Mike Berrien

When it comes to understanding the Bible, people often make the mistake of starting with the question of “How does this passage apply to my life today?” I say this is a mistake not because we want to apply the Bible to our lives but because we skip completely past understanding and just try to launch into application. I have seen this in small groups over and over again. I ask the group, “what do you think this passage is saying?” and someone replies “I need to do or believe such and such in my life when I face such and such circumstances.” Notice how easy it is to actually skip right past understanding on our rush to application. If we make this mistake over and over again we will likely get really weird with the Bible. It becomes a launchpad for a rotating series of pre-chosen applications that we have ready to drop on top of a passage, while actually obscuring the very meaning of the passage itself. We don’t end up following a normal study path. Step 1: Reading Step 2: Thinking Step 3: Interpreting (which involves a lot) Step 4: Applying Instead, we end up with. Step 1: Reading Step 2: Applying Step 3: Applying Step 4: Applying But what are we even applying? Some passages are immediately easy to apply, most are not. If we don’t understand the passage yet, but jump to application, we are literally forced into making something up. Bible study tip: Don’t apply right away. As always, I highly recommend gathering a list of questions about any given passage, long before trying to apply it, and letting that keep you grounded as you study.