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Real Bible Study Changes Live

All that is called "Bible study" is not real Bible study. I learned this the hard way. As a young teenager, God drew me to study His word. However, the church I attended at the time did not offer any real Bible study, only very general discussions. So I turned to the radio and signed up for a Bible study course from one of the radio preachers. This began years of false teaching and legalism that held me captive for over thirty years.

This preacher claimed to teach the Bible while he twisted scriptures to fit into his unique set of doctrines. These doctrines were all laid out in a Bible correspondence course, where scriptures were pulled from various parts of the Bible, and his explanations were given. I eventually joined his church and graduated from his college. I thought I was a student of the Bible. I wasn't. I was a student of a false teacher, my Bible heavily marked with explanations given by this teacher.

Many years later, God, through a miracle, revealed His truth to me. My world came tumbling down around me as I realized I had spent thirty years in false teachings. How did this happen? My childhood church did not provide what it should have provided... real, solid Bible study. Not being well-grounded in God's Word, I was ready prey for false teachings.

God has since brought me to wonderful Bible teachers. He has indeed "made up for the years the locust has eaten". He brought me to Bible study Fellowship, where the Bible study method is book by book, word by word. He led me to see the value of having a variety of good, solid bible teachers, many of whom also taught bible studies based on books of the Bible.

The Lord used these bible studies to bring me into deeper relationship with Him. His Word has a way of doing that! Now, Bible study changes my life. It's an exciting adventure.

A couple of years ago I purchased Logos at a church conference. I believe if I had had a tool like Logos in my early years of Bible study, I would not have fallen for false teachings. I use it regularly to check original Greek and Hebrew words, to look at the scriptures in several translations, to read time-tested commentaries. It's really easy to check up on someone's explanation of a scripture.

The real key to Bible study is to study the Word itself, and any true study series should lead you into the Word, not away from it and toward other people. It should lead you closer in relationship to God, changing your life. Second-hand study is not enough. Get into the Word itself. Let God teach you.

Submitted by Karen Quinn