The Bible is not merely some historical document which only scholars can understand. Some of the most exciting biblical insights have come from ordinary people with ordinary educations who simply responded to the Bible as a personal letter from [Yahshua]. As you explore [Yahweh’s] Word, here are seven important principles to keep in mind.
Study the Bible with a prayerful heart. If you approach Scripture with a heart and mind opened through prayer, the Word truly becomes a personal contact with [Yahshua].
Read the Bible Daily. Paul commended the Berean [believers] because they “received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scripture every day to see” what was true (Acts 17:11). Daily Bible study is a key to power in our lives (Romans 1:16).
Study the Bible carefully. Paul told Timothy to study the Bible as “a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth” (2 Tim 2:15). Don’t just grab any stray text that seems to suit your opinions or inclinations and hang on tight. Look as carefully and as objectively as possible at what is being said in the passage. Reading the Bible is an encounter with the mind of [Yahweh].
Study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, and book by book. As you read it, let the Bible speak for itself. Since the Bible is a message from [Yahweh], it is not only true, but the test of all truth (Isaiah 8:20). So we should not let any “religious” belief or principle explain away any part of Scripture. Trying to make the Bible fit into a preconceived idea will only cause us to “distort” the Scriptures to our “own destruction” (2 Pet. 3:16, KJV). Make sure you understand each statement of the Bible in the light of its context: who is being spoken to, what problem it refers to, what other statements surround it, etc. The key question is: What did the Bible writer intend to say? All of us must learn to distinguish what the Bible writer intended to say from our subjective impressions: what we think the writer should have said. After grasping what a text means we can apply it intelligently to our life today.
Study the Bible by Subject. To really understand Bible truth, we must let the Bible be its own interpreter. How? By comparing scripture with scripture. Yahshua used this method to demontrate that He was the Messiah: “and beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning Himself” (Luke 24:27). By putting together all that the Bible has to say on a certain subject we gain a balanced perspective; we can more accurately reflect on [Yahweh’s] point of view. For example, how do you find the secrets of successful prayer? Gather together all the statements made by the prophets, Yahshua and the apostles, the promises and principles they gave, which relate to prayer and its answers. When we prayerfully let the Bible explain itself in this way, we come to understand what [Yahweh] means, and not just what some person thinks, or what some [religious group] creed asserts.
Study the Bible to receive power to live for [Yahshua]. The Word of Yahweh is described in Hebrews 4:12 as a sharp, double-edged sword. It’s more than words on a page, it’s a living weapon that Yahweh uses to help us fight off the most persistent temptations.
Listen as Yahweh speaks to you through His Word. If a person is to
know the Bible truth about a certain subject or doctrine, he or she must be willing to follow what it teaches. “If anyone chooses to do Yahweh’s
will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from Yahweh or whether I speak on my own.” -John 7:17