“Living by the Book”

How to Study the Bible – Observation, Interpretation, Application

Excerpted from the “Living by The Book” video sessions and workbook by Howard G. Hendricks
Table of Contents

Part 1 – Why & How to Study the Bible 3

Part 2 – The Importance of Observation 5

Part 3 – How to Observe 6

Part 4 – Interpretation 8

Part 5 – Interpretation (Cont.) 10

Part 6 – Application - How does it work? 13

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 Part 1: Why & How to Study the Bible

Why Study the Bible?

1. It is essential to Growth – 1 Peter 2:2 – Key word: “Long for”
2. It is essential to Spiritual Maturity – Hebrews 5:11 – 14 – Key word: “time”
3. It is essential to Spiritual Effectiveness – 2 Timothy 3:16 -17 – Key word: “All”

What is the COST in studying the Bible?

1. Effort – the greater the effort, the greater the reward
2. Openness to God – Proverbs 8:34 -35
3. Openness to Change – do we really want to become like Jesus? Romans 8:29

HOW do we study God’s Word?

OBSERVATION
What do I SEE? What are the facts?
Terms – more than just words
Structure – more than just grammar. God’s Word is NOT random
Literary form – poetry, prose, narrative, parables. The Holy Spirit uses all methods of
communication to speak with us
Atmosphere – get involved with the text, the people, the culture and put yourself inside the
narrative.

*Spend most of your Bible study time here. With more observation, you’ll gain better &
more accurate Interpretation!!

INTERPRETATION
What does it MEAN? How is God speaking to me?
Questions – don’t be afraid to ask questions! God wants to answer your
questions. A foolish person is he who doesn’t ask questions.
Answers – the Bible does a tremendous job in answering questions in its own
text. Answers come through Observation.
Integration – the answers to the questions must be put together to reach the
meaning.

APPLICATION
HOW does it Work? God’s Word is always at work. It is ALWAYS relevant.
HOW it works for ME? If God’s Word isn’t “working for me”, then how can it be
passed on to others?
HOW does it work for Others? God’s Word can and does have implications for
every aspect of our lives. Will we allow it to transform us?

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When beginning to study God’s Word and “Live by the Book” it is helpful to:

READ
Don’t browse! READ. How often have you gone back to a passage that you “read” years earlier
and said to yourself “WOW, I didn’t see that!”

RECORD
Take notes of what God is saying to you. Keep notes in a journal. Use your Bible as a Work
Book. God didn’t write His Word to be placed on a shelf to be admired! He wants us to use it.

REFLECT
Take time to get alone. Sometimes we just need to “get away” from everything that may
distract us. Turn off the cell phone. Go to the beach or park. Put yourself out of the reach of
others & into the reach of your Father – even if it’s just for an hour or two. You’ll be greatly
refreshed. You may not have your questions answered, but you’ll have found the beginnings of
relief. Remember to take a pad of paper & pencil or pen. Write down what’s on your mind or
what’s troubling you. Lift those thoughts up to God as an offering of your dependence upon
Him. Save those notes & return to them after a couple of months’ time & see what God has
done with them.

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 Part 2: The Importance of Observation

OBSERVATION

What do I SEE? What are the facts?

All of us see different things at any given time. It’s not a question of who’s right & who’s not.
It’s just that we all “see” differently. What do we need to do? We need to learn HOW to read.
We all know how to LOOK but do we know how to read? It’s like knowing how to HEAR but not
necessarily LISTEN.

We all Need to Learn to Read…

• Better & Faster – not just reading fast for the sake of reading fast but to be able to
COMPREHEND MORE of the text in less time.
• Like It’s the First Time - Familiarity can breed ignorance. How many times, when re-
reading a book or article do we skim past those parts that we think we “know?” Look for
the WOW! Factor. Read using different translations. If you speak a second or third
language, you know that words & phrases can be translated a little differently. The
words may differ, but the thought remains true. The Word will come alive to you as you
may never have read it!
• As a Love letter - The Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is God’s love letter to YOU. You
are HIS creation, the apple of His eye, created in His image.

Observation is a discipline. It takes time. We don’t read God’s Word just for knowledge because
knowledge is not the end goal. Knowledge of God’s Word is the MEANS of touching others.
Are we wanting to be a mushroom overnight or a mighty oak that grows strong & can better
weather the storms of life over many years?

Bible Study is one of the 5 Disciplines of the Laws of Spiritual Growth:

1. Prayer
2. Journaling
3. Bible Study
4. Solitude
5. Service

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 Part 3: How to Observe

There are 6 Keys to Observation when looking at God’s Word.

We Look for things that are:

1. Emphasized
What is being Emphasized in the text? Each & every book of the Bible has an emphasis. We can
also call them Themes or stated purposes. Take note of how much space is dedicated to a topic,
order or strategic placement of material, and
movement from lesser to greater & vice versa. Where is the pivotal point in the book?

2. Repeated
Repetition is a powerful learning as well as teaching tool. Repetition reinforces key elements.
Look for what’s being repeated:
• Terms or phrases
• Characters,
• Incidents & circumstances
• Patterns – such as parallels between old testament characters & Jesus,
• New Testament use of Old Testament passages or prophesy.

3. Related
Things that have some type of connection or interaction with each other. Look for what’s
related:
• Movement from the general to the specific.
• Questions & answers
• Cause & effect

4. Alike
Similarity between 2 or more things or events brings almost instant attention. Look for what is
alike through:
• Similes – using key words such as “like” or “as”
• Metaphors – comparisons not using “like” or “as”

5. Un-like
Rather than similarity or comparison there is contrast. Look for things that are unlike through:
• The word “but”
• Metaphors
• Irony – see Luke 8:45, when in a pressing crowd, Jesus asks, “who touched me?”
6. True to Life
How can this Bible character’s predicament or triumph be fleshed out today?
Use your mind to paint a mental picture of what is happening in the Scripture you are reading.
How does this Scripture that I am reading right now apply to me today? Think of how we relate

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to men & women and their situations in the Bible such as Moses, David, Ruth, Peter, John, &
Mark

Why is there a bias against reading the Bible?

1. You shouldn’t have to think about things! Mental effort is required.
2. There is a general suspicion of “universal truth,” especially those truths that are presented by
the Bible.

Bible Study requires…

1. Extended reading over a long period of time utilizing meditation & mental effort.
2. Allowing the Scriptures to have & to provide the Ultimate authoritative explanation for my
life.
3. A willingness to being counter-cultural. Especially when today’s culture doesn’t believe in
“absolute truths.” To many people, everything is relative, or they have the attitude,” what may
be true for you isn’t true for me.”

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 Part 4: Interpretation

With interpretation we ask & answer the second question: What does it mean?

The QUALITY of the Interpretation directly depends on the QUALITY of the observation.
Interpretation is not the end, it is only the means to that end. The primary task of any Bible
teacher is to explain the Bible!

Something to remember: The more time spent in Bible Observation, the less time AND the
more accurate the Interpretation. Conversely, the less time spent in Bible Observation, the
more time AND less accurate the Interpretation.

Take heart! You can never understand everything in the Bible. How can a finite human
creation completely understand an INFINITE God?

2 Peter 3:15 – 18 states, “Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, just as our
dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way
in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard
to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to
their own destruction. Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so
that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position.
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Even the Apostle Peter knows that the proper interpretation of the Bible is important so as not
to distort the message. Peter also acknowledges that some Scripture is difficult to
understand. It needs to be explained.

There are 5 Keys to Interpretation:

1. Content
This is the raw material or database.
Direct cause – effect between the content and the meaning.
What are the who, what, where, when, why & wherefore (So what? What difference does this
truth make if I apply it in my life?)

2. Context
Don’t simply take a verse out its context! What was said immediately before AND after the
verse?
Look for the kinds of context:
• Literary context – what is the rest of the paragraph or book?
• Historical context – what is happening at that moment? What else was taking place?
What are the social & political influences on the author and his audience?
• Cultural context – understand the culture & you more fully understand the meaning of
the words or terms

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 • Geographical context – knowing & understanding the geography lends tremendous
relevance & realism to the account
• Theological context – what did the author know about God? What did the audience
know about God or how did they worship Him? Where and HOW does this piece of
Scripture fit into the total unfolding of the Scriptures?

Cults are grounded in distortion by taking verses out of their context. Whenever someone
“quotes” the Scriptures to you & it doesn’t sound quite right, ask them to either read on or if
the quote begins with the words “but” or “therefore”, ask them to read the passage that
PRECEEDS the verse. Get the complete context.

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 Part 5: Interpretation (Cont.)

The Protestant Reformation put the Holy Scriptures – once only for the eyes of the “learned” –
into the hands & hearts of the common man. But here’s the problem:

“Private interpretation never meant that individuals have the right to distort the Scriptures.
With the right of private interpretation, comes the sober responsibility of accurate
interpretation. Private interpretation gives us license to interpret, not to distort.”
- R. C. Sproul, “Knowing Scripture”

“You very rarely have to go outside of the Bible to explain anything in the Bible.”
- Donald Grey Barnhouse

There are 5 Keys to Interpretation:

1. Content
This is the raw material or database.

2. Context
Don’t simply take a verse out its context. What was said immediately before AND after the
verse?

3. Comparison
Compare Scripture with Scripture. The best & greatest interpreter of Scripture is Scripture. The
more we compare Scripture with itself, the more the meaning of the Bible becomes apparent.
The parts of the Bible that we are studying take on significant meaning in light of the entire
Scripture. We can study biblical characters as well as terms or words. We obtain more full
meanings as to what God is teaching us.

4. Culture
Understanding the culture in which the original text has its context, helps us to more fully
understand the meaning of the text. We need to understand the background while the light of
truth is shown onto the text. If we read the Bible according to our cultural context, that can or
will distort the actual context. Result – we are unable to make proper sense of the passage.
Understanding the original culture brings the text to life as well as adds accuracy to our
interpretation.

5. Consultation
Using extra-biblical tools aids our interpretation through better understanding, cultural
context and increased accuracy of terms and ideas. Consulting tools are SECONDARY
references. Always use your Bible FIRST, then refer to these secondary references. They provide
insights that “color in” the pages of Scripture.

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Secondary references for consultation include:
• Study Bible
• Concordances – an “exhaustive” concordance is best: Strong’s or Young’s are considered
the best
• Bible Dictionaries – “The New Bible Dictionary” edited by J. D. Douglas or W. E. Vine’s
“Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words”
• Bible Handbooks – “Eerdman’s Handbook of the Bible” or “The Handbook of Life in Bible
Times”
• Atlases – “Moody Atlas of Bible Lands” or “Zondervan Pictorial Bible Atlas”
• Commentaries – “Bible Knowledge Commentary” or “Expositor’s Bible Commentary”

Remember that these secondary references are there to help you evaluate your own personal
study of the Bible. Do not use them as primary sources. Only the Bible itself is a primary
source.

Write in your Bible as the Spirit leads you. The Holy Bible is not so “holy” as to not use it as God
wants us to. Think of your Bible as a “textbook” or “workbook”. Writing notes and “scribbles” in
our Bibles is a way of speaking back to God as He speaks to us.

Before we come to the Application process, let’s first look at Figurative Language: Let’s Figure
Out the Figurative. How do we know when the Bible is representing reality as opposed to
describing reality?

Ten principles to keep us out of figurative trouble:

1. Use the literal sense unless there is some good reason not to – don’t try to “spiritualize it”

2. Use the figurative sense when the passage tells you to do so – especially in dreams & visions

3. Use the figurative sense if a literal meaning is impossible or absurd – God doesn’t confound
us with nonsense, but He does use symbolism to often make His points. But these are symbols
not absurdities. Figurative language can be both descriptive and precise.

4. Use the figurative sense if a literal meaning would involve something immoral – for example
when Jesus talks about eating His flesh and drinking His blood. Even the Pharisees understood
this as being figurative language. God never violates His character.

5. Use the figurative sense if the expression is an obvious figure of speech – notice when the
words “like” or “as” are used especially in the Psalms or prophetic books.

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6. Use the figurative sense if a literal interpretation goes contrary to the context and scope of
the passage – “the Lion of the tribe of Judah” in Revelation is not talking about a 4-legged beast
with a mane.

7. Use the figurative if a literal interpretation goes contrary to the general character and style of
the book – “the shadow of His wings”; poetic & prophetic writings; God is not a chicken.

8. Use the figurative sense if a literal interpretation goes contrary to the plan and purpose of
the author – understand the context of the text. How does the verse compare to the rest of the
paragraph and the rest of the book?

9. Use the figurative sense if a literal interpretation involves a contradiction of other Scripture –
the Bible is unified in the entirety of its message. Comparing Scripture with Scripture puts
Scripture in perspective.

10. Use the figurative sense if a literal interpretation would involve a contradiction in doctrine –
our interpretation needs to be consistent with the Scriptures themselves.

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 Part 6: Application – How does it work?

If we did read & study God’s Word, on a regular, faithful basis, what would we do with that
knowledge? What practical difference would it make in our lives? God’s Word does work, but
HOW do we allow it to work in our daily lives?

*Of the 3 steps to bible study – Observation, Interpretation & Application – Application is the
most important, but the most neglected.

Observation + Interpretation + LESS Application = Abortion. An Abortion of the purposes that

God has in His mind for His children – both as individuals and as the body of Christ.
Interpretation is one; Application is many. There is only one ultimate interpretation of a
passage of Scripture; it doesn’t change. What GOD intended His Word to mean, it means just
that forever. But, we can never cease the process of applying Biblical truth in our lives. The
purpose of Bible study is not for me to get through the Scriptures, but for the Scriptures to get
INTO me. Although we may have read through the Bible many times, have we been changed?
Are we “lead to godliness” – (Titus 1:1)? God’s Word is for Transformation not entertainment.

Four SUBSTITUTES for Application – common mistakes that we make.

1. Substitute Interpretation for Application

• We settle for knowledge rather than experience
• We are individually responsible for putting God’s Word into action (Luke 6:46)
• Without application, we sin

2. Substitute superficial obedience for significant life-change

• Where are the blind-spots in our lives?
• Are we fooling ourselves in some aspects of our lives?
• Are we partially obedient?

3. Substitute rationalization for repentance

• Transformation is hard & unnatural – we naturally resist change in our lives
• What are we doing with the sin in our lives?
• Are we getting more comfortable having sin live or rule in our lives?

4. Substitute emotional experiences for a purposeful change

• God’s Word can & does bring up emotions, but what’s the impact?
• Are we satisfied just being exposed to the Scriptures or will we volitionally make a
change in our lives? (James 1:21 – 25)

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4 Steps of Application

1. Know – the Bible & yourself

• Know the interpretation of the text
o Have we properly observed all of what the text is saying?
o An erroneous interpretation will lead to an erroneous application
o A correct interpretation will (more probable) lead to a correct application
o The better we understand the meaning of the text, the better we will be able to
apply it to our lives as we become more Christ-like
• Know myself first
o Understand your personal assets (what God has given you or already done for
you) as well as your personal liabilities (the “faults” that God wants to develop
by faith) – 1 Tim. 4:16
o We are not able to help others apply Biblical Truth to their lives if we first
haven’t applied those same Truths to our own life
o Rom. 12:3 – having a proper knowledge of ourselves helps prevent having an
exaggerated (better than we are) view or distorted (worse than we are – Satan’s
lie) view

2. Relate – how do we relate to others in our spheres of influence?

Since we have become new creations, 2 Cor. 5:17, we must allow Jesus Christ to invade every
aspect of our lives – home, work, spousal, thought, etc. Our personal growth in Christ is a
process, but it is a dynamic (constantly moving) process

“The Working Word” – new insights & impacts of God’s Word in our lives:
• New Relationship with God – it is now personal & intimate
• New Relationship with Self – we see ourselves as God now sees us; saved & right
because of the Cross of Christ
• New Relationship with Others – we now treat others as God wants us to treat & love
them
• New Relationship with the Enemy – Satan is now our enemy, not our leader; we’ve
changed sides in the battle
• God’s Word exposes our sin – the Word shows us our sin & how to deal with it, 2 Tim.
3:16
• God’s Word provides promises – what we can expect from & rely on God to do in our
lives
• God’s Word gives us commands – we have conditions that we must meet in our
relationship to God that lead to health & life
• God’s Word provides examples – we can clearly see how others throughout history have
“walked through the mine field” before us; what to do or what not to do

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 • Is the Christian life difficult? No. The Christian life is impossible! The Christian life is only
possible by a complete reliance on God & His Holy Word. Our lives must be
supernatural.

3. Meditate – the lost art of pondering

Meditation is NOT emptying your mind as in eastern mysticism – God did not want or design
our minds to operate in a spiritual vacuum. Meditation s allowing your mind to ponder or chew
on what God has or is teaching us as we read & study His Word. As a cow chews its cud to
maximize the vitamins, minerals & other nutrients of the food it has taken in, we are to bring up
in our minds what the Holy Spirit is teaching us to maximize the words, meaning & applications
as we become more Christlike.

• Meditation is to be done “day and night” – Psalm 1:1-2, Joshua 1:8

• Meditation allows us to “weave” scripture into our daily lives
• Meditation leads us to spiritual prosperity
• Add scripture memorization to the meditation process in order to implant the Word into
our minds

4. Practice – the goal of Bible study

As in any discipline of life - work, family, relationships, sports, or a career. To become proficient
and expert, we must continually practice what we learn. What don’t we like to do that we
should be doing on a regular basis - that takes practice! There is nothing inconsequential that
God does – He wants to bring about change in our individual & corporate lives; His Word
transforms our lives.

Hunger for God’s Word is in direct proportion to our Obedience to God’s Word. The cycle: the
more that we understand God’s Word, the more we use it; and the more we use God’s Word in
our daily living, the more that we’ll want to understand it

The Process of Life-Change: God’s Word centered in our individual lives allows us to impact the
world for Him. If I cannot allow God’s truths to impact my personal life, how can I expect to be
used by God for His purposes? Individuals must be changed before society can be changed.

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9 Application Questions to ask about God’s Word as we study it:

1. Is there an example to follow?

• Examples are one of the key reasons God uses biographies in His Word
• Can we draw parallels between men & women’s lives in Scripture and our lives?

2. Is there sin to be avoided?

• Scripture reveals certain Godly values to our consciences
• Remember that in Christ we are new creations, 2 Cor 5:17

3. Is there a promise to claim?

• the One who cannot lie, provides us with promises that we can count on 100%
• Some promises are individual while others are corporate (use observation to determine
the content & context of the promise)
•
4. Is there a prayer to repeat?
• God’s Word teaches us HOW to pray
• Examples: Genesis 18, Nehemiah 1:5-11, Psalm 51, 1 Sam. 2:1-10, Eph: 3:14-21, Luke
1:46-53, Matthew 26:36-46, Matthew 6:5-15
• What is there in these prayers that I need to be praying?

5. Is there a command to obey?

• This is not a rhetorical question!
• How to determine the will of God: “95% of the will of God is revealed in the commands
of Scripture. If you spend your time attending to those, you won’t have much trouble
working out the other 5%.”

6. Is there a condition to meet?

• Some promises are based on conditions. “If you abide in Me and My words abide in you,
ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you.” John 15:7. Have we met His
conditions?

7. Is there a verse to memorize?

• All Scripture is worth memorizing, but we need to memorize at least some to keep in
our arsenal. The benefits to Scripture memory are immeasurable.

8. Is there an error to mark?

• Bible study and application helps to minimize theological error in our lives.

9. Is there a challenge to face?

• Are we convicted as God’s Word gets into us?
• Is there a change that needs to be made in our lives?
• Are we open to these changes?

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 • Are we prepared to take on these challenges?
• As an old friend of ours used to ask in our small group: “Are you willing to be made
willing?”

How do we make the connection between ancient Scripture and today’s culture? 3 things to
keep in mind:

1. Truth NEVER changes

2. Context, context, context – do we understand the culture of the text as well as today’s
culture
3. We must study culture – we must come to know: centers of power, means of
communication, the place of money (the how’s & whys of finance), ethnicity (variety of
people in our society), the roles of men & women, generations & family structure,
worldviews & religion (what are the core values), art – what is being “creatively” produced in
the society, history & time (actual history as well as myths & legends), place (geography) –
where you live colors or influences the way you think.

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