Lesson 6 - Pray & Plan

September 23rd 2018 Sunday Night Bible Study @ RHCC Prayer & Plan How to R.E.A.P. The Bible by Chris Reighley Outline • • • • In Observation (Read) we ask the question “What do I see?” In Interpretation (Examine) we ask the question “What does it mean?” In Apply we ask the question “How does it work? In Prayer we ask the question “How do I make it personal” EXPLANATION AND SCRIPTURAL BASIS Begin by praying a Scripture that prepares your heart for connecting intimately with God: “Gracious God, I come boldly to Your throne. I need Your mercy and grace in my life” (Based on Hebrews 4:16). “Lord, I need You. Please open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in Your instructions” (Based on Psalm 119:18). A. Prayer 1. Use a verse or passage to shape your prayer. Make it personal. Psalm 24:1 The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it. “Lord, the whole earth is Yours, and everything in it! The world and all its people belong to You — including the high school students of Lago Vista. May these students understand the depth of Your love for them today” (Based on Psalm 24:1). 2. Allow imagery from Scripture to influence your prayer. Revelation 7:9-10 After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” Revelation 7:9-10 shows us all nations, peoples and languages gathered around the throne, worshipping God. Pray that becomes a reality here on earth soon and pray specifically for the people group that’s on your heart to be a part of this gathering. 3. Turn a verse into a first- or third-person prayer. 2 Timothy 1:9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, “You have saved the people of Texas, and You have called them to live a Holy Life. You did this, not because Your children deserved it, but because it was Your plan from before the beginning of time — to show the people of Texas and all of us, your grace through Jesus Christ” (Based on 2 Timothy 1:9). Prepared by Chris Reighley Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/RHCCBibleStudy/ Page 1 of 4 Sunday Night Bible Study @ RHCC September 23rd 2018 4. Pick a verse and declare it as truth for a people group or nation. Acts 2:21 ‘And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ “Lord, Your Word says in Acts 2:21 that everyone who calls on Your name will be saved. I pray that the people of Lago Vista will call on Your name as a result of having your Word in their own language. Save these people for Your glory!” B. Plan 1. The Devotional Method of Bible Study How to Apply Scripture to Life The Devotional Method of Bible Study involves taking a passage of the Bible, large or small, and prayerfully meditating on it until the Holy Spirit shows you a way to apply its truth to your own life in a way that is personal, practical, possible, and provable. The goal is for you to take seriously the Word of God and “do what it says” (James 1:22). 2. The Chapter Summary Method of Bible Study How to Begin Understanding Chapters of a Book of the Bible The Chapter Summary Method of Bible Study involves gaining a general understanding of the contents of a chapter of the Bible by reading it through at least five times, asking a series of content questions, and summarizing the central thoughts of the passage. 3. The Character Quality Method of Bible Study How to Determine Biblical Character Qualities The Character Quality Method of Bible Study involves finding out what the Bible says about a particular characteristic of a person, with a heavy emphasis on personal application. Furthermore, it is a combination in simplified form of three other Bible study methods: The Word Study Method, the Biographical Method, and the Cross-Reference Method. It differs from the Biographical Method in that here you are studying the characteristics of a person rather than the person himself. These qualities can be negative or positive or both. The point is that we learn to avoid the negative ones and work on building the positive ones into our lives. 4. The Thematic Method of Bible Study How to Investigate Themes in Scripture The Thematic Method of Bible Study involves approaching a biblical theme with a set of not more than five predetermined questions in mind. You then trace that theme through the Bible or a single book by asking only those questions, summarizing your conclusions, and writing out a personal application. 5. The Biographical Method of Bible Study How to Find Out What Made Bible People Tick With the Biographical Method of Bible Study, you select a biblical person and research the Scriptures to study his or her life and character. You try to become thoroughly acquainted with that person’s inner life and find out what made it a spiritual success or failure. Ask God to help you think and feel with him or her so that your study becomes a life-changing experience. 6. The Topical Method of Bible Study How to Trace a Topic through Scripture The Topical Method of Bible Study involves selecting a biblical subject and tracing it through a single book, from either the Old or New Testament, or the entire Bible in order to discover what God says about the topic. Prepared by Chris Reighley Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/RHCCBibleStudy/ Page 2 of 4 Sunday Night Bible Study @ RHCC September 23rd 2018 7. The Word Study Method of Bible Study How to Discover the Meanings of Bible Words The Word Study Method of Bible Study takes a microscopic look at the origin, definition, occurrences, and uses of a particular word, especially as it relates to the context of a passage of Scripture. The purpose is to learn as precisely and comprehensively as possible what the biblical writer meant by the word he used. 8. The Book Background Method of Bible Study How to Research Biblical Backgrounds The Book Background Method of Bible Study involves gaining a better understanding of the biblical message by researching the background related to the passage, person, event, or topic being studied. This involves understanding the geography, historical events, culture, and political environment at the time a particular part of the Bible was written. Prepared by Chris Reighley Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/RHCCBibleStudy/ Page 3 of 4 Sunday Night Bible Study @ RHCC September 23rd 2018 AN EXAMPLE OF R.E.A.P. TITLE: SCRIPTURE: THE GREATEST COMMANDMENT MARK 12:28-31 One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?” Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” READ Jesus tells the scribes that the most important commandment is to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. He continues, saying that the second most important commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. EXAMINE God made us with different faculties: a heart to have emotion, a mind to think, strength to do, and a soul that is eternal, and I am commanded to love God with the fullness of all of my faculties. This is the first and greatest commandment; every other area of obedience flows out of this. Jesus says the command to love our neighbors is like the first commandment. Loving others as myself is somehow connected to loving God with all of my being. APPLY Do I think of loving God with all that I am as the greatest and first call on my life? No. I have reduced obedience to praying or being kind to my family and friends, or fighting the desire to lie. Do I love God with my mind: Do I seek to study His Word daily, think about Him and learn about Him? Do I love God with my heart and soul: Do I have affection toward something that is stronger than my affection toward Him? Do I love God with my strength: Do I actually live out his Word rather than just knowing his Word? I can think of several people that I am far from loving well. How is that lack of love for others connected to my lack of love for God? PRAY Father, I confess that I can’t muster up the love that you want from me. Give me a new mind, a new heart, a new soul, and new strength, and give me the ability to love you fully with all of my faculties. I pray for my mind specifically – that I would honor you today with my thoughts and love you well. I pray for my relationship with my father and my brother. Help me to love them because I love you and you made them! Living By the Book: The Art and Science of Reading the Bible Howard G. Hendricks Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission. www.Lockman.org Prepared by Chris Reighley Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/RHCCBibleStudy/ Page 4 of 4