Gordon Coulson - www.homechristians.net
I allow to the makers of systems and their followers to invent and use what distinctions they please and to call things by what names they think fit. But I cannot allow to them, or to any man, an authority to make a religion for me or to alter that which God hath revealed. – John Locke, in The Reasonableness of Christianity, 1695
1. Why study the bible? What is the purpose?
a. To know the creator (Jn 17:3)
b. To know what his purposes are (Amos 3:7)
c. How
to live our lives in a way that pleases God (2 Tim
2. Relationship, Prayer, Holy Spirit and our Brethren
a. Bible
study alone does not save anyone (Jn
b. God
reveals his purposes to those he loves (Mt
c. We
must seek God’s will (Mt
d. We
need God’s spirit to understand the bible (Ac 1:8, pray Lk
e. We need fellowship in the Body (Eph 4:11-12), Teachers (1 Cor 12:28), Each other (Pr 27:17), Dangers of isolation (Pr. 18:1)
3. Topical and Contextual Study (Both are needed)
a. Topical:
pick a topic, look up related scriptures, discuss (
b. Contextual:
read entire chapters/books/letters.
Discern what the writer intended, and what believers understood the
writer to say. Apply teachings to our
time and our personal lives. (
4. Context
a. Without considering context, we can fall into “proof texting”
b. Cultural/historical ex. “feet washing” (Jn 13:5)
c. Immediate – surrounding scriptures ex. Jesus God? (Jn 10:33)
d. Within book – authors intention, main points, what listeners would hear
e. Within bible (themes: 1. Fall/Restoration of Creation by God’s Kingdom through Christ, 2. OT points to Jesus, NT is Christ, 3. Sanctification of God’s Name, 4. Vindication of God’s Sovereignty)
5. Two
or Three Witnesses – more than one clear scripture needed to support a doctrine
(ex: Jesus has a God, his Father – Mt 27:46, Jn 20:17,
6. Clear statements clarify ambiguous statements
a. Types, patterns, etc. must be supported by an explicit NT text
i. Ex. Melchizedek is revealed as a type for Christ (Heb. 5:6,10)
b. No text that has more than one interpretation or translation can be used to prove a doctrine (He. 1:8)
7. Bible Interprets the Bible
a. Concordance (see example)
b. Cliff’s
Notes – example: Who is
8. Progressive Revelation
a. God’s purposes become clearer over time
b. The OT are types and patterns, the NT is the reality and the details
Now of course we need
to develop a coherent thought system, a coherent theology. God has given us logical minds, and we would
like to fit the parts of our system into a whole. But we need to be very careful not to make
our system our master; not to make it too neat, with no untidy edges, and no
room for adaptation. Because then when a
new truth breaks upon us from the Word of God, we shall be tempted to trim the
truth to fit the system instead of adjusting the system to absorb the truth. –
John Stott, 1992
9. Bible Does Not Violate Basic Logic and Reasoning
a. All relevant scriptures should agree on a doctrine
b. No scripture, in context, with a clear teaching should contradict a doctrine. If it does, the doctrine is wrong.
c. Normal reasoning should apply in determining doctrine (see Reasoning from the Scriptures, G. Coulson, www.homechristians.net/Audio)
10. Bible Study Tools
a. Bibles (Not including Interlinears) – Literal: Most Accurately Translated
i. Dr. Bruce Terry (Chair, School of Biblical Studies, Ohio State Univ.)
1. Young’s Literal Translation, ASV, ERV, NWT, King James II, NASB
ii. James Parkinson
1.
iii. http://faith.propadeutic.com
1. NASB, ESV, Holman Christian Std. Bible
b. Paraphrased Bibles – Good for reading enjoyment (Psalms, Gospel stories), but poor for establishing doctrine
c. Other tools:
i. Concordances – Strong’s Exhaustive, Zondervan NASB; also Greek and Hebrew Concordances
ii. Lexicons – Definitions of Hebrew/Greek words with Strong’s numbers
iii. Interlinears – Hebrew/Greek with literal English translation
iv. Internet – BibleGateway.com, www.e-sword.net, www.ccel.org
v. Commentaries – Peake’s, NIV, Interpreter’s Bible – caution needed
vi. Bible Dictionaries
vii. CD/Tapes/Video – Bible on CD/Tape, CD-based study tools
11. Bible Study Plan - Introductory
a. Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke & John
b. Genesis, Exodus, Psalms, Proverbs
c. Acts, Romans, Pastoral letters (Paul, Peter, James, John, Jude)
d. Prophets, Revelation, remaining books
e. Read the bible cover to cover (or listen to it on tape/CD) at least once, more often if you can
A word used in one passage of
the bible may not be clear, but where it is used in another passage, the
meaning can become more certain. By examining the usage of words in the
bible, we can clarify passages that seem difficult to understand. Many
scholars are impressed with the precision with which words are used in the
bible. The use of a concordance, which
is an index of all the words in the bible, can be very helpful in determining
how the bible uses words.
For example, suppose we
wanted to understand all the meanings of the word God as used in the bible. We could use a modern reference such as
Zondervan’s Strongest NASB Exhaustive Concordance. If we look up the word God and Gods, we get a
listing of all occurrences, like the following abbreviated sample:
In the beginning God created
the heavens Gn1:1 430
O Lord God, what will You
give Gn 15:2 3068
Preserve me, Oh God, for I
take Ps 16:1 410
Worship Him, all you gods
[angels] Ps 97:7 430
They shall be called sons of
God Mt
5:9 2316
My God, my God, why have you
forsaken Mt 27:46 2316
And the Word was God Jo 1:1 2316
My Lord and my God Jo
That God raised him [Jesus]
from the dead Ro 10:9 2316
There are many Gods and many
Lords 1
Cor 8:5 2316
the god of this world [Satan]
has blinded 2 Cor 4:4 2316
if he called them gods [men]
through whom Jo
Notice the numbers in the
third column. These are Strong’s references,
after the work of Professor James H. Strong (1822-1894). Each number is associated with a particular
Hebrew (OT) or Greek (NT) word. Bible
dictionaries or Lexicons are often keyed to these Strong’s numbers. The Zondervan’s Strongest concordance comes
with Hebrew and Greek dictionaries. We
note the following definitions (selected):
410 – el – God, gods -
God(204), god(16), mighty(3), Mighty One(3), power(1), strong(1)
430 – elohim - God, gods – God(2326),
god(45), great(2), judges(3), mighty(2), rulers(1)
3068 – Yehovah or Yahveh –
the proper name of the God of Israel – God(314), LORD(6399)
2316 – theos – God, a god –
divinely(1), God(1267), god(6), godly(2), gods(8), Lord(1)
We note, perhaps with some
surprise, that the word God in the bible is used even for human judges, rulers,
and other mighty ones—even angels. Jesus,
when falsely accused of claiming to be God Almighty, pointed this out in John
10:35. We note that Jesus calls his
Father God (Mt 27:46), yet is called God by Thomas (Jo
Familiar Words, Unfamiliar Meanings
Cliff Forward – See
www.homechristians.net/audio recordings
|
A Name |
Sea |
|
A Sword |
Serpents and
Scorpions |
|
Air |
Shepherds and
Sheep |
|
Birds |
Ships or Boats |
|
Bridegroom and
Bride |
Sleep |
|
Clouds |
Soul |
|
Death and Burial |
Spirit |
|
Earth |
Stars |
|
Earthquakes |
Sun (re. heat) |
|
|
Sun (re. light) |
|
Eyes and Ears |
The Altar |
|
Fire |
The Body |
|
Fishers and
Fishing |
The Feet |
|
Gold |
The |
|
Hail |
Thrones |
|
Harlot,
fornication – an apostate church or religious system that worships false gods
or forms unholy alliances with worldly powers. Ex 34:15-16, Lev 17:7, 1 Ch |
To Buy and Sell |
|
Harps |
To Eat or Devour |
|
Heaven(s) |
To |
|
Horses |
Torment |
|
|
Trees |
|
|
Virgins |
|
Lameness |
Water (re. Floods) |
|
Leaven |
Water (re.
Springs) |
|
Moon |
Waters – Nations,
peoples. |
|
Mountains |
White |
|
Oil |
Wild Beasts,
horns, heads – Governments, kingdoms opposed to God. Horns/heads are constituents of those
kingdoms, or successive rulerships. Dan 7, 8 |
|
Robes or Outer
Garments |
Wine – teachings,
divine blessings or judgments.
Drunkenness – deceived, deluded.
Jer 25:15, Jer 51:7, Mk 2:22 |
|
Scarlet, Red or
Crimson – Bloodguilt, sin, also a symbol for blood sacrifice. Is |
Woman – A community of believers; a church; either
faithful or unfaithful (a harlot). Jer
3:20, Hos 3:1, Is 54:1, Mic |
|
|
|
Homework: Use a concordance to get the biblical definitions, and add some of your own.