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Basic Discipleship
Written by Dr. Lester Hutson

This material is copyrighted c2002 and may not be copied or reproduced without the express written permission of the Berean Baptist Church.

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PHASE 2                                                                                         INITIAL GROWTH

SESSION 7
YOUR BIBLE, A GREAT SPIRITUAL RESOURCE

                This session begins with a look at the believer’s three great spiritual resources. Discipler, it is your task to equip your disciple with each of these mighty spiritual resources and help him become as skilled as possible in using them in his life. These constitute the practical resources which God has given for the daily spiritual welfare of His children. Imagine yourself showing and explaining a great new car to someone who does not know, understand, or appreciate what a car is. Most new Christians do not know much about the Bible, nor do they properly appreciate it. As you know, it is vital to the spiritual welfare of a believer, absolutely essential to spiritual growth. Use this lesson to wed your disciple to the Bible.

                The next lesson is designed to teach the disciple how to study and use his Bible. The purpose of this one is to simply acquaint him with it and some of its merits. It is hoped that as his knowledge of the Bible grows, he will appreciate it more and seek to make it his own daily resource.

                During this session, check your disciple’s answers and offer correction and guidance as needed. Special time should be spent in making sure he grasps the promise of infallibility as stated in John 16:13. Make sure he knows that the promise applies only to revelation and not to interpretation. Make sure he knows that God promised infallibility to the Bible writers and not to anyone else. You want to wed your disciple to the exclusive authority of the scriptures. This will ensure that he is not deceived by others who claim to also have a message from God.

                Before you end this session, place form BD#I8 in your disciple’s hand and ask him to complete it before your next meeting.  A completed copy of form BD#8 is in your BASIC DISCIPLESHIP teacher’s manual.  Always pray with and for your disciple when you meet.

          God has provided three primary spiritual resources to protect you and to promote your spiritual welfare. You should know what they are and how to maximize their use to your spiritual advantage. Without consistent and serious application of each of these resources to your life, you will surely be spiritually defeated, empty, and miserable. The Bible calls this failure a spiritual "shipwreck." (I Timothy 1:18-19)

          This lesson is designed to acquaint you more fully with the first of these great heavenly resources. Please read the verses, fill in the blanks and answer the questions as necessary, and work through the exercises.

I.         YOUR BIBLE IS A LIBRARY UNDER ONE COVER.

          A.  Your Bible is made up of 66 individual books in two major divisions called the Old Testament and the New Testament.

                1.                The Old Testament of your Bible consists of 39 separate books. These books cover the time from the Creation up to approximately 400 years before the birth of Christ.

                2.                The New Testament of your Bible consists of 27 separate books. These books cover the time from just prior to the birth of Christ to approximately 70 A.D. Prophetically they preview the history of the ages to the end of the earth and the creation of a new earth and heaven.

                3.                Each Bible book is complete from a literary standpoint, yet each book is interdependent on all other Bible books. Though there is no evidence of collaboration by those who penned the Bible, yet the separate books form one perfectly harmonious whole book. No one book can be adequately understood apart from the whole.

          B. The basic composition of your Bible.

                1.                The Old Testament.

                                a.                The LAW.

                                    (1)    Five books including Genesis through Deuteronomy.

                                    (2)    Sometimes referred to as the books of Moses or the Pentateuch.

                                b.                The HISTORICAL books.

                                                (1)                Twelve books including Joshua through Esther.

                                                (2)                This section is subdivided as follows.

                                                                (a) The history of Israel from the death of Moses to the era of the kings. (Joshua, Judges, Ruth)

                                                                (b) The era of the kings. (I & II Samuel, I & II Kings, I & II Chronicles)

                                                                (c) The post captivity history of  Israel. (Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther)

                                c.                The POETICAL books.

                                                (1)                Five books including Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and The Song of Solomon.

                                                (2)                Psalms are prayers and songs of praise.

                                                (3)                Proverbs are concise statements of wisdom.

                                d.                The PROPHETIC books.

                                                (1)                Seventeen books including Isaiah through Malachi.

                                                (2)                Primarily because of their sizes and scope of prophecy, the prophetic books are subdivided into two main categories.

(a)                Five books of Major prophets including Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, and Daniel.

(b)                Twelve books of Minor prophets including Hosea through Malachi.

2.             The New Testament.

a.                The GOSPELS. (Four books, Matthew through John)

b.                The book of HISTORY. (Acts)

c.                The EPISTLES or letters. (Twenty-one books)

(1)                The church epistles. (Nine books, including Romans, I & II Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and I & II Thess.)

(2)                The pastoral epistles. (Three books, including I & II Timothy and Titus)

(3)                The general epistles. (Nine books, including Philemon, Hebrews, James, I & II Peter, Jude, and the books of I, II, III John)

d.                The book of PROPHECY. (The Revelation)

II.      YOUR BIBLE, UNLIKE ANY OTHER BOOK, IS INSPIRED OF GOD.

A.                Read the following verses and fill in the blanks.               

1.                I Timothy 3:16. All scripture is given by inspiration of God.

2.                II Peter 1:21. The scriptures came not by human perception but by the Holy Spirit.

3.                I Corinthians 2:9-10. The source of the scriptures is divine revelation.

4.                The Bible writers knew not of themselves the truths they penned. God told them what to say and made sure they said it right. That is what divine revelation and inspiration is.

5.                In your own words, explain how the Bible writers were inspired in a vastly different sense than is a poet or painter who views a grand sunset or other moving scene.

B.                God promised infallibility to the Bible writers in John 16:7-15.

1.                Read John 16:7-15, paying particular attention to the promise of infallibility stated in verse 13. ("he will guide you into all truth.")

2.                Who is the antecedent of the pronoun "you"? Apostles. (Follow the context from chapter 13 and you will find him speaking to a very limited and select group. His revelation was to come through them, not all believers. They alone were divinely inspired.)

3.        Was this promise of infallibility limited to the revelation of the scriptures or did it also extend to the interpretation of scriptures?

                Check one. 

                                Limited to revelation:  X  

                                Includes interpretation__

III.     THE BIBLE IS YOUR COMPLETE SPIRITUAL RESOURCE MANUAL.

A.                Your Bible is a spiritually living entity.

1.                Hebrews 4:12. "The word of God is quick and powerful...." "Quick" is translated from the Greek verb dzah'‑o meaning "to live."

2.                Read I Peter 1:23-25. In a spiritual sense, the word of God is likened to a seed.

B.                To better acquaint you with some of the merits of the word of God; match the following characteristics with the appropriate scriptures. 

  1.        Job 23:12        (  3 ) Divine light

  2.        Psalm 119:72        (  5 )Sweet

  3.        Psalm 119:105        (  8) A divine sword

  4.        Psalm 19:8        (  7 ) Divine instructions

  5.        Psalm 19:10        ( 12 )Source of comfort

  6.        Psalm 19:11        ( 15 )Unchanging and eternal

  7.        II Timothy 3:15        (  1 )Spiritual food

  8.        Ephesians 6:17        (  9 )Source of conviction

  9.        Jeremiah 20:9        ( 10 )Always true

10.        John 17:17        ( 13 )Source of growth

11.        Joshua 1:7-9      (  6 )Warnings of dangers

12.        II Corinthians 1:3-4      ( 14 )Source of joy

13.        I Peter 2:2  (  2 )Better than gold & silver

14.        I Timothy 4:5  ( 11 )Source of true success

15.        Matthew 24:35        ( 14 )Source of sanctification 

               C.          The Bible will completely equip you to live before God the way you should.

                         1. Read II Timothy 3:15-17.  Note the word "perfect" which is translated from the Greek word artios (ar'-tee-os) meaning "complete."

                         2. Read Job 22:12. Make God's word your daily food.

                         3.  II Timothy 2:15. "Study to show thyself approved unto God...."

"It Does Make a Difference What You Believe"