Create Your Own Bible Study

In Christianity, Bible study is the study of the Bible by ordinary people as a personal religious or spiritual practice. It is best to study the Bible by following the simple steps like collecting together the verses on a certain topic, packaging it together with illustrations, reaching a decision point, and sharing it with other people.

Steps

  1. Pray before you begin to ask for God's leading. Without God's illumination, studying the Bible is a waste of time. Pray, "Dear God, please help me to understand what you want me to learn from this book. Thank you, Amen."
  2. Make a long list of people to invite. Invite three times as many people as you want to attend.
  3. Choose the topic of your Bible study. Be sure to tell your group to read which chapter & verse you will want to go over with your group before they leave for your next Bible Study group session.
  4. Gather your information together. See tips for sources.
  5. Write texts, stories, illustrations, etc., on cards, a written list or a document in your word processor. Make sure you identify the source and the topic.
  6. Arrange the information in order: Introduction, development of topic (sometimes called "body"), and conclusion or appeal. There should be a logical progression in the study that follows and develops the theme towards the conclusion.
  7. Practice the study with someone.
  8. Pray for the opportunity to share what you've learned with a friend.

Study one book from the Bible

For this method, choose one book from the Bible, such as The Book of Proverbs, going through each verse.

  1. As the leader: Write a question from each verse of each chapter. Leave spaces to fill in the answers.
  2. Start. Each person reads one verse from the first chapter.
  3. As the leader: Hand out sheets with questions on it for the first chapter and a pen for each person.
  4. Have another person reads the first verse. After this reading, the group discusses the verse and the question.
  5. Ask each person to write down their answer. As part of this, have them each explain what was meaningful to them from the verse.
  6. Proceed with the next verse. Have the next person read it and repeat above steps until all of the chapter completed.

Tips

  • If you are directing a group Bible Study, particularly with teens, be prepared to receive and give with honesty due to about any question you could ever dream of. Teens, in particular, are searching for meaning in life, so you can have a very big effect on their lives with only a few words. When in doubt, do not be afraid to say, "I do not know the answer to that, but I will find it." Then do not fail to follow up. Do not be afraid to pass the person "up the chain" to your pastor or such. Most of all, be honest and have fun.
  • Try having your group memorize certain Bible verses that you feel are important and that you believe will help them.
  • Search for information. Do word searches in the Concordance to find texts. Look for theme stories in the Bible. Look at other Bible studies on the same topic. Study the meanings of words in the dictionary. Check the Bible commentary for additional information.
  • Collect stories and illustrations from others and also from your own experience.
  • Use pictures and charts to explain your topics.
  • Use lots of questions in teaching. Get the group talking.
  • Decide to follow what you've learned. Ask yourself, "How does this change my life?" Ask your friend with whom you study to make a decision also.
  • Tithe your information. Gather more than you need and leave some out, retaining only the best material for your study.
  • Maintain a list of interesting facts to keep people interested.

Warnings

  • Do not try to prove a preconceived idea from the Bible.
  • Don't do too much talking. Let other's share.
  • Do not study the Bible without making a decision on what you have learned.
  • Don't do too little talking. Don't be afraid to lead.
  • Be careful about sharing your views with those who might argue against you.
  • If this is necessary, it is best to wait until you have a good knowledge to draw from.

Things You'll Need

  • Bible
  • The Writings of the Church Fathers, and other ancient religious writers and historians, such as Flavius Josephus, etc.
  • Bible Concordance - a book that lists the words in the Bible and will give you their basic meanings and root meanings as well as other places the words are used (sometimes found at the back of the Bible). Strong's Concordance is one possibility to consider.
  • Bible Dictionary - A book that gives you the meaning of words as they were when the Bible was written. It also can give historical context to the words.
  • Paper/cards
  • Pencil/pen
  • Journal - to record thoughts and ideas you receive as you study

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