S. HOW TO STUDY THE BIBLE

HOW TO STUDY THE BIBLE BY PASTOR CHAS. F. BAKER Are you one of that large class of people who has tried to read and to study the Bible, only to discover that you didn’t get out of it what you expected, or what others seem to get? If so, this article is especially for you. Your failure to under­stand the Bible and to be blessed by it was caused either by an unspiritual or an unintelligent manner of ap­proach, or perhaps both. It may be that you are an unbeliever, hence possessing no spiritual life, and you didn’t understand that the Bible is a spiritual book. “The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, be­cause they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). If so, you need to receive Jesus Christ as your own personal Saviour, and when you do God will give you His Holy Spirit, who inspired the Bible and who alone can make it known (1 Corinthians 6:19; 1 Corinthians 2:9-14; 1 John 2:27). It may be that you are saved, and yet the Bible has no particular appeal or meaning to you. And why? It is either because you are living an unyielding and unspiritual life in which the Spirit of God is grieved (1 Corinthians 3:1-4; Ephesians 4:30-32); or else you have approached the Bible unintelligently, opening it at random, having no idea who is be­ing addressed, what the subject is, or what the application may be to yourself. If you studied any other book in the world in the same man­ner, you would get just as little out of it as you do from your hit-and ­miss, or perhaps, miss-and-miss Bible reading. It is impossible for me to give you the Spirit of God or a spiritual life - those are matters which you must settle between yourself and God - but I can endeavour to give a bird’s eye view of the Bible which will help you to approach the Book intelligently Several facts and principles should be kept in mind.

First, all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Second, not all Scripture was given at once nor addressed to the same people. The writing of the Bible covered some fifteen to sixteen hundred years. It is a progressive revelation.

Third, the Bible contains not only truth but lies. Inspiration guarantees that a lie be recorded exact­ly as it was spoken, and branded as such. See Genesis 3:4; Genesis 4:9; Genesis 18:15; Genesis 27:31-32; 1 Samuel 15:13; 1 Samuel 19:14; 1 Samuel 21:2; 2 Kings 5:22; Job 2:4; Matthew 26:72; Acts 5:4. In other words, everything in the Bible is recorded truthfully, even though it be a lie.

Fourth, The Bible contains God’s re­velation to man, which is that knowledge of Himself and His will and purpose which man could never know by intuition or by knowledge acquired through the experience of his five senses.

Fifth, the Bible is to be taken literally, except in those places where a figurative or symbolic meaning is clearly implied. Remem­ber that the Bible was written for the common people, not for an educated priest-craft, and that it is in the lan­guage of the common people.

Sixth the Bible, because it is a dispensa­tional Book, must be rightly divided in order to be rightly understood, 2 Timothy 2:15. Miles Coverdale, the first man to translate the entire Bible into the English language, wrote: “It shall greatly help ye to under­stand Scripture, if thou mark not only what is spoken or written, but of whom and to whom, with what words, at what time, where, to what intent, with what circumstances, con­sidering what goeth before and what followeth.” The Bible may be approached from a four-fold point of view: His­torically, Spiritually, Typically, and Dispensationally. True Bible study should combine all four. The follow­ing may serve as a simple historical outline of the Bible.

5. From the Fall to the Flood, about 1650 years, Genesis 4:1-26; Genesis 5:1-32; Genesis 6:1-22; Genesis 7:1-24; Genesis 8:1-22.

6. From the Flood to the Tower of Babel, about 100 years, Genesis 9:1-29 7. From Babel to call of Abram, about 300 years, latter half of Ge­nesis 11.

The Bible is not a mere history book, although it does record historical events, over a period of 4000 years, with a pre-written history of the future. Everything, including the events of history, was written down for our admonition, for spiritual lessons (1 Corinthians 10:6 and 1 Corinthians 10:11). The natural mind can understand the history, but only the spiritual mind can grasp the spiritual significance of that history. Even the names and numbers in the Bible have significance. Care must be taken not to go into fanciful extremes or the denial of the literal facts of the Bible in trying to spiritualize these things. The first five books of the Bible have been called the Divine Kinder­garten. There God revealed in type, shadow, and symbol, through sacri­fices, ceremonies, and ordinances, His redemptive plan and work which was accomplished through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Book of Hebrews is the especial commentary upon those shadows of which Christ is the reality. The nec­essity, meaning and accomplishments of Christ’s death can hardly be un­derstood apart from these types. But to continue practicing these ceremo­nies and ordinances of religion after Christ has fulfilled them all, is to deny Christ and His work, and to fall away from Grace and to go back under the Law and its curse.

Apart from a dispensational ap­proach the Bible will appear to be filled with contradictions. A dis­pensation is a divine stewardship or economy in which God deals with man in a certain manner. If God imposes or removes restrictions or commands, or changes His purposes, it may be said that the dispensation has changed. If one persists in doing a thing which God has changed, al­though he is obedient to an earlier command or order, he is disobedient to a later one, and is therefore undis­pensational. Some things remain the same in all dispensations, others are radically changed. Careful study and rightly dividing the Word alone will reveal which. There is disagreement as to the number of dispensations, but dispensational changes should surely be recognized at the Fall of man, at the Flood, at Babel, at the call of Abraham and the giving of Circumcision, at the giving of the Law, at the Cross and Pentecost, at the beginning of Gentile ministry in Acts 13:1-52, at the setting aside of na­tional Israel at Acts 28:1-31, and in the future at the rapture of the Church, at the Second Coming of Christ, and at the New Heavens and the New Earth. We are at present living in the Dispensation of the Mystery and of the Grace of God. (Ephesians 3:2, Ephesians 3:9; Colossians 1:25-26).

INSIDE BACK COVER 2 Timothy 1:7-14 “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me, His prisoner; but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God; Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, Who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel;

WHEREUNTO I AM APPOINTED A PREACHER, AND AN APOSTLE, AND A TEACHER OF THE GENTILES. For the which cause I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed; for I know Whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep THAT (my deposit: Greek text) which I have committed unto Him against that day.

Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. THAT GOOD THING (deposit) which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Spirit Which dwelleth in us.”

2 Timothy 2:1-15 “Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. AND THE THINGS THAT THOU HAST HEARD OF ME AMONG MANY WITNESSES, THE SAME COMMIT THOU TO FAITHFUL MEN, WHO SHALL BE ABLE TO TEACH OTHERS ALSO.

Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully. The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits. Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things. Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead ac­cording to my gospel:

Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evil doer, even unto bonds; but the Word of God is not bound.

Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with Him; we shall also live with Him: If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him; if we deny Him, He also will deny us: If we believe not, yet He abideth faithful: He cannot deny Himself. Of these things put them in remembrance; charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers.

STUDY TO SHEW THYSELF APPROVED UNTO GOD, A WORKMAN THAT NEEDETH NOT TO BE ASHAMED, RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD OF TRUTH.”