Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Basic Bible Study - Part 7

Previous Lessons
Part 1  Part 2  Part 3  Part 4  Part 5  Part 6

Lesson 7.0
We’ve talked a lot about the Bible and how it is laid out.  We’ve gone through types and translations and digital Bibles.  We’ve talked about some observations and highlighting last week.  Now after 6 weeks, we finally get to start digging a little deeper into the Word of God.  Over the next 4 plus weeks, we are going to learn a few methods for studying the Bible.  Some of these will be with pre-made worksheets.  It obviously will not take a worksheet to do any of these methods, but as we learn them the worksheets will be a guide.  There is no need to become frustrated if you don’t do well with the method we discuss each week.  There are many more ways to study God’s Word and we will find one that works for you.

If you’ve discovered a method that looks neat, but you struggle with it, share it with me and I’ll try and figure it out and we can go through it as a class.  One thing about questions is that often times you are not the only one with that question, but maybe are just the first one with the courage to ask it.  You’re welcome to ask questions at any point or even say that you don’t agree or like something that we do.

Tonight we are going to discuss the 5 W’s.  Through school, we’ve been encouraged to look at them when reading for comprehension and when writing.  The 5 W’s are WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE and WHY.  We can also add a HOW to that list if we want to.  If we apply it to the scripture, it is a great resource as well.  One of the things that may be a trip-up, though is that you may not be able to find the answer to a few of these questions.  For me a finished worksheet with blanks is daunting, but it is okay not to have all of the answers.
This is one way of doing the 5 W's worksheet.  This has been designed by me with no references.  Feel free to copy and paste it, adapt it to fit your needs, but please do not sell it.

This is another way of doing the 5 W's worksheet.  This has been designed by me with no references.  Feel free to copy and paste it, adapt it to fit your needs, but please do not sell it.

Often times the text itself will give us all of the information we need to understand the 5W’s.  Sometimes it is not there, but the introduction to a book will give us assistance.  Do note that not all Bible publishers agree on this information and so since we weren’t there at the time it was written, we just need to trust God for His direction.  A good thing to do before studying the Bible is to pray over it.  We need not bank our relationship with God and the study of His Word on humanity.  God sent us His Holy Spirit to help guide us in these things.

Why would we not be able to find out the information on this sheet?

First of all is the WHO.  Not every author of Bible books is known, so if a scholar with a life-long career in Bible research doesn’t know an author, we should not feel upset if we don’t find that answer.  The who can also be characters in a story or people groups.  Sometimes it is implied and sometimes it is a cultural implication.  We as Americans will not understand the intent.

Next is WHAT.  More often than not we will find a “what” in the scripture.  The what can be a situation or an object or structure or idea.  If it is not obvious right away, we don’t have to fret and we can come back to it.

WHEN.  When is very often difficult to determine.  Sometimes the best answer we can get is daytime or springtime.  Sometimes it is a specific time like the 12th day of the month of Adar.  There are calendars and helps that can assist us in figuring out the season and comparable date on the Gregorian calendar. 

WHERE.  The where can be in bed or in a specific town or country.  In a boat can also be where.

WHY.  This section is often up to interpretation.  Sometimes the Word gives it plainly.  This is one that we can often get hung up on and many Christians actually debate them.

HOW.  Sometimes a scripture will say that the "how" is to believe … Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and You will be saved. (not in quotes because it may not be exact)  So the answer to, “How can I be saved?” is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.”

We will go through some worksheets together looking at the Book of Jonah.

Here is an example of how a 5W's worksheet could look when it is filled out.  Everyone in the class had their sheets filled out differently.  No one way is right or wrong.

Lesson 7.0 worksheet

T/F  You should keep studying a scripture until all sections of the 5W’s page is filled out.

T/F  There can be more than one answer to any of the 5W’s

What is one place to look outside of the chapters and verses to find answers to the 5 W’s?

If you’ve been successful at journaling, try writing the 5 W’s out in your journal as you study a passage and document it there.

HOMEWORK

Finish looking at the book of Jonah and answer the 5 W’s for each chapter.  If we finish it in class, try the book of Jude.  It is only one chapter long, but some of the answers may be a little more difficult to find.

1 comment:

  1. Lesson 7.0 Answers

    False - sometimes you may not find all of the answers

    True

    Within the chapter itself, in the introduction to the chapter, in the footnotes, in a study helps book. (These are some of the possible answers)

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