Week Two (Bible Study) - Sunday

Bible

In the Wesleyan tradition, of which The United Methodist Church belongs, theological assertions are tested through four components of discernment: Reason, Experience, Tradition, and Scripture, known commonly as the Wesleyan Quadrilateral. While these four elements work in harmony with each other scripture is considered to be primary. It is considered to be foundational because it is the most tangible and accepted form of God's revelation in the world today. Of three main religions which trace their roots through Judaic heritage - Judaism, Christianity, and Islam - all look to scripture for God's revelation for them and their worldview.

The word Bible is derived from the Greek word, biblia, which means "books." Anyone who has perused through the pages of one has found that the Bible is not just one book, but is actually an anthology, a collection of books, with some of them being in the form of letters, also known as epistles. Most of those who read this accept the Bible as containing sixty-six books, thirty-nine in the Old Testament and twenty-seven in the New Testament. These sixty-six books are generally accepted as the Protestant Canon. The word canon is an English word that is derived from a Greek word, which means "standard" or "rule." But this is not one overarching rule for all Bibles. Different Christian traditions have their own canon. For example, our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters accept an addition seven books as part of their Bible, including Tobit, 1 & 2 Maccabees, and four others, which are not found in the Bibles that Protestant read. Most Protestant churches, such as United Methodists, Lutherans, Baptists, and Presbyterians, generally accept sixty-six as the canon, the ones which are deemed to be authoritative.

Translations of the Bible

In the canon with which we are most familiar, there is a myriad of translations and paraphrased versions. Without question, the most widely recognized version is the King James Version, which was commissioned in the year 1604 and completed in 1611. While the King James Version is the oldest in the English language, it is not the oldest. Nor is it in the original language; it too is a translation. The Bible was not written by any one person or even in the same time period. It has many authors, all of whom were inspired by God and written over a millennia. Some of the writers wrote down sacred stories that had been passed down by oral tradition for generations, while others wrote personal accounts, and some person letters. Sine it was written by so many different people, the original languages which were used were Hebrew and Greek. This poses one problem in translating as not all words in these languages have a comparable word in the English language or it may be able to be translated in multiple ways in English. Another problem is that when the original text was written, the paper, vellum, or other material used on which to write, was scarce. Being so prized a possession, every available space on the paper or material was used for writing. Yet this was not enough. So, many of the authors opted to omit vowels in the words and even the spaces between the words. Imagine the difficulty in translating texts written like that! As an illustration, imagine you are trying to translate the following: GDSNWHR. Can you make sense of that? Now imagine after many grueling weeks, months, or even years, you have figured out that the missing vowels are O, I, and E. You carefully place them in the right spots and now you have this: GODISNOWHERE. You are quite happy with yourself until your assistant points out that after adding in spaces, the phrase can be read either as GOD IS NOW HERE or conversely, GOD IS NOWHERE. So even the spacing of the words can change the tone and nature of translating.

But as people of faith, we believe that just as God inspired the writing of the Bible, God is also in the process of translating. Some may think that this just cannot be so because some of the translations are so different - there are some big difference between the King James Version and The Message - thus one must be wrong! But this is not so when you begin to loo at the Bible as being God's revelation, or God speaking to us today, then you will realize that God can and does speak to each of us personally through the various translations.

Why Study the Bible

United Methodist bishop, Richard Wilke, writer of DSICIPLE: Becoming Disciples Through Bible Study, has said that if biblical illiteracy were a disease, we would be in the midst of an epidemic. Far too many people regard the Bible as a book of good stories or wise sayings, much like a book of ancient Chinese proverbs or spiritual anecdotes. But the Bible is so much more than that. It is a record of history, our history, of who we are, from where we have come, what price was paid for  us, and where we are going. It is the divine conveyance of God's love for each and every creature upon the face of the earth and the lengths that God will go to demonstrate that love. It is the written evidence of how God has worked throughout human history, setting things into motion at just the right time so that you and I can be here today. It is the source of God speaking to and guiding our ancestors long ago and a vehicle through which God speaks to and guides us today. It is the only written source what can address our humanity. Every emotion, thought, dream, triumph, and failure that your have ever experienced is similarly expressed there. It is the one tool that we have readily available to us to seek answers to some of life's most troubling problems. The amazing thing that arises from deep Bible study is that the more that you feed on its words, the more you hunger for more - and it continues to feed and nourish your soul from its endless supply. The psalmist proclaims in Psalm 19:10, studying the ordinances, or decrees, of the Lord is "more to be desired...than gold, even much more than fine gold; sweeter than honey, and drippings of the honeycomb."

Ways to Study the Bible

To pick up and just hold a Bible and then to realize that in your hands are some of the very thoughts and words of the Creator of the universe can be very humbling experience, without ever reading a word. But friend, reading it and studying its message is exactly for what it is intended. An unopened and unread Bible is nothing more than a stack of paper. Sadly, there are too many Bibles that are used as nothing more than cultural icons, pretty to look at, but with little relevance to anyone's life.

The purpose of this session is to help familiarize you with ways to study the Bible. Basically, there are two ways to approach studying the Bible: by reading into the text and bringing out from the text.

The first method, reading into the text, known by scholars as eisegesis, is probably the most common way that people read the Bible. A simple demonstration of such is to randomly find a passage to read and then reflect on what was said. By this method, we try to discern what God may be saying to us now. This is a valid way o f studying the Bible, but it is not the only way. For those who are serious about scholarly study of the Bible, it is not considered the best way. This is because there is a danger in this manner of study because it is all too easy to slip into an egocentric frame of mind. In this state, we look at the Bible as being written specifically for us and for this moment in life. Thus, we begin to negate the fact that the Bible was originally written for a particular people at a particular time in history. If we are in this state of mind while searching for answers to some troublesome issue, then that is when we tend to flip through the countless pages until we find one passage that gives us the answer we may want, but not necessarily the one that we may need.

The second method to approach studying the Bible is through what is referred to as exegesis, which is to bring out from the text the meaning. Through this method, we derive a meaning and an understanding, not the meaning or the understanding. It emphasizes that the Bible is bigger than any one person can understand or of have total knowledge. This approach also employs reading the passage in its context, taking into account the historical significance of the time it was written and the cultural relevance therein. Through this method, we are able to see how God worked in that particular situation, the uniqueness of the actions taken, and how special each person is to God. By employing this method, each word takes on greater importance and appreciation for the passage and the situation is heightened as we see the complexity through which God is able to work.

While studying the Bible, it is imperative to remember that it is only a tool to be used to help gain vision of God, but it is not God. One term that that is commonly used for the Bible is "Word of God." In a sense, this is correct as the Bible is a collection words of [about] God and inspired words from God, but it is not the Word. That title solely belongs to Jesus. The Gospel of John attest to this assertion at it states in John 1:1. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God" and in John 1:14, "Ad the Word became flesh and lived among us..." As a seminary professor proclaimed on multiple occasions, "The Word became flash, not printer's ink!" No, he was not engaging in sacrilege, he was just reiterating the fact that Jesus alone is the Word of God. To treat the bible as the Word is rob Jesus of his divine title. The Bible lacks the power that is only given to Jesus, to be the saviour of the world.


JOURNAL QUESTIONS

1. Reflect on your sermon notes and journal reading from today.



GROUP EXERCISE

10 minutes - Community Building (informal time of gathering)
10 minutes - Sharing of Concerns and Praises
  5 minutes - Prayer for One Another
30 minutes - Discussion of Topic
                     - What journal entry would you like to share?
                     - Which translation of the Bible do you read? Why?
                     - How do you normally read the Bible? (Meditatively, methodically, guided by a 
                       devotional...?)
  5 minutes - Wrap Up/Closing Prayer