Where the Rubber Meets the Road: How to Study the Bible, Part 3
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.—James 1:22
Over the past posts, we have been on quite a journey as we have learned the basics of personal inductive Bible study. To recap, as Howard Hendricks outlines in Living by the Book,
Observation asks the question “What do I see?”
Interpretation asks the question “What does it mean?”
Application asks the question “How does it work?”
Every step builds on the next. Better observations help us with more accurate interpretations. These then help us to apply more specifically so that we love God and love others more fully, helping us grow in our Christlikeness in the everyday context of our lives.
Mistakes in Application
Howard Hendricks also writes, “You can get mentally excited by the truth, yet fail to be morally changed by it. If and when that happens, you know there must be something wrong with your study of the Bible." So what might go wrong?
One common mistake in Bible study is to apply a passage without doing the hard work of observing and interpreting carefully. This can lead to equally faulty—or on the extreme, heretical or ungodly justifications for sinful actions.
Another mistake is the reverse: doing excellent work in observation and interpretation but stopping short of bringing Scripture to bear in your life. This is like gorging ourselves at a feast and not working it off with exercise. In these two mistakes, Bible study starts and ends in interpretation, without observation or application involved.
Lastly, it is easy to mistake other things for application.
We could simply substitute the study process for application, as mentioned already. We can also settle for emotional responses, be it rejoicing or remorse, without changing anything. We can also mistake application for telling others accurately about what you’ve learned without letting it change your heart first.
While there’s nothing wrong with study, emotions, or sharing with others, application is a personal response to God, sometimes accompanied by action on behalf of others.
Obstacles to Application
As with many good and important things, expect opposition when you get to this stage.
For starters, there’s our own blindness. Though we may be saints, remember that we are growing into this identity. There are many areas of weakness or sin we are completely unable to see, even as a seasoned believer.
Another could be spiritual opposition. If Satan can tempt us to simply not apply what we’ve learned, even if he doesn’t overtly attack us, he’s already won.
Application is also costly. Sometimes I don’t think it’s worth the sacrifice so I don’t. Or sometimes I know that even if it is worth it, I’m not sure I want to pay the price.
And then there’s flat-out laziness. It takes work to make changes. And if I’m honest, it takes too much effort.
Admittedly, there are obstacles like these to application (and more besides!). I’m sure you have reasons not on this list.
But every time we settle for the mistakes or quit when obstacles arise, we abort the sanctification process and deceive ourselves. We become what James warns against: hearers of the Word only.
It doesn’t matter how many times we read the Bible if it doesn’t change us. Get into the Word, but also let it get into you. Like the last few miles in a marathon, let us push through this last hardest bit until we get to the finish line!
Preparing for Application
If blindness is real, then the first thing we can do is start by praying with David “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” (Ps. 139:23-24)
God’s Word is meant to be a mirror as much as it is a feast (James 1:25). If we looked in a mirror and knew we had spinach stuck in our teeth or our makeup is smudged or our hair is a mess, we’d fix it, right?
So prepare for application by admitting that we need help to overcome the natural inertia of our hearts. Ask God to help open our blind eyes first, that we may apply it in areas we may not recognize.
Even if this is a scary prayer to pray, remember that letting God reveal our hearts is a good thing. For me personally, my greatest seasons of growth are often correlated with eye-opening revelations of the true nature of my heart. Painful as they were, the remorse I felt was just what I needed to kick-start me in a new direction with God.
Different Kinds of Application
Some passages in Scripture are what Mike Emlet calls “ditch” passages. They are often commands easy to connect to life.
Some encourage us to pursue righteousness. Others urge us to turn away from evil. They’re direct, even if we can apply them in many different situations.
However, there are other passages that he refers to as “canyon” passages. Maybe they’re a bit of a stretch to apply. How do you apply a genealogy or the dimensions of the temple or dietary law?
Sometimes we limit application to taking action, about doing something. The commands certainly suggest that.
But might there be other ways of applying Scripture? I think so.
Responding in Prayer: Our Vertical Response
Sometimes application can take the form of prayer: in worship, lament, or confession. These are what we call “vertical” applications—the Godward response.
Have you considered that prayer is also action? It is an active response directed to God, not just actions towards others. And that is an equally valid form of application.
If application is helping us to become like Christ, then we can view prayer as becoming more like Him.
It can be a response of worship, praise or thanksgiving as the reality of what God has done for us in the Gospel and in our daily circumstances. This is one way we can respond as a saint.
It can be a response of grief and lament voiced honestly before Him as the reality of our broken relationships or situation pierces us and we feel despair. This is how we can respond as a sufferer.
It can be a response of repentance expressed in our confession of sin and guilt. This is how we can respond as a sinner.
Responding in Action: Our Horizontal Response
Sometimes, however, application can and should impact the way we live—the “horizontal” dimension. Second Timothy 3:16-17 gives us some great guidelines.
The first step towards living and acting differently often begins with thinking differently. It teaches me something new, or it corrects lies and replaces them with the truth. This can then mean meditating on Scripture so that it begins to reshape our perspective on how we look at life (Col. 3:2). Sometimes memorizing a key verse helps keep my mind meditating on truth.
This often is what I need to inspire and motivate me towards the next step: living differently. Sometimes Bible study reveals new ways to look at a current issue or problem and I learn a new way to put truth into action in a particular area of my life. It helps me deal with sins that entangle me, obey commands I don’t want to obey, or simply change a bad attitude.
At other times, the fruit of my meditation leads me to follow the example of Christ or actively design a plan of action to engage in a difficult conversation with others or change a habit that keeps me mired in old and unhelpful patterns.
And finally, my time in Scripture can mean adding something new to my life as part of my training and equipping in righteousness. This could be pursuing a new ministry friendship, adding a new element to my routine, or changing how I do things, all for the purpose of helping me to live more like Christ and align my life to reflect Him more truly.
No Stone Left Unturned
Though the principles we learn in our study of Scripture may be broad, it is meant to impact both our worship and our work.
So when thinking about application, stretch the limits we often set on ourselves. Ask the Lord to help you bring this bit of Scripture into a bit of your life: your thought life, emotions, conversations, relationships, burdens, fears, sex life, finances, time management, parenting, decisions, problems, deadlines, ministry, attitudes, preferences.
In all of these ways, we express our earnest desire to reflect our Savior and walk in His ways more faithfully.
And when you find that connection, take the time to flesh it out. Don’t rush! Take a few days if needed to write out an application.
You don’t need to apply the entire passage you studied in order to practice application. As David Powlison describes in his article, “Think Globally, Act Locally,” it is about connecting “one bit of Scripture to one bit of life.”
So ask yourself:
Do I need to make changes in how I interact with God? With others?
What would that change look like?
What keeps me from making that change? How can the power of the Gospel help give me the strength to overcome the obstacle or respond differently?
What positive steps can I take towards godly change? How can I replace the old with the new by the power of the Spirit?
Zoom Back Out
After all our study, it is important to come up for air again. Zoom back out.
Sometimes this is what gives me the impetus to take the hard steps of faith. In obeying this piece of Scripture today, how can I express faith? Trust? Testify? Serve as an example? Help others grow? Further His kingdom story? in the Lord’s rescue, your salvation, furthering His Kingdom Story?
I’ll touch on this some more in a future post, but it’s important to note that learning to apply Scripture is not just to make my life better. The end of application is Christlikeness.
John Milton writes, "The end of all learning is to know God, and out of that knowledge to love and imitate Him."
So let us persevere to this end. There is great reward when we take the eternal and sufficient Word of God and bring its truths into our relationships, work, and culture. May we reap the benefits of Bible study as we seek God for specific ways to shape how we worship and live today.
