L e s s o n T w o. B i b l e S t u d y To o l s

Transcription

1 L e s s o n T w o B i b l e S t u d y To o l s [DQ] Did anyone start a Bible reading program this past week? How is it going so far? How have you been blessed in the past week by reading the Bible? While a regular program of Bible reading is essential if we want to grow in our faith and walk with Christ, we also should want to move beyond merely reading the Bible to studying the Bible. [DQ] How would you describe the difference between reading a piece of literature and studying the same piece of literature? When we read a section from the Bible, our aim is to catch the general message of the passage and seek how to apply that message to our life. When we study a section of the Bible, we are seeking to understand the background and the context of the passage which enables us to understand what the writer was communicating to the original audience. With this understanding we can better understand God s will for his church and his people today. Before we can start an effective study of the Bible, it s profitable to understand something of its organization and intent. We need to step back and see how God s Word is arranged. If you understand the overall theme of Scripture and a little something about the content and characters of each book, it will make future study much more productive. This first section may be elementary to many of you but it is important information for each of you to understand. The Bible is divided into two sections, the Old Testament and the New Testament. The OT contains 39 different books while the NT contains 27 different books, for a total of 66 books. The collection of 66 books are generally arranged according to the table on the next page. Page 1

2 Old Testament Books of the Law Books of History Books of Poetry Major Prophets Minor Prophets Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1&2 Kings, 1&2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther. Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi New Testament Gospels Books of History Paul s Letters to Churches Paul s Letters to Individuals General Letters Prophesy Matthew, Mark, Luke, John Acts Romans, 1&2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1&2 Thessalonians 1&2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon Hebrews, James, 1&2 Peter, 1, 2, &3 John, Jude Revelation These 66 books were written by 40 different earthly authors across 1500 years, though all of it was inspired by God. It s also helpful to have a basic summary of each of the books of the Bible. Old Testament Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy Joshua Judges Ruth Describes the beginning of the world, mankind, sin (Ch. 1-11)and the birth of the nation of Israel (Ch ). We follow Israel through it s first four generations as it grows from 2 people to 70 people who end up in Egypt in search for food during a famine. (1800 B.C.) 400 years later, recounts the departure of the Israelites from Egypt. (1400 B.C.) Records many specific requirements of the Mosaic Law Describes Israel s wanderings in the wildness Includes Moses farewell speech and includes a restating of the Law Details the conquest of Canaan (1300 B.C.) Records the history of Israel once they take possession of the land of Canaan Tells the story of King David s great grandmother 1 & 2 Samuel Records the history of Samuel and the anointing of Saul and David as Kings. (900 B.C. 750 B.C.) Page 2

3 Old Testament 1 & 2 Kings Tells of Solomon s reign, his eventual decline and the dividing of Israel (700 B.C) and the conquer of Israel (713 B.C.) and Judah (587 B.C.) 1 & 2 Chronicles Also tells of Solomon s rule and the eventual captivity of Judah Ezra Nehemiah Ester Job Psalms Proverbs Ecclesiastes Song of Solomon Prophets New Testament Gospels Acts Romans Describes the return of the Jews from captivity and their rebuilding of the Temple (550 B.C.) Tells of the rebuilding of Jerusalem s City Walls and the reading of God s Law. (500 B.C.) Describes God s protection of the Jews among heathen people Recounts Job s search for answers in the midst of suffering and God s reply An inspired collection of songs and poems that glorify God, mostly written by King David Inspired principles and Godly code of ethic Answers the vital question What is the meaning of life? An intimate love story filled with symbolic language Record many predictions of Christ s coming and affirmations of God s goodness, along with warnings to Israel to repent of their wickedness. The prophets lived during the historical time of 1 Kings though Esther. Describe the birth and earthly life of Jesus, including his three year ministry, his death by crucifixion and his resurrection from the dead Tells of the early church and the spread of Christianity from Jerusalem, to Judea, to Samaria and to the ends of the earth. Covers the first 35 years of Christianity (33 A.D. to 68 A.D.) Very theological treatise written to the church at Rome affirming the need of both Jews and non-jews of the Gospel of Jesus Christ 1 & 2 Corinthians Deals with specific problems that existed in the church in Corinth. Galatians Ephesians, Philippians & Colossians Warns Christians not to be led astray by false teachers Written by Paul while he was in prison in Rome and are combinations of doctrinal teachings about Christ and salvation and encouragements to stay faithful to the truth 1 & 2 Thessalonians Answers questions about Christ s return and reminds Christians of the need to live responsible lives. 1 & 2 Timothy Written by Paul from prison to his mentee Timothy who was the minister of the church in Ephesus. Titus Instructs Titus, a Gentile convert about his responsibilities as an evangelist. Page 3

4 New Testament Philemon Hebrews James Addresses the return of the runaway slave Onesimus, who has now become a Christian and brother in Christ. Demonstrates the superiority of Christ and the Gospel over the Mosaic Law Provides inspired advice on the Christians daily life. 1 & 2 Peter Addresses Christian s behavior in the face of persecution and the relationships we should sustain with others. 1, 2, & 3 John Expose various sinful doctrines, including the false teaching that Christ did not come to earth in flesh. Jude Revelation A powerful condemnation of false teachers and a strong exhortation to earnestly strive for the faith. Filled with symbolic imagery, emphasizes the Christian s triumph despite overwhelming persecution. Necessary Tools for Bible Study Having the right set of tools is vital to any job, including studying the Bible. I accomplish way more around my house today because I have a lot more tools and I know how to use them. The same is true with Bible Study. The following list contains some of the more essential tools to own to study the Bible along with a number of Pastor Mike s favorite web sites that will be helpful to you as you move from merely reading the Bible to studying the Bible. 1. The Bible for Dummies part of the popular yellow covered Dummy series, the book gives a very simple and basic explanation of each book of the Bible in the usual Dummy manner, with charts, drawings, and cartoons. 2. Bible Concordance- a concordance lists alphabetically most of the major words in the Bible which allows you to find a verse you are looking for, or study verses that relate to a particular topic you want to study. A simple to use but very thorough concordance in the New International Version Complete Concordance. It is obviously based on the NIV translation of the Bible. 3. A Bible Dictionary this tool will describe more fully a particular Bible subject, word, place or doctrine. Be sure to choose a Bible dictionary that is written by someone who has a favorable view of the Bible. Two suggestions would be Unger s Page 4

5 Bible Dictionary by Dr. Merrill Unger, published by Moody Press. Holman Bible Dictionary published by B & H Publishing is truly reader friendly. 4. Bible Commentary A Bible commentary is written by a person and includes his comments on each book, chapter and verse of the Bible, the goal of which is to explain what the original author was attempting to teach. While there are literally thousands of multi-volume Bible Commentaries that are very exhaustive, the average student of the Bible can get very bogged down in information that you don t need, plus multi-volume commentaries tend to be very expensive. I recommend a good single volume commentary such as the Wiersbee Bible Commentary, by Warren Wiersbee which has one volume on the OT and one volume on the NT, and each will cost you about $30. The Granddaddy of all single volume Bible commentaries is Matthew Henry s Commentary on the Whole Bible. You can now also get the Matthew Henry Condensed Commentary on the Whole Bible, which is as the title states, a condensed version of his original work. Another suggestion is the New International Commentary based on the NIV. This 1600 page commentary is less devotional in nature than Matthew Henry and the Warren Wiersbee commentaries. It will be more technical in exposing the meaning and background of each book of the Bible, plus it includes 28 supplemental articles on Bible issues written by some of the leading evangelical Bible scholars. The price is right also at $19.99 from 5. A Bible Doctrine Book a Bible doctrine book will teach on the important truths of the Bible (doctrine) such as God, Man, Sin, Heaven, Hell, Inspiration of the Bible, Salvation, Jesus Christ, and End Times. Because every Bible doctrine book, like a Bible commentary, will only reflect the views of it s author, I recommend one and only one book on Bible Doctrine The Faith Once for All, by Dr. Jack Cottrell, professor of Theology at the Cincinnati Bible Seminary. The book is published by College Press Publishing and is available for $24.99 from Pastor Mike studied under Dr. Cottrell when he received his Masters Degree in Systematic Theology. 6. Recommended Web Sites Because there are so many web sites on religion and Bible Study, one must be careful that selected sites reflect teachings that are consistent with Biblical truth. Some of the sites Pastor Mike uses and trusts include: (an online Bible text commentary) (a more technical online commentary) Page 5

6 (an assortment of Bible Study tools) (this site contains the teaching notes of several conservative pastors on individual books of the Bible.) Page 6