BIBLE STUDY AND PRAYER
I. INTRODUCTION
Everyone raised in church has repeatedly heard about Bible study and prayer. Sadly, repetition is required because we tend to forget to do them even if we have been Christians for thirty years. If you are a new convert, please listen closely to this lesson and make a concerted effort to study your Bible and pray daily. Faithfulness in these two things will hasten your Christian maturity. Soon you will be surpassing many that are older than you in the Lord.
II. BIBLE STUDY
{A} Frequency
Joshua 1:8
This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
We often think that a Sunday school lesson, two sermons on Sunday, and a bible Study on Wednesday night are enough for us. We wonder why with all that teaching we are not as successful as we desire in our Christian life. As this verse says, we have not realized that we are to meditate or chew on the Word like a cow does its cud day and night. We want spiritual fast food and then wonder why we have indigestion and poor nutrition. If we would eat physical meals like we eat spiritual ones there would not be an overweight Christian on the planet. Indeed, we would all be anorexics. (Matthew 4:4; Luke 4:4) We fuss about coming to church two days a week and two services on one day. Yet, the early church met daily to learn and to fellowship. (Acts 2:42-47) They turned the world upside down and we have trouble turning out of bed on Sundays. Can it be possible that this is why our world is in such calamity?
{B} Purpose
Not only do we have a problem with the frequency of our study but we also forget the purpose of it. Note that it says to meditate and do all that is written. James amens this in James 1:22. Many people come, listen and congratulate their teachers and preachers on the great lessons or sermons, only to go home and not implement in any form what they have been taught.
Can you imagine a sports team studying plays and strategies before a game and then refusing to get off the bench or each player doing whatever he wanted? They would be a laughing stock and no one would come to see their games. The church is often like that. God's game plans and strategies are discussed and then the Church just sits on the bench. People hear what they want or just do their own thing. They even hand the ball to the opposing team and cheer them as they score. Brethren, it ought not to be so!
If we are to be successful as a Christian and as a church, we as the team members must sacrifice the time needed to learn what God wants us to do and then go do it. Many times, though, we depend on teachers and preachers rather than digging into the Word ourselves. We act as if they are the only ones who are supposed to study and know God’s Word.
2 Timothy 2:15
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
If you are a Christian, you are a workman. A foreman on the job that is not satisfied with your work will not be placated by the fact that some of your co-workers are performing at a high level. He is going to be concerned about you knowing your job and doing it. God expects nothing less concerning His Word.
Each Christian has a job and the gifts to perform that job. We will discuss more about that in Week 5. You can learn what that gift is and how to use it through Bible study. You must study to show yourself approved, not the other guy. When you stand before God to have your work evaluated for rewards, you will be ashamed if your work is not approved or acceptable. You must learn to rightly divide or correctly interpret the Word.
Isaiah 5:20-21
20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!
Much of the sorrow and impotence in the Church today is due to a failure to rightly divide the Word. Things that our forefathers believed were wrong and evil we now call right and good. Cults wrest scriptures out of context to their own condemnation. Christians are caught up in nonsense because they lack discernment. Many are wise in their own eyes or trust in those that are such.
Hebrews 5:12-14
12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
13 For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.
14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
Note that he does not say ye who were schooled in seminary and should now be teachers. He is talking to average Christians who have been in the faith long enough and should know enough to be teachers. However, they need to go back to the first principles or kindergarten because they reverted to babes and need milk again. Why? They are unskillful in the word of righteousness.
How do you get strong enough to eat meat? Strength and discernment come from exercising your senses by spending time in the word. Hosea tells us that God's people perish for the lack of knowledge. (Hosea 4:6) They had forgotten the law of God because they had neglected to spend time in the Word and have their senses exercised. Initially we need Milk in order to grow, but we need to come to where we hunger for the meat of the Word and for discernment. (1 Peter 2:2; Ephesians 4:14)
Psalm 119:165
Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.
Many people have made professions of faith in Christ that no longer attend church or serve God in any way. Someone or something offended them in their church life and they have taken it out on God. This passage explains why. They did not love the law of God, most likely because they did not study it. Nothing shall offend someone or become a stumblingblock in their faith if they love God's law or torah.
8451 towrah (to-raw'); or torah (to-raw'); from 3384; a precept or statute, especially the Decalogue or Pentateuch: KJV-- law.
While we often think of the law as being the Pentateuch or the Old Testament in general, you see from the Hebrew word that it actually means a precept or statute. All of God's Word is a precept or a statute to teach us.
II Timothy 3:16-17
16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
All Scripture will prepare us to be good workmen and doers of good works. It takes time to study and we must keep things in proper context; but all Scripture has value. Many throw the Old Testament out of their study except for the stories of David, Creation, the Flood, etc. Indeed, there was a man name Irenaeus that had to keep Christians from destroying the Old Testament since we were under grace and the New Testament. That is one extreme. The other is to become Old Testament Jews with a Christian flair, which is what Paul condemned throughout his writings. The balance is far richer and more beneficial to us.
Isaiah 28:9-10
9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.
10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:
Here are the instructions for how we learn the Word. We have to get past the milk and learn to build upon our initial foundation of salvation, learning how to become mature Christians. It is line upon line. Is this not how we learned math? We started out just counting first to ten and then to one hundred. We learned two and two is four before went to algebra and geometry.
Many Christians want to just stay with the milk of salvation and deliverance from Hell, while simultaneously wanting the benefits and nutrition that are only in the meat of the Word. When their preachers and teachers try to give them meat they often reject it and seek out a place where they can keep getting their Enfamil? fix. They want to be bottle or spoon fed when the only way they will truly grow is to learn how to prepare and slice their own meat. Remember a shepherd only leads sheep to green pastures. They must eat the grass themselves. If a pastor leads you to the Word and you are hungry, it is because you are not eating rather than him not feeding you.
Psalms 119:9-11
9 Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.
10 With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments.
11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
This is a good way to end this section. So many Christians struggle with the sins that so easily beset them. (Hebrews 12:1,2) They need to look to Jesus and read the Word to see how He and other people of faith dealt with temptations and trials. They will see the good and be inspired. They will see the bad and encouraged by the forgiveness and strength God gave those who fell and came to Him for forgiveness. They will be warned by those who did not turn to God, seeing the destruction that waits at the end of that path.
As it said in Isaiah 5:20,21, there is danger in and judgement to those who get evil and good mixed up. Many Christians are taken in by sin and those who promote it because they do not study or understand what "thus saith the Lord." We must get our convictions from the Word, not from our culture, our feelings, our upbringing, and definitely not from the TV, radio, or Internet! All those things change, but God's Word is eternal and His character never changes. (Hebrews 13:8)
He did free us from some things when He brought in the New Testament. These were ritual or ceremonial laws given to teach the people to understand what grace in Christ would mean when He arrived. When their purpose was fulfilled by the manifestation of Christ, they were rescinded. His moral law never changed, and in many respects, we are under stricter standards under grace then under the law. (Matt 5:17-48) How will you know what His will is if you do not spend time in His Word and in prayer?
III. PRAYER
It has been said that Bible Study is God talking to us and in prayer we are talking to God. This has also been likened to breathing. Bible Study is inhaling and prayer is exhaling. Let us look at some of the Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic words we translate as pray or prayer. These definitions come from Strong's Concordance. The number in front of them is Strong's number so that you can do further research and see what verse uses these specific words. A Young's Analytic Concordance is also very good for this. Both should be in your library.
3908 lachash (lakh'-ash); from 3907; properly, a whisper, i.e. by implication, (in a good sense) a private prayer, (in a bad one) an incantation; concretely, an amulet: KJV-- charmed, earring, enchantment, orator, prayer.
Compare that to repeating Buddhist prayer wheel prayers or rosaries which Jesus calls vain repetition. (Matthew 6:7) It is also the opposite of flowing public prayers, which bring no reward to the prayer except from men. (Matthew 6:6)
7879 siyach (see'-akh); from 7878; a contemplation; by implication, an utterance: KJV-- babbling, communication, complaint, meditation, prayer, talk.
Ever talk your thoughts aloud to yourself? Although to someone walking in on you it may seem like babbling, you are contemplating issues and trying to find a solution or mediation to a problem. When we take our cares to Jesus we sometimes sound like we are babbling, but we are communicating our heart's cares to Him. Samuel's mother was involved in this kind of prayer to have a child and the priest thought she was drunk because only her lips were moving. He thought she was just babbling, but she was pouring out her complaint of her barren womb to God. Praise Him that He heard even if the priest did not. Hmm, what does that say about auricular confession? (I Samuel 1:9-18)
1162 deesis (deh'-ay-sis); from 1189; a petition: KJV-- prayer, request, supplication.
This is simple enough. You are asking for something.
1783 enteuxis (ent'-yook-sis); from 1793; an interview, i.e. (specially) supplication: KJV-- intercession, prayer.
Here we are interceding for someone and in a sense interviewing God about what He is going to do about the situation.
2171 euche (yoo-khay'); from 2172; properly, a wish, expressed as a petition to God, or in votive obligation: KJV-- prayer, vow.
We are making our petition or plea and at the same time entering into a vow. We need to do this carefully because it is better not to ever vow than to vow and not live up to it. (Ecclesiastes 5:5)
4335 proseuche (pros-yoo-khay'); from 4336; prayer (worship); by implication, an oratory (chapel): KJV-- X pray earnestly, prayer.
This is the prayer we make we are just worshipping God for who He is without wanting anything. We are praising Him. We do not pray in this way often enough.
4336 proseuchomai (pros-yoo'-khom-ahee); from 4314 and 2172; to pray to God, i.e. supplicate, worship: KJV-- pray (X earnestly, for), make prayer.
As earnestly as we pray in worship of whom He is, we can also pray for our needs in the same sense worship and earnestness because of who He is.
2470 chalah (khaw-law'); a primitive root [compare 2342, 2470, 2490]; properly, to be rubbed or worn; hence (figuratively) to be weak, sick, afflicted; or (causatively) to grieve, make sick; also to stroke (in flattering), entreat: KJV-- beseech, (be) diseased, (put to) grief, be grieved, (be) grievous, infirmity, intreat, lay to, put to pain, X pray, make prayer, be (fall, make) sick, sore, be sorry, make suit (X supplication), woman in travail, be (become) weak, be wounded.
“Are we weak and heavy laden? Take it to the Lord in prayer." It may be an illness or a spiritual weakness or wound that we are praying about, but we are in grief and beseeching the Lord in sorrow.
6279 `athar (aw-thar'); a primitive root [rather denominative from 6281]; to burn incensein worship, i.e. intercede (reciprocally, listen to prayer): KJV-- intreat, (make) pray (-er).
This can be asking others to pray for us or to intercede for us, or when we listen to someone's prayer request and go to the Lord on their behalf. Praying is primarily an asking concept. When we say, "Pray tell me what is the secret," we are not worshipping the person. We are asking them to tell us what is going on. "Pray tell me" would be modernized to "I ask you to tell me."
6419 palal (paw-lal'); a primitive root; to judge (officially or mentally); by extension, to intercede, pray: KJV-- intreat, judge (-ment), (make) pray (-er, -ing), make supplication.
We go to God in intercession for ourselves or someone else. We are assessing a situation and asking God to move in a certain direction based upon that assessment. We often get frustrated because God’s answer is the opposite of our desire or it takes longer in coming than we wish. It is because we have asked in the wrong spirit or our judgment is incorrect. (James 4:3; John 7:24) We need to incorporate Abraham's attitude of "Shall not the judge of the earth do right?" We will have more peace in our prayer life knowing that God’s answer or timing is right. (Genesis 18:25)
This is not an exhaustive study. We could have discussed at least ten other words just from prayer and pray. I just wanted to emphasize that English is not always very expressive. We need to do word studies to get some of the juicy and tender meat of the Word. We are to mine it for gold, not skim it like milk. We all know the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:9; Luke 11:2) Actually, it is more accurately called the Disciple's Prayer because Jesus was teaching them how to pray. Jesus' Priestly Prayer is in John 17. If you need an order to your prayer, then follow this example. You can pray extemporaneously or from your heart. He did not give us this to repeat mindlessly as we doze off, but rather to show the topics we should consider in our prayer. He does not want robots, but children coming to Him in love. Another pattern is:
A - Adoration
C - Confession
T - Thanksgiving
S - Supplication
I think you will find all of these in the Disciple's Prayer. I believe this is the proper order for any prayer, and we should spend most of our time in the first three areas rather than the fourth. Instead of a test this week, I would challenge you to do two things. First, pick up at least one of the study tools on the attached list and use it in your study this week. Second, pray more. If you do these things, you will have learned this week's lesson. All that remains is to be active in both for the rest of your life. Your faithfulness, your fruit and fullness of joy depend on it.
Appendix B
STUDY TO SHOW THYSELF APPROVED UNTO GOD
STUDY TOOLS
TITLE PUBLISHER
Vine's Expository Dictionary of NT Words Revell
Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary Zondervan
Young's Analytical Concordance Eerdmans
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance Nelson
Theological Wordbook of the OT Moody
Wilson OT Word Studies Kregel
Lectures in Systematic Theology-Henry Thiessen Eerdmans
SUGGESTED READINGS
TITLE AUTHOR PUBLISHER
How to Study Your Bible Kay Arthur
The Power in Prayer Charles Spurgeon
The Power of Prayer in a Charles Spurgeon
Believer’s Life
Prayer O. Hallesby
Born Crucified L.E. Maxwell Moody Press
Foxe's Book of Martyrs Spire Books
Principles of Spiritual Growth Miles Stanford Back to the Bible
Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners
and The Holy War John Bunyan Baker Book House
God's Way Out Of Futility Richard Halverson Zondervan
Mere Christianity C. S. Lewis MacMillen
Serious Call to a Devout and Ho`ly Life William Law Baker Book House
David Brainerd's Personal Testimony David Brainerd Baker Book House
Christian Counseling and Occultism Kurt Koch Kregel
Competent To Counsel Jay Adams Reformed Presbyterian
None Of These Diseases S.I. McMillen Spire Books
Tongues In Biblical Perspective Charles Smith BMH Books
The Corinthian Catastrophe George Gardiner Kregel
Final Authority (A Christian's Guide
To The King James Bible) William P. Grady Grady Publications
Anything from Creation Life Publishers PO Box 15666 San Diego, CA 92115 www.icr.org
New Age Bible Versions G. A. Riplinger AV Publications
Excellent Authors or Biographies
Andrew Murray A.W. Tozer Horatius Bonar Charles Finney
E.M. Bounds Oswald Chambers J. Sidlow Baxter Richard Wurmbrand
D. L. Moody R. A. Torrey George Mueller
Disclaimer - I do not unilaterally concur with everything in these books. For example, Jay Adams is an excellent counselor, but he is a 5 point Calvinist which, I do not support or endorse. Richard Wurmbrand suffered under Communism and his testimonies are good for us to hear, but he is a Lutheran and will make some statements that are not what Baptists hold to. As you grow in grace, and in His Word, you will be able to read men like you eat fish. You will enjoy the fillet and cast away the bones. Some of these resources are not necessarily for a new convert or one weak in faith. Please feel free to ask me about any one of them before you purchase or read them. I have a mixed group in this class and I wanted to provide something for everyone.
