Making sense of God's word
By Karen Palmer
News Journal
MANSFIELD -- A book written across a span of 1,600 years by 40 different authors has intrigued people through the ages. The Bible, commonly regarded as the best-selling book of all time, is also one of the most challenging to read.
From word-for-word translations that stick close to original Hebrew and Greek to paraphrased versions that put Scripture in today's way of talking, the Bible offers the writings of people from all walks of life down through time -- inspired by God.
Reading the Bible to apply it to daily life requires faith and a plan, according to some area pastors. Getting to know God is at the heart of any Scripture study, they agreed.
"You have to have a relationship with God for the Bible to make sense," said the Rev. Curt Wagner of Hilltop Community Church. Spending time in prayer helps to center our thoughts on study, he said.
"It does require concentration to listen to God, and I think another thing, too, that is kind of a sidelight on all this is there is a spiritual warfare going on to try to keep us from reading God's word," Wagner said.
Committing to living the way Jesus did helps bring the Scriptures to life, said the Rev. Craig Hamm, pastor of evangelism and community life at Berean Baptist Church.
"Christian community helps when you're starting out," Hamm said. "The Bible tells about how those who are mature in the faith can help those who are just getting started."
Both pastors recommend the New International Version, a 1978 publication that balances word-for-word and thought-for-thought translation.
Wagner suggests keeping a couple things in mind for Bible study.
"One is find the right time. People need to be willing to budget and schedule some time to be alone with God," said the Mansfield pastor.
"I was just really challenged a couple months ago by a study that said all of the great spiritual giants from the past had their devotional times in the morning ... So I try to really do that in the morning. I find I'm too tired at the end of the day to do any serious encounter with God."
The "where" is important, too, Wagner said.
"A place undisturbed would be another thing that people would need to find, someplace away from the phone and a quiet place, a quiet time."
Hamm, 44, hosts a Bible study group in his home that's focusing on the book of James. At Berean, he's teaching a Sunday school class on Genesis.
"There's just a wealth of information that's out there today" for Bible study, Hamm said. "We like to use material from Campus Crusade for Christ, which is Bill Bright's organization."
He recommends "10 Basic Steps Toward Christian Maturity" which has a section on how to study the Bible.
"I certainly do recommend that you would find a Bible study group, maybe at the church you are attending or find out some of the groups that are meeting," Hamm said. "I would just encourage them to find one that's not a discussion group per se but one that actually goes verse by verse through the Scriptures."
When Wagner was studying at Dallas (Texas) Theological Seminary, he was challenged to get a new Bible periodically "because people who have had the same Bible have underlined and marked in the margins, and so they go back to the same things they've learned when they studied or read that passage before, instead of something new and fresh."
Wagner suggests writing down thoughts and perceptions that come to mind during Bible study.
"If you don't feel comfortable writing in the Bible, I would recommend people having a journal to write in."
In his own Bible study, Wagner prefers the New American Standard version. He draws lines to emphasize "structural kinds of things," underlines and writes in his Bible.
"I think that's good to do but every so often you need to get a whole new Bible," he said.
"I think you also need to have a plan of what you're going to study, not just wherever the Bible opens to that day," Wagner said. "There's all different kinds of plans you can use."
Wagner suggests starting with the Old Testament book of Proverbs because it has 31 chapters, one for every day of the month.
"Part of your plan ought to be reading through some of the books you never read through," Wagner said. "The Bible says that all Scripture is profitable for us to study."
Each time you start a new book of the Bible, have an overview of what it's about, do some study of who wrote it, who it was written to, along with a little bit of history at the time, Wagner suggested.
Hamm recommends beginning a Bible study with the New Testament book of John.
"John was a simple man. He wrote in a language that's generally easy to understand. He was very close to Jesus Christ," Hamm said.
"He was called the beloved disciple, and he wrote very directly to the needs of people and each person's need to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ."
Have a plan for your Scripture study, Hamm urged.
"Anyone who's serious about any type of a discipline, whether it be exercising or reading your Bible, needs to come up with a game plan or strategy to do that," he said.
"And if a person has not been reading the Scriptures, I would not recommend that they sit down and read them for an hour. I would recommend them to start out small, maybe for 15 minutes.
"It's not so important that you get through an entire chapter or section of Scripture as it is that you just take the time to meditate on what you read and try to understand the verses that you're looking at," Hamm said. "You can ask yourself some questions -- how does this apply to my life?
"Genuinely spend even 15 minutes a day, and don't worry about how much you read -- the quantity as much as the quality of time you spend," Hamm said.
"Are you understanding what you're reading? If you're not understanding, get a study Bible, call a pastor or find a Bible study that you could attend."
Search out the timeless principles that apply to life today, Wagner suggests.
"I encourage people don't go right to the (Bible) commentary," said the Hilltop pastor. "The goal is to try to discover truth on your own because that's where the real excitement comes, when God reveals his truth to you in a real specific way."