3 Bible Study Rules That Changed Everything

Lessons I've learned Working at a Women's Ministry"

Theology study days are my favorite days. I get to work full time at an amazing ministry, Proverbs 31 Ministries. Yes, all you Bible scholars, P31 is a women’s ministry and I’m a guy. How does it work? I’m not exactly sure, but it’s been working for 10 years and I’m grateful to partner with some amazing women in ministry who are brilliant and truly love the Word of God. Our mission statement at Proverbs is:

Know the Truth, Live the Truth, because it changes everything.

(Source: Brand, Chad, Charles Draper, Archie England, Steve Bond, E. Ray Clendenen, and Trent C. Butler, eds. “Vulgate.” In Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003.)

Of course, the “truth” is the Scriptures, and the Scriptures point us to the person of Jesus. So we take Bible study really seriously, but also love to have fun as we study the Scriptures. Back to theology study days. I get to host theology study days with my mentor and boss, Lysa TerKeurst. For the vast majority of you, Lysa needs no introduction. If you don’t know who she is, search her name on Amazon, pick up one of her books, and you can thank me later :)

When we do theology study days, I usually start the day with a big ask from everyone. Three specific asks. And if you’ve ever wondered how I study the Bible, what my method is, or how I approach the text, I’m telling you everything I do. It will sound simple, but it is far from simplistic. So, here are the three things that I think should be a requirement for every time you approach the Bible to read AND understand it.

You see, lots of people can read the Bible. But comprehension, knowing what it means on its own terms, is often seriously lacking. I believe these three things will help you.

First, we have to be committed to come to the Bible with honest hearts.

Second, we have to be persistent to always first open our Bibles and stay rooted in the text.

Third, not forever, but for a moment, we should commit to laying aside what we think we know about the Bible or what the text says.

Commitment To Honest Hearts

The Bible has a lot to say about the “heart.” Consider the following verses:

“Guard your heart [Leb] above all else, for it is the source of life.” (Proverbs 4:23, CSB)

“As water reflects the face, so the heart [Leb] reflects the person.” (Proverbs 27:19, CSB)

“But what comes out of the mouth comes from the heart [kardia], and this defiles a person. For from the heart [kardia] come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies, slander.” (Matthew 15:18–19, CSB)

“A good person produces good out of the good stored up in his heart. An evil person produces evil out of the evil stored up in his heart, for his mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart.” (Luke 6:45, CSB)

In Hebrew thought, the “heart” was not simply the place of emotion, but the wellspring of volition. In other words, it is the center of human character and an indication of the inner life.¹ With this understanding (which the Greek language in the New Testament, with Kardia, picks up on and develops), when we think about having open hearts, it is an invitation to expose the honest and vulnerable parts of who we are to the only one who can truly be trusted with that vulnerability, Yahweh. The English word “vulnerable” comes from the Latin “vulnarare,” which means “to be wounded.”² Sometimes we are closed off because we fear being wounded. And that is so human. However, when we are dealing with God, we can do so in confident assurance that what the Lord brings our way, even if we perceive it as wounding, is in fact for our ultimate good and aimed at the restoration of our humanity.

Persistent To Open Our Bibles

Some years ago, as I was finishing my PhD program, I came to the realization that I was reading more words about God than God’s actual words. We live in a world of access. We have access to commentaries. We have access to brilliant Bible teachers and their teaching via social media. We have access to ChatGPT now. But the thing that is most important, yet sadly at times neglected, is access to the Word of God. The entire Bible from Genesis through Revelation. So, before I turn to my favorite commentaries, or look for sermons from my favorite pastors, I want to first turn to the Scriptures. This is where my wisdom starts. This is what informs my discernment. The Word of God has to fill my heart, so it can effectively inform my actions.

We could summarize it this way: When in doubt, turn to God’s word.

For A Moment, Not Forever, Lay Aside Your Prior Understanding

We all come to situations with prior understandings (presuppositions). For example, I come into every conversation about basketball with the unshakeable belief that Michael Jordan is the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time). Now, my belief may make more sense to you if you learned that I grew up in Chicago, watched the Bulls win the first three rings with Jordan leading them, and then ran it back after Jordan’s 2-year retirement just to win another three in a row. You see, my background and the fact that I grew up in the city of Chicago inform my understanding and beliefs.

The same is true for the church. You’ve inevitably learned things about what the Bible teaches. You’ve heard Christian sayings and adopted certain principles. When I go into my time studying the Bible, I want to put aside what I think I know, to ensure that the Bible actually teaches that. Then, when I unpack what the Bible says on its own terms, I can put that up against what I’ve been taught or have learned. Sometimes they will align perfectly, praise God! Other times we will notice areas of nuance that will require us to refine our views. And still other times we will be shocked to find out the Bible actually doesn’t say what we thought it said.

For example, we’ve probably heard the phrase, “God hates divorce” and presumed that it comes from the Bible. Well, kind of. Malachi 2:16 does talk about divorce, but unpacking what it actually says in the original language with the cultural context of the time might surprise you to learn what it actually says. Here is a very brief rundown. The full teaching can be found in the book I co-authored with Lysa TerKeurst and counselor Jim Cress, “Surviving an Unwanted Divorce: A Biblical, Practical Guide to Letting Go While Holding Yourself Together”

Let’s look at Malachi 2:16. The challenge starts with the KJV/NKJV translation of the Bible.

“For the Lord God of Israel says that He hates divorce, For it covers one’s garment with violence,” Says the Lord of hosts. Therefore take heed to your spirit, That you do not deal treacherously.” Malachi 2:16 (NKJV)

The Hebrew of Malachi 2:16 is one of the most difficult verses to translate. The KJV/NKJV are forced into moving from a “translation” decision into making an “interpretation” decision to clear up the ambiguity of the original Hebrew. And here’s the thing, I think they got this one terribly wrong!

Notice how differently the ESV and CSB translate/interpret this verse compared to the KJV/NKJV:

Malachi 2:16 (ESV): For the man who does not love his wife but divorces her, says the Lord, the God of Israel, covers his garment with violence…

Malachi 2:16 (CSB): If he hates and divorces his wife,” says the Lord God of Israel, “he covers his garment with injustice,”

I think the CSB gets this right. The Greek phrase ʾallà e̓àn misḗsas e̓xapostéilēs is constructed as a participle and subjunctive. This basically means that this phrase should be translated “if hating you divorce” or “if you divorce out of hatred.” This means that the “hatred” in this verse is connected to the manner in which the man is seeking out a divorce from his wife.

Now, there is much more to be said about this. You can read about it in “Surviving An Unwanted Divorce.”

But the point I’m really trying to make is that the phrase you may have heard, “God hates divorce,” is actually imprecise. And when we put aside what we think we know and go directly to the text with honest hearts and open Bibles, we may learn something that could be so significant for us.

These are principles that should serve as guideposts as you journey with the Holy Spirit, who is leading you into the process of sanctification.

Now, what are you waiting for? Open your Bibles and dig in!

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Opportunity For You!

I usually try to add a research project for fun in the margins of my time when I’m not working on other projects. I try to keep the topic something that is a category adjacent to my area of training (Biblical Theology) and is also culturally relevant. Well, the topic I’ve decided on for this season is - Christian Nationalism : )

Now, I’m going to be working through this slowly. I’ll be reading deeply, writing my thoughts through papers and articles here on Substack, and doing some book reviews/commentary along the way. If you want access to these early articles that are pretty raw and where I will ask for your feedback, I’d love to invite you to upgrade to a paid Substack membership.

A couple benefits for paid members:

1. You get an extra exclusive article a month

2. You get full access to my entire article archive. Currently my articles are free for 7 weeks before going into the locked archive

3. You can interact with me (and this community) directly through a group chat that I will kick off for this specific topic

4. You get to support me in my ministry work and help me to provide free theological content through my writing and teaching.

I literally can’t do this without you!

1. David J. A. Clines, ed., “לֵבָב,” in The Concise Dictionary of Classical Hebrew (Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2009), 189.

2. William Whitaker, in Dictionary of Latin Forms (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2012).