How Can I Understand God's Word Better?

By Brother Michel Lankford
I got this question from a beloved brother and friend in Christ the other day. He sent it to my Facebook mailbox. Wow, do I love that question! It's one of the best questions of all time, because it opens the door to learning a skill that will serve one well, both in this life and in the next.
Those of us who have felt that yearning in our hearts to know, love and to obey the Creator better have all felt that same yearning. All of us who want to be successful disciples of Almighty God and Jesus Christ have all asked the question, "How can I know that I'm understanding God's word correctly? If I already have a background in Bible study, how can I improve in this most worthwhile endeavor? Since getting into God's word and doing God's word regularly is the most vital part of discipleship, this blog will often feature various Bible study methods and how to implement them into our lives in practical ways

Eat Less, but Digest it More:

This advice may sound strange coming from a passionately devoted minister of the gospel, but I offer this advice to students nonetheless. I honestly do not recommend going through the entire Scriptures in a single year. I wholeheartedly recommend going through the entire Scriptures methodically, but I recommend a three-year, or even a four year cycle. The idea is to eat less of the Scriptures at one sitting, but to really digest more of the Scriptures on which you are feasting.
You see, up-and-coming disciples often forget that although the written word of God is very powerful and life-changing, it is not a matter of how much of the Scriptures that we know which transforms our lives. What transforms our lives is how much of the Scriptures we are able to digest, believe and practice correctly. In my experience it's very hard to digest the Scriptures well if you try to wolf down as much as you possibly can at one sitting. It's better to eat less at one time, but dine on the Scriptures more often. It's better to read less of the Scriptures, but become faithful to doing every day, then it is to try to do so much that you get overwhelmed and skip it for a week, then feel guilty and try to wolf down a bunch more which you find overwhelming. It's better to read less, but do it more steadily and faithfully.
Beloved, there are 37,103 verses of Scripture in the Holy Bible. Using the four year cycle, that is about 25 verses of Scripture per day. On a three-year cycle, it works out to about 35 or 36 verses of Scripture per day.  On a three year cycle, this works out to one or two chapters per day. Beloved, that is plenty if your goal is to meditate, pray through, and make appropriate action plans to correctly apply what you are reading.

Bible Study: The Basic Questions Method:

The scriptural basis for this Bible study method is taken from a principle taught by Jesus Christ:

John 14:21 "He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him." (John 14:21 NASB)

John 8:31-32 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, "If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free." John 8:31-32 (NASB)

The Keystone of this particular Bible study method is to make sure that one focuses particularly on the specific commands and imperatives found within a passage, and prayerfully seeks God's guidance on how to obey those commands. This is critical because God ONLY reveals Himself to those who choose to obey Him. So if someone claims to have a revelation, knowledge, and understanding of God and Jesus Christ, but they refuse to comply with Christ's expressed written commands, such a one is either deceiving himself or outright lying. God only reveals Himself to those who have made the decision and are choosing to comply with the commands of His Son. Do not be deceived.
Remember, it is Not merely knowing the Scriptures that changes our lives, it's obeying them correctly that transforms us into triumphant overcoming disciples and children of Almighty God through Jesus Christ.

 

Implementing the Basic Questions Method:

1. Ask Almighty God the Father to prepare your heart and mind to receive his word. Ask God to give you understanding, leading and direction by the Holy Spirit as you study.
2. After asking God to give you the Holy Spirit's help and direction In Understanding His Word, read your Scripture portion. I recommend between one paragraph to one chapter (usually no more at one sitting). That may sound unusual doesn't it? The reason that I make that suggestion is because the point of reading the Scriptures is Not merely to wolf down as much of them as you can, but to really digest them.
3. As you are reading your Scripture portion, please identify the following key questions within whatever Scripture portion you're reading

• Are there any specific stated COMMANDS in what I am reading?

• Are there any PROMISES in the Scriptures I'm reading? Almost every promise in the Bible has what I call the "IF Clause," meaning that there is usually something which the growing believer must either agree to or obey before he or she can receive the benefits of the scriptural promise. If there are promises of God in my Scripture portion, what are their any specified CONDITIONS to receiving the promise?

• Are there any GUIDING PRINCIPLES in the Scripture that I am reading? A guiding principle in Scripture is any passage that you can use as an example, but it wouldn't qualify as a direct command of the Lord. For example, Proverbs 15:1 gives the general guidance: "A gentle answer turns away wrath." Now that is a good principle to keep in mind about how to respond to someone when I'm upset? It's not a direct command, like you shall not steal, but it's still good counsel.

• Does the passage I am reading bring any QUESTIONS to my mind?

• Does the passage I am reading cause me to feel that I need to PRAY about something? For example, you might be reading Proverbs 15:1 and feel convicted that you have a problem with your temper. Take the time to pray about it as soon as you can.

• Make ACTION PLANS to obey the commands that you found in the passages you are reading. In most cases the Sabbath, or your days off are a good time to review the Scriptures you've been reading and examine your life next to the commands that you've been studying in Scripture to see if you are obeying the commands and observing the conditions to receive the promises. John 14:21 specifically says that God only reveals and makes itself manifest to those who obey His commands. So I find it when we need a better revelation and understanding from God, we need to first make sure that we are obeying what we already know to do, and then God will give us more. Write down the references to the verses you are studying, the commands, the promises, the conditions, the guiding principles, the questions, and the action plans in a journal or diary and keep track of your progress.

Try this for a while and see how it works. Let me know. This is a process that I often use myself. Although, for me this procedure is almost automatic where I can identify it quickly and don't write it out as often. However when I hit a dry spell, I go back to logging it in a journal so that I can get back on track. I hope this helps you. May Almighty God bless you as you abide in his word.

Brother Michel Lankford