Bible Study: Taste and See

Written By Heather Perrin

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1

Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.
John 17:17

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.
2 Timothy 3:16

We believe that the Bible is God’s Word and His divine revelation to us. This practice consists not only of reading but meditating and studying Scripture to find out who God is and what He has done. Then we apply these truths to learn who we are and how we should live. Studying the Bible is not merely for obtaining information, but to prayerfully allow the Holy Spirit to use what we read and study to transform our hearts and lives. Jesus teaches us that all of Scripture bears witness to Him, so Bible study is a discipline that connects us to Christ, reveals God’s will, and strengthens our faith. Humbly examining scripture with the guidance and illumination of the Holy Spirit shapes us more and more into the likeness of Jesus as we learn and apply His teachings.

by Heather Perrin

When I was pregnant with my first child, I felt the immense responsibility and exciting opportunity to raise the baby in my belly to know and love God. I did not grow up in a Christian home, and I felt so much gratitude that I would have 18 years to invest in and disciple this little person. However, recognizing this new responsibility in my life brought a realization: I didn’t really know my Bible very well.

I became a follower of Jesus in sixth grade, was consistent in youth group throughout high school, and heavily involved in campus ministries in college. I declared a major in Christianity of all things, because I was fascinated by the things I was learning in class. Still, I felt like I didn’t know how to read and interpret the Bible. It was intimidating and confusing. How would I pass on a faith that seemed to lack a strong foundation in the Scriptures?

In the 7+ years since that mini-crisis, God has used relationships, books, and the school of life to teach me to treasure His Word. The more time I spend reading and studying the Bible, the bigger and more beautiful it becomes. I still only understand a tiny fraction of the unlimited truth it contains, but now I feel excited about a lifetime of discovery rather than burdened by inability.

The point of Bible study is three parts, all interconnected: To know God intimately, to grow in love for Him, and to walk in obedience to what He says. The goal of Bible study is the goal of the Christian life: to be transformed into Christlikeness.

God has chosen to reveal Himself through His Word, and He has told us that it is alive, active, and powerful. If Bible study is a discipline that feels hard, boring, or even stuffy and un-relational, I want to encourage you to take a fresh look. Psalm 1 describes a person who loves God’s words this way:

Blessed is the man
    who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
    nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
 but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree
    planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
    and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers. (Psalm 1:1-3)

Root yourself in God’s Word, and find the nourishment you need to bear fruit and not wither though the sun burns hot. Here are a few principles to consider as you approach God through the discipline of Bible study.

Read it Fast

The Bible is one long, interconnected story that reveals the character of God and His incredible plan to redeem and rescue a people for Himself. Make a practice at some point in your life to read the whole thing, in large sections if you can (audio Bibles are a great way to do this!). Bible reading plans can be overwhelming because you are reading long portions and often don’t understand all of the details, but when mixed with the other methods below, they can be immensely helpful in getting the big picture. Understanding the big story of the Bible will be a tremendous help when you slow down and read in detail.

Read it Slow

The opposite method is to slowly and methodically read portions of Scripture, seeking to understand what it means and how to apply it. This might mean studing systematically through a single book of the Bible (the method we teach in our How to Read the Bible classes), reading short passages and meditating on the attributes of God you see, or praying through a psalm. In each of these, you slow down and look closely, asking the Spirit to reveal truth to you. One major misconception about Bible reading is that it should be easy, or self-explanatory. It is true that God desires to reveal Himself to us, but it is also true that He chose to work through the medium of language, and language is always connected to people, place, and time. That means we are going to have to do some work to understand what these words meant to the original hearers 2000-3000 years ago. Paying attention to the order of ideas, words used and repeated, and cultural context of a passage can give tremendous clarity, but it will probably take some work.

Read it Alone

The 80s and 90s gave us the gift of the “quiet time,” teaching every Christian to have a personal time to read the Bible and pray. But when our human hearts took that good thing and turned it into requirements-for-God-to-love-me or necessary-to-be-a-good-Christian, we created legalism. So the pendulum has swung, and any expectation of a regular time with God sounds overly rigid and devoid of real love. As we’ve been describing in all of these spiritual disciplines, the act itself doesn’t earn us anything with God — He has given us all things already in Christ! There’s nothing to earn! But they do form us and shape us into the people God has already declared we will be. By deliberately spending time in the Scriptures and prayer, quietly, in solitude, we are making space for the Holy Spirit to do what He so desires to do.

Read it Together

One of the amazing things about the gospel is that it is not only an individual affair. God has rescued a people, a community, a family, and He has purposed that we would grow to know Him through the people around us. Our brothers and sisters are a gift, treasure troves of wisdom, knowledge, and insight. If you’re finding Bible study hard or boring, ask a friend to do it with you. They don’t have to know any more than you, but you will be on the journey of discovery together. You will laugh, confess, pray, and feel confused together. And you will experience God’s love through His word and His people.



These are by no means exhaustive, but think of these ideas as a kind of grid. Sometimes I read fast and alone, sometimes I read slowly with others, and so on. So many of us get caught up in guilt and shame because we don’t read our Bibles like we should. I spent years wallowing in guilt and shame, then trying to white-knuckle my obedience because I loved God and wanted to please Him. I thought He was mad at me. And it is true that our sin and disobedience does not please our Father, but what I didn’t know was that I was and am fully and completely loved because of Christ. And so I was free to read and study and work toward obedience because I was loved. Not in order to be loved.

Psalm 119 is a poem dedicated to the beauty and riches of God’s word. Verse 103 reads,

How sweet are your words to my taste,
    sweeter than honey to my mouth!

I want to taste what the psalmist tasted. To treasure these words because they reveal the God who loved me and gave himself for me.

Practical Suggestions

  1. Daily Bible Reading Plan – Use a structured plan like the “Seeing Jesus Together” (seeingjesustogether.com) or “The Bible Recap” to read through the Bible in a year.

  2. Journaling Scripture – Write out key verses and observations, then apply them using the “SOAP” method: Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer.

  3. Group Study – Join or start a DNA group that walks through a book of the Bible using a study guide or register for a New City Men or Women Class to familiarize yourself with Bible Study Principles.

Resources

Heather Perrin
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Worship: A Discipline of Life in Pursuit of God