Bible Study for Beginners - 5 Simple Keys

Every True Believer desires to know God through his word, but not every believer knows how to approach the study of scripture. So I want to give you five simple keys to studying the Bible. I've received messages from all around the world from believers who say: I want to know the word of God, I just don't know how to go about approaching it. And many Believers also tell me that they're inconsistent in the word, not because they don't want to read it, but because they don't know how to approach it. So I'm going to give you five very simple keys that you can begin applying today. Like as soon as you're done watching this teaching, you can turn it off. Go apply the keys and I believe you will deepen your knowledge of the scripture and therefore draw closer to the Lord through his word. Let's look at Key number one, which is revelation. You must ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand the word. You cannot know the word of God through intellect alone. Think about the fact that atheists study the word, historians who aren't Believers, many of them- study the word, philosophers study the word and many of the people who study the word in an academic way don't actually even know the Lord at all. Show more

I'm not saying that nobody who approaches the word academically knows the Lord. I'm saying that many of them don't. So it's important that when we approach the scripture, that we do so with the perspective, with the understanding that it is spiritual truth, that it is spiritual life, it is of the Holy Spirit. Here's what the scripture says in John 14, verses 15 through 17: if you love me, obey my Commandments and I will ask the father and he will give you another Advocate who will never leave you. Show more

He is the Holy Spirit who leads into all Truth. By the way, it calls him a he and a who, meaning he's a person who leads you into all truth. The world cannot receive him because it isn't looking for him and doesn't recognize him. But you know him why? Because he lives with you now and later will be in you. But when the father sends the advocate, as my representative, that is the holy spirit. He will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you. So the holy spirit is the teacher. The holy spirit is the one who takes the information and causes it to become Revelation. Information is of the intellect, Revelation is of the spirit and only Revelation can bring transformation. Show more

If you approach the word from just an intellectual perspective. If you approach the word in an academic way only, there's nothing wrong with approaching it academically. But if that's the only way that you approach the word, you're missing the primary component. Because even if you somehow come to understand the biblical principles in your mind, if you don't receive them in your spirit, nothing will be transformed in you. I remember when I first began to study the word, I would pull out the scripture. Maybe you can relate to this. I'm just being honest, I'm going to maybe embarrass myself a little bit, but hey, I think it'll help someone. I would pull out the scripture and I would start reading, let's say, chapter one of of the Book of John. I would begin to read and then, as I would begin to read, I would notice that maybe five to ten verses in that I didn't understand anything that I was reading, so I would start over and then I would start to read that chapter again, and then, as I got toward the middle of the chapter, I would realize I forgot everything that I just read. Show more

This is another problem that Believers have. They read the scripture but they forget it or they don't understand it, and so I would become very frustrated when reading the scripture, and I would even become somewhat jealous of preachers who I would hear revealing these Revelations that the Holy Spirit gave them, and they would go through the scripture and say: Here's what the Lord showed me or here's what study showed me, and they would begin to teach on these powerful truths. And I would say: Lord, why is it that they're receiving truth from the word, but I'm not? Show more

And so every time I approached the word it would be very frustrating for me: a because I didn't understand any of it, B because I didn't remember most of it, and C because I wasn't really receiving of the spirit. I was just reading it as a discipline, as an obligation, rather than an opportunity to connect with God. Really, what changed things for me is when I read James, chapter 1, verse 5, where the scripture tells us that if any of us lack wisdom, we can ask our heavenly father and he will give it to us. Show more

And so I asked the Lord for wisdom and he revealed to me that it was the Holy Spirit who would help me to understand the word. The Holy Spirit, hear me now. The Holy Spirit was the one who inspired the scriptures. Surely he can teach it. So when you go to read the word of God, as you're reading the verses and chapters, as you're pouring over the truths that are revealed through the scripture, you can have the author sit right there with you and speak to you concerning the truth that's revealed in the scripture. Second Peter, chapter 1, verses 20 and 21 say this: above all, you must realize that no prophecy in scripture ever came from the prophet's own understanding- verse 21- or from Human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit and they spoke from God. So the scripture is God breathed. The scripture is of the Holy Spirit. The scripture is revelation from Heaven. It's God communicating with you. What a powerful truth. What an exciting opportunity. Every time you open the word, God himself is speaking to you. I can't tell you how many times people have messaged me saying: Brother David, give me a word. And most, most of the time, I replied: open the scripture. Don't tell me you want a word from God if you haven't opened the scripture. Don't tell me you're serious about hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit if you're not serious about studying the word of God. People have asked me lately what's God saying for the new year? What's God saying for what's coming. I say: look to the scripture. You want a word for the year. Look at what the Bible says. Second, Timothy 3, 16 and 17 say this: all scripture is God breathed and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training and righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. Show more

All scripture is God breathed. It was of the Breath of God, that's the Holy Spirit. It was breathed by the father into existence. That truth, that Revelation. And so as you approach the word, remember, yes, we're going to go over some study methods, yes, we're going to look at some of the more practical tools to approaching scripture, but it's important that you remember that it begins with Revelation. You have to have the Holy Spirit. Those who are not spiritual cannot understand spiritual things. Those who are spiritual understand spiritual things with the help of the holy spirit. So that's number one: Revelation. Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you. Number two: dedication. This means to have consistency in your Devotion to the scripture. Show more

When we approach the word of God inconsistently, when we approach the word of God sporadically, when we approach the word of God apathetically, we are actually robbing ourselves of spiritual depth. You want true spiritual depth. You're going to have to do more than just an inconsistent read of scripture every now and then. If you want consistency in your spiritual life, if you want consistency in your spiritual growth, then you must have consistency in your consumption of the word of God. It's going to take dedication. Show more

You can't just approach it one time, read a verse or two every few weeks and hope that it's going to take root and transform your life. Now, of course, God can do anything that he wants and there are certain truths that may jump out at you and transform you. But it's also true that we receive the greatest benefit from the word when we are dedicated to it consistently. Joshua, chapter 1, verse 8, says this: study this book of instruction continually, meditate on it day and night, so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. Matthew 4: 4 says: but Jesus told him: no. The scriptures say: people do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. You see, the thing about that analogy- that Jesus used bread- is that bread must be eaten consistently. Give us this day our daily bread. So it's something that you must do daily. You cannot expect to grow today from yesterday's Revelation. Now, this doesn't mean- and please don't hear what I'm not saying- this doesn't mean that you can't be encouraged by something that God spoke to you years ago. This doesn't mean that you can't receive passion and insight and spiritual drive from something that God spoke to you long ago. This just means that you have to keep that Manna fresh. You have to receive daily bread if you want to receive daily growth. You pick up on more than you realize when you begin to move to the scripture. Here's something I wrote concerning Bible study. Show more

Each time you read the Bible, you become more familiar with it. That familiarity makes it easier to understand it. Repetition brings familiarity. Familiarity is the foundation of understanding. What do I mean by that? I mean that many Christians neglect the word of God, again, not because they're not interested in knowing the word, not because they don't think that it will benefit them, but many Christians neglect the word of God a because they're frustrated and they don't understand it, or, B- they don't know how to even begin to approach it. So when we begin to read the word of God consistently, we solve those problems. You see, if you read the Old Testament once through, you may read it one time and go- you know, I didn't really understand many of those things that I just read- and then you read it a second time and the characters become more familiar to you, the situations become more familiar to you, you begin to memorize some of the events that happen in the sequence that they occurred. And then, as you read it a third time, because you've read it this first and second time- there's more of a foundation for your understanding. And each time you read the Old Testament, each time you read the New Testament, each time you read through any book of the Bible, you become more familiar with it. Show more

You begin to see patterns, you begin to remember stories, you begin to remember each character and the roles that they played, you begin to remember the ways that God interacted with men, and then some of those details become filled in. So before you can begin to understand the details, you have to understand the basics. Before you can begin to understand those, those tiny Revelations, if you will allow me to word it that way, you have to understand the big picture. So, like most people aren't going to be able to grasp the very specifics of the story of The Exodus and understanding why the children of Israel had to wonder why the children of Israel rebelled against God. But unless they understand the larger picture, those smaller details won't really begin to make sense. Show more

So each time you read the word, you may feel like you're not getting anywhere, you may feel like you're not really coming to an understanding. You may wonder if it's even doing you any good. But I promise you- and please hear this, because this is going to be very key to keeping yourself motivated in reading the word- each time you read through a book of the Bible, each time you read through a chapter, each time you read through the Old Testament or the New Testament, you become more familiar. You see, if you throw yourself into a story or a narrative or an epistle and you're not really familiar with what's even happening on a basic level, the details are going to be even more confusing. But as you begin to read through the scripture, the foundation begins to form. And once you have a foundation, then you begin to have the CPU, if you will, to understand all of the Minor Details and then it begins to form a bigger picture. This is why you have to keep reading. You may not understand the Old Testament, but you have to keep reading it. You may not understand why the genealogies are there, but you have to keep reading it. Show more

You may not understand the Old Testament laws, but you have to keep reading it. You may not understand why certain characters did certain things or why God was angered by certain things that they did, but you have to keep reading it. You may have questions about the ways that God interacted with human beings in the Old Testament. You may think that some of the things that he did were morally questionable, which is a little arrogant on our part, but some of us approach the scripture that way. But this is why you have to keep reading it. You read it again and again, and again and again, and as you're dedicated, as you're consistent, as your persistent, despite the discouragement, you'll begin to see some Foundation of familiarity forming, and that familiarity gives way to more familiarity. So the more familiar you become with the stories, with the writings, with the letters, the more understanding you gain. The more understanding you gain, the more familiar you become with the writings, and this is a cycle of understanding that repeats until you've mastered the grasp on the scriptures and you understand what you're reading exactly, and then you begin to study the details and a beautiful picture is painted for us. Show more

For instance. Here's something else I wrote for you. For instance, if someone is reading about the Passover for the first time in the Old Testament, if someone is reading about the Passover for the first time, they'll learn about how God sent an angel of death of the land of Egypt and about how God protected the Israelites with the blood of the Lambs. Once they are familiar with that story, they are more likely to make the connection between the Passover Lamb and Christ's crucifixion. You begin to see themes threaded throughout all of the Old and New Testament, like the seed, who is the Son of God. You begin to see themes like Covenant. You begin to see things like Redemption and so forth, and you begin to follow these threads and they start to make more and more sense. So you may be discouraged, you may be wondering if you're ever going to get a grasp on the scripture. But don't allow that intimidation, don't allow that confusion to keep you from continuing to study the word, because every time you read it again- this is why many Believers quit- every time you read it, you become more familiar with it. Show more

Don't quit the word of God just because you don't understand what's happening right away. You have to. It's like, for example, you ever watch a confusing movie and then you have to watch it again and again, and again and then it finally starts to make sense. Same thing with the word. You got to read it again and again and again and things really begin to become a clear picture for you, as you're consistent in the word. So number one is revelation: ask the Holy Spirit to teach you. You have to begin there or you're not going to get anywhere. Number two is dedication. Have consistency in your Devotion to the scripture. And again, the more dedicated you are, the more familiar you become with the word of God. And each time you read the word your understanding will grow, even if just incrementally. I'll take a little bit of growth over no growth anytime. Number three: observation and interpretation. So number one- this is very important- is revelation. Number two is dedication. Number three is observation and interpretation. Here's what second Timothy, chapter 2, verse 15, says: study to show thyself approved unto God, a Workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of Truth. Let me just say something here that I think is really important. God gave you a rational mind, the same God who gave you a body, a spirit. The same God who gave you emotions also gave you a rational mind. We have to stop acting like the rational mind is against the spirit. Show more

Now we understand the Bible talks against the mind of the flesh. But the mind of the flesh is the sin nature. I'm not talking about the sin nature, I'm talking about the ability to reason. The ability to reason, spiritual intellect is of God. I mean, just look at different examples in the Old and New Testament. You'll see many times that the spirit field had a very sharp mind. In fact, a sharp mind is one of the manifestations of the Spirit-filled life. The ability to reason, the ability to persuade, the ability to teach and to explain, the ability to understand, the ability to receive the wisdom of Heaven- these are marks of the spirit field. Show more

Revelation is knowledge set on fire by the Holy Ghost. So we have to stop being so dismissive with the mind. We say things like: well, you have- what is the word that many people use? You have head knowledge, I have Revelation. Well, no, that's that. That's almost true. But you have to understand too that Revelation ultimately brings fruitfulness in the head. Knowledge in your intellect, in your natural understanding. Revelation affects those things about you. Just as we experience emotions when we're being touched by the presence of God, so the mind is affected when you begin to surrender to the Holy Spirit. The most surrendered people I know have the sharpest Minds. They are not gullible, they're not tossed to and fro. They don't believe anything that's just presented to them. They ask questions, they dig deeper, they study. In fact, that's part of the passion that the holy spirit gives you for the word. Is this hunger to know and to study and receive. That is not an evil thing, and we have to stop acting like receiving knowledge by the holy spirit is somehow going to affect you negatively in your spiritual growth. No, it's just the opposite. True spiritual knowledge Works hand in hand with spiritual encounters that God wants to give to you. So study to show yourself a proof. There's nothing wrong with that. And in fact, we have to understand too- and many of you won't like that I'm saying this, but I have to tell you because I love you. You have to understand that the word of God is not, it's not- like a fortune cookie. It's not like we can go into the word of God and say: well, you know, this is what it means to you and this is what it means to me. Show more

No, we have to realize that when the Holy Spirit inspired the scripture, he inspired the scripture with intention. There is meaning behind what the Holy Spirit has given to us. There's a purpose behind every word that was written. He has a will for all of the messages contained in the word of God. It's not up to us to say, well, I'm just going to read it casually and then I'm going to apply what I think it means. That's not the spirit. That's called rationalizing out of your own imagination. That's almost like prophesying out of your own imagination. It's not like we could just take the scripture as a general encouragement that we can apply any way that we want. No, the verses, the stories, the narratives, every word from the word of God has a purpose. So there is meaning, there is intention. Study of the word of God is not about making up your own meaning or deciding what it means to you. Show more

Studying the word of God is about finding out what the Holy Spirit intended to communicate through any particular story or verse. And so when you begin to study the word, you realize that there are barriers, there are safety nets. Look, anything without boundaries is chaotic. Everything that God ever designed or created has boundaries, has laws. Think about the laws of physics that God set into place in creation. Think about the spiritual laws. Think about the moral laws. Think about the laws of mathematics. There are many different laws that govern reality that God created. Show more

God is a god of order, not of disorder. In the same way, there are certain boundaries that we have to respect when we're studying the word. I can't just pull up a scripture and go, hmm, what can I make this mean? Or what's a cool play on words I can use to sound like I know what I'm talking about. Or let me take this story from the scripture and make everything allegorical and let me pull out a meaning that I think will fit with my sermon. No, my friend, that is not how we are to approach the word. The word of God is not something that we mold to say what we want. It's not like we just take the words and intend them to mean what we want them to mean. We have to look at the scripture and say: holy spirit, what did you intend to communicate through this story, through these verses? And if we do this, we will find a solid foundation upon which we can stand and we stay away from error and strange Doctrine and bizarre teachings that don't glorify the Holy Spirit or Jesus. So we must apply practical study to our spiritual devotion. This is why I say observation and interpretation are necessary. Now, observation and interpretation really are one. Show more

They improve upon the other. As you read the scripture, You observe things and then you seek to find the interpretation of what you've observed. And in doing this, that interpretation helps you to make better observations. Those observations help you to make better interpretations. And this leads us to talking about the study method, which I call macro, micro macro. Write that down or say it in the comments: macro, m-a-c-r-o. Micro, macro, macro, micro macro. Remember this: big picture, small details, big picture. Show more

Again: big picture, small details, big picture. What do I mean by that? Well, let's take a look at big picture first. When you approach the word, you sit down to read the scripture. Start with the big picture, for instance, identify what kind of book you're reading. I'll give you the examples here. We have the law, or the pentateuch, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. That's the law. Then you have the Old Testament, historical books or historical narratives. Show more

These are the stories that we read or record keeping. Joshua, Judges, Ruth first and second, Samuel first and second, Kings first and second, chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther, and then we have what we call wisdom literature or the poetic books, and these are books like job. Now, job could technically be historical in nature, but just for the sake of this lesson, I put it in the category of the wisdom literature. There's job Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon. Then there are the prophets. Now some divide the writings of the prophets into Major Prophets and Minor Prophets. All that means is the prophets who wrote a lot and the prophets who wrote a little bit. I remember one time I brought that up and someone got offended by that. They said: what do you mean? Minor Prophets? There are no Minor Prophets in the word, and so that's just a term that's used to describe the smaller but prophetic books. Show more

But so that's what some people say. They call them Major Prophets and Minor Prophets. So, like Jeremiah, Isaiah, Major Prophets, but all of the prophets here: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, and then you have Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahhabakkuk, Zephaniah, haggai, Zechariah and Malachi. So those are the prophetic books. And then you have the New Testament, historical books of these, again the stories like the gospels, Matthew, Mark Luke, John acts. Show more

Then you have the Epistles, and these are instructional books for the church. Some divide the Pauline Epistles from other Epistles and that only means the Epistles that Paul wrote and the Epistles that Paul did not write. But all of the Epistles include Romans first and second, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians first, Thessalonians 2, Thessalonians first and second, Timothy, Titus, Philemon and then General Epistles like Hebrews: James first, Peter, second Peter, first John, second John, third John and Jude. Show more

Now we also have the Book of Revelation. This is a category of its own. Some say that's debatable. I have my opinions on how it could potentially be. Well, we won't get into that, but it it's debatable of it being in its own category. But we won't touch that for now. But that's just some examples there. In fact that's all the books there. You have the law, the Old Testament, historical books, the wisdom literature, the prophets, New Testament, historical books and the Epistles and then Revelation. Now the kind of book you're reading will have an impact on how that book is interpreted. This is so important that we understand this, because you're not going to take a poetic book like Psalms or Song of Solomon. You're not going to take those books and treat them the same way that you're going to treat the Epistles. Remember, the Epistles are writings and instructions to the church that have direct application. We receive Doctrine directly from those and then we have, like, the narratives and we have the poetic books. They're inspired by the Holy Spirit. Don't hear what I'm not saying. They are inspired by God. They are a part of the inerrant scriptures that we've received for today. Of course, the entire word of God- Genesis to Revelation- is God inspired, is the word of God is in Aaron- is sufficient, all of that included. Show more

But you're not going to treat them all the same in the way you approach them in terms of studying. So if I look at an epistle, let's say a Pauline epistle, I'm going to be able to take that Doctrine directly and then just apply that to my life. But if I'm reading Psalms, I have to remember that these are expressions and prayers and sometimes, for example, there's a verse in this, the Bible that talks about the fool, has said: in this heart, there is no God. Now, obviously, the phrase there is no God is not something I'm going to take as Doctrine for today, but that is just quoting the fool. Show more

So if you understand what I'm saying, you see that there are different ways to approach the different books of the Bible. So in an epistle, I'm looking for teaching to apply directly to my life and, as an example, in a historical book, I'm looking at how God interacted with people and I'm seeing truths about his nature. I'm seeing how God did things with certain people and I'm seeing how God did things with certain Nations, and in observing this, I'm learning spiritual truths about God, how he operates, how he thinks. And this is why, again, we have to be very careful to not apply the same exact method to every single book of the Bible. Show more

We have to know what kind of book we're reading. So that's number one when it comes to observation and interpretation. You have to identify what kind of book you're reading. Next, we see, we have to know the author. This is a good study method here. Who wrote that book? Then ask yourself: why did they write that book? What is the purpose of what they wrote? What are they trying to accomplish in writing this document, in writing this letter, in writing this record, in writing these poetic stanzas? And then you look for the overall theme. What is the overall spiritual theme of this book? Overall tone? That's something I've added. That's not necessarily what everyone else adds, but I like to look at the overall tone of the book. Show more

Then you look at historical and cultural backdrops: when was this written? What was the culture in which it was written? Then you look at the recipients: who was this letter, this narrative, this record? For who is the intended reader of this particular work? And so when you study the scripture in this way, it keeps you from just making things up. I'll give you an example. In the book of Acts we read a story about a man who was listening to a sermon. And he was sitting in a window and while listening to the sermon he fell asleep. He fell out of the window and, of course, he was killed. The Church, of course, saw him resurrected, and there is a powerful story about God's resurrection power. Now and again. Many might not like what I'm saying here, but I love you, and so we have to make sure there are boundaries to what we're doing. We can't just go adding whatever interpretation we want. I've heard that story preached so many different ways. I heard some preach it like: well, you know, he fell out of the window because he had one foot in the church and one foot in the world. Show more

So here this narrative is talking about compromise and worldliness and I'm thinking I don't think that's what it was about. I've even heard it preached in another allegorical sense, where they say, well, this is about your dreams and your desires and the hope that God put in you dying and how God wants to resurrect your dreams. And then that was it. It was. It was a verse on how the guy fell out of the window, how he was resurrected, and they took that and made an entire 45-minute message on how God was going to resurrect your dreams. Show more

And I thought, wait a minute. Okay, that's a historical book and it's just showing us a historical narrative. Really, that was written as a record to show that the early church saw a resurrection. But when we tried to force our meaning upon it- or we don't want to study deeply for the actual meaning, or we're trying to put together a sermon in a hurry because we haven't had time to do it- then we're going to begin to just make stuff up and that's where you get into danger. Now you could say that there's some truth to what's being said there. Okay, God is the god of resurrection and he wants to resurrect what's dead and he wants to bring to life your dreams. Show more

Okay, there's some truth to that, but that's not what that particular portion of scripture is saying. You can look to several other verses in the Bible that talk about God's resurrection power and talk about the hope we have in him and talk about how he blesses us and helps us and brings us to spiritual breakthrough, but you don't have to force that on that particular portion of scripture to do it. And so when you stay Within These safety nets, when you, when you stay Within These boundaries as you're studying the word, it keeps you from heresy, it keeps you from going off the rails, it keeps you from just making things up that have no justification. This is why we have to again practice observation and interpret reputation. But that's just, Mac. Show more

Remember. Big picture is the book. Again, I'll say it: identify what kind of book you're reading, who is the author, what is the purpose of what they wrote, what is the overall theme, what is the overall tone, what are the historical and cultural backdrops and who are the intended recipients or readers of this particular work that was written. And in sticking to these safety nets and boundaries, you're kept from just making things up as you go. You know, I've heard it said many times. After someone's preached a sermon, people will say things like, wow, that was so powerful. I never even saw that in that verse before and often I think to myself: well, you didn't see it because it wasn't there, they just added it for the sake of whatever it was they were trying to communicate. So preachers, teachers and every student of the word, Christians in general, you don't have to force your meaning upon stories in order to make a spiritual point. Just use the verses that outright say what you're trying to communicate. No need to force that on other portions of scripture- words not intended to be so. That's macro. Look at the big book and look at the big picture of the book. Show more

Then micro. Now we're looking at Chapters and verses. Now keep in mind that chapters and verses were added later to the scripture just to help us reference them more easily. The chapters and verses don't necessarily- they're not necessarily- spiritually inspired. They're just there as references. But in general, the people who divided chapters and verses did a pretty good job in general. This is not something to be applied across the board. You want to read the scripture by thoughts, not necessarily by chapters, but they really did do a good job. As you begin to read, you notice in many places the chapters and verses just help us to take everything in bite size, bite sizes, and so I think they're useful in that sense. But remember the chapters and verses were added later for reference. So sometimes it's okay to keep reading past the chapter until you finish a particular narrative, or reading past a few verses, and sometimes you'll notice that chapters one, two and three actually say one complete thought. Show more

So read the scripture in thoughts, not necessarily in chapters and verses, but still, as you begin to break down the chapters and verses, this at least helps you to apply to your study method so that you have a greater Foundation, or how shall I say this? The chapters and verses work for us in that they help us to take things in a bite-sized manner. So macro, the entire book, Micro. Show more

Look at the chapters and verses. What are the main thoughts being communicated in these chapters? What are the main thoughts being communicated in these verses? Those small breakdowns are helpful, but again, they're not necessarily divinely inspired. And then start to look at the words after you've looked at the book chapters and verses- now we're going smaller. Show more

Then you look at the words that are being used, understand the terms and the context. If you don't understand the words that are being used, specifically in their context, you end up with all sorts of heresies, for example, the heresy of universalism, this idea that there is no eternal hell and that ultimately, everyone will be saved, whether or not they receive Christ. That's a heresy, and that heresy in particular is based entirely on grave misunderstandings of key words in their context. They take the words, but they do not consider the context of those words and therefore they take them to mean whatever they want. Original languages are very helpful, but the translations that we have are accurate enough to give you the main ideas. There's a tool that I recommend. You might want to write this one down. There's a tool I recommend- it's free, it's online- called Strong's Interlinear Bible and Strong's Interlinear Bible. You can look that up on on a search engine online. Strong's Interlinear Bible is a tool that, line by line, causes the original language and English or whatever version you're reading, whatever your language is the original language- to run parallel to your language, and so you can click on Words and you can see what their meaning is. You can see what those words mean. In every other context in scripture, you can see what those words mean in that particular verse. Show more

You can see what the various meanings and definitions are. But remember this: generally speaking, when you have a word in the original language, you might see two or three different definitions, but those definitions are brought out depending upon the context. In other words, context dictates meaning. So if one word has two or three different definitions, you look at the content text to tell you what it's actually saying. For example, the New Testament word, the Greek word pneuma. That could mean wind, spirit or breath. Sometimes pneuma is used when describing the Holy Spirit. Sometimes pneuma is used when talking about the wind- the literal wind, not the Holy Spirit- and other times the word pneuma is used to describe breath. And so, depending upon the context of that verse and that word being used, you would pull out the definition that most directly applies to that. So when you're looking at the original language, remember context dictates meaning and please be careful not to stretch things without understanding. This goes for me too. I am not a Hebrew scholar, I am not a Greek scholar, so I'm very, very how should I say this? I'm very uncomfortable when I hear people say things like: well, you know, the translators use this word, but actually in the original language the scripture means this. Show more

Whenever you hear that, be very careful. And if you find yourself saying things like that, be very careful because we're talking about Scholars, teams of Scholars- who've poured over these works and who worked very hard and diligently- Greek and Hebrew Scholars- to bring us the most accurate translations. And so when you have someone who kind of just reads a word and says, well, you know, actually this word here means this, that's a red flag to me and that shows that probably they don't completely understand how it all works. In fact, I would be out of my depth if I tried to teach Hebrew and Greek, because I don't even completely understand the entire translation process. And so when somebody says, oh, this word actually means this, what they're doing is they're pulling one of the other possible definitions of that word, when in fact the context, according to the scholars, would pull out a different definition, just like that example I gave you. Like pneuma, it could mean Spirit, Wind or breath. So if I'm reading a particular verse on how the holy pneuma Came Upon the people and they were empowered to be Witnesses, obviously the context is telling us that's the Holy Spirit. Or if it talks about, for example, a ruach, or, like the, the Hebrew equivalent of the word Numa. Show more

You talk about that wind that came and blew the ship of Jonah. Well, that's talking about an actual Whirlwind, the physical wind that came. And so we have to be very careful. Just because you have access to an Interlinear Bible does not mean you are a Greek or Hebrew scholar, and we have to keep that in mind when we're studying the word of God, to make sure that we're not just arrogantly going around saying, well, the Hebrew Scholars said this and the Greek scholar said this. Show more

But I looked up one particular word and I found another definition could be this, so I'm going to switch it with my definition. Be very careful with that. It's a tool, but, again, make sure you're using it wisely and not just coming up with these wild interpretations for yourself. So again, macro, micro, macro. We're still talking about observation and interpretation. Let me know in the comment section if this is helping you out, live or on the replay. So again, macro, big picture. Identify what kind of book you're reading, who is the author, what is the purpose, what is the overall theme, what is the overall tone, what are the historical and cultural backdrops, who are the intended readers. Show more

And now we're going down to size here. We're looking at the details, chapters and verses. Again. Chapters and verses were added later, but that doesn't mean that they can't be helpful study tools to help you break up the words and the different sentences so that you can take them in bite sizes. And then you look at the words: what do these words mean in their original languages? Get a better grasp on those. Show more

So you went macro. Now you're going all the way down to the word and then, once you've studied in that, you start over, go back through the book again, and each time you do this, You observe more and you interpret more accurately. And as you interpret more accurately, You observe more, and this is that cycle that deepens your understanding of the word. So, again, this is why we apply key number two: dedication. You have to keep at this. You can't just read it one time ago: well, I didn't get it. I'm giving up. No study to show yourself approved. Add to it interpretation and observation. Observe what's actually there and then interpret according to what is actually being intended, not according to what you're feeling or what you'd like to see or what you heard someone else say. Interpret it according to the word of God and what was intended there in the scripture. Now we're going to move on to number four, meditation. So we have one, Revelation, two, dedication, three, observation and interpretation for meditation. This is what the Bible says in Psalm chapter 1, verses one through three. Now when I use that word, meditation, I know that's going to freak some people out. But remember that meditation can be Godly. The new age has stolen that term from the church, from the word of God, from the holy spirit. This is something that is of God and the world has taken that and perverted it. But really true meditation is revealed right here in Psalm chapter 1, verses one through three. Show more

Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked or stand around with Sinners or join in with mockers, but they Delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither and they prosper in all they do. I love that the scripture here says: bearing fruit each season, not just in some seasons. In each season you bear fruit. Now the scripture tells us here that they Delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. What is meditation? Meditation, simply put, is repetition in thought. Did you know that when you're anxious about something and you're worrying, you're meditating on your fears? Show more

Did you know that when you're bitter towards someone and unforgiving towards someone and you're offended by someone and you repeat what they did to you in your mind over and over again, you're meditating on the offense? Meditation is repetition in thought. Now, this is really going to help those of you who said: David, I read the word but I can't remember anything. I'm just going to be transparent with you, and a lot of people are surprised to hear this, but I'm just being honest. I don't have that great of a memory. People think I have a great memory. I really don't not, not naturally. Anyway, it's something I really have to work at. Memorizing scripture memory has always been challenging for me. I very easily forget because my mind is so busy. Things go in and then ride out. So one of the techniques that a powerful man of God taught me was to meditate on the word as you read it. Show more

Now, this is a. This is a technique I'm going to give you that you don't have to apply religiously. This is not necessarily inspired by the Holy Spirit what I'm about to give you, but it's helpful when I read the word, I will. Let's say I'm in. Let's say I'm in one of the the gospel narratives and I'm reading a particular story. Let's say I'm reading the crucifixion. I'll begin in the garden and then I'll go to Pilot and so forth and I just start to read and then I read it again, and then I read it again. Remember thoughts, not necessarily chapters and verses, but but thoughts complete, a thought in the, in the word, read it again and again. And then what I do? I close my Bible or I turn off my iPad screen, I lean back, close my eyes and then I start to repeat what I read back to myself over and over again in my mind and I try to remember as many details as possible. And then I'll pull out the scripture, I'll open the word again and I'll read it again and again and again and I'll see the details I forgot. Then I'll close it, I'll Lean Back, close my eyes and I'll begin to repeat it all. Now, Steve, here my brother is my witness. Steve, have I been able to quote entire chapters to you? Yes, it is actually quite amazing to see, and I don't have that great a memory. Show more

I can quote entire chapters of the Bible. Now, granted, maybe an hour later I've forgotten most of it. But but, like, like, if someone said, quote an entire chapter. I couldn't do it for you, right, this second. But but in my study time, at least for 30 minutes or so, I'm able to retain that and I'm trying to lengthen that. Show more

But even if you don't do entire chapters, try two or three verses, word for word. Repeat it again and again, and again. This is meditation. If reading the word is eating the word, then meditation is digestion. It allows the, the spiritual nutrients to actually be absorbed by your spirit. You repeat it again and again and again in your mind and, and before you know it, you'll be quoting entire chapters of the Bible. There's a game that me and Brit Mays play. We've done it a couple times on road trips. Brit we're. We'll just thumb through the Bible, point to a verse, read it out loud and we try to identify the book in the chapter. Now, Britain is very good at that. I'm not as good as Britain at that. He's got a much better memory than I do, but generally speaking it's. It's a game we play when we're traveling, where where we'll thumb to the Bible. Stop, point to a verse, read it out loud, and you have to say where the book is and what chapter that's in, at least book and chapter. Show more

You got to get it within four or five chapters, and so this is a good practice. And then you start to see: okay, I'm starting to familiarize myself with the various different narratives of scripture. So I'm not just reading Genesis and going in blind. I know there are certain themes, I know there are certain foundations that ground me as I go. Show more

So I see the creation, I see the fall of Man, I see the flood, I see Canaan and Abel, and then, of course, we begin to see all you know. Well, not necessarily chronological, but you, you go all throughout the scripture and you start to see all these different narratives: Joseph's dreams, I see The Exodus, I see the Prophet Jeremiah, we see the rebuilding of the walls- again not going in chronological order, but you get what I'm saying: themes, certain thoughts, different pieces of the puzzle coming together, and as you're going through those particular pieces, you're allowing your mind to fill in those details. And so this is where meditation is very helpful, where you're not just reading it and then leaving. Here's the problem. Okay, I'm gonna. I'm gonna tell you a problem that that many of us have. We'll read the Bible and then we'll close it and go on our day and that really doesn't do anything because we received it. For the moment- forgive me, I shouldn't say that doesn't do anything, but that's not as effective. I should word it that way instead- it's not as effective as reading it and then retaining it through repetition and thought over and over and over again. Show more

Here's what many of us do: we open the Bible app, we read- there's my Aria right there. You don't have to adjust the camera. You, you read- I always see my Aria smiling back at me there- but you read the, the scripture, and then, after you're done, you swipe up, close that app and you go over to YouTube, go over to Instagram, go over to tick tock or Facebook or whatever it is that you do, or you close your Bible and you go on your way. You have to make time not just for receiving the word, not just reading the word, not just studying the word. You have to make time for meditating on it and then try to hold something in your heart, something from the script, even if it's just one simple thought. Hold it in your heart and think about that all throughout the day, and what's going to begin to happen is you're going to begin to become a person of great depth in the word. To where? Now, when someone brings up a story or a narrative or a point, you're not lost, you're not clueless, you're not wondering where is that or what's the purpose of why they wrote that. Now there's some room for conversation, and part of that meditation is conversing those principles with other believers, and so you and I must take the word and then meditate on it. Worldly meditation says: empty your mind. Godly meditation says: fill your mind with the word and repeat it over and over and over again. I'm giving you very practical Keys here. These are very practical keys that will help you to not only receive the word, but memorize the word and then hold the word in your heart. So let's look so far at what we've seen: Revelation: ask the Holy Spirit to teach you. Number two: dedication. Have consistency in your Devotion to the scripture. Number three: observation and interpretation. Study to show yourself approved. Number four: meditation. Repeat the scripture in your mind again and again. And this is important because if you're just, if you're just reading it and then dismissing it. You're not allowing the roots to go deep, you're not allowing the nutrients of that spiritual food to to permeate your spirit. In your spirit, you're just, you're just reading it and then dismissing it and it only goes surface level, like that. That's when it's just, as we say, head knowledge, that's when it's just intellect. You want it to become spiritual meditate. Show more

Think on it again and again, memorize portions of it, even if just two or three verses at a time, and hold those in your heart all throughout the day and you watch how that transforms the way that you study the word. Now let me go back here just for a second, because I want to make sure I've clearly made this point in terms of the familiarity, when I talked about dedication. I know I'm going to get to number five in a moment, and number five is very important, but I'm going to get to that in a moment. I want to go back to number two, dedication, just for a second. I had told you that familiarity is the foundation for understanding, and what I mean by that is that each time you go over it, you're going to receive more from it, because you get a stronger grasp on what is actually happening, and so this is very important, because many Believers will give up the first time around. No, you got to go again and again, and again, and that's also where meditation comes in. So meditation and dedication can close, can, can, can closely knit together with one another. Number five is application. Watch this now in Matthew, Chapter 13, Verse 12.. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them. Here we see very clearly that Jesus is saying that we must be good stewards of the Revelation that we've been given. There is a Biblical principle called The Law of stewardship. The law with stewardship is very simple. You must understand that everything you have belongs to God. Show more

He gave it to you. Everything that you have in this life is God's, and so we don't own anything. We are stewards, we are caretakers. Now, biblically speaking, when I'm a good Steward with what God has deposited in me, he rewards Me by increasing my responsibilities. So if I obey God with my finances, he increases finances. If I obey God with Ministry responsibility, he increases Ministry responsibility. If I obey God with the Revelation he's given me. If I cling to it, I apply it, I use it, I listen to it. The Bible says here, more understanding will be given. So many of us want what we call Deep revelation of the word, and by that we mean, you know, some of the more mysterious teachings, some of the more Supernatural expressions of God's power. Show more

But really, if you're not being faithful with the foundational, God will not give you the supernatural. If you're not being faithful with the standard Revelations, he's not going to give you deeper Revelation. Jesus said- I'll say this again- to those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even with little understanding they have will be taken away from them. Application is a part of studying God's word, because it causes you to experience the word living. The word keeps your fellowship with the Holy Spirit unhindered. Unhindered fellowship with the Holy Spirit enables you to better receive the revelation of the word. If you don't apply the word- please hear me now- if you don't apply the word, your hunger for the word will weaken. That's a scary reality. If you do not apply the word, your hunger for the word will weaken. James, chapter 1, verses 22-25, says this: but don't just listen to God's word. You must do what it says, otherwise you are only fooling yourselves. Four. If you listen to the word and don't obey, it's like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free and you do what it says and don't forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. If you're not applying what you see in scripture, your understanding of it will be limited. You can't just know it in your mind, you have to live it. You can't just know it as a fact, you have to experience it. When you begin to apply what you've seen in Scripture, that's when transformation begins to take place. That's when you begin to truly understand the depths of what it is you're reading. It's the difference between seeing a picture of some destination and actually standing there. It's the difference between reading a letter from a loved one and actually being with them. It's the difference between knowing and experiencing the revelation of God's word. Show more

If you're not applying the word, you're limiting your understanding. So we can't just stop at these particular Keys. Revelation is great. That comes by the Holy Spirit, teaching you dedication. This is going to be discipline and diligence as you study the word. Observation and interpretation: this is the practical application of studying the word: how to go about it so that you stay within the safety net, the boundaries of the intentions of the Holy Spirit. Now, on this point I want to add: you've heard it said that some portions of scripture are instructional and other portions of scripture are more historical. In other words, some of the things that we're given are given for us specifically to apply and others are just being told to us in a narrative. But the reality is that you can actually receive application. You can actually receive understanding about God's nature in all portions of scripture because even if something is not necessarily instructional and it's more historical, more of a story in that history, in that story, I receive revelation of the nature of God and how he works. So that's important to note. And then, of course, meditation, repeat it in your mind again and again and then finally, we have application. You have to live it now. Show more

I'm going to pray for you and I'm going to ask the Holy Spirit to give you a hunger for the word of God. Come on, let's pray. Father, in the name of Jesus, I lift that one to you now who desires to know you more through your word. A precious Holy Spirit, I pray that you would be like a fire in our bones. See that passion for God's word. Give us that desire, that hunger to know the depths of the revelations that God has given to us. Father, by your Holy Spirit, help us to reverence your word. Tremble at your word, Holy Spirit. Help us to live it, not just read it, not just know it. Help us to live, and, I pray, give us greater understanding, give us greater desire. Come on, pray with me now. Ask him to do it for you. Lead us into Revelation. I pray, father, your word is truth. Where else can we go? You have the words of life. Show more

Cause us to depend on that. The Holy Spirit, I'm going to ask you something special for that one receiving this prayer now. Holy Spirit, I'm asking you, on the days that they forget to read your word, remind them, be that gentle and constant reminder. Come on, ask him. I'm asking him to do that for you. I'm serious. Ask him to be your reminder that when you're about to walk out the door, the Holy Spirit would say: wait, don't forget, Holy Spirit, remind them, be that reminder all throughout their lives. I pray, draw them by your spirit to your word. In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray. And all God's people said: write it in the comments section. A man, well, if you enjoyed this message, please do me a favor and like the video. I promise you I'm not just asking for likes for the sake of likes. When you like this video, it helps to spread it all around the internet, so you're actually accomplishing something when you click that like button. Show more

And also, don't forget to share this with a couple of loved ones and make sure you're subscribed to this channel to learn more about the Holy Spirit, prayer and spiritual warfare. When you do subscribe, be sure to click that notification Bell. Now I want to read a portion of scripture to you and I think it's really going to encourage you. Let me know in the comments section whether you're watching live or on the replay. Let me know in the comments section how this blessed you. And then I want to read a portion of scripture to you that I think will really bless you and I know- I know by the spirit- that many are going to really grow closer to the Lord in this season. That's my prayer for you: that you would draw closer to the Lord in this season. Stephen, real quick, can you- my phone's not cooperating with- can you just real quick talk to the chat there? Show more

Yeah, Chad, what an amazing, amazing time this was. I know I have my notes. I would love to know if you guys took notes. Let me know down in the comment section below. But, man, what a powerful, powerful way to study the word. I think most Christians nowadays really need to understand how to read the word, and I'm there with you. Sometimes I'll read something and I'll be like, okay, that was great. And then two minutes later, just like Diego was saying it's gone, I'm like, wait, what did I read again? So understanding how to read the word and unlocking God's power through that is powerful. Thank you, Steve, and- and I got my, my phone to work, it was, it was. It wasn't even online, so that was the problem there. Second Corinthians, chapter nine. I want to read verse 6 and onward to you. Listen to this now. Remember this: farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop, but the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. You must each decide in your heart how much to give, and don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure, for God loves a person who gives cheerfully. Paul, the Apostle here, is specifically talking about Finance. He's talking about money and Paul is taking an offering. Paul is asking for finances for the work of the Kingdom. That's biblical. But notice here that he writes that a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. The scripture also declares: he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. Show more

When you plant Financial seed into God's Kingdom, you are sowing first of all not to be blessed. You're sowing so that the kingdom work can continue to advance, your sowing that people might come to know Jesus. You're sowing that the gospel might be preached, that Believers might be empowered. That's why we sow. We don't give to get. But here's the exciting reality: even though our motives should not be to receive when we give, you should give just to give use. Every believer should give just because they love Jesus and the gospel. But our God is so gracious, he's so kind that he adds a blessing when we give. He doesn't have to do that. We as Believers should just give, because that's our duty as Believers. But the Lord adds to that. Verse 8 says this: and God will generously provide all you need. Now, this promise is powerful. Listen to this. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. I don't know about you, but I believe the word. I believe what the Bible says, and so when the scripture tells me that I won't lack, that I'll always have everything I need, think about that. You will always have everything you need, not sometimes have some of the things you need. Show more

That's the Bible. It says you will always have everything you need- and here's my favorite part- and plenty left over to share with others. So I want to challenge you now to give to the gospel. Give to the work of the Kingdom. Give number one that Jesus might be glorified. Give because you love father God. Give because you desire to see Souls saved. Give because you want the kingdom to be expanded. Let that be your motive. But while you're giving, also rejoice in the fact that, as you give, God increases your resources. Look, this is something we've applied in our ministry, that I apply in my own life and, Tim, you can go ahead and leave that graphic up there. Show more

This is something that I've applied in my own life, and I think it's important that we do this, because we we sometimes give into fear and we sometimes give in to doubt. But I found that any time I've needed a breakthrough, anytime I've needed the Lord to do something in my life, anytime I've wanted to see the ministry go further, he's led me to sow, and I promise you this: you cannot out give God. I've experienced it- when the world is panicking, saying everybody, hold back, everybody, you know, you know, you know, hatch it down and make sure you're protected and everybody, make sure that you're, you're saving and reserving and hold back and play it safe. No, that's not the kingdom of God. I'm talking about radical faith and we've found that every time we've stepped forward in faith, despite what the world says, that God has never failed us. Show more

Every single time he comes through- listen to me- every single time he comes through, he never fails. And with that knowledge, you are freed. You are liberated to give to the gospel. And so I want to challenge you now: give a one-time gift to this ministry, of any amount you may be saying to yourself. You know, I really don't think I'll make that big of a difference, or my giving really doesn't matter whether you're watching this live or on the replay. You're giving counts, and so I'm asking every single person watching to give a single donation by going to davidhernandez ministriescom. Donate your gift of any amount will help to fund the content, the live streams, the events. I also want to challenge you, if you haven't done so already, to become a monthly Ministry supporter. Look if you can partner with Netflix, if you can partner with your gym through a gym membership, if you can partner with your gaming system through a monthly gaming online system account, if you can partner with any of these other services that we have on a monthly basis, why can't we partner with the kingdom of God? So I'm asking you become a monthly supporter as well. Go to davidhernanasministriescom partner to sign up to become a monthly Ministry partner. Partners receive partner gifts. I know that's not why you give, but it's our thank you to you. You can check those out at davidhernisministriescom partner. But no matter what you're giving, whether a single donation or a monthly partnership, whether large or small- I'm asking everyone watching to do their part. Do your part right now. David hernandezministriescom, donate for a single donation. Davidhernanasministriescom partner to sign up to become a monthly Ministry supporter, and if you enjoyed this teaching, then you will enjoy three habits that make you consistent in prayer and the word. Show more