Here is an excellent resource for learning the Bible: The Bible Project.
Bible Study
How NOT to Read the Bible
No Other Gospel
After learning I would be beginning a new sermon series this week, a study of the book of Galatians, a friend and colleague who is an Army Chaplain asked me if I had read the relatively new book, No Other Gospel. Though I had seen it, I admitted I was not really familiar with it. He suggested it would be a good parallel book to coincide with the series of messages we will be offering at Grace Covenant between now and Easter.
I picked it up, skimmed it this afternoon, and expect to commend it to our congregation – at least to 
those who want to do a little digging of their own over the next few months. (I’ll read it more thoroughly as well.)
In the video above Justin Taylor interviews the author of the book, Josh Moody, who serves the historic College Church of Wheaton. Moody explains the basis and the gist of the book.
5 Questions to Read the Bible With Heart & Mind
Tremper Longman summarizes the entire thrust of his book, Reading the Bible With Heart & Mind, in five simple questions:
1. What does this passage of the Bible teach me about God and my relationship with Him?
2. What does this passage tell me about how God has acted in the past?
3. How does this passage change the way I think about the world and how does it impact the way I live my life?
4. How has God chosen to communicate these truths to me through the Scriptures?
5. How does this passage present Christ?
Great questions to help us get the most of our Bible study.
Seed of the Word in the Soil of the Heart
“Truly, the Bible as the Word of God has an inherent power, but it is not a coercive power. That is, the Bible does not work it’s effects mechanically. We don’t change just because we read it. Out minds may be engaged in the text, but something must happen in our hearts as well. In the parable of the Sower (Matthew 13.18-23), the seed does not miraculously and independently transform itself into a flowering plant. The condition of the soil effects how well the seed takes root. Our hearts must be receptive to God’s Word in the same way the soil must be rich and conducive to the development of deep roots and luxurient growth. As Oliver Wendell Holmes once said: ‘What you bring away from the Bible depends to some extent on what you carry to it.'”
Bible Reading Plan for Slackers
I am long overdue to draft a post. But new year equals new beginnings, right? While I will again eschew making any New Years Resolutions, except to resolve not to make any resolutions – (hey, it worked last year!) … I do plan to get back into the swing of writing and posting.
Let me begin 2013 by suggesting a different kind of Bible reading plan, one that writer Margie Haack, of Ransom Fellowship, calls “The Bible Reading Plan for Slackers & Shirkers“. She explains:
The big difference between this plan and any other I had tried was that it was not tied to any particular date. On any day of the week, say it was Friday, I read the assigned portion and happily checked it off. Fridays were good days and it is true I finished all of them before I finished the Saturdays, but then I simply read wherever I was behind.
I was not tempted to cheat, because there were no unsightly gaps. I knew it was going to take me longer than a year. And, after all, what is so inspired about doing it in a year? Nothing. I also liked not having to look up five different references in one day. You could just settle in and read an entire assignment which came from one book.
In short, here is a synopsis of some of the advantages of this plan:
- It removes the pressure to ‘keep up’ with getting through the entire Bible in a year.
- It provides variety throughout the week by alternating genres.
- It provides continuity by reading the same genre on the same day of each week.
Here’s how it works:
- Sundays: Poetry
- Mondays: Penteteuch (Genesis through Deuteronomy)
- Tuesdays: Old Testament History
- Wednesdays: Old Testament History
- Thursdays: Old Testament Prophets
- Fridays: New Testament History (Gospels & Acts)
- Saturdays: New Testament Epistles (letters)
The benefit of a plan like this is that it provides guidance but it does not put promote guilt if we miss a day. Just pick up with the next reading for whatever day it happens to be.
To download .pdf click: Bible Reading Plan for Slackers & Shirkers
The True & Better
In this brief video, Tim Keller shows us how Jesus can be seen throughout the familiar narratives of the Old Testament. This is not an exercise like Where’s Waldo? , where you scour a picture to see if you can find the hidden face. Nor is this mere metaphor. This is God’s intended revelation of his grace that was to come. Each instance is a typology in which, through real life historical figures and events, there is a foreshadowing of the life, work, and/or character of the promised Messiah. This is why Jesus said to his disciples along the Emmaus Road: “All the Scriptures speak of me.” (See Luke 24.25-27)
A Basic Quiet Time Plan
OK. You sit down in a quiet place, Bible in hand – or at least on the table in front of you. You really mean it this time. You are going to begin having regular “Quiet Times”. But then the practical questions come to mind: How do I do this? What am I supposed to do? Is that all there is to it?
Been there, done that. And been there and NOT done that. I didn’t know what to do, so I didn’t do anything.
There are so many different ways to approach personal devotional time that sometimes the whole idea can seem simultaneously appealing and daunting. At other times it can feel stale – and even boring.
If any of this sounds familiar to you, let me suggest a solid and diverse plan that I ran across some time ago. I do not recall where I found it, so I cannot give proper credit. But I have found this plan provides a good foundation and flexibility.
***
Step One: BIBLE STUDY – Goal: To understand the truth
First: Slowly read a paragraph or chapter 3-4 times. When a thought or phrase or word captures your attention, pause for a moment and thank God for it.
Then: Write down answers to any one of the following sets of questions. Don’t try to do them all (though you may mix questions from different sets).
Set #1.
1. What do these verses teach me about God?
2. What do these verses teach me about myself (or mankind in general or believers)?
3. How do these verses point me to Jesus as Savior?
4. List examples to follow or avoid, commands to obey, or promises to claimSet #2.
1. Write down the key verse or thought that impressed you.
2. Write the verse out in your own words.
3. Make sure you look at the context. What is the thought just before the verse and just after?
4. Give 2-3 reasons it impressed you.Set #3.
1. What was beautiful about this verse?
2. What surprised you about this verse?
3. To what in this verse do you need to give more thought?
4. What didn’t you understand?
5. How does the verse connect to your life and/or the life of your church?
Step Two: MEDITATION – Goal: To drive the truth down into your heart
First: Write out one or two (at most!) of the main truths you got out of your Bible study.
Then: For each truth, write out the answers to each of these questions:
- If you have little time, just answer the following:
1. “How would I be different if this truth caught fire in my inner most being?”
2. “Why is God showing me these particular things today?”
- If you have more time:
- Adoration: How can I praise God or Christ for what this reveals about him? (Think of at least 2 or 3)
- Confession: What wrong behavior, harmful emotions, false attitudes result in me when I forget he is like this? (Think of at least 2 or 3)
- Thanksgiving: Thank God that you are saved by grace through Jesus, not by your performance. How can this grace in Christ help you overcome the sins you just confessed?
- Supplication: What do I need to become and do in light of this truth? Ask him for it!
Step Three: PRAYER – Goal: To commune with God and ask Him to work out His purposes in the world and in your life.
First: Pray especially for the things that came out of your meditation.
Then:
- Pray through a prayer list of things to ask God for regularly.
- Praise and thank him for the things you saw today.
- Confess sins that were brought to your attention today.
- New items for supplication you saw today (add some to your prayer list).
- Pray for former items on your prayer list: for family, for church, for friends, for world, for self.
Suggested passages to start:
- Psalm 1
- Psalm 4
- Psalm 8
- Psalm 19
- Psalm 62:1-2, 5-7
- Psalm 103
- Psalm 106 (particularly verses 28-31
Please Note that while this is a good pattern for personal devotions, it is simply a suggestion. By no means is this the RIGHT plan. If you have something that works for you, keep at it. I post this simply because I know there are many who get stuck right out of the gate, not knowing what to do.
For a .pdf of this plan, click: Basic Quiet Time Plan
A Word From a VBS Valedictorian
Trekking incognito along the Emmaus Road, shortly after his resurrection, unrecognized even by the few of his own disciples who walked with him, Jesus challenged the groans of perplexity and faithlessness:
He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. (Luke 24.25-27)
All of the Scriptures speak about Jesus? Really? Yep. And in the video above, this young guy recounts the overarching reflections of the Messiah revealed in every book of the Bible.
Impressive.
Bible Reading Plan for Slackers & Shirkers
Let me suggest a different kind of Bible reading plan, one that writer Margie Haack, of Ransom Fellowship, calls “The Bible Reading Plan for Slackers & Shirkers“. She explains:
The big difference between this plan and any other I had tried was that it was not tied to any particular date. On any day of the week, say it was Friday, I read the assigned portion and happily checked it off. Fridays were good days and it is true I finished all of them before I finished the Saturdays, but then I simply read wherever I was behind.
I was not tempted to cheat, because there were no unsightly gaps. I knew it was going to take me longer than a year. And, after all, what is so inspired about doing it in a year? Nothing. I also liked not having to look up five different references in one day. You could just settle in and read an entire assignment which came from one book.
In short, here is a synopsis of some of the advantages of this plan:
- It removes the pressure to ‘keep up’ with getting through the entire Bible in a year.
- It provides variety throughout the week by alternating genres.
- It provides continuity by reading the same genre on the same day of each week.
Here’s how it works:
- Sundays: Poetry
- Mondays: Penteteuch (Genesis through Deuteronomy)
- Tuesdays: Old Testament History
- Wednesdays: Old Testament History
- Thursdays: Old Testament Prophets
- Fridays: New Testament History (Gospels & Acts)
- Saturdays: New Testament Epistles (letters)
The benefit of a plan like this is that it provides guidance but it does not put promote guilt if we miss a day. Just pick up with the next reading for whatever day it happens to be.
To download .pdf click: Bible Reading Plan for Slackers & Shirkers
How to – or NOT to – Read Your Bible
How should we read our Bibles? There are a number of good ways. But Dane Ortland offers some suggestions about how not to approach it:
- The Gold Mine Approach – reading the Bible as a vast, cavernous, dark mine, in which one occasionally stumbles upon a nugget of inspiration. Result: confused reading.
- The Hero Approach – reading the Bible as a moral hall of fame that gives us one example after another of heroic spiritual giants to emulate. Result: despairing reading.
- The Rules Approach – reading the Bible on the lookout for commands to obey to subtly reinforce a sense of personal superiority. Result: Pharisaical reading.
- The Artifact Approach – reading the Bible as an ancient document about events in the Middle East a few thousand years ago that are irrelevant to my life today. Result: bored reading.
- The Guidebook Approach – reading the Bible as a roadmap to tell me where to work, whom to marry, and what shampoo to use. Result: anxious reading.
- The Doctrine Approach – reading the Bible as a theological repository to plunder for ammunition for my next theology debate at Starbucks. Result: cold reading.
This post is excerpted from Ortland’s post on The Resurgence blog: Transform Your Bible Reading. The expanded article offers some valuable insights.
Misusing the Proverbs
Great post by John Armstrong on Proverbs. Armstrong asserts:
Perhaps no part of Holy Scripture has been more frequently abused… than the book of Proverbs.
Armstrong goes on to explain what the proverbs are and are not, and their God-intended purpose.
Not long ago a friend and I were discussing this very same problem, after some pastors he knew had thrown around a proverb or two, wielding them as if they were laws. But proverbs are not laws. They are expressions of wisdom. Sometimes they are even contradictory wisdom.
Now I do not believe, as many assert, that the Bible “contradicts” itself. The laws and promises are consistent in all ways. One has to remove them from their intended context to make a case that they are contradictory. But when it comes to the book of Proverbs it is reasonable to see that some sayings offer different outcomes for similar actions. That is easy enough to explain. Again, proverbs are not laws or promises, they are expressions of wisdom to help us navigate life. I’ve heard R.C. Sproul says about Proverbs, essentially, in life “sometimes this will happen, and sometimes that will happen.” Proverbs prepares us for “this” and “that”.
Check Out: Misusing the Proverbs
Bible in 6 Minutes
Is there a particular theme that runs through the whole Bible? No doubt there are many stories and lessons, but is there a central message by which we can connect all else?
Dane Ortland asked several pastors and scholars if they could summarize the Bible in one sentence. Here are some notable responses:
God glorifies himself in the redemption of sinners.
God is redeeming his creation by bringing it under the lordship of Jesus Christ.
God reigns over all things for his glory, but we will only enjoy his saving reign in the new heavens and the new earth if we repent and believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ, who is the crucified and risen Lord and who gave himself on the cross for our salvation.
God has made promises to bring His people to Himself and He is fulfilling them all through Christ.
A holy God sends his righteous Son to die for unrighteous sinners so we can be holy and live happily with God forever.
And, finally, my favorite…
The Lover of our souls won’t let the romance die, but is rekindling it forever.
In the above video Bible scholar D.A. Carson provides a concise, comprehensive, and comprehensible, summary of the theme that permeates the entire Bible.
Of Paramount Importance
Take a moment to ponder these observations about the paramount importance of God’s Word:
Since there is a more excellent appearance of the Spirit of God in the holy scripture than in any other book, it has more power and ability to convey the Spirit and make us spiritual, by imprinting itself upon our hearts.
Since there is more of God in it, it will acquaint us more with God, and bring us nearer to Him, and make the reader more reverent and godly.
Let scripture be first and most in your hearts and hands, and other books used as subservient to it.
The endeavor of the devil… is to keep it from you, which is evidence that reading it is most necessary and desirable, and beneficial to you.
Adapted from the Works of Richard Baxter.
Prevailing: An Honest Look at Philippians 4.13
Sometimes I want to scream! One thing that makes me want to scream is people, Christian people, who under the guise of faith, take scripture out of it’s God-given context and apply it to their own pretentious favor. ARGH!!
I wonder, is there any passage where this more frequently occurs than it does with Philippians 4.13:
“I can do all things through him who gives me strength.”
All too often, it seems, this is claimed as the “life verse” by athletes, coaches, and others facing various forms of adversity. Those involved in athletics so commonly claim this verse that I sometimes, tongue-in-cheek, refer to this mindset as FCA Christianity. (OK. I know that this is not fair to FCA. While this mindset may commonly be heard around FCA Huddles and events, there are also many faithful, deep, godly folks involved with FCA. In truth, I don’t know that this mindset is more prevalent with FCA-ers than it would be in my denomination, PCA, or even the church that I pastor.)
Philippians 4.13 is often invoked whenever the odds of success seem stacked against someone. The person reminds himself/herself: “I can do this… Like Rocky Balboa, I can defy the odds… I can do ALL things through Christ who gives me strength… I can win!!”
What is wrong with this perspective is not the desire to prevail, whatever the endeavor. There is nothing wrong with that. The problem is that to use this verse, and suppose the Bible here champions winning, takes this verse out of it’s context and redirects the aim of the gospel, the purpose of the Christian faith, to serve our agenda and goals. It assumes that our personal success is the goal of the Kingdom. It turns the gospel upside-down.
GRACE & PEACE 