INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE STUDENT

My Study Plan

Preparing a Study Plan before starting this Study Guide will assist you in completing it within a designated timeframe. It also helps in developing the discipline required for studying God’s Word effectively.

Proverbs 16:3:

Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.

My Study Guide Journal

Keep a record as you progress through your Study Guide, including the Personal Responses for each section, for future reference and goal setting.

Content

• PREFACE: BEGINNING YOUR STUDY JOURNEY
• INTRODUCTION: A DESIRE TO KNOW GOD’S WORD
• WHY STUDY?
• STUDY TO SHEW THYSELF APPROVED UNTO GOD
• THE HOLY SPIRIT IS OUR TEACHER
• STUDY TO KNOW JESUS CHRIST
• HUNGER AND THIRST FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS
• THE WORD CLEANSES
• THE WORD GIVES AND SUSTAINS SPIRITUAL LIFE
• THE WORD BRINGS TRUE PROFIT
• THE WORD PRODUCES SPIRITUAL GROWTH
• BE DOERS OF THE WORD
• THE WORD MAKES US EFFECTIVE WORKERS
• MAKE STUDY A PART OF YOUR LIFE
• CONCLUSION: WHY SHOULD WE STUDY THE WORD OF GOD?

Important Points

• COGMA does not claim to be infallible or the authority.
• Infallibility and authority belong only to God and His Word.

COGMA therefore strongly advises that you prayerfully study the content of each Study Guide with the heart of a Berean (Acts 17:10–12).

Contact and Links

PREFACE: BEGINNING YOUR STUDY JOURNEY

This Study Guide begins a course designed to help you become a careful, confident and responsible student of the Word of God. The purpose is not simply to give you more Biblical information, but to help you develop the desire, discipline and understanding necessary to search the Scriptures for yourself.

Bible study requires diligence because every believer has a responsibility to understand God’s Word, live according to its truth and handle it faithfully. Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 2:15:

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

These words establish the foundation for everything that follows. Our purpose in studying is to become workmen approved unto God, able to understand His Word correctly and live according to what He reveals.

God’s Word Is the Authority

The goal of this course is not to make you dependent upon COGMA, a denomination, a minister or any other human teacher for your understanding of Scripture. Teachers have an important place in helping us understand the Word, but no teacher or organisation replaces the authority of God and His Word.

COGMA does not claim to be infallible or to be the final authority. Infallibility and authority belong to God and His Word, and everything taught should therefore be examined carefully from the Scriptures.

Search the Scriptures for Yourself

The Bereans provide an excellent example of this attitude because they were willing to receive teaching while also examining it from Scripture. Luke wrote in Acts 17:11:

“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.”

The Bereans listened with an open heart, but they also searched the Scriptures to establish whether what they heard was true. We should receive teaching willingly, but test what is taught by the Word of God.

Why Should We Study?

The first part of this course asks a foundational question: Why should we study the Word of God? Before learning methods, tools and techniques, we need to understand why study matters and what God intends His Word to produce in our lives.

We will consider why we study to know Jesus Christ, understand the right way, grow spiritually, live according to the truth and become effective workmen who can faithfully help others.

Approaching the Word of God

The next part, Approaching the Word of God, considers the spiritual attitude required when we open the Scriptures. It examines the authority of God’s Word, the need for spiritual discernment and the importance of approaching Scripture prayerfully and with a teachable heart.

Knowing how to use study methods is not enough if we approach the Word with the wrong attitude. We must be willing to receive what God has revealed and allow His Word to correct our understanding.

How to Study God’s Word

The final part, How to Study God’s Word, explains the practical method of study. It shows how to ask questions, examine words, consider context and timeframe, identify who is speaking and to whom, compare Scripture with Scripture, paint the scene and use study aids wisely.

These principles are designed to help you examine Scripture carefully rather than simply accepting an interpretation because someone else has given it to you. The purpose is to help you become increasingly able to search the Word of God for yourself.

Becoming a Student of God’s Word

By the end of this course, the aim is not merely that you will know more about the Bible. You should be better prepared to open God’s Word for yourself, search it carefully, recognise the truth it reveals and live according to that truth.

The course will provide principles and methods to help you, but studying God’s Word must ultimately become a continuing part of your own life. The goal is to become a diligent workman who seeks God’s approval, handles His Word faithfully and continues growing in the truth of Jesus Christ.

Back to top

INTRODUCTION: A DESIRE TO KNOW GOD’S WORD

When a person is born again, there should be a growing desire to understand the Word of God and to know Jesus Christ more fully. Spiritual life creates an appetite for spiritual truth, and that desire should lead us towards careful and diligent study. Peter wrote in 1 Peter 2:2:

“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:”

A newborn child naturally desires nourishment because food is necessary for life and growth. In the same way, a born-again believer should desire the truth of God’s Word because spiritual growth depends upon receiving and living by that truth.

Desire Must Lead to Diligent Study

Having a desire to understand the Bible does not automatically mean that we know how to study it. Many sincere believers open the Scriptures wanting to learn but become uncertain when they encounter difficult passages, unfamiliar words or teachings that appear different from what they have previously believed.

This is why learning how to study is important. We need more than enthusiasm. We need diligence, patience and a willingness to allow Scripture to shape our understanding. Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 2:15:

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Paul describes the student of God’s Word as a workman. Study therefore requires effort, but the purpose of that effort is not simply to gain more information. We study so that we may understand God’s truth correctly and live according to what He has revealed.

Every Believer Should Study

The responsibility to study does not belong only to pastors, teachers or ministers. Every believer needs to know what the Bible teaches and should be able to examine what they hear by the Word of God.

Teachers can help us understand Scripture, but they do not remove our personal responsibility to search the Word. As we grow, we should become increasingly able to examine Scripture carefully and understand why we believe what we believe.

The Scriptures Testify of Jesus Christ

Jesus made clear that the Scriptures direct us towards Him. Jesus said in John 5:39:

“Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.”

The purpose of studying Scripture is therefore not to make the Bible an end in itself. The Scriptures testify of Jesus Christ, and our study should lead us towards a clearer understanding of Him and the truth He has revealed.

Paul expressed this same desire in Philippians 3:10:

“That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;”

Paul’s desire was “That I may know him.” This should also become the desire of every serious student. We study because we want to know Jesus Christ, understand His Word and walk in His truth.

Why Should We Study?

Before considering how to study, we must therefore begin with the more basic question: Why should we study the Word of God?

Understanding that purpose will give direction to everything that follows. Before we consider methods, tools and techniques, we need to understand what God intends our study of His Word to produce in us.

Back to top

WHY STUDY?

Increasing Knowledge or Seeking Spiritual Truth?

Why should we study the Bible? The most obvious answer may seem to be to increase our knowledge, but gaining knowledge for its own sake is not the true purpose of studying God’s Word.

A person may know many Scriptures, understand religious terminology and possess considerable Biblical information while still failing to live according to the truth. God does not want us merely to know more. He wants His truth to become part of the way we live.

There is therefore an important difference between accumulating knowledge and seeking spiritual truth in order to obey it. Knowledge tells us what the Bible says, but spiritual truth must be received and lived.

The Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge

This distinction can be illustrated by the two trees mentioned in the garden of Eden. Moses wrote in Genesis 2:9, 17:

“And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.”

“But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

The tree of knowledge of good and evil provides an important warning for the Bible student. Knowledge alone does not produce spiritual life, and knowledge pursued for selfish reasons can lead to pride and self-importance.

By contrast, the tree of life provides a useful picture of studying for spiritual truth. We study because we want the truth of God to direct our lives and lead us continually to Jesus Christ, who is our life.

The question is therefore not simply, “How much do I know?” The greater question is, “Am I living according to the truth God has shown me?”

Knowledge Can Produce Pride

There is always a danger that Bible knowledge can become a source of personal pride. A person may begin to value being recognised as knowledgeable more than being obedient to God. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 8:1:

“Now as touching things offered unto idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth.”

Paul does not say that knowledge is wrong. He warns that knowledge can “puff up” when it becomes centred upon ourselves rather than being joined with love and obedience.

The purpose of Bible study is therefore not to make us feel superior to people who know less than we do. The more truth we understand, the more faithfully that truth should be demonstrated in our lives.

Back to top

Hearing Is Not Enough

Jesus clearly showed the difference between hearing His words and actually doing what He said. He compared these two responses to building upon two very different foundations. Jesus said in Matthew 7:22-27:

“Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.”

Both men heard the sayings of Jesus. The difference was that one heard and did, while the other heard and did not.

The strong foundation was therefore not knowledge alone. The wise man built upon the rock because he acted upon what Jesus said.

This gives us an important principle for every part of our Bible study. We should never be satisfied merely because we understand a passage. Understanding must lead to obedience.

Study With the Intention to Obey

The purpose of studying God’s Word is to discover spiritual truth and then live according to what God reveals. We should approach Scripture with a willingness to be taught, corrected and changed.

This means that our study should not begin with the question, “How can I prove what I already believe?” We should come honestly, asking what the Scriptures actually teach and being willing to change our understanding when necessary.

We must also resist the temptation to study simply so that we can answer arguments, impress others or demonstrate our knowledge. Those motives turn our attention towards ourselves rather than towards the truth God wants us to live.

True Bible study seeks God’s truth for the purpose of obedience. When we study with that motive, knowledge becomes useful because it directs us into the right way.

The Purpose of Study

The answer to “Why study?” is therefore much greater than simply increasing our knowledge. We study because we want to understand what God has revealed and bring our lives into agreement with His truth.

Knowledge has value when it serves that purpose. However, knowledge that never reaches our conduct has failed to accomplish what God intended.

We study God’s Word so that we may know the truth, obey the truth and live by the truth. In this way, our study becomes more than information in the mind. It becomes truth expressed through the life we live.

Back to top

STUDY TO SHEW THYSELF APPROVED UNTO GOD

Study Is Our Responsibility

Paul gives a direct instruction concerning our responsibility towards the Word of God. Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 2:15:

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Paul describes the believer as a workman. A workman must be diligent, careful and willing to make the effort necessary to do the work properly.

Bible study is therefore not something reserved for pastors, teachers or those who have received formal theological training. Every believer has a responsibility to know the Word of God and to handle it faithfully.

Approved Unto God

Paul does not tell us to study so that we can impress other people. He says “Study to shew thyself approved unto God.”

Our purpose must therefore remain clear. The approval we seek is God’s approval. This protects us from studying for recognition, position or intellectual pride. We are not trying to demonstrate how much we know. We want to understand what God has said so that our lives can agree with His truth.

Our love for God is demonstrated through obedience. John wrote in 1 John 5:3:

“For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.”

Study helps us understand what God has revealed so that we can faithfully live according to His Word. We study not merely to know what God has said, but so that we can obey what He has revealed.

A Workman That Needeth Not to Be Ashamed

Paul says that the diligent student should become “a workman that needeth not to be ashamed.” A careless workman can make serious mistakes, and the same is true when handling Scripture.

If we read hastily, ignore context or accept an interpretation without examining it, we may misunderstand what God intended. This is why diligence matters. We should never be casual with the Word of God.

Being a workman that needeth not to be ashamed does not mean that we will immediately understand every passage. It means that we approach Scripture honestly and carefully, willing to study until our understanding is established from the Word.

Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth

Paul also tells us that the workman must be “rightly dividing the word of truth.” God’s Word is truth, but Scripture can still be mishandled by the person interpreting it.

A verse may be taken out of context, a personal idea may be imposed upon it or one passage may be interpreted in a way that conflicts with the rest of Scripture. Rightly dividing therefore requires care.

We must seek what God intended rather than attempting to make the Bible support what we already believe. The practical principles that help us do this will be considered as we continue learning how to approach and study the Scriptures.

Study Gives Confidence

Careful study also gives us confidence. When we have examined a teaching from Scripture for ourselves, our confidence no longer depends merely upon what another person has told us.

This does not mean that teachers are unnecessary. Teachers can help us understand Scripture, but our confidence must finally rest in God’s Word rather than in the person teaching it.

Paul’s instruction therefore gives us a clear purpose: study diligently, seek God’s approval, handle His Word carefully and live according to the truth He reveals.

That is the responsibility of a faithful workman.

Back to top

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS OUR TEACHER

The Bible Is a Spiritual Book

Diligent study is necessary, but human effort alone cannot give us spiritual understanding. The Bible is a spiritual book, and spiritual truth must be understood with the help of the Spirit of God.

Jesus promised that the Spirit of truth would dwell within His people. Jesus said in John 14:16-17:

“And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.”

The born-again believer is not left to understand God’s Word through natural reasoning alone. The Spirit of Christ dwells within us and teaches us the truth of God.

The Anointing Teaches Us

John described this inward work of the Spirit as an unction, or anointing. John wrote in 1 John 2:20:

“But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.”

John continued in 1 John 2:27:

“But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.”

John is not saying that there is no place for pastors or teachers. Scripture clearly recognises teaching ministries. He is showing that no human teacher can replace the Spirit of God as the One who brings spiritual truth into understanding within us.

A teacher may explain a passage, draw attention to important details or help us see connections in Scripture. However, the Spirit of God must bring that truth into understanding and establish it within the heart.

The Spirit and the Word Work Together

Depending upon the Holy Spirit does not mean that careful study is unnecessary. Paul still instructs us in 2 Timothy 2:15:

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God…”

The Spirit does not replace reading, searching, comparing and thinking carefully about Scripture. He teaches us as we diligently seek to understand what God has written.

Jesus also explained the work of the Spirit of truth in John 16:13:

“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth…”

The Spirit who guides us is called “the Spirit of truth.” He will therefore never lead us into an interpretation that contradicts the Word of God.

If an idea, experience or teaching conflicts with Scripture, we should not attribute it to the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God and the Word of God will always agree.

Study With Dependence Upon God

We should therefore approach Bible study with both diligence and dependence. We diligently search the Scriptures while recognising that spiritual understanding ultimately comes from God.

This protects us from two errors. We must not become careless and expect the Holy Spirit to teach us without serious study. Neither should we trust our intellect as though spiritual truth can be discovered by human reasoning alone.

The faithful student studies carefully, remains prayerful and depends upon the Holy Spirit to bring God’s truth into clear understanding.

Back to top

STUDY TO KNOW JESUS CHRIST

The Scriptures Testify of Jesus Christ

The central purpose of Scripture is to reveal Jesus Christ. Bible study must therefore lead us beyond simply knowing facts about the Bible and towards a clearer understanding of who Jesus is and the truth found in Him. Jesus said in John 5:39:

“Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.”

The Jewish religious leaders knew the Scriptures, yet Jesus showed that possessing Biblical knowledge was not enough. The Scriptures testified of Him, but they failed to recognise the One to whom those Scriptures pointed.

Jesus continued in John 5:40:

“And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.”

This gives us an important warning. We can study the written Word carefully and still miss its greatest purpose if our study does not lead us to Jesus Christ.

That I May Know Him

Paul expressed the true desire of the spiritual student in Philippians 3:10:

“That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;”

Paul already knew much about Scripture, yet his desire remained “That I may know him.”

There is a difference between knowing about Jesus Christ and knowing Jesus Christ. Biblical knowledge is valuable when it helps us understand Him, His truth and the life He desires to express through us.

The purpose of study is therefore not simply to increase what we know about Christ, but to bring our lives increasingly into agreement with Him.

All Scripture Points Towards Christ

After His resurrection, Jesus explained that the Scriptures had been speaking about Him throughout the Old Testament. Jesus said in Luke 24:44:

“These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.”

Jesus identified the law of Moses, the prophets and the psalms and showed that they contained truths pointing towards Him. The Bible must therefore be understood with Jesus Christ at its centre.

This does not mean that every verse speaks directly about Jesus by name. It means that the purpose and fulfilment of Scripture ultimately belong within God’s revelation through Jesus Christ.

When we study the law, prophecy, history, poetry or the writings of the apostles, we should consider how each passage fits within the truth God has revealed in Christ.

Do Not Stop at the Written Page

The Bible is precious because it reveals God’s truth, but the written page must never replace the One it reveals. Jesus rebuked people who searched the Scriptures while refusing to come to Him for life.

Our confidence is therefore not in how many verses we can quote or how much Biblical information we possess. Our confidence is in Jesus Christ, whom the Scriptures reveal.

Proper study should deepen our understanding of Him, correct false ideas about Him and help us recognise how His truth is to be lived in us.

Christ Must Remain at the Centre

This gives us a simple safeguard for Bible study. If our study produces pride, argument or knowledge without bringing us into greater agreement with the truth of Jesus Christ, something has gone wrong with the purpose of our study.

The Scriptures were not given merely to make us knowledgeable. They reveal Jesus Christ and the truth by which we are to live.

We should therefore approach the Bible with the same desire Paul expressed: “That I may know him.” That desire keeps Jesus Christ at the centre of our study and reminds us why the Word of God is worth searching carefully.

Back to top

HUNGER AND THIRST FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS

We Must Have a Genuine Desire

Effective Bible study begins with a genuine desire to know the truth. If there is little interest in God’s Word, study will quickly become an obligation rather than a spiritual pursuit.

Jesus said in Matthew 5:6:

“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.”

Jesus used the picture of hunger and thirst because both describe strong desire. A hungry person seeks food, and a thirsty person seeks water; in the same way, a person who hungers for righteousness will seek the truth that shows them the right way.

Righteousness Is the Right Way

Righteousness concerns what is right before God. Our desire to study should therefore be connected with a desire to understand God’s way and live according to what He reveals.

We should not study simply because we enjoy discovering interesting information. We study because we want to know the right way and walk in it.

This gives direction to our study. We are not merely asking, “What does this passage say?” but also, “What truth is God revealing, and what does that truth require of me?”

What We Value Shapes Our Priorities

People naturally make time for what they consider important. If we truly value the Word of God, that value will be reflected in the time and attention we give to reading, studying and understanding it.

Spiritual hunger is therefore more than an emotion. It affects our priorities and moves us to make room for God’s Word in our lives.

This does not mean that every believer must follow the same schedule. It means that Scripture should not continually be pushed aside by less important things.

Hunger Must Be Directed Towards Truth

It is possible to have a strong interest in religion without having a genuine hunger for righteousness. A person may become fascinated by arguments, unusual teachings or knowledge that makes them feel important.

Jesus did not say that those who hunger and thirst after knowledge would be filled. He said:

“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.”

Our desire must therefore be directed towards truth that brings our lives into agreement with God. We should want the truth even when it corrects something we have believed for many years.

A Teachable Heart

A genuine desire for righteousness requires a teachable heart. Sometimes Scripture will confirm what we already understand, while at other times it will expose an assumption or interpretation that is wrong.

If our goal is truth, correction is not something to fear. Being corrected by the Word of God helps bring our understanding into agreement with what God has actually revealed.

The sincere student must therefore remain willing to learn and willing to change. We should approach Scripture wanting God’s answer rather than merely looking for support for our own answer.

Desire Must Become Diligence

Hunger for truth should lead to disciplined study. A person may sincerely want to understand the Bible, but deeper understanding usually develops through continued reading, searching, comparing and careful thought.

Desire gives us the reason to begin, while diligence helps us continue when understanding does not come immediately. Both are necessary if we are to become serious students of God’s Word.

Jesus also gave a promise to those who hunger and thirst after righteousness: “they shall be filled.” We should therefore continue seeking truth with confidence, patience and a willingness to obey what God reveals.

A student with that heart is ready to grow.

Back to top

THE WORD CLEANSES

God’s Word Brings Us Into the Light

Another reason we study God’s Word is that His truth brings our lives into the light. Scripture reveals what is right, exposes what is wrong and shows us how we must respond when sin is present. John wrote in 1 John 1:9:

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Cleansing begins with honesty before God. When His Word exposes sin, we are not to defend it or hide it. We are to confess it and trust God to forgive and cleanse.

Walk in the Light You Receive

John also connects cleansing with walking in the light. John wrote in 1 John 1:7:

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”

It is not enough merely to see the light. We must walk in the light God gives us. As we study Scripture and understand more clearly what God requires, we become responsible to live according to that truth.

This is why Bible study must never become separated from obedience. The Word shows us the path, but we must walk according to the light we have received.

The Word Lights Our Path

David described the Word of God as a light for our path in Psalm 119:105:

“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”

A lamp enables us to see where we are walking. In the same way, God’s Word gives spiritual light so that we can recognise the right path and avoid what would lead us away from Him.

The Word can also expose pride, wrong attitudes and barriers we have built around ourselves. Its purpose is not merely to make us aware of these things. God gives light so that we can recognise what is wrong, respond to His truth and continue walking in the right way.

The Gospel Is the Power of God Unto Salvation

The Word does more than expose our need. It directs us to Jesus Christ and the salvation found in Him. Paul wrote in Romans 1:16:

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

The saving power is not found in human wisdom or religious knowledge. The power of God unto salvation is found in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Studying God’s Word continually brings us back to that Gospel. It directs our confidence away from ourselves and towards Jesus Christ, through whom forgiveness, cleansing and salvation are found.

Jesus Christ Is Able to Keep Us

Our confidence is not in our own ability to remain faithful. Jude directs our attention to the One who is able to keep us in Jude 1:24:

“Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,”

We therefore do not study God’s Word so that we can become dependent upon our own knowledge or strength. Our confidence remains in Jesus Christ, who is able to keep us as we continue walking in His truth.

The Word brings us into the light, exposes what is wrong and shows us the way in which we should walk. We study so that God’s light can continue to guide our path and keep our lives in agreement with His truth.

Back to top

THE WORD GIVES AND SUSTAINS SPIRITUAL LIFE

Born Again by the Word of God

Another reason we study God’s Word is that His Word is directly connected with spiritual life. The truth of the Gospel brings us to Jesus Christ, and through the new birth we receive His life within us. Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:23:

“Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”

Peter describes the Word of God as incorruptible seed. Natural seed produces natural life, while the Word brings us the truth through which we hear, believe and are born again.

The written Word does not give life merely because we read its words. The Word reveals the truth of Jesus Christ, and spiritual life comes as that truth is received and the Spirit of Christ quickens us.

It Is the Spirit That Quickeneth

Jesus explained clearly where spiritual life comes from in John 6:63:

“It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”

The word “quickeneth” means to make alive. Spiritual life cannot be produced by human reasoning, education or religious knowledge.

Jesus connects His words with spirit and life because His words reveal spiritual truth. The purpose of Scripture is to bring us to the living Christ, not merely to increase our knowledge of written words.

This is why Bible study must never become merely an intellectual exercise. We study because we want spiritual truth that can be understood, believed and lived.

Spiritual Life Needs Nourishment

Physical life requires continuing nourishment. We cannot eat once and expect that meal to sustain us indefinitely. The same principle helps us understand our continuing need for God’s Word.

Those who have been born again should continue receiving and living by the truth God has revealed. Jesus described our continuing relationship with Him in John 6:56:

“He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.”

Jesus was speaking spiritually, describing the reality of dwelling in Him and receiving His life. Our spiritual life is sustained through a continuing relationship with Jesus Christ, not through an outward religious act.

As we study His Word, we continue to receive the truth that directs us to Him and teaches us how to walk in His life.

More Necessary Than Physical Food

Job understood the value of God’s Word and placed it above even his physical nourishment. Job said in Job 23:12:

“Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.”

We naturally make time to eat because we understand that food is necessary for physical life. If we recognise the importance of spiritual nourishment, God’s Word should also have a regular place in our lives.

This does not mean that reading a certain number of verses automatically makes us spiritual. The truth must be received, understood and lived.

Continue Receiving the Truth

The new birth is the beginning of our spiritual life, not the end of our need for God’s Word. We continue learning because there is always more truth to understand and apply.

God’s Word is therefore connected with both receiving spiritual life and continuing spiritual growth. It brings us the Gospel through which we come to Jesus Christ, and its truth continues to nourish and direct us as we walk with Him.

We study God’s Word because spiritual life must be nourished, and His truth continually directs us to the life found in Jesus Christ.

Back to top

THE WORD BRINGS TRUE PROFIT

True Profit Is Spiritual

Another reason we study God’s Word is that His truth brings real spiritual profit. The benefit of Scripture is not measured merely by what we gain outwardly, but by what God’s truth produces within us. John wrote in 3 John 2:

“Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.”

John connects outward well-being with the prosperity of the soul. This helps us keep the idea of profit in its proper place. The greatest prosperity is spiritual prosperity, because the condition of the inner person affects the whole direction of life.

The Heart Must Be Guarded

The condition of the inner person is important because our thoughts, desires and choices affect the way we live. Solomon wrote in Proverbs 4:23:

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

God’s Word helps us guard the heart by revealing truth, correcting wrong thinking and directing our attitudes and choices. As we study, we learn what God values and what He rejects.

This is profitable because the Word does more than inform us. It shapes the inner life from which our conduct flows.

Obedience Brings Good Success

God told Joshua that meditation upon His Word must lead to obedience. God said in Joshua 1:8:

“This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.”

The promise of prosperity and good success was connected with doing what God had commanded. Joshua was not told merely to read or memorise the words. He was to meditate upon them “that thou mayest observe to do.”

This principle is important for Bible study. True profit comes when the truth we learn is put into practice.

The Scriptures Make Us Wise Unto Salvation

Paul reminded Timothy of the value of the Scriptures he had known from childhood. Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 3:14-15:

“But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.”

The great profit of Scripture is that it makes us “wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” The Word directs us towards Jesus Christ and gives us the understanding needed to walk in His truth.

The value of Scripture is therefore much greater than the accumulation of Biblical knowledge. Its truth directs us to Jesus Christ and teaches us how to live according to the salvation found in Him.

Do Not Use the Word for Selfish Gain

The Bible must never become a means of seeking status, recognition or material advantage. When God’s Word is used for selfish purposes, its true spiritual purpose is lost.

The profit God intends is found in wisdom, salvation, spiritual strength, guidance and a life directed by truth. These riches may not be measured in money, but they are far more valuable.

We study because we want our souls to prosper in Jesus Christ. As we receive and obey His truth, the Word produces the kind of profit that strengthens our spiritual life and prepares us to live faithfully before God.

The greatest profit of Bible study is not what we gain outwardly, but what God’s truth produces within us.

Back to top

THE WORD PRODUCES SPIRITUAL GROWTH

Growth Comes Through the Word

Another reason we study God’s Word is that spiritual growth comes as we receive, understand and live by His truth. The born-again believer has received spiritual life, but that life should continue to develop. Peter wrote in 1 Peter 2:2:

“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:”

A newborn child needs nourishment in order to grow. In the same way, believers need the truth of God’s Word if they are to mature spiritually.

Growth is not produced merely by reading more pages or collecting more information. We grow as the truth of God shapes our understanding and becomes part of the way we live.

Do Not Be Discouraged by Difficult Passages

Not every Scripture will be understood immediately. Peter himself acknowledged that some of Paul’s writings were difficult to understand. Peter wrote in 2 Peter 3:15-17:

“And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction. Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.”

Peter says plainly that some things are “hard to be understood.” We should therefore not become discouraged when a passage is difficult.

Spiritual growth requires patience. Sometimes we must continue reading, praying and comparing Scripture before understanding becomes clear.

Do Not Force an Interpretation

Peter also warns that some people “wrest” the Scriptures. To wrest Scripture is to twist or force it into a meaning that it does not properly support.

This can happen when we approach the Bible with a conclusion already fixed in our minds and then try to make the passage agree with what we believe. The sincere student must allow Scripture to correct their understanding rather than forcing Scripture to fit their understanding.

If a passage does not agree with our present interpretation, the Word of God does not need to change. Our interpretation may need to change.

Be Willing to Wait for Understanding

There will be times when the most honest answer is simply “I do not yet understand.” That is better than inventing an explanation simply because we feel we must have an immediate answer.

Patience is part of becoming a mature student. As we continue studying, other Scriptures may provide the understanding that was previously missing.

Difficulty should cause us to search more carefully, not force an answer.

Grow in the Knowledge of Jesus Christ

Peter concludes his warning by directing believers towards continued spiritual growth. Peter wrote in 2 Peter 3:18:

“But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.”

Notice where our growth should lead. We are to grow “in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”

The purpose of spiritual growth is therefore not simply to become more knowledgeable about the Bible. We are growing in our understanding of Jesus Christ and in our ability to live according to His truth.

As we continue studying, our understanding should become clearer, our discernment stronger and our lives more firmly established in the Word of God.

Spiritual growth requires hunger, patience, honesty and a willingness to be corrected. We may not understand everything immediately, but we can continue searching because God’s truth does not change.

We grow as we receive the Word, allow it to correct us and continue walking in the truth God reveals.

Back to top

BE DOERS OF THE WORD

Truth Must Be Lived

Bible study reaches its proper purpose when the truth we understand becomes part of the way we live. God did not give us His Word merely to increase our knowledge. He gave it so that His truth would direct our lives. James wrote in James 1:22-25:

“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.”

James warns that hearing without doing can lead to self-deception. A person may know what Scripture teaches and still fail to allow that truth to change their conduct. Knowing the truth is not enough. The truth must be lived.

The Word Is Like a Mirror

James compares the Word to a mirror. A mirror enables us to see something about ourselves that we might otherwise overlook.

The value of the mirror is lost if we see something that needs attention and then simply walk away. In the same way, when God’s Word exposes something that must change, we should respond to what has been revealed.

Bible study should therefore include more than the question “What does this passage mean?” We should also ask, “What should this truth produce in my life?”

Read, Hear and Keep

John describes the same principle at the beginning of Revelation. John wrote in Revelation 1:3:

“Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.”

Notice the progression: read, hear and keep. We first encounter the Word, then understand what it is saying, and finally keep what God has revealed.

Jesus taught the same principle in Luke 11:28:

“Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.”

The blessing is not simply in hearing. The blessing belongs to those who hear and keep the Word.

Know the Way, Follow the Way, Show the Way

A simple principle summarises the proper result of Bible study:

• Know the way;
• Follow the way;
• Show the way.

First, we must know the way by understanding the truth. Then we must follow the way by living according to that truth. Only then are we properly prepared to show the way by helping others understand and follow it.

This protects us from becoming people who can explain Scripture while failing to practise what we teach. The truth should first become visible in our own lives.

We therefore study not simply to know what God has said, but to live according to what He has revealed. The true student of God’s Word is not merely a hearer, but a doer.

Back to top

THE WORD MAKES US EFFECTIVE WORKERS

Equipped to Serve Others

Another reason we study God’s Word is that His truth equips us to serve other people effectively. What we learn is not intended only for our own benefit. Understanding Scripture also prepares us to encourage, teach and help others.

When someone asks a spiritual question, our answer should not depend merely upon personal opinion or something we have heard another person say. Careful study enables us to direct people towards the Word of God and the truth it reveals.

Holding Fast the Faithful Word

Paul explained that a person who ministers truth must first be firmly established in that truth. Paul wrote in Titus 1:9:

“Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.”

A gainsayer is someone who contradicts or disputes what is being taught. Paul shows that sound doctrine enables the believer both to encourage those who need help and to answer those who challenge the truth.

This does not mean that our purpose is to win arguments. The purpose is to help people understand what God’s Word actually teaches.

Sound Doctrine Requires Study

Sound doctrine cannot be established simply by repeating something because it has been taught for many years. It must be tested and established from Scripture.

This is why diligent study is necessary. When we know why we believe something from the Word of God, we are better prepared to explain it clearly and confidently.

That confidence must remain in Scripture rather than in ourselves. Biblical confidence does not say, “I know more than you.” It says, “Let us examine what the Word of God says.”

The Worker Must First Live the Truth

Before we can effectively help others, the truth must first be established in our own lives. Teaching is weakened when our words say one thing while our conduct says another.

The principle is simple:

• Know the way;
• Follow the way;
• Show the way.

We first understand the truth, then live according to it, and from that foundation we are able to help others. The effective worker does not merely explain God’s Word but demonstrates its truth through the life they live.

Every Believer Can Be Useful

Serving others with the Word is not limited to pastors or teachers. Every believer will encounter opportunities to encourage someone, answer a question or help another person understand Scripture.

Study prepares us for those opportunities. The better we understand God’s Word, the more useful we can become in directing others towards Jesus Christ and His truth.

However, we should never make people dependent upon us for every answer. A faithful worker helps others learn to open the Bible, search the Scriptures and establish truth for themselves.

Becoming an Effective Workman

Paul’s description of the workman who “needeth not to be ashamed” brings us back to the responsibility with which this Study Guide began. Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 2:15:

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

The workman studies so that the Word can be understood and handled faithfully. That understanding must first become part of the way we live and then equip us to serve others with truth.

An effective worker:

• Holds fast to the faithful Word;
• Understands sound doctrine;
• Lives according to the truth;
• Speaks with humility and confidence;
• Directs people towards Jesus Christ and His Word.

We do not study so that people will admire our knowledge. We study so that God’s truth can make us useful servants who are prepared to help others faithfully.

Back to top

MAKE STUDY A PART OF YOUR LIFE

Study Should Be Continual

Bible study should not be something we do only when we have a question, need to prepare a message or encounter a difficult passage. The Word of God should have a continuing place in our lives.

The Bereans provide a good example of this attitude. Luke wrote in Acts 17:11:

“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.”

They did not merely listen to teaching and accept it without examination. They received the Word willingly and then searched the Scriptures daily to establish whether what they had heard was true.

This gives us an important pattern: listen carefully, search personally and continue studying regularly.

There Is Always More to Learn

No matter how long we have studied the Bible, there will always be more to understand. Paul had received great revelation and had spent many years preaching and teaching, yet near the end of his life he still valued his books and parchments. Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 4:13:

“The cloke that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments.”

Paul had not reached a point where further study was unnecessary. His example reminds us that spiritual maturity should increase rather than reduce our desire to learn.

As our understanding grows, we should not become satisfied that we now know enough. There will always be more to understand about Jesus Christ and more truth to apply to our lives.

Develop a Regular Habit

Interest is important, but interest must develop into discipline. There will be days when we feel eager to study and other days when we are tired, busy or distracted.

For this reason, it is helpful to make regular time for God’s Word. This does not mean that every believer must follow the same schedule or study for the same number of minutes each day. The important principle is that study should be intentional rather than accidental.

If we continually give God’s Word only the time left over after everything else has been done, there may be very little time remaining. Making study a regular part of life helps us give the Word the attention its truth deserves.

Quality Matters More Than Quantity

The value of study is not measured simply by the number of chapters read or the number of hours spent with an open Bible. A few verses studied carefully may be more profitable than many chapters read quickly without understanding.

We should therefore allow time to think, ask questions and consider what a passage is saying. The purpose is not speed. The purpose is understanding.

Some passages will be clear immediately, while others may require repeated reading and further study. We should not rush merely so that we can say we have completed a certain amount.

Become a Lifelong Student

The goal is not simply to complete a course or finish a set of Study Guides. The goal is to become a lifelong student of the Word of God.

Teachers and study materials can help us, but the responsibility to continue searching Scripture remains with us. There will always be more to understand about Jesus Christ and more truth to apply to our lives.

Make the Word of God a continuing part of your life. Search the Scriptures regularly, remain teachable and never assume that you have reached the point where there is nothing more to learn.

Back to top

CONCLUSION: WHY SHOULD WE STUDY THE WORD OF GOD?

We began with a simple question: Why should we study the Word of God?

The answer is not merely so that we can know more about the Bible. Knowledge has value, but knowledge alone is not the purpose. We study because we want to know Jesus Christ, understand His truth and live according to what He has revealed.

Jesus explained the purpose of searching the Scriptures in John 5:39:

“Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.”

The Scriptures direct us to Jesus Christ. If our study increases our knowledge but does not bring our understanding and lives into greater agreement with Him, we have missed its purpose.

Become a Workman Approved Unto God

Bible study requires more than reading. It requires a heart that genuinely wants the truth, a willingness to be corrected and the diligence to continue searching even when understanding does not come immediately. Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 2:15:

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

We are responsible to study diligently, but we do not depend upon human reasoning alone. The Holy Spirit is our Teacher, guiding the born-again believer into truth as we carefully search the Word of God.

The Spirit of truth will never contradict the Word of truth. We therefore study with both diligence and dependence upon God, allowing His Word to establish what is true.

The real test of our study is not how many Scriptures we can quote or how much information we can remember. The question is whether the truth we have learned is becoming part of our lives.

Seek, Live and Continue

As we continue studying the Bible, we should retain these simple principles:

• Seek the truth honestly;
• Depend upon the Holy Spirit as our Teacher;
• Live according to what God reveals;
• Keep Jesus Christ at the centre of everything you study.

We study to discover truth, but that truth must be received and lived. We study to understand Scripture, but Scripture must continually direct us to Jesus Christ.

Bible study should therefore become a continuing part of our lives. We never reach a point where there is nothing more to understand or no further growth needed.

That Is Why We Study

The desire of the sincere student should remain: I want to know Jesus Christ. I want to understand His Word. I want to live by the truth He reveals.

We do not study merely to increase our knowledge. We study diligently, depending upon the Holy Spirit to teach us, because we want God’s truth to direct our lives and prepare us to serve Him faithfully.

We study to know Jesus Christ, understand His Word, live according to His truth and become workmen approved unto God.

That is why we study.

Back to top

SUBMISSION TO COGMA FOR APPRAISAL

Instructions