Study the Bible Inductively Part Two - Observation

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1 2 Peter 1:2-3 says, Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us be His own glory and excellence. (nasb - emphasis mine) Could there be any better thing than to understand what God would say to us? To have a truer knowledge of Him. We have the promise that everything we need in order to live this life and to be godly comes by knowing our God and our Lord Jesus. As always, as we begin to study we want to take a moment to confess any sin that might be hindering our complete attention to the Holy Spirit. If you haven't already, take a moment now. And then let's get into Part Two of How to. Again, there is no time frame on getting through this material, just work at a pace that is good for you. I hope you found the Introduction helpful in learning what Inductive Study is. Remember we apply three aspects: Observation - observing what the text says Interpretation - learning what does the text mean Application - What does the text mean to me and my life. In inductive study we use the Bible as our main source of study, and only seek Study Helps AFTER we have done the initial work for ourselves. I don't know about you, but I have become truly dependent on Pastor-Teacherss and other teachers, to teach me the word of God. I can quite easily grab a commentary and or a study guide and learn what someone else thinks a passage says, but there is nothing like having God teach you as you do the work of studying for yourself. Remember, Inductive Study is using the Bible as our main source of study. So, as you begin a study, if you have a Study Bible do not read the book overview at the beginning of a book, or any commentary regarding the text, as tempting as that might be. You need to study the text for yourself. Otherwise you are counting on someone else to do the correct observation and interpretation for you. Yes, it takes work, but moving past being "spoon-fed" to chomping down on a chunk of God's meat is so much better. I hope you are hungry for God's word. This summer I got to watch my youngest granddaughter transition to eating real food, and like most babies, once they get a hold of real food they can't be fed fast enough, can they? Noises of "mmm.mmm..mm..", and reaching for the spoon to get the food expedited to her mouth made it very apparent she liked it and wanted more. My prayer is that as you begin to glean God's truths for yourself that you will hunger to know more, that you will be weaned from a diet of only "milk" and get to the meat of God's word. Hebrews 5:13-14 says, "Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." (nasb) Let's press on to

2 maturity, shall we? We can begin by observing God's word for ourselves. Observation - It's time to read with purpose. God meant for us to know and understand His word. So, let's talk a little about Observation. What is it? Observation is a fact finding mission. It's reading and re-reading (and re-reading and re- will only be as good as our observation reveals. So observation is key! That is why we read reading) the text with the purpose of finding out what the text says. Our interpretation with purpose, asking questions as we read, such as the 5 W s and the 1 H. Questions like: Who - wrote it? spoke it? about whom? to whom is he speaking? What - are the main events? are the major ideas? are the major doctrines? is he talking about? is his purpose in saying that? When - was it written? did this event take place? will it happen? did he say it? Where - was this done? was this said? will it happen? Why - was this written? was this mentioned? was it not mentioned? was a lot, or little space, devoted to this particular event or teaching? How - is it done? is this truth illustrated? Other questions you may want to ask are: 1. What are my first impressions or thoughts of the book? 2. What did I learn about the author? 3. Who is the intended audience? (Believers, non-believers, Jews, Gentiles - highly important to know who its written to as it sets context) 4. What is the atmosphere of the book? (Atmosphere is the feeling the author produces through his words or through the recording of certain events. It can be an atmosphere of love, joy, expectancy, peace, turmoil, distress, reprimand, sarcasm, etc..) 5. What type of literature is the book? It might be one of the following, or a combination: A. Historical - i.e.acts B. Biographical - i.e. Luke C. Poetical - i.e. Psalms D. Proverbial - i.e. Proverbs E. Prophetical i.e. Daniel, Revelation F. Didactical (or instructional) - i.e. Romans G. Epistle - i.e. I Timothy 6. What are the key words or phrases of the book? 7. What are the general subjects covered in the book? 8. What historical, religious, and/or cultural references can you find?

3 9. What is the author s purpose or emphasis? Is it stated in a verse? This would be called the Key Verse. 10. What is the main theme(s) of the book? 11. What personal insights and/or questions do you have at this point in your study? 12. Do you see any references to time? How does that help set context? Finding the Context - The first time you read the text you will want to read through it in its entirety, as you would a normal book or letter to get the gist of it. Read through it at one sitting so that you grasp the whole context. In Inductive Study, CONTEXT RULES. Context is that which is before and behind the text. All that surrounds it. Too often people draw conclusions (make an interpretation) of a verse while taking it "out of context," and singlingg the verse out for interpretation which generally leads to wrong conclusions, and wrong quoting. Case in point, one that we often hear, (Spoiler Alert, this may change how you have thought about a verse in the Bible for some time) from Matthew 18:19, "For where two or three gather in My name there I am with them." It's quoted often to promote unity, to promote strength in numbers, almost as if it increases the power of our prayers. But let me ask you, when you are alone and you are praying, is God there with you? Of course He is. This scripture is taken "out of context" and misused to express something other than it was intended for. The context of the scripture in Matthew is Church discipline. When one of the congregation has gotten off course and is living in sin, the church body is responsible to confront that brother or sister of their sinful life in order to bring them to repentance and reconciliation. That's done under the guidelines in Matthew 18. God says, if you are following My biblical guidelines for disciplining a sinful believer (which means two or three confronting that one) I will be with you, I agree with you. See, context must be observed in order to make a correct interpretation. We want to read scripture in its context. Observe what is said before and behind a verse, and not read into it what is not intended. It's important to establish what is being said and why, so simply read through for the context. Don t get bogged down with trying to think through the questions at this point, just read it through for the overall understanding of what is being said. Making Lists - After that initial reading, then you may begin to read through it and can start to answer questions. One of the ways to begin assimilating what we're reading is to make lists as you are re-reading through the book. For example, list all the key players: the author, the recipients, Jesus, God, The Holy Spirit. And then, begin to look at the text to seee what is said about them. Jot down under each one on your list what is said about them, with the verse reference. Having the reference will help you figure out later, as you look back at your notes where you got the info, or how you drew a conclusion, especially if you have

4 paraphrased, or changed the wording from what is written in the Bible. Sometimes I find that I read too fast, especially when I am re-reading a text. I tend to skim because its already familiar. Then, as I continue to study and I compare what I wrote to the actual text I may find some discrepancy in what I thought it said. It's always best to have the reference there so you can double check what you have on your list. And be careful not to read too fast or to make assumptions. We must never approach scripture to make our point, but rather, as we study let scripture make its point. Biases must be checked at the door if we want to know what does God say. Writing the reference keeps our study honest. Using an Observation worksheet: For observation, it's very helpfull to print the text out, double spaced with wide margins to write in. These are called Observation worksheets and help in the process, but you can also just write in your Bible if you prefer. Some of you may even have Inductive Bibles that have these features built in. You will find more helps of "How To.." in there, as well. On the next page you will find that I have given you Observation worksheets for 2 Peter Chapter 1 for you to practice with. (Normally you would read through the whole book at one sitting but for time's sake we will just use chapter one for the lesson.) Feel free to print out the worksheet to practice on as some of the instructions will be much easier if you put it into practice for yourself. Also, a reminder that this is a brief lesson on inductive study, the more you do inductive study the more you will learn that there are many more techniques you can add to these basics, but this will get you started. Remember, as you look at the Observation Worksheets, you will begin by reading through the whole chapter at one sitting (generally you will read the whole book in one sitting, but this is just a practice chapter.) Remember, be prayerful and mindful as you read. The first reading is not the time to stop and ask questions, other than to ask that the Holy Spirit help you comprehend what you are reading. Your purpose for reading the text is to set the context, to get an overall sense of what Peter is writing and why. Most certainly, deal with the text subjectively, pausing to reflect on what God is saying. And always study the Bible devotionally, slowing down, thinking on it, mulling over what God wants to say to you in the process. Now, let's take a look at the next pages, the Observation Worksheet for 2 Peter 1. Read through the chapter and I will give you instruction once you have finished reading the text straight through. For now, we want to observe the obvious. Also, just ignore the symbols you might see on the text, we will discuss that when you have finished reading the Chapter.

5 OBSERVATION WORKSHEET FOR 2 PETER 1 1 Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousnesss of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ: 2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption thatt is in the world by lust. 5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.

6 10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; 11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you. 12 Therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you. 13 I consider it right, as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir you up by way of reminder, 14 knowing that the laying aside of my earthly dwelling is imminent, as also our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. 15 And I will also be diligent that at any time after my departure you will be able to call these things to mind. 16 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. 17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased 18 and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.

7 19 So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. 20 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one s own interpretation, 21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. Record your FIRST IMPRESSIONSS of the chapter (remember you would normally get the overview of the whole book at this point, this is simply for training purposes): Now, re-read the text, even as you begin to become familiar with it, read every word purposefully, and begin to answer these questions - Who is the Author and what does it say about him: Who are the Recipients: What is his point in writing: What does it say about God: What does it say about Jesus: What does it say about the Holy Spirit: Congratulations, you have begun to do Inductive Study and reading God's word will never be the same. But you're not done! Remember, the better our observation, the better our interpretation and application. So continue to read the text over and again, to glean more information each time.

8 Creating Lists - Creating lists of key people might look like the ones I've begun below. You would, of course, extend these lists to include everything in the text that mentions different ones, or different topics: Simon Peter: 1:1 Bond servant, Apostle of Jesus Christ, has faith 1:2 Extends grace and peace to the recipients 1:3 Been granted everything pertaining to life and godliness, has true knowledge of God, been called by God's own glory and excellence. God: 1:1 Righteous 1:2 Grace and peace are multiplied by knowing Him 1:3 His divine power granted everything pertaining to life and godliness And so it would continue with each person throughout the whole text. I tend to list probably more than necessary, but again, I'm a firm believer that the more we observe, the better the interpretation and application will be. List everything you glean about the ones mentioned. As you are observing the text, you may see a particular word show itself again and again. This would be called a Key Word. You will want to read the text to see if there are any "Key Words" you can spot. Most of the time they are obvious because the author keeps using them. A key word is any word that is used that if removed from the text would change the purpose of the text. It may be a repetitive word, or one that is only used once, but it is significant to the text. The more you are familiar with the text the easier you will begin to see a thread of why the author is writing and what he's writing about. Symbols or Colors - One way to easily identify those key words on observation worksheets is by drawing symbols on repetitive words in the text itself so that you can see at a glance what is being emphasized on a particular page. Go back to 2 Peter 1 and mark a capital letter "T" on each "true" or "truth" that you see. (It's helpful to use the same symbol on your "List" titles that you do in the text, so that they are easily referenced and helps commit to memory what symbol or color you are using, as I have done with "God".) Continue reading the text over to see what other words or topics might be referred to that are key to the text. (Hint: God, Jesus, Holy Spirit and their pronouns are always key words, but what do you see about - knowledge, prophetic/prophecy. Don't stop there, your turn to find a key word.) A warning though, using too many diagrams on the page becomes too chaotic and you can lose the main thought quite quickly. Our drawings should help us know what the text

9 says, not detract by being over busy. The diagrams should be meaningful to you so that you can recognize what the word or phrase is. What should you diagram or make a symbol for? All main people and key words. If symbols aren't your thing, you can always use a color chart for key words. Say, using purple for anything that pertains to God or His character because purple represents royalty. Black could be used for sin references. Red for what Christ did for us....etc... But whatever you decide to do, it will be really beneficial to have a Key Chart on a 3x5 card to keep in your Bible so that you can be consistent in your charting. A legend is helpful for you to keep continuity, which will help you remember things easier. We want to begin to create habits of study that you can continue, so don't get over elaborate, stick figures are great things! No art classes are necessary! Personally, I diagram a triangle (for the Trinity) over the word God (as shown above), a cross for the word Jesus Christ, a dove (well, I know it's a dove!) over the Holy Spirit, etc... but you design your own symbols so that YOU will know what it is that you're looking at. This will take time, but there is a method to the madness, it's not just busy work. 1) It helps you to see at a glance what is being talked about in a chapter, or a book, easily recognizing key words 2) It helps you to remember what's in the text even when you aren't even looking at the page because you have added an extra element of engaging both sides of the brain in the learning process. So, now that we've talked a little about Lists, Key Words, and diagramming, take some time and go back over 2 Peter 1. Try reading it at different times. Working on your lists a little each day will help you retain it far more than doing a crash course all at one sitting. Truthfully! As I mentioned before, when beginning any inductive study you would normally read the whole book, not just one chapter. You'd observe the complete text, writing down your observations of the total book. Remembering CONTEXT RULES. Once you've found the context, you can move chapter by chapter, answering questions per chapter. As you continue to study and search the chapters you can begin to then go section to section. Most Bibles have segments within the chapters marked, they may be titled with a theme, but it's best if you try to figure out the segments for yourself. Digging deeper into the text as you go. The more familiar you are with the text, the more you will begin to see all that is being communicated. By the time you are finished observing every aspect of the text, you might even be able to quote the chapter. A bonus as you hide His word in your heart!

10 Here's a review of Observation: 1. Begin with prayer 2. Read and re-read the Book: All the way through first, then with your questions. 3. Let the text speak for itself, check the context, don't look at any study helps yet 5. Ask the 5 W s and 1 H - Read with a purpose 6. Discover facts about people making your lists, include references (1:1, etc.) 7. Mark key words & phrases, and add to your lists also - these help establish the theme for the book. 8. After you have done all the observation you can for yourself it will be time to move on to interpretation, that is where study helps will come into play. We will explore more of the textt and look at the process of Interpretation next session. You're on your way to digging into the meat. May God bless your time in His word. I'll leave you with a couple of verses to think over: "The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes." Psalms 19:8 He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him. John 14:21