Scripture Study: Information to Transformation
by Chris Collins
Reading the Bible and studying doesn’t come easy for many. I was blessed with a Biblical foundation that many do not get. My Dad was a preacher, and when very young I remember being taught Bible stories with flannel-graph Bible figures (the 1960s-’80s equivalent to VeggieTales videos). I sat with my mother during Wednesday Night Adult Bible Study where “Lamentations” and “Revelation” became some of my new vocabulary words. Between 3rd and 6th grade I went to Sunday youth program called Jet Cadets, earning rewards and ribbons for reciting the books of the Bible, memorizing lists of Scripture verses and sharpening the skill of “sword drills” to see who could look up a verse fastest. While I was in high school, when there was no teacher on Sunday morning, I taught 1st and 2nd graders about Adam and Eve, Noah and the Ark, Daniel and the Lion’s Den, and David & Goliath. There was a pretty good grasp of the Bible basics for sure, but I had I really read the Bible? No.
During orientation week at Bible College, we were given a test to check our Bible knowledge. I sat right down with my sharpened #2 pencil, opened the test booklet, and very confidently began reading the questions. It took just a few minutes to realize I didn’t know even a fraction of the answers.
It was several years after college graduation when I stepped out and got serious about studying the Bible to deepen my relationship with God. I had spent far too long relying on the things I was taught as a child or sweet things I had read in nice devotional books. There’s nothing wrong with Biblically based devotional books, but many people use them as a quick easy substitution for the actual Word of God (me included). Even well into my adult years, I lingered way too long in the “Bible 101,” easy, “milk” stage. But with true conviction and obedience, I wanted to intentionally begin working on understanding “solid food” as Paul puts it in 1 Corinthians 3.
I wanted to be a disciplined student of the Word, and I had witnessed this in the lives of several Christian women God had put in my adult life.
Marty taught the women’s Sunday School class, studying diligently, and providing real-life applications. Her life was a bold statement of God’s truth.
Laura encouraged me to “literally pray to be hungry for God’s Word.” Her life showed beautiful devotion to God’s Word.
Roxanne fixed up a specially dedicated, serene place in her house where she read the Bible and studied and made notes daily. Her life showed the sweet resolve of God’s love and peace.
Sue wrote out one particular Scripture verse from her Bible reading each day on a 3x5 card. Then throughout her day she would give away that little card…. to a friend, or a store clerk, teacher, bank teller, neighbor, you name it. Her life showed a life of inspiration.
And my own sweet Mom. She read her Bible early every morning, studied for all the upcoming lessons, wrote out daily Scriptures, and then completely filled journal after journal of daily applications to her Christian life, her marriage, parenting, finances, health and many other areas. Mom’s life showed discipline, gratefulness and faithfulness.
I prayed about how to make personal Bible study a real deal in my life, and God answered. I added a trustworthy version of the Bible to my Kindle, and purposefully set my alarm to get up in plenty of time to read before work. Early morning was not my favorite so I was worried I would oversleep, but funny thing…God woke me up even before the alarm. I prayed for God to make me hungry for His Word and began reading Genesis.
My daunting plan was to read straight through the Bible no matter how long it took. Genesis turned into Exodus, and I’ll leave out the details of my prayer before beginning Leviticus, but I read it, learned from it, and didn’t quit. I began prioritizing Bible reading over every other form of reading; Bible first! If I missed a morning of Bible reading for whatever reason, I didn’t let myself read anything else. Somewhere along the line basic Bible reading became studying. The more I read, the more I wanted deeper things explained. Never stop asking questions. I still don’t know how well I would do on that freshman Bible knowledge test if I had to take it again, but I’m confident my score would be better than when I was 18.
I don’t keep track of how many times I’ve read straight through the Bible or read any particular book in it, but words don’t express how much joy this discipline of Bible reading and studying has brought to my relationship with my Lord and Savior. Studying has brought new understanding and a new passion for God’s Word.
This year, our church has been using a great book, CORE 52 – A Fifteen-Minute Daily Guide to Build your Bible IQ in a Year, as a basis for sermons and personal study. It’s been a fantastic program for our entire church to dig deeper into the Word. Author Mark E Moore states, “The goal of reading the Bible is not information, but transformation.” I love that! It’s still a work in progress, but my life has absolutely been transformed!
If you don’t have a regular Bible reading routine, seriously pray to be hungry. Pick a time and place to meet with the Author & Perfecter of our faith.
The process of working on any spiritual discipline is not easy, so I challenge everyone to share your experiences and blessings from reading God’s Word with those who think it’s too hard.
Look for those people in your life who, past or present, model this spiritual discipline of reading and studying Scripture. Thank them for allowing their lives to be a testimony.
Personally, I thank Marty, Laura, Roxanne, Sue, and my sweet Mom.
Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.
Hebrews 13:7
