WORKMEN OF GOD'S WORD

(OUTLINE)

I.	Enjoy the Bible.
	A.	Get in the habit of reading the Bible for enjoyment. 
		Don't always study.  Jeremiah 15:16.
	B.	Become familiar with the whole Bible.  Develop a scope of
		the whole Bible.  II Timothy 3:16.
	C.	Ask questions when you read.
	D.	Read what others have written about the Bible only in
		light of what the Bible says about itself.
	E.	The purpose of learning is application.  Become a doer of
		the Word, not just a hearer.  James 1:22-25; Matthew
		7:24-27.
II.  Scripture must interpret itself.
	A.	The Bible is the Word of God.  II Peter 1:21; II Timothy
		3:16; Galatians 1:11-12.
		1.	God's Word cannot contradict itself.
		2.	God's Word is the final authority on what His Word
			means.
	B.	Scripture must be interpreted or explained in order for
		people to understand it.  Acts 8:30-31; Nehemiah 8:1-12;
		Luke 24:25-32.
	C.	Who determines what God's Word means?
		1.	Church leadership?  If the blind lead the blind,
			both will fall into the ditch.
		2.	The individual?  A blind man can fall in the ditch
			all by himself.
		3.	The spirit?  We are not to believe every spirit,
			but to try the spirits, to determine whether they
			are of God.
		4.	God's Word as its own interpreter.
	D.	Traps to avoid.
		1.	Tradition.  Matthew 15:1-9.
		2.	Commandments and doctrines of men.  Colossians
			2:16-23; I Timothy 4:2.
		3.	Elevating specific revelation above the written
			Word of God.  Galatians 1:8-9; I John 4:1.
		4.	Bringing your own ideas to the Word of God.
III. Steps to Biblical Accuracy.
	A.	The individual word must be understood (in light of its
		Biblical usage).
	B.	The words must fit in the verse.
	C.	The verse must fit with the immediate context.
	D.	The immediate context must flow with the remoter context.
	E.	The word or words must be understood in light of to whom
		it is written.
	F.	The words must be understood in light of Biblical customs
		and mannerisms.
	G.	Words must be understood in light of figures of speech.
IV.  The individual word must be understood in light of its
	Biblical usage.
	A.	Let the Bible be its own dictionary.
	B.	Some words used in the King James Version of the Bible
		are obsolete.
	C.	Some words used in the King James Version of the Bible
		have changed their meaning since the version was made.
	D.	The meanings of some words are different in the original
		languages than in English.
	E.	One English word may be used to translate several
		different words in the original languages, each with its
		own specific meaning.
	F.	One word in the original languages may be translated by
		several different English words.
	G.	God did not always use Hebrew, Aramaic or Greek words the
		same way the people used them.  God's definition, as used
		in His Word, is authoritative.
	H.	God sometimes uses a single word in the original
		languages in more than one way.
	I.	Make sure that you understand each word in the verse.
		1.	Make sure that you understand the meaning of the
			English word.
		2.	Make sure that you understand the meaning of the
			underlying Hebrew, Aramaic or Greek word, where
			necessary.
		3.	Make sure that you understand how the word is used
			in God's Word.
V.	The words must fit in the verse.
	A.	Remember that verses, chapters, etc., were added by men,
		not by God.
	B.	Do all the words in the verse make sense in light of what
		the verse is saying?
	C.	What light is shed on the meaning of the individual word
		or words by what the verse is saying?
	D.	Look at the verse grammatically.
VI.  The verse must fit with the immediate context.
	A.	Where does the context, or train of thought, begin and
		end?  There may be contexts within contexts.
	B.	Does the verse make sense in and of itself?
	C.	What is the immediate context saying?
	D.	Does the verse mean the seme thing when read in light of
		the context?
	E.	What do the conjunctions tell you about how the verse
		fits in the context?
VII. The immediate context must flow with the remoter context.
	A.	What does the Word as a whole say regarding this subject?
	B.	How does what is said in this scripture line up with what
		the rest of the Word says?
	C.	The words in the verse must be in harmony, not only with
		the verse and the immediate context, but with every
		scripture relating to the same subject as well.
	D.	The difficult verse must be understood in light of the
		many clear verses on the same subject.
	E.	Scripture buildup; narrative development.  One scripture
		may add to the information given in another scripture on
		the same subject or incident, but one scripture cannot
		contradict another on the same subject or incident.
	F.	Develop a scope of the Word by reading the Bible for fun.
		1.	Read areas of the Bible that you don't normally
			read.
		2.	Learn Bible history.
		3.	Make notes in your Bible where one scripture sheds
			light on another.
		4.	Write down questions regarding anything you don't
			understand.
		5.	Pray.  James 1:5.
VIII.  Word or words must be understood in light of to whom
	addressed.
	A.	All scripture is addressed to one or more of three
		groups:  Jews, Gentiles, or Church of God.  I Corinthians
		10:32.
	B.	Administrations:
		1.	Original Paradise.
		2.	Patriarchal.
		3.	Law.
		4.	Christ.
		5.	Grace (Present).
		6.	Appearing.
		7.	Final Paradise.
	C.	Scripture must be interpreted in light of:
		1.	To whom it is addressed.
		2.	Which administration(s) it pertains to.
	D.	Scripture addressed to you is to be interpreted regarding
		you, and is to be applied by you.
	E.	Scripture not addressed to you may be applied by you only
		to the extent that it agrees with what is written to you.