Bible Study

Bible study is meant for getting closer to God. It is basically academic study of the scripture. Bible study has a lot of objectives like attaining feelings of fellowship, repentance, obedience, service, faith, hope, love, wisdom, freedom discipline etc. Bible studies are meant for all kinds of people, of all ages. They are general guidelines for understanding Jesus Christ, Christianity, salvation, the church, and the meaning of life according to Christianity. The main objective is to make life more meaningful and worthy.

Bible study is traditionally offered at special bible schools or colleges or other bible institutions. Some Universities in Europe also have bible study as part of the curriculum. There are two kinds of bible studies: 1) an Exegesis to understand the inherent meaning of the scriptures and 2) as a training to become a minister. Similarly, there is no particular way in which the bible can be studied. It can be studied as a part of the subject of theology or it can be learnt just to understand the literal meaning of the bible.

There are various stages in bible study such as Bible 1, Bible 2 or Bible 3. Generally, bible study involves the study of the Old Testament (Genesis along with the other four books of the Pentateuch), New Testament comprising of the Gospel account of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in a fourfold setting and Acts of the Apostles, Paul’s Epistles, the major treatises of Romans (i.e. Epistle to the Romans) and Revelation.

Bible study is a study of many different aspects. These may include: salvation, mortality, baptism, the Holy Spirit, obedience, troubles, forgiveness, creation and evolution, marriage conflict and life after death. Other general topics may comprise of culture and background, men, women, prayer, prophecy, theology, end times and basics of Christianity. The main purpose is to know what the bible says about God, money, shame, hope, mercy, tests, trials, suffering, faith, repentance, confession, sacrifice, faithfulness and so on. Bible study also teaches about relationships, responsibilities of Christians, church work, and the attitudes and commitment required for being a good Christian.

Bible study can be by books, videos, CDs, the internet etc. There are several websites that provide bible study. There are many organizations which provide bible study courses. These can be regular full time courses, part time or evening courses. These courses are also classified according to age groups. There are special bible study classes for children as young as even 3 years old. Here, bible study is through lively discussions, lectures, notes and interactive games like quizzes and puzzles. These organizations publish several books and journals for enabling easier bible study. These books contain easier versions of the bible stories as well as translation of Hebrew and Greek words into English.

There are also online bible studies in special websites. They are also sent as daily email to the members. Some of these are paid services while some are free of cost. Most sites also provide easy translation tools for enabling bible study in many languages. The internet is a very good source for knowing more about bible study.