I feel so dumb

[Mary Diana Lynn Harper]

Never give up on yourself, keep on feeling the way you feel and ask God for His help to help you. He will open your mind cause you are willing to let him. He loves you just the way you are and will be with you all along the way. You are not dumb. When we know it all we are the dumb ones. God Loves you

 

[billwald]

"But I feel dumb because I don't understand the bible."

Try reading the whole book from front to back, taking notes as you go.

 

[Mary Diana Lynn Harper]

I don't understand all the Bible. I believe as I grow in the Spirit, God will show me what I need to know. Just as He will show you. Remember you had to learn to get up before you could learn to walk.

 

[Jim1999]

Disciple,

May I suggest one method of Bible study? Read a small portion, ten or eleven verses, or whatever appears to be a paragraph or two. Then use the newspaper reporters system of asking the basic questions: Who, What, Where, Why and How....Who is speaking and to whom?; What is being said?; Where is this taking place?; Why are these people gathered and why are the speaking? And, finally, How did this event happen?

This will give you a simple understanding of this particular passage. It will also keep everything in context and keep you on the ground floor.

ONce you have read several books, go back and read the same passages again, but look for one word that stands out. It stands out because it adds something you missed in the first reading.

You will be amazed by how much the scriptures begin to explode before you.

Cheers, and God bless,

Jim

PS. The photo posted is about 13 years old,,,when I retired from teaching at the university at 66.

 

[xdisciplex]

Hi!
I have the KJV on mp3s. Maybe I should give it a try. But somehow I feel like the bible should be read and not listened to, but maybe I'm also too old-fashioned. The question is wether I'll understand more if I listen to it...

@ billwald

Why do you think reading the bible from front to cover will help? A lot of people suggest this as if it was some magic trick which suddenly unlocks all kinds of secrets but why should reading the bible from front to cover be better than simply picking books? Because the problem is if you start at A and already don't understand A then what sense does it make to continue to B when you haven't even understood A? This isn't logical and nobody would learn like this. If you don't understand lecture 1 then why should you go on the lecture 2 which is based on lecture 1?

@Jim

This is a good idea. But the question is is it appliable to all books? What about really tough books like romans?
Books which contain a lot of action are easier to read but books which are all about instructions are the hardest to read.
Because if you simply do not understand a single verse or word then this method also will not really help you. I think that all the NT books after acts are very hard to understand because they are totally packed with important things and totally condensed. Every single verse is important and you cannot simply read it like you read a novel. I find such books really exhausting. When I read something then I like to be able to read over it quickly or also be able to jump over a few sentences without really missing anything. Reading such things is easy but when you read a book like romans where every single verse is important then it's really exhausting.

 

[Revmitchell]

Disciple,

Kay Arther wrote a wonderful book in paper back call "How to study the Bible, an inductive bible study"http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/002-1342596-5167215?%5Fencoding=UTF8&search-type=ss&index=stripbooks%3Arelevance-above&field-keywords=How%20to%20study%20t he%20bible

Its about ten dollars a a bible book store. In it she speaks in laymens' terms and show you how to break down scripture. Invest in a concordance. And make sure for your study you have a good word for word translation.

I am not KJVO But a Thompson Chain Reference Bible along with a concordance will take you along way. Stay away from dynamic translations (i.e. NIV) as they are not word for word.

Also another Good book is "How to read the bible for all its worth" http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0310246040/002-1342596-5167215?v=glance&n=283155

This book breaks down how to understand the different types of literature in the bible. I.E proverbs, psalms, prophecy, parables etc.

Four invaluable tools every Christian should have on their shelf.

And above all these things pray continually.

Psalm 1
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Proverbs 2:1-9
My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints. Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.

Jer 29:13
And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart

Disciple I do not post these verses as a pat answer but it is important to know that 1. There is a need in each of our lives to understand scripture, 2. Studying Gods word is work, it is hard work. Your brain will get tired.

If you want insight like you get from other pastors it will take the right tools, prayer and a willingness to work. And it requires an understanding that this work isnt about attaining knowledge but it is a search for just who God is. It is getting to know God.

And once we learn something about him we must be willing to apply that to our lives.

 

[Jim1999]

Disciple,

The system I mentioned works with biblical literature and secular literature the same. It is how you read the newspaper. Take a local newspaper and try it...then do the same with any book in the Bible.

I prefer to use one of the better translations in modern English, such as the NIV or even Philips or Berkley. The King James is broken down into artificial verses that do not exist in the originals. Sometimes one can lose the context because the message carries over to another verse or even another chapter, which can give a false understanding. Don't worry about whether the translation is good or not. The important thing at this point is to develop a system of study. Even Romans can be read this way.

Try it for a few days or even a week and let me know how you are doing. I offered the same system to new students at the university who also claimed they could not understand what they were reading. So, my friend, you are not alone.

Cheers, and God bless,

Jim

 

[xdisciplex]

@ Revmitchell

Thanks for the tips. I have heard of Thompson study bibles before, but what's so special about them? Do they only have commentaries included or do they also use a special translation or what kind of translation do they have?

I am also using e-sword on the computer, it's really helpful. You can download different bible versions and commentaries and you can also search for key words. I think this is much better and faster than a concordance.

@ jim

The King James is broken down into artificial verses that do not exist in the originals. Sometimes one can lose the context because the message carries over to another verse or even another chapter, which can give a false understanding.

I never heard this before.
Can you give an example? I always thought that the KJV is the best bible out there.

 

[Jim1999]

Disciple,
This site will give you a short answer to the chapter and verse divisions of the modern Bible.

http://www.gotquestions.org/divided-Bible-chapters-verses.html

Cheers,

Jim

 

[Revmitchell]

Disciple

Commentaries are a good tool but you do not want to get your theology from them. You want to get your theology from your study of scritpure. Use commentaries to get background information, or to confirm what you already thought about a passage.

I have e-sword as well. I do not stand on what I believe because of Gill, Robertson, or Henry. Always study the text for yourself. Use your concordance. Faster is not better. It will cause you to rush to poor exegesis.

 

[xdisciplex]

Thanks Jim.

@ Revmitchell

Well, the problem is that I am not an experienced christian. How can I trust my own interpretation of scripture? After all christians argue about so many things and everybody thinks he's right. Then how can I trust my own interpretation? Isn't it kind of arrogant and also unrealistic to think that oneself is always right with everything while the others are always wrong if they have a different opinion? Doesn't everybody think this of himself? Yes, I am right and all the others are wrong...
Why should I understand the bible correctly? This is the problem. If I get my own opinion and then I hear another christian say something contrary then I would directly think that I am wrong. It doesn't work this way.