Bible Study Basics Why We Study the Bible Welcome to Bible Study Basics

Lesson 1, Activity 1

Welcome to Bible Study Basics

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In this course you will learn how to accurately and effectively study the Bible to discern its original meaning and how its wisdom can be applied in your life. You will learn essential Bible study skills such as the inductive method, exegesis (original meaning), and hermeneutics (contemporary meaning).

Learning Outcomes

By completing this course, you will be able to:

Describe and practice the inductive Bible study method.
Identify key resources, tools, and skills to help you study and interpret Scripture accurately and effectively.
Expand your own Bible study practice to include both exegetical and hermeneutical interpretative skills.

Lesson Overview

Select the headings of each lesson to read about the specific learning outcomes that you will achieve by working through the content of each lesson.

Lesson One: Why We Study the Bible

In this lesson you will consider three of the many benefits of Bible study and examine your own motives for learning how to be a more informed and effective Bible reader.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

Explain three benefits of studying the Bible.
Identify passages of Scripture that speak to the importance of Bible study.
Articulate your own reasons and goals for improving your Bible reading and study practices.

Lesson Two: Getting Started

In this lesson you will learn about the tools required for effective Bible study and three skills you must develop to use those tools well.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

Identify ways to select a helpful study Bible and how to prepare for Bible study.
Describe the three foundational steps of the inductive Bible study method.
Explain what Scripture says about applying God’s Word.

Lesson Three: Macro-Observation

In this lesson you will learn how to recognize the context of a book of the Bible by asking six key questions.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

Explain why and how to use macro-observation in your Bible study practice.
Recognize the value of doing macro-observation before micro-observation when studying a book of the Bible.
Practice conducting a macro-observation of a Bible book.

Lesson Four: Micro-Observation

In this lesson you will learn how to apply micro-observation to a biblical text so that you can clearly interpret its meaning.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

Explain why and how to conduct a historical, grammatical, literary and cultural study of a Bible passage.
Consider what Scripture has to say about carefully reading God’s Word.
Practice conducting a micro-observation of a Bible passage.

Lesson Five: Interpreting a Bible Passage

In this lesson you will learn how to use the skills of exegesis and hermeneutics to thoroughly and accurately interpret a biblical passage.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

Explain the importance of accurate interpretation of Scripture.
Identify the purpose of both exegesis and hermeneutics in biblical interpretation.
Practice interpreting a passage of Scripture.

Lesson Six: Applying a Bible Passage

In this lesson you will learn how to apply messages written to people in a different cultural and historical setting to people living in our contemporary world without distorting their intended meaning and purpose.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

Identify three types of passages that you will encounter in Scripture.
Describe how you cross the bridge from exegesis to hermeneutics.
Practice using five steps to conduct a hermeneutical interpretation of a passage.

All Scripture quotations in this class, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™ 

How to Maximize Your Learning from This Course

In order to maximize your learning through this online course, you are encouraged to make use of all the learning opportunities presented to you. To take full advantage of the wealth of knowledge presented in the course content, we recommend that you:

Watch, listen to, or read all the lectures.
Reflect on the content and questions in your journal.
Complete all learning activities.
Share your ideas with your fellow learners in the discussion.
Implement what you have learned in your Action Plan.
Enrich your learning by reading the bonus material.

Online learning is an excellent way to bring large numbers of participants together to learn and share about God’s Word. Although this course is asynchronous and therefore other participants may not complete the course at the same time as you, there are interactive opportunities to share your learning and to gain valuable, unique insights from individuals with a diverse range of backgrounds and life experiences.

What online course engagement means

Full engagement in this course further means:

Working through the lessons in the suggested order—they’ve been arranged for a reason and each course has been designed with a logical sequence. Jumping ahead without completing the previous lesson may give you a disjointed learning experience.
Reading and listening across a variety of learning activities—some of which are text-based, some with video. (Transcripts are provided with audio-visual resources for those learners who require or prefer the written format.)
Sharing your learnings with other course participants in discussion opportunities.

When engaging in social learning activities, such as sharing ideas or commenting on other learners’ ideas in discussions, be mindful of how you express yourself in writing. In written communication, we do not have the advantages of interpersonal cues (e.g., facial expressions, voice tone, and gestures), so it can be difficult to express intended meaning. Remember that other course participants may have different perspectives, opinions, and life experiences than you. Therefore, when communicating online, it’s important to assume the best intentions of others and use polite and respectful language.

Technology requirements

Engaging with the materials in this course requires minimal technological skills or equipment:

An electronic device such as a computer, tablet, or smartphone capable of running a web browser and playing video and audio.
Internet access capable of streaming videos, loading webpages, and downloading files.
A PDF reader (optional) for working with downloadable PDF files. Though most browsers allow PDFs to be viewed within the browser, we recommend downloading and saving them to your device so that you can save your work.

For premium subscribers, the ODBU app is available in Google Play and the App Store. In addition to providing full functionality of all course features, the app also allows you to download courses for offline study.

Have a question?

We have made every effort to make this course accessible for all learning styles and abilities. If you have a question or need assistance, please contact us.

What Activities to Expect

Each lesson will guide you through a series of activities. Select the headings below to read a brief description and instructions for completing each activity. Activities with a “lock” symbol 🔒 are available to premium subscribers only.

Overview and Objectives

This activity offers a brief introduction to the lesson and informs you of the lesson’s objectives.

Viewing this activity is required for course completion.

Lecture

This activity provides the main teaching content for the lesson. You may choose to watch the video, listen to the audio, or read the transcript. Closed captioning is also provided for any video segments. In each case the content is the same.

This activity is required for course completion.

Check Your Understanding 🔒

This quiz activity checks your understanding of the concepts learned so far. It is not a timed activity, and the quiz can be attempted as many times as needed.

Earning a quiz score of 70% or better is required for course completion.

Scripture Meditation 🔒

This activity allows you to spend time in Scripture and connect it to the topic of each lesson. Spend some time carefully reading the Scripture passage provided in the activity, utilizing the simple three-step method of Receive, Reflect, and Respond.

Receive simply involves reading the text and asking, “What does the text say?”
Reflect challenges you to ask, “What does the text mean?”
Respond invites you to apply the meaning of the text to your life.

Instructions for reflection

Get and use a hard copy journal or an e-note-taking tool such as Notion, OneNote, or Apple Notes. You can also complete these activities in the course workbook, which can be downloaded in lesson one.
Spend time reflecting on the questions provided in the activity. Make it a time of prayer by sharing your thoughts and reflections with God.
Write down your answers, thoughts, and other revelatory ideas in your journal that God reveals during your time of prayerful reflection.

For reflective journaling activities such as this one, find a quiet place in which you will not be disturbed by other people, noises, or other distractions. Silence e-devices and quiet your mind by reading Bible passages or praying before attempting the activity.

Share Your Thoughts 🔒

This discussion activity is designed to help you articulate what you have learned in each lesson. It may also help you collect ideas from other course participants about their understanding of Bible study. Since this course is asynchronous (i.e., other learners complete the course at different times), you may not see many discussion submissions or receive replies to your posts. Therefore, consider your submissions to this discussion forum as a way to share your insights about what you have learned to inspire or challenge others in their learning journey, and to enable others to do the same for you.

While other learners may not see or respond to your comments in the short term, encouraging others and engaging with others enhances your learning experience.

This activity is required for course completion.

Make a Plan 🔒

These application activities are designed to help you consider how to put your learning to use in your own context. When you finish this course you will have an action plan that will help you deepen and improve your Bible engagement!

Complete these activities digitally in the downloadable workbook or write them in your own journal. Find the link to download the digital workbook in lesson one.

This activity is required for course completion.

Further Study 🔒

At the end of each lesson there are links to resources you can use to supplement the course content. This material is optional and not required for course completion.

Lesson Summary

This activity sums up the concepts learned in each lesson and looks ahead to what comes next.

Summative Activity 🔒

This activity appears in the course wrap-up section at the end of the course. It allows you to review what you have learned in the course and identify actions you will commit to in order to implement the course concepts.

This activity is required for course completion.

Course Completion Requirements

To successfully earn a Completion Award for this course you will need to engage with all of the pages in every lesson, view all of the lectures, earn 70% or higher on each quiz activity, contribute towards the discussion boards, and complete the Course Evaluation. All other activities are recommended but not required for course completion.