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How to Study the Bible 01Introduction:
1. There always has been and always will be a need for men and women to study the Bible. a. Negatively, this point is made by the fact that a failure to study the Scriptures caused the Israelites to be destroyed (Hosea 4:6). b. Positively, this point is made by the fact that the people in Berea were highly commended because of their approach to studying the Scriptures (Acts 17:11). 2. This series of lessons: a. is based on the workbook "How to Study the Bible" by Earle H. West b. is designed to help us learn how to study the Scriptures more effectively. Discussion: I. WAYS IN WHICH THE BIBLE MAY BE USED INCLUDE: A. "Devotional Use" (Psalm 23; Romans 8:18-39, etc.) B. "Public Reading" (Nehemiah 8:1-3; Luke 4:16-21; 1 Thessalonians 5:27) C. "Meditation" (Psalm 1:1-2) D. "Memorization" (Matthew 4:1-11; Psalm 119:11) E. "Daily Bible Reading" (Acts 17:11) F. "Personal Study" (Acts 8:26-28) II. TO EFFECTIVELY STUDY THE BIBLE, WE MUST UNDERSTAND THAT IT IS A COLLECTION OF 66 BOOKS A. These books were written by about 40 people from 1400 BC to 100 AD. B. The books of the Bible are divided into 2 main sections: 1. the Old Testament (39 books written between 1400 BC and 400 BC) 2. the New Testament (27 books written during the 1st century AD). C. The Old Testament books are divided into 4 main groups: 1. 5 books of LAW (Genesis - Deuteronomy) 2. 12 books of HISTORY (Joshua - Esther) 3. 5 books of POETRY (Job - Song of Solomon) 4. 17 books of PROPHECY (Isaiah - Malachi) D. The New Testament books are divided into 4 main groups: 1. 4 books of GOSPEL (Matthew - John) 2. 1 book of HISTORY (Acts) 3. 21 EPISTLES [LETTERS] (Romans - Jude) 4. 1 book of PROPHECY (Revelation) | ||