Bible Study Methods
A quick overview of the Bible reveals its structure. The Bible itself is a collection of smaller books (66) -- some of which themselves are collections -- bridging thousands of years of time and written in several different languages by a variety of 40 authors including shepherds, kings and fishermen. It is true that the Bible is arranged in very approximate chronological order. That is one of the reasons it has two major divisions called the “Old Testament” and the “New Testament.” Also, the Bible is organized by writing styles. First there is history, then poetry, then the writings of the prophets in the Old Testament. In the New Testament the order begins with four biographies of Jesus, then the history of the early Christians, then letters of early Christian leaders.
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Finally, Dr. Carlos N. Moore would suggest six basic strategies for studying God's Word, that have worked well for him over his many years of Bible study. These strategies may help you by giving you some guidelines to the recommended order for reading the books of the Bible. But, more importantly, they affect how the entire Bible is read.
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Suggested Reading Order
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PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
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So, given these six strategies and the chronological and literary style organization of the text, Dr. Moore recommends a pattern for general reading of the Bible:
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For First Time Readers of the Bible, I Would Recommend Starting With:
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Luke, Acts, Genesis, Exodus, John, Psalms (a few each time you read several chapters in another book), Proverbs (one chapter each time you read several chapters in another book), Deuteronomy, Romans.
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(After reading the above books, a person has a reasonable grasp of what the Bible is about.)
For the Mature Readers of the Word, I Would Recommend Continuing on to:
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Isaiah, Mark, Ecclesiastes, Hebrews, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Ephesians, Job, Philippians, First and Second Samuel, the Gospel according to Matthew, Colossians, First and Second Kings, First and Second Corinthians, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Galatians, Song of Solomon, First and Second Thessalonians, Jeremiah, First and Second Timothy, Lamentations, Daniel, James, the rest of the New Testament, the rest of the Old Testament.
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This recommended reading pattern above aims at presenting a "balanced diet" of Old and New Testament and the different literary styles.
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A good alternative approach is to read the entire New Testament and then the Old Testament, skipping past the parts that are too detailed. Keep in mind there are many ways to explore the Bible -- studies of a topic, a theme, a character, studies of a book, a chapter, a single word.
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One Last Note:
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The Bible was written by over 40-authors to tell us how-to live in a right relationship with “God” (which are the first four of the “Ten Commandments”) and to tell us how-to live in a right relationship with “Man” (which are the last six of the “Ten Commandments”).
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The Bible will answer some of your questions, but it will also generate more questions that you will need to explore, especially on the intellectual level. Time, prayer, consultation with other Christians and repeated readings of the Bible will help your heart "hear" more and more from God.
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I hope your reading of the Bible will be as important in your life as it has been for me.
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Yours Sincerely,
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Dr. Carlos N. Moore / Servant of God
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Strategy 1
If the Bible were a wheel, the person of Jesus would be the center, or hub, of that wheel. The Old Testament predicts Jesus, shows mankind's failures in relationship to God without Jesus, and sets the stage of Jesus’ arrival. The Gospels (a word which means "Good News") of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John tell the same story of Jesus' life from four different perspectives. The next book, the Acts of the Apostles, tells of selected events among the Christians after Jesus’ death and resurrection. The rest of the books are letters of several early followers of Jesus explaining the significance of His life and death. The final book of the Bible looks forward to and describes Jesus’ return to earth. The entire Bible revolves around Jesus as mankind's access to God.
Strategy 2
The Biblical literature contains a wide spectrum of literary styles that should be taken into account when trying to read and understand it. For example, historical books of the Bible clearly are meant to be taken literally as real, accurate history. On the other hand, some books are entirely or partially full of highly allegorical word pictures that are clearly not to be taken literally. A “Allegory” is a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning. There are examples in Revelation, Daniel, Ezekiel, Song of Solomon and others. There are some sections that have an allegorical as well as literal meaning, and in some cases even the Biblical experts disagree on the allegorical vs. literal interpretation of a passage. The important thing to remember is that it is usually clear from the context whether a section should be read literally or allegorically. When in doubt, consult a Bible reference book or talk with one or more Christians who possess a solid understanding of the Bible. Or, send Dr. Moore an email.
Strategy 3
Guess what? The New Testament is in the Old Testament. As you read this stud guide, you will see that I added “Proof of Jesus Existence” that shows that the major theme of each 66-books is talking about Jesus Christ. Also, the Old Testament is in the New Testament. I don't know who said this, but I heard it years ago and have found it to be true. What this means is that the New Testament is like the concentrated form, or the distillation (to use chemistry terms) of the Old Testament. A single phrase in the New Testament, such as, "love your neighbor as yourself," may be demonstrated and modeled in many Old Testament events and sayings. But it is more than that. The Old Testament is also the foundation of the New.
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The other side of the above, the "Old Testament is in the New Testament," has to do with the fact that, like reading a good mystery novel, many "clues" in the beginning (the Old Testament) are brought together and made clear looking backward from what is revealed in the New Testament.
Strategy 4
While the entire Bible becomes meaningful the more it is read, for the first-timer it can be treated like an encyclopedia or a cookbook -- neither of which do most people read from cover to cover starting at the beginning. Both of these types of books are read "as needed" according to the practical situation. The Bible was meant to be meaningful in the real lives of real people and that is why Dr. Moore has added his viewpoints. The Bible is a large book and life is a journey, so we have different needs in our lives at different times. There are always parts of the Bible that apply to where our lives are right now -- whether we are happy, sad, upset, discouraged, questioning -- or any other place of human emotion or situation. Dr. Moore has included many of todays events to illuminate certain view points.
Strategy 5
God doesn't change, but His dealings with mankind change over time. Just as a parent doesn't change in his love for a child, yet the way the parent interacts with the child changes as the child matures. This example with the parent-child relationship mirrors how God can be unchanging and yet changes His methods of relating to people through history. Thus, the Bible documents God's relationship with man over time. This is part of the reason that, on first reading, God as described in the Old Testament and in the New Testament appear to be different. In the same manner, a particular strategy may be progressively revealed throughout the Bible. For example, there is very limited mention of life after death in the Old Testament, but this teaching is thoroughly developed by the end of the New Testament.
Strategy 6
The Bible is a spiritual book. This does not mean that one's intelligence is unimportant in understanding the Bible, but if only intelligence is used without an open heart, then the warning Jesus addressed to the religious leaders of his day apply: "You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these that bear witness of Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me, that you may have life." Christians don't have a relationship with the Bible, but with the author of the Bible which is God. What this has meant for me, among other things, is that parts of the Bible I know quite well can have new meaning for me at different times. The same verses "speak" to me in new ways. For this reason, someone once said, "We don't judge the Bible, we let the Bible judge us." Basically, the Bible is a “mirror” reflecting what it sees.