DM: Discover

The Word is the Teacher

2 Peter 1:16-21 “For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

I want to point out a couple things from this passage that help me approach the process of learning God’s word, and leading others to learn it.

Peter is recounting an even that happened during Jesus’s life and ministry.

From the context of this passage, can anyone tell me which even he’s talking about?

The Transfiguration. The event where Jesus allowed Peter, James, and John to see what He would be like in His glorified state. He was giving them eyewitness evidence of His full divinity and what our eternity with Him would look like. What an event!

Peter states that they got to see Christ transfigured, and they got to hear the audible voice of God declaring His pleasure for the Son.

Peter then makes one of the most unbelievable claims: that as great as this event was, that the Church has something better than that: “the prophetic word… more fully confirmed.

This Word would be our light in a dark place to keep us from stumbling in the dark.

This Word would be the consistent reminder that it won’t be night forever, but that the morning is coming.

Knowing there would be people who twisted the Word for their own agenda, Peter reminds us that the source of Truth in the Word doesn’t come from man or man’s opinion, but from a person: the God who speaks.

We can depend on this Word because we can follow the chain of custody: men spoke it, but God gave them the things to say as the Holy Spirit orchestrated every aspect of its manifestation.

How do I study the Bible?

John 14.26 “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

Things to keep in mind:

Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to speak through his word. It's his job to guide us into all truth and to glorify Jesus (John 16:13-14 “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” )

Depending on the passage, a study Bible may be helpful in providing some important background information. Commentaries can be helpful as well, but most will provide too much information and could be distracting. Keep it simple!

Coloring Book

2 Easy Methods

There is no perfect way to study God’s Word. There are some tools though that help guide study though. I have the tendency to get distracted and off topic when I’m studying, so having these kinds of tools help me stay focused on observing the Word and listening to Spirit through the Word.

The 4 Questions

Originally created by Saturate. © 2017 Saturate. Some rights reserved. You may not use, remix, and build upon this work unless you attribute “saturatetheworld.com” and abide by terms found at: saturatethworld.com/license.

Who is God? - What does the text say about the character and nature of God? The Bible is God's story - Father. Son, Spirit- so we begin by asking about how his character and nature are revealed in what we're reading. The story is about Him! Look for specific references to his attributes: holy, eternal, all-powerful, all-knowing, ever present, unchanging, compassionate, gracious, patient, loving, kind, good, gentle, etc. In narrative portions, look for implied references to his attributes. What does the story reveal about his character and nature as Father, Son, and Spirit?

What has He done? - What does the text say about the work of God? God's work throughout all of human history is diverse and magnificent. All of it is worth proclaiming! However, the person and work of Jesus is revealed on every page of the Bible (Luke 24:27 “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” ). He is the hero and the main character. The Spirit does not want us to miss Jesus!

Who are we in light of that? - What does the text say about our identity? God has always been working to save "a people for his own possession.' (1 Peter 2:9) Throughout the Bible, note the things that are true of God's people. This adds depth and richness to our understanding of who we are as New Covenant believers. For example, the Levitical priests were anointed and set apart for special service to God. Now, we are all anointed with God's Spirit (2 Cor. 1:21-22), and because of Jesus, are all a part of God's "royal priesthood" set apart for special service to God.

How do we live? - In light of all of this, how does it change the way we live? When reading the Bible, we almost always start with the question, "How does this apply to my life?" But rightly motivated, gospel-centered action flows out of an understanding of who God is, what he's done, and who we are in light of God's character and work. Rather than starting with this question, end with it. And then, take action! Jesus warns against being merely a hearer of his word but not a doer (Mt. 7:24-27). The gospel motivates and empowers us to live in an entirely new way.

The Sword Method

Explanation provided by: https://blog.eastwest.org/blog/4-questions-for-bible-reading

Hebrews 4.12 “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

The Sword Method helps believers learn how to read the Bible as well as understand and apply it to their lives. It starts with a simple picture of a sword. We encourage them to ask these same questions every time they read a passage of Scripture.

The questions are:

· What do I learn about God?

· What do I learn about man?

· Is there a sin to avoid?

· Is there a promise to claim?

· Is there an example to follow?

· Is there a command to obey?

I always like to include these two application questions:

How does this passage invite me to grow?

How does this passage invite me to go?

Using these questions, believers of every walk and background can discover more about God, humanity, and how they can display their love for Him through obedience to His word. The hope in using simple tools, like the Sword Method, is that every Christian feels confident and competent to walk in their God-given authority as they seek to bring Him glory by making disciples of all nations.

Practice

Using either of the two methods, practice the Discover step of DNA on the following passages:

Command: Matthew 22:37-39 | Story: Luke 10:25-37

I’ve provided a worksheet of the Sword Method if you’d like to use it. Please keep in mind that all Bible Study should invite us to go and grow as a disciple of Jesus. If you walk away from a passage, and it does not invite you into action, there is a strong possibility that you missed the point.