Wisdom (Part 1): Week 4, Day 1

Welcome back to our study on wisdom.  Today, we are going to pick up where we left off in Proverbs 8.  This is a tough passage to read and understand, but we are going to work through it together.  Trust the method of inductive Bible study, pray, seek the Lord, and remember that it is okay to not know.  Today we are going to OBSERVE the text for what it says.

Before you begin the new section of Proverbs 8, re-read verses 1-21.  This will help you get your mind back into the correct context of the passage.  Remember that the majority of the pronouns are talking about wisdom.  Once you have read through verse 21, go ahead and read verses 22-36.

22 “The Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way,

Before His works of old.
23 “From everlasting I was established,
From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth.
24 “When there were no depths I was brought forth,
When there were no springs abounding with water.
25 “Before the mountains were settled,
Before the hills I was brought forth;
26 While He had not yet made the earth and the fields,
Nor the first dust of the world.
27 “When He established the heavens, I was there,
When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,
28 When He made firm the skies above,
When the springs of the deep became fixed,
29 When He set for the sea its boundary
So that the water would not transgress His command,
When He marked out the foundations of the earth;
30 Then I was beside Him, as a master workman;
And I was daily His delight,
Rejoicing always before Him,
31 Rejoicing in the world, His earth,
And having my delight in the sons of men.

32 “Now therefore, O sons, listen to me,
For blessed are they who keep my ways.
33 “Heed instruction and be wise,
And do not neglect it.
34 “Blessed is the man who listens to me,
Watching daily at my gates,
Waiting at my doorposts.
35 “For he who finds me finds life
And obtains favor from the Lord.
36 “But he who sins against me injures himself;
All those who hate me love death.”

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Now re-read Proverbs 8:22-36 and use the following markings:

• Mark wisdom (and all pronouns) with a blue cloud colored yellow
• Mark Lord with a purple triangle colored yellow (and all pronouns by coloring them yellow)
• Mark evil by coloring it brown
• Mark love with a red heart
• Mark hate with a black heart
• Mark all time phrases with a green clock (beginning, before, everlasting, earliest, when, while, then, daily, etc.)
• Mark therefore and for by circling them red
• Mark but by circling it blue

In your notebooks, write down a take-away from today's reading.  If you have some questions about what you read, write those down as well.  In our next study, we will INTERPRET the things that we have read today. Take care, sisters. Pray for wisdom!

To read the previous posts on Wisdom, click these links:

Week 1: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3

Week 2: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3

Week 3: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3

Wisdom (Part 1): Week 3, Day 1

Welcome to week 3 of our study on wisdom!  Over the next three weeks we are going to look closely at Proverbs 8 and 9.  There is so much to take in and so much to learn from these two chapters.  As we are spending our time learning about wisdom, these chapters give us so much that we can take away and use in our lives.  Don't get overwhelmed as you read through this text.  Trust our method of inductive Bible study (observe, interpret, apply).  Go slow, take your time, and listen to the Lord speak through His Word.  Start with prayer, and ask the Lord for the wisdom to understand the things that we are going to read about.

Today we are going to read Proverbs 8:1-21 and OBSERVE what the text has to say.  Read through this section slowly.

Does not wisdom call,
And understanding lift up her voice?
2 On top of the heights beside the way,
Where the paths meet, she takes her stand;
3 Beside the gates, at the opening to the city,
At the entrance of the doors, she cries out:
4 “To you, O men, I call,
And my voice is to the sons of men.
5 “O naive ones, understand prudence;
And, O fools, understand wisdom.
6 “Listen, for I will speak noble things;
And the opening of my lips will reveal right things.
7 “For my mouth will utter truth;
And wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
8 “All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness;
There is nothing crooked or perverted in them.
9 “They are all straightforward to him who understands,
And right to those who find knowledge.
10 “Take my instruction and not silver,
And knowledge rather than choicest gold.
11 “For wisdom is better than jewels;
And all desirable things cannot compare with her.

12 “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence,
And I find knowledge and discretion.
13 “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil;
Pride and arrogance and the evil way
And the perverted mouth, I hate.
14 “Counsel is mine and sound wisdom;
I am understanding, power is mine.
15 “By me kings reign,
And rulers decree justice.
16 “By me princes rule, and nobles,
All who judge rightly.
17 “I love those who love me;
And those who diligently seek me will find me.
18 “Riches and honor are with me,
Enduring wealth and righteousness.
19 “My fruit is better than gold, even pure gold,
And my yield better than choicest silver.
20 “I walk in the way of righteousness,
In the midst of the paths of justice,
21 To endow those who love me with wealth,
That I may fill their treasuries.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Now, re-read these verses, and use the following markings to help you observe:

• Mark wisdom and all pronouns with a blue cloud colored yellow (In verse 1 only, mark understanding the same as wisdom. This will be further explained in our INTERPRETATION study.)
• Mark understanding and knowledge and all pronouns by coloring it green (In verse 1 only, mark understanding the same as wisdom. This will be further explained in our INTERPRETATION study.)
• Mark truth with a blue box colored red
• Mark righteousness with a blue box
• Mark wickedness, abomination, evil and all pronouns by coloring it brown
• Mark love with a red heart
• Mark hate with a black heart
• Mark all references to what wisdom says by underlining them (this is in verses 6-9)

Go back and re-read the text again.  In your notebook, write down your take-away from today's study.  At our next time together, we are going to INTERPRET this passage of Scripture.

To read the previous posts on Wisdom, click these links:

Week 1: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3

Week 2: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3

Wisdom (Part 1): Week 1, Day 1

Welcome to our study of wisdom!  This study is going to be fantastic, and I am so glad that you are here with me.  As we go through this study together, we will be using the inductive method of Bible study.  For more information on this type of study, read My Purpose post.

Today we are going to OBSERVE the text of 1 Kings 3:3-15.  Start by reading this passage slowly, absorbing each word as your read.

3 Now Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father David, except he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. 4 The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place; Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5 In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream at night; and God said, “Ask what you wish Me to give you.”

6 Then Solomon said, “You have shown great lovingkindness to Your servant David my father, according as he walked before You in truth and righteousness and uprightness of heart toward You; and You have reserved for him this great lovingkindness, that You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. 7 Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. 8 Your servant is in the midst of Your people which You have chosen, a great people who are too many to be numbered or counted. 9 So give Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?”

10 It was pleasing in the sight of the Lord that Solomon had asked this thing. 11 God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself discernment to understand justice, 12 behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you. 13 I have also given you what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there will not be any among the kings like you all your days. 14 If you walk in My ways, keeping My statutes and commandments, as your father David walked, then I will prolong your days.”

15 Then Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream. And he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and made peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. 

Now read through the text again, and use the following markings:

• Mark every reference to God and Lord using a purple triangle colored yellow, and color all pronouns yellow
• Mark every location by coloring them green and underlining them brown
• Mark Jerusalem, Israel, and any reference to God's people with a blue star of David
• Mark time phrases with a green clock
• Mark the word yet by circling it in blue
• Mark wise and wisdom with a blue cloud colored yellow
• Mark understand and discern by coloring them green
• Mark that, so that, and because by circling them in red

Read back through the text again slowly, and see if these markings bring any more clarity to what you have already read.  Write in your notebook one take-away from today's reading.

Tomorrow, we will INTERPRET this passage of Scripture.  I can't wait for you to gain even more understanding of what we have already read!

Encouragement (Part 1): Week 2, Day 1

Welcome back for our second week of studying about encouragement.  Today's reading is going to piggy-back off of what we read last week.  If you'll remember, we read about Moses and Joshua, and the command of Israel being passed from one to the other.  Joshua was told to, "be strong and courageous".

Today we are going to read through Joshua 1:1-9.  The first step in studying the Bible inductively is to OBSERVE the text, and that is what we are going to do today.  Read through this passage of Scripture slowly.

1 Now it came about after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, that the Lord spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ servant, saying, 

2 “Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel. 

3 Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses. 

4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory. 

5 No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. 

6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. 

7 Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. 

8 This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. 

9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission." 

Read through the text again, and use the following markings:

• Mark all time phrases with a green clock
• Mark "for" and "so that" with a red circle (these words answer the question "Why?")
• Mark Lord and God with a purple triangle colored yellow, and color all pronouns of God yellow
• Mark "law" with a black book/tablet drawing

Re-read the text slowly, taking time to absorb what it says.  Write a thought in your notebook from today's time with the Lord.

You are done for today.  Aren't you already encouraged?  I sure am!

Our next post will be on INTERPRETING what we observed today.

To read the previous posts on Encouragement, click these links:

Week 1: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3

Encouragement (Part 1): Week 1, Day 1

Welcome to our journey of Encouragement!  I am so excited that you have decided to join me in this study.  We are going to take the next six weeks to go through an awesome set of Scripture verses, and as the title implies, I hope you find encouragement through this study.

We will be looking at one passage of Scripture this week - Deuteronomy 31:7-8 & 23.  Only three verses this week, but three verses full of a powerful message that we will constantly return to during this study.

Here is some background on what we are going to read about:

Joshua was one of the twelve spies sent by God to check out the Promised Land. (You can read about this in Numbers 13 & 14.) He and Caleb came back after 40 days of scouting saying that the people of Israel could conquer the land because the Lord was on their side. They were overthrown by the other ten spies who got the rest of Israel to grumble and complain. Because of the people's overwhelming lack of faith in God, God punished them to 40 years of wandering in the wilderness (one year for each day the spies were in the land). God also punished them by making sure that everyone who was 20 years old or older would not be able to enter the Promised Land. Those people would die in the wilderness.

The two exceptions to this were Joshua and Caleb.  Because of their faith in God, they were rewarded with being able to enter the Promised Land. Joshua was even made Moses' successor, to lead the people after Moses died.  Our reading picks up at the place in time where Moses is handing the reigns over to Joshua, and the people of Israel are getting ready to enter the Promised Land.

We are going to use the inductive Bible study method as we study these Scripture passages together.  Today we are going to OBSERVE the text. Read Deuteronomy 31:7-8 & 23. Take time to read slowly, and absorb what the verses are saying. You may want to read them several times before moving on to the next step.

7 Then Moses called to Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall give it to them as an inheritance. 

8 The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”

23 Then He commissioned Joshua the son of Nun, and said, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall bring the sons of Israel into the land which I swore to them, and I will be with you.” 

"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission." 

MARK your text using the following markings (these markings are only suggestions - it is how I mark my Bible.  You can choose to do this however you see fit.)

• Circle the word "for" in red.  The word "for" answers the question Why?
• Mark the name "Lord" with a purple triangle colored yellow. Color all pronouns to the Lord in yellow.

Now go back and re-read the text for more clarity.  In your notebook, write a thought from today's time with the Lord.

This is all we are going to do today.  Our next study will look at INTERPRETING the text, and we will conclude with how we can APPLY the text to our lives.

Norms

In coming from the world of public education, establishing norms for meetings, professional learning communities, and collaborations is the thing to do.  Norms keep everyone focused on the task at hand, and help people know what is appropriate and inappropriate.

I felt like it was important to establish some norms for this blog.  The purpose of the blog is Bible study.  This is not just a blog to read for pleasure, although I cannot stop you from doing that.

Here are the norms I have come up with:

1.  Always start with prayer.  Ask God for clarity, wisdom, and discernment as you study His Word.

2. It is okay not to know! If you come up with questions or become confused as you read the Scripture, try these things:

• Write down your questions.
• Re-read the section.  The more you become familiar with the text, the more it will make sense to you.
• Continue reading. A lot of times you will get your answers, or gain clarity, as you read through the text.

3.  Be prepared to study.  You will need the following things:

• your Bible (of course) 
  
  
  
• a notebook to write in (I use cheap notebooks from Wal-Mart or Kroger.  They style doesn't matter.  It will be filled with questions, answers, thoughts, verses, and other things as you study your Bible.)
  
• some colored pencils (I recommend Crayola Twistables, but any kind will work.)
  

As we go through the Scripture together, we will be using the inductive Bible study method.  Do not be intimidated, we are walking through this together.  The steps of inductive Bible study are: OBSERVE the text in it's context, INTERPRET the text using the text itself, and APPLY the text to your life.

For more information on the inductive Bible study, read My Purpose blog post.  I will show you how to do the steps of inductive Bible study as we go along.  The colored pencils are used in the observation step.  My Bible is full of markings, and this has really helped me see the text in a whole new way.  If you do not want to mark in your Bible that way, you can print off a copy of the texts we are using (I will be including the text in the first post of each week), use an alternate Bible, or use an app that allows for marking the text (such as Logos by Faithlife).  Whatever you use is up to you.  If you choose to not mark the Scriptures in this way, I encourage you to continue to read the Bible and do the rest of the studies with me.  Even if you feel uncomfortable marking your Scriptures, you can still study along!

4. Respect everyone that reads this blog, comments on this blog, or comments on the private Facebook group made for this study.  Bible study is is a personal, intimate thing.  As we interpret the Scripture together, we may have differing opinions.  Let's not let that get in the way of our time together and with God.

5.  Have fun, encourage one another, learn, and grow in God!