GOD.

“Unto Salvation.” For a further discussion of this subject read my booklet SO GREAT SALVATION.

“To everyone.” Link this with other great verses that teach the love of God for everyone; link with “whosoever will.”

“That believeth.” Tie this in with the great verses on “believing” in the Gospel of John. Tie it in with justification by faith throughout the book of Romans.

“To the Jew first, and also to the Greek.’

You can make a similar outline for Romans 6:23 and many other great verses in the Bible.

Then you will want to study each individual word. You will need “Helps” when you do this. (“Helps” will be discussed in the next section.)

Please do not let the above discussion discourage you. “For precept must be on precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little and there a little” (Isa. 28:10). On the other hand, if you are to understand the things of God you must be diligent and search for them as for hidden treasure (Proverbs 2:1-5).

III. BIBLE DOCTRINE
In Bible doctrine you study the bible by subjects or topics. For example, justification, sanctificiation, church, assurance, baptism, sin, security, etc. If a thorough doctrinal study is made of a subject, every passage in the Bible on that subject should be examined.

For example, the subject of the kingdom is one of the most complicated and controversial subjects in the Bible. I find that many teachers pick out a few verses here and there to bolster their position. If you are to correctly understand any doctrine, every verse in the Bible on that subject should be studied.

I suggest you get a blank ruled notebook (about 8 x 11 inches in size), draw vertical lines on each page, about an inch or an inch and a half apart, put a heading at the top of each column such as Assurance, Baptism, Church, Salvation.

As you read and study, write the scripture reference on each topic in the proper column. I
did this when I first started preaching over 50 years ago.

(A sample page of such a note book)
Assurance     Baptism     Church     Salvation
1 J 5:13         Mk 1:5        M 16:18   J 3:16
2 Ti 1:12        A 8:38         A 2:47     H 2:3
(and so forth)

Permit me to share with you the method of abbreviations I use for the books of the Bible. (If it is a short name, no abbr. is listed).
A-Acts
C-Colossians
1 Ch First Chronicles
2 Ch-Second Chronicles
1C-First Corinthians
2C-Second Corinthians
Dan-Daniel
Deut-Deuteronomy
Ecc-Ecclesiastes
E-Ephesians
Ex-Exodus
Ez-Ezekiel
G-Galatians
Ge-Genesis
Hab-Habakkuk
Hag-Haggai
H-Hebrews
Isa-Isaiah
Jas-James
Jer-Jeremiah
J-John
1J-First John
2J-Second John
3J-Third John
Josh-Joshua
Jud-Judges
1K-First Kings
2K-Second Kings
Lam-Lamentations
Lv-Leviticus
L-Luke
Mal-Malachai
Mk-Mark
M-Matthew
Na-Nahum
Neh-Nehemiah
Nu-Numbers
P-Philippians
1P-First Peter
2P-Second Peter
Phil-Philemon
Prov-Proverbs
Ps-Psalms
R-Romans
Rv-Revelation
1S-First Samuel
2S-Second Samuel
SS-Song of Solomon
1 Th-First Thessalonians
2th-Second Thessalonians
1Ti-First Timothy
2Ti-Second Timothy
Zech-Zechariah
Zeph-Zepahaniah

IV. CHAPTER SUMMARY
My method of “Chapter Summary” is quite different from the method used in most Bible schools. Generally speaking, their methods are so complicated I have never tried to use them.

My method is to study any given chapter and to summarize the entire chapter in one thought, or if possible into one word. For example, a good title for the 3rd chapter of John is “The New Birth.” For the 4th chapter of John, “The Woman at the Well.”

The 15th chapter of First Corinthians is the “Resurrection.” First Corinthians thirteen is the “Love” chapter.

What is the advantage of using this method of study? It gives you a mental peg on which to attach your thoughts. For example, if some one should ask me what Second Chronicles 12 is about I would draw a blank. I do not have the foggiest idea what that chapter is about. If someone should ask me what the 15th chapter of Leviticus is about, I am blank, but if I am asked about the 16th chapter of Leviticus, I would say “The Day of Atonement.” If someone asked me about the 35th chapter of Ezekiel, I am blank, but if they say Ezekiel 37, I say “The Valley of Dry Bones,” and I am able to give the essence of that chapter because the title I have memorized brings the contents of the entire chapter to my mind.

V. TYPICAL
This one of the most interesting studies you can make of the Word of God. However, you should not attempt such a study until you are quite familiar with the other methods.

A type is a person or thing in the old Testament that foreshadows a person or thing in the New Testament.

For example, David and Solomon are types of Christ. When you read and study Genesis 37-50 you will discover much interesting information about Joseph, but then one day it dawns on you that Joseph is a marvelous type of Christ.

The Passover Lamb is a type of Christ.

When you read the first seven chapters of Leviticus, you find no practical advantage in doing so, until
you discover that each offering speaks of some phase of the death of Christ.

When you study about the Tabernacle in the book of Exodus, you wonder why such material was put in the Bible, but then you discover that every single part of the Tabernacle speaks of Christ.

Dr. Henry Morris has written:

“And look that thou make them after their pattern which was shewed thee in the mount” (Exodus 25:40).

Nothing that God does is capricious or accidental. A remarkable object lesson of His attention to every detail in the plan of salvation is the tabernacle in the wilderness. The Divine blueprint for this structure and its
attendants, followed by its construction and dedication, occupy no less than thirteen chapters of Exodus. Then the exposition of the symbolical meaning of “the pattern” shown to Moses “in the mount” occupies a major part of three chapters of the book of Hebrews.

At least in terms of space allotted to the Tabernacle, it seems to constitute the major “type” of the Bible, speaking in many, many ways of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Numerous authors have devoted entire volumes to its exposition. The brazen altar, the laver, the mercy seat, the high priest – – all “serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith He that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount” (Hebrews 8:5).

The God of the infinite cosmos is also careful Designer of every detail of His tabernacle and every moment of our days. “In Thy book all of my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them” (Psalm 139:16).

Just as it was vitally important for the builders of the tabernacle to follow God’s pattern precisely, so it is essential that we follow His blueprint for our lives, and that pattern is Christ Himself.

“For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow His steps” (1 Peter 2:21). If our lives are to speak of Christ, as did the tabernacle, we must “walk, even as He walked” (1 John 2:6). (13)

Of course, no one ever has, or ever can study all of the Bible in this way. Nonetheless, it is a worthy goal to set before us. I hear preachers speak of mastering the Bible. We can no more master the Bible, that is learn everything in the Bible, than we could drink the Pacific Ocean dry with a tea spoon. God is infinite, and His Word is infinite. I am not reminding you of these facts to discourage you, but to remind you of the monumental task that is before you as you study the Word of God.

BIBLICAL HELPS

Perhaps some of my readers are distressed that they do not have the right tools to help them understand the Bible. If you have been born again by the Spirit of God, you must never forget you have the Holy Spirit as your teacher (1 John 2:27).

If you are sincere about studying the Bible, God will help you get the tools you need. Some of the
tools that will help you are:

A. A Bible in your own language. If possible, get a Bible with good, large print on good paper, and, of course, with a good binding. There are many kinds of Bibles.

1. A text Bible has nothing but the text (with perhaps headings at the top of each page.

2. A reference Bible has a column in the center of the page (and in some cases on both sides of the page) which gives Scripture references related to the verse or subject you are studying.

3. A chain reference Bible (such as Scofield or Thompson) which enables you to trace all of the references on a given subject from the first time it is mentioned in the Bible to the last time it is mentioned.

4. A Study Bible, in addition to having marginal references, also has notes at the bottom of each page to give you information that will help you on the text you are studying. I strongly recommend the New Scofield Reference Bible.

B. The one tool I have used more than any other is a good concordance such as Young’s or Strong’s. The
primary use of a concordance is that it lists all the words found in the Bible in alphabetical order and gives the Scripture references where these words are found. Other benefits are available.

C. Some Bible students make much of Bible dictionaries, but I find, as a general rule, an
ordinary dictionary is all you need.

D. A Bible handbook such as Halley’s or Unger’s will be helpful.

E. Good commentaries can be helpful, but I find that some are not worth the paper they are written on.
Do not depend on commentaries to start with, or you will always have to walk with crutches.

F. Since I am not a Hebrew or Greek scholar, good translations have been a great help to me. Do not
try to read too many different translations or you will get confused. Avoid translations made by cults, such as the New World Translation, put out by the Watchtower Society. They pervert the Bible in order to be able to maintain their false doctrine. Avoid translations put out by liberals, and other scholars who not believe the Bible as given in the original autographs to be the inerrant Word of God.

SOME CLOSING THOUGHTS

T. Norton Sterrett has written, “The basic requirement for understanding the Bible is a hunger for the Word of God. No man can give this hunger to you or me. But, if you have an unquenchable thirst to know God and His truth you will read and read until you are soaked in that truth.”

REMEMBRANCE

In the fall of 1933 I was a badly confused young man. I said to my Dad, “Perhaps there is not a God after all.”

He said, “See Feely.” Walter J. Feely was the Bible Church pastor in Lubbock.

The next day I went to see Feely. He said,

“GET INTO THE BOOK”

I do not remember anything else he said, but I do remember he said, “Get into the Book.” I have been “in the Book” for nearly fifty-five years (1988). If I had not been in “The Book” all of these years, I would not have made it.

I am encouraging you to “Get into the Book.”

SOME GOOD PRAYERS FOUND IN THE 119th PSALM

“Open Thou my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Thy law” (vs.18).

“Give life to me according to Thy Word” (vs. 25).

“Teach me Thy Statutes” (vs. 26).

“Make me understand the way of Thy Precepts” (vs. 27).

“Give me understanding, and I shall keep Thy Law, yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart” (vs. 34).

“Order my steps in Thy Word: and let not any iniquity have dominion over me” (vs. 133)

FOOT NOTES

1. Taken from DAYS OF PRAISE by Dr. Henry M Morris, A Daily Devotional book, page 152.
2. Taken from MAJOR BIBLE THEMES by Dr. L.S. Chafer and Dr. John F. Walvoord, page 23.
3. See EVOLUTION: THE INCREDIBLE HOAX; EVOLUTION: TRUE OR FALSE, and EVOLUTION: FACT OR
FANTASY by Homer Duncan.
4. See WHY I BELIEVE THE BIBLE by M.H. Duncan, Sr. and HOW FIRM A FOUNDATION by Homer Duncan.
5. HOW TO UNDERSTAND YOUR BIBLE by Dr. T. Norton Sterrett, page 80.
6. EXPLAINING INERRANCY by Dr. R.C. Sproul, p.8.
7. Ibid. page 12.
8. THE BATTLE FOR THE BIBLE by Dr. Harold Lindsell.
9. REFORMING FUNDAMENTALISM by Dr. George M. Marsden.
10. DARK SECRETS OF THE NEW AGE by Texe Marrs, c. 1987, page 98. Used by permission of Good News
Publishers/Crossway Books, Westchester, Illinois 60153.
11. Taken from OUR DAILY BREAD by David C. Enger, 2-10-88.
12. IS THE BIBLE IMPORTANT? by Dr. J. Vernon McGee.
13. Taken from DAYS OF PRAISE by Dr. Henry Morris, 4-8-88

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