How sweet are Your words to my taste,
Sweeter than honey to my mouth!
Through Your precepts I get understanding;
Therefore I hate every false way.
(Psalm 119:103–104; NKJV)

In a recent post, I explained why studying the Bible is important. But, as I mentioned, the Bible is a large collection of books written long ago in far-away places covering a wide range of topics. Where do you start? What is the goal? How do you do it? Here is a basic introduction to how I do Bible study.

Think through what kinds of assumptions you have. We all have assumptions about the Bible. Do you believe the Bible is God’s inspired Word? Can it have errors? Is it relevant for today? Is it the final authority for believers on life issues? All of these are assumptions. I would say we have good reasons for believing these truths, but not everyone agrees. Our answers to those questions will change how we study the Bible.

Also, think through your own cultural, language, and spiritual contexts. We all live in certain times and places with a variety of life influences. Where and when do I live? What language do I speak? What cultures do I identify with? How do these relate to the world of the Bible? These are gaps—areas of life that distance us from the world of the Bible. All of these details affect the way we see the world and how we study the Bible.

The goal of Bible study is threefold—learning what the Bible says, understanding what it means, and yielding to its teaching in our lives. All three are vital to quality Bible study. Skipping what the Bible says leads to incomplete information on the topic. Skipping over the meaning leads to bad doctrine. Not yielding to its teaching in our lives leads to being puffed up with knowledge without personal transformation.

When it comes to Bible study, nobody will have a perfect balance of learning, understanding, and yielding. Every Bible student will be stronger in one area and weaker in another. But I will suggest that the humble, sincere child of God will see the value of all three and prayerfully attempt to incorporate all three into their own time with the Lord.

I am a big fan of what is called Inductive Bible study. This is a straightforward process that can be as simple or complex as the Bible student is willing and capable to do. Inductive Bible study has three core steps: observation, interpretation, and application. These steps reflect the threefold goal of Bible study. Also, the steps begin in order and then cycle back on each other for greater clarity and deeper insight.

The first step of Inductive Bible study is observation. Observation means making accurate, detailed observations about the text. It includes looking in the text for details about historical and cultural background, the structure of the passage, and key terms. After looking in the text for these details, we turn to outside references, like Bible dictionaries and commentaries, for validation, correction, and additional insights.

The second step is interpretation. The goal of interpretation is to identify and articulate the central idea of the passage. It is important to understand there is only one right meaning for any text—the one the original writer intended to communicate to the original audience. The Bible was written for us, but it was not written to us. The quality of our observations is key because they give us the boundaries and details that guide us to finding the meaning. The better our observations, the more accurate our interpretation is.

The third step is application. Since Bible study is about knowing God, good Bible study will inevitably impact our attitudes, thoughts, and lifestyles. In this step, we bridge the gap between meaning and life by reviewing our own assumptions and contexts, comparing ours to the original audience, and prayerfully considering how the passage speaks into our own situations. Sometimes there are direct parallels, but usually there are indirect applications about God, ourselves, and other topics.

I have included a one-page handout below with some short notes about Inductive Bible study. For those looking for a bit more instruction on how to do Inductive Bible study, I highly recommend a book entitled Learning and Living God’s Word by Daniel J. Estes. It is only about 100 pages, is written in a pretty east-going style, and includes guiding questions and examples.