Review

1. What are the two main principles we should consider when approaching the Bible, and why are they important?
2. What is the Unity Principle, and how can it help us understand seemingly contradictory passages in the Bible?
3. What is the "key" to the map of understanding the Bible, according to the lesson?
4. What does it mean that the Bible has one meaning and many applications?
5. What are some types of figurative language in the Bible?
6. Name three of the five levels of context we talked about last week.
7. Last week we talked about 8 periods of redemptive history. Can anyone remind us of them?

Introduction

I want us to start this morning by reading several scriptures together. So I'm going to assign the following verses to be read:

• Matthew 22:29
• John 5:39
• Acts 8:34-35
• Acts 17:11
• Psalm 1:2
• 2 Timothy 2:15

What do these verses have in common?

God doesn't expect us to just "read" the scripture. God expects us to:

• Know the scripture
• Meditate on the scripture
• Search the scripture
• Study
• Ask questions of the scripture

Today, I want to talk about the importance of asking questions of the Bible.

I heard a teacher say once that if you interrogate the scripture, it will give you answers.

All of us have seen a police TV show where they get a suspect in a room and they just pepper him with questions:

• Where were you on the night of June 15th?
• Can anyone verify that?
• Do you have anything to gain by so-and-so's death?
• Do you have a good relationship with your mother?

In real life, police interrogations can last for hours and hours. Hours and hours of just asking questions. But that is how they get to answers.

The Bible says we are to meditate on the scripture. That word "meditate" is a word that means "to mutter."

I've been working on a coding project this week for the church, and if you were to walk by my office, you would hear a lot of muttering.

• "Is that so?"
• "So that is how that works..."
• "What if I...?"

How do we mutter over the scriptures? We ask questions. Lots and lots of questions.

There was this famous scientist named Louis Agassiz who trained other scientists. One day he gave one of his students a fish and said, "Observe and take notes."

At the end of an hour, the man turned in his notes. Agassiz said, "Keep observing. Keep looking." This went on all day.

Next day. Same fish. Same assignment. Every time he brought in his notes, the teacher would say, "Look again."

He was training that man to look at that thing from every possible angle.

This is kind of what it means to meditate. It means to look at a passage from every possible angle. To mutter it and chew on it. To interrogate it and ask it lots of questions. To try to get every last possible bit of knowledge we can out of a text.

So let's today talk about some questions you can ask any text in the Bible.

I have 35 questions today that you can ask of almost any Bible passage. This isn't an exhaustive list. I'm sure there are more. Not every question applies to every Bible passage. But most of these questions are good questions to ask the scripture.

I'm going to break them down into six different categories.

Let's start with...

1. Questions about the text

1. What is the author saying?
2. How does this fit into the paragraph?
3. How does this fit into the book?
4. Are there any stories in the text?
5. Is there any figurative language?
6. If there is figurative language, what is the literal meaning of it?

2. Questions about words

1. Are there any key words in this text?
2. Are there any words in this text I do not understand?
3. How are the key words used in other parts of the Bible?
4. What was the word in the original language? (Hebrew or Greek)
5. How was the Greek or Hebrew word used elsewhere in scripture?
6. What was the definition of the English word when it was translated?
7. Have the meanings of those words changed over time?

3. Questions about the context

1. Who is doing the writing?
2. Who was the original audience?
3. When did he write this?
4. Why did he write this?
5. What problem was the original author addressing?

4. Questions about the history and culture

1. How does this passage fit into Bible history?
2. Were the people involved in this passage faithful or away from God?
3. Are there any cultural elements in this story or passage?
4. How is the culture shown in this passage different from our own?
5. Who was in power at the time this was written?
6. Are there geographical elements that need to be studied?

5. Questions about how this relates to other passages

1. Is this passage or story repeated in other passages?
2. If so, how is this different from those passages?
3. Does this passage reference other passages?
4. Where else in the scripture is this topic dealt with?
5. Is my understanding of this text in conflict with the message of other Bible passages?
6. Does this passage contain prophecy?
7. Does this passage fulfill any prophecy?
8. Is this topic developed more in later revelation?

6. Questions about the meaning and application

1. How did this apply to the original hearers?
2. What is God trying to teach me through this passage?
3. Are there any practical changes or decisions I need to make in light of this passage?