How to understand the bible

[year2027]

God first

Beloved friends

God loves you Here a old teaching I updated for you my dear friends

How to understand the bible or words of prophecy one on one

I write unto you to teach and share with you how to enjoy and understand the bible. First one must know that God wrote the bible for each person that is living on earth or has lived on earth.

Now there are things God wants us to know and here is one my dear friends.

2 Peter 1:20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

No written or spoken prophecy which is the word of God is my or your personal view. The bible is what God wants to share with you because he loves you. Words of prophecy are what God wants to share with you to comfort you are warm you of things to come with loving directions to follower.

But what about prophecy spoken by Jesus the Christ whether wrote or just spoken .

1 John 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

All words spoke or wrote that came from Jesus the Christ the son came from God. Jesus the Christ speaking what God sent him to speak whether of old or new words of prophecy.

Now if we know that it was wrote by God and now lets look to see who it is wrote to.

Eph 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are

at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:

We see that Ephesians is wrote to the faithful in Christ Jesus . Now that is the ones who stand for the one true God or ones who are thinking about standing for the one true God and his son Jesus Christ. I heard people speak word of prophecy with words like my dear children which would be spoken to us the children of God.

I some times write unto the children of the world wide net that to all people of the inter net that might read but others can learn from it. As the Old Testament was wrote to the children of God of that time but we can still learn from it.

The ones who stand for the one true God are called faithful in Christ Jesus, the called of Jesus Christ, Unto the church of God, the saints, brother, brother in Christ, all the saints in Christ Jesus, and many others.

But these are only in the New Testament and what about the Old Testament.

Romans 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

Yes the Old Testament is for our learning to help us to see and understand what God did for us over the years. How God loves his children and how he fought for them as needed.

Now there are some who say that the four gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are not part of the New Testament but the bridge that holds the New Testament to the Old Testament.

The four gospels are the story of Jesus Christ life on this earth. Jesus Christ made all things possible by giving up his life for us. So the four gospel are a bridge to hold the New Testament to the Old Testament but they are far greater than that.

The four gospels are the living example of how to live by the word of God or by the bible. Jesus Christ all ways did God’s will.

John 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

Now there are some who say that Hebrews is not for us to live by but for Israel children that want to live in the Old Testament but at times we find our self trying to live under the Old Testament .

It is easy to read the Old Testament for learning and get caught up in some of its teaching. But when we know that its teachings are examples on how to live but not all are examples of how to live.

Some are build up example on how to get sin wash away by sin offerings which was replace by Jesus Christ offerings his life for our sins and more.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,

that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Now understanding that God wrote the bible for us because he loves us. And understanding that we live by the example of Jesus Christ and by the New Testament of the bible. And all so understanding that the Old Testament is for our learning to help us understand the New Testament and how things came to be so.

But how do we begin if this is our first time reading the bible? We begin by praying for God to give us understanding as we begin reading the New Testament and we read it a few times before we read the Old Testament.

We do it this way because we first want to read what is wrote directly to us and then we read the Old Testament for learning. Now what about parts of the bible that makes no sense to us as we read.

The best thing to do is get a note book and write down things that make no sense to you. Now you have a record of things to look into.

Some times you will find your understanding for one verse a few verses later in the book you are reading.

Here is a parable that may help.

Matt13:24 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:

25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat,

and went his way.

26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared

the tares also.

27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not

thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?

28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him,

Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?

29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.

30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

Here is a parable that makes little sense because we do not know who or what the good seed, field, enemy, wheat, tares, and so on but lets look at the next few verses.

Matthew 13:36 Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.

37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;

38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world;

and the reapers are the angels.

40 As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.

41 The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;

42 And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

43 Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.

Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

We have found out that the he that soweth the good seed is the Son of man and the field is the world and so on. But what about ones that do not explain them self later in the book you are reading.

The next step is to do a search of places in the bible talking about the same subject . For example if you are having trouble with parts of the death of Christ read all verses that teach about it.

But what are other ways that we can try for help in understanding the bible. Word studies of the words in the verse or verses of question can help at times.

There are a few ways to do a word study . The first way is look up all words in a dictionary and there are two types of dictionary one can try . One dictionary might be English but one could get a bible dictionary which takes words back to the language the bible was said to be first wrote in.

The second way is to use a Concordance of the bible which list the words of the bible and every place they are used. Then one could read all the differ ways the word has been used . One could even check which words they came from before they were wrote in our language. Which the bible was first wrote in before it was translated into English.

Now there is another way and that is to go to another friend for help until you learn how to use these tools. But what if he or she still makes no sense to you. You can check for books on the subject or do a internet search on the subject that you find yourself not understanding.

Now all of this takes time and some times it takes years to completely understand one verse but the key is keep asking God for understanding as you continue to read and study the bible.

May God bless you as you read and enjoy his word.

With love and a holy kiss blowing your way Roy

[bliss]

2 Peter 1:20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

No written or spoken prophecy which is the word of God is my or your personal view. The bible is what God wants to share with you because he loves you. Words of prophecy are what God wants to share with you to comfort you are warm you of things to come with loving directions to follower.

Love you Roy

I have a little problem with 2 Peter 1:20.

In the context it is talking about the "PROPHETS", and that THEY were not putting "their own" view or words when writing the scripture. IT was the spirit that moved them.

TWI used this to tell us not to question or think about the verses and what they mean (no private interpretation).

Bless

bliss

[year2027]

God first

Beloved Bliss

God loves you my dear friend

It not wrong to question a verse

I may not have the answer you need but God and his son Jesus the Christ

The Way wanted to guide but its the spirit should guide us

Note a prophet is just basicly a child of God

I believe some verses have more than one understanding

These prophets were written or talking to the people of their time by word of prophecy using words from their minds

But you know that .. Now if you would like you can tell me the problem you have with the verses because I would need more to understand

But I may not have a answer but God will

I find myself questioning all things

thank you

with love and a holy kiss blowing your way Roy

[T-Bone]

I think sometimes we can make things so complicated as to "outsmart" ourselves [in ancient T-Bonia "outsmart" meant, "to be confused, befuddled, bewitched, bothered, and bewildered"]. I personally like E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible with a gazillion notes per page – but I tend to get bogged down in so many details and sometimes miss the simple and obvious message. I figure God has put the Bible together in such a way as to be accessible, relevant, and enlightening to anyone curious enough to open it [and their hearts] – regardless of their level of intelligence – furthermore the Holy Spirit has a key role in our understanding of the Scriptures [Psalm 119: 18, 27; 147: 19; Matthew 16: 13-19]. I've come across some helpful pointers - a few of which I'll list below [along with the source].

From "What to do on Thursday: A Layman's Guide to the Practical Use of the Scriptures" by Jay E. Adams:

Discovering the intent of the Holy Spirit ought to be the goal of all Bible study. A correct interpretation is one that accurately mirrors the thought that God had in mind and had written by inspiration. We should always seek to find the purpose in Scripture – what God intends for it to do to the reader. A simple example: The great purpose of the Gospel of John is to bring someone to saving faith, to get them started in an eternal relationship with God [John 20: 30, 31]. Whereas I John is geared more for strengthening the existing relationship believers have with God .

From "Understanding the Bible" by John R.W. Stott:

Look for the natural sense [the obvious, logical meaning]
Look for the original sense [historical, cultural, and grammatical].
Look for the general sense [in harmony with the rest of Scripture].

Another interesting book [because of its negative approach] is "Scripture Twisting: 20 Ways the Cults Misread the Bible" by James Sire.

Something a little meatier are books on systematic theology. I may have to read slower – or break out the dictionary – but who cares – I find neat stuff in some – and don't have to agree with everything they say! I like the following one because it gets me THINKING ABOUT THE WAY I THINK about Scripture.

The following from "Christian Theology" by Millard Erickson:

Christian theology has a definite world-view. A believer philosophizes from the position that Scripture is true, that the Bible clearly affirms a theistic understanding of reality [Hebrews 11: 3]. Philosophy should be thought of primarily as an activity – philosophizing – rather than a body of truths. It is potentially capable of functioning from any perspective and with any set of data. Hence, it is a tool that can be used by theology. Philosophy can help us ferret out the presuppositions behind an idea or a system of thought and sometimes expose erroneous logic.

Erickson recommends that theologians should only give appropriate credence to any particular theological statement – in other words – only give them the proper weight they should carry in our belief system. He then lists 6 degrees of authority in descending order – but you'll get the idea if I just mention a few key ones. The first is "direct statements of Scripture are to be accorded the greatest weight. To the degree that they accurately represent what the Bible teaches, they have the status of a direct word of God. Great care must of course be exercised to make certain that we are dealing here with the teaching of Scripture, and not an interpretation imposed upon it" ["God is love." I John 4: 16 would be in this category… T-Bone].

The next one down in authority is "direct implications of Scripture are to be given high priority. They're slightly less authoritative than direct statements, however, because the introduction of an additional step [logical inference] carries with it the possibility of interpretational error."

Lowest in authority on Erickson's list is "outright speculation, which frequently includes hypotheses based upon a single statement or hint in Scripture, or derived from somewhat obscure or unclear parts of the Bible, may also be stated and utilized by the theologians. There is no harm in this as long as the theologian is aware and warns the reader or hearer of what he is doing. A serious problem enters if these speculations are presented with the same degree of authoritativeness attributed to statements of the first category listed above."

This systematic theology stuff is useful for checking out your own thinking. What we think is important because it governs the way we act. I think God gave us His Word because He wants to draw us into a transforming relationship with Him. Here's something that helps me with personal application of the Bible. It's from "Living by the Book" by Howard G. Hendricks & William D. Hendricks. It gets me reading with an active mind – nine questions for personal application when you read the Bible:

Is there an example for me to follow?
Is there a sin to avoid?
Is there a promise to claim?
Is there a prayer to repeat?
Is there a command to obey?
Is there a condition to meet?
Is there a verse to memorize?
Is there an error to mark or avoid?
Is there a challenge to face?

I've saved the best tip for last. Proverbs 9: 10 " The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding."

Edited February 17, 2006 by T-Bone

[year2027]

God first

Beloved T-Bone

God loves you my dear friend

I hope its ok I saved that reply to my computer it blessed me a lot

thank you

with love and a holy kiss blowing your way Roy