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Welcome to the super secret (at least for now) section of my website where you can find all of the things I’ve mentioned during our session on Biblical literacy, along with some additional things I might not have been able to mention/elaborate on. Feel free to bookmark this page & come back to it! I’m sure it’s likely that I’ll continue to add to it over time!


Press on, Bible student.
(Hosea 6:3)

 
 
 
 

scripture
references

*It would be beneficial to revisit these to not only remind yourself of what the Bible says, but you can also process through them with the Lord in your own time and ask Him to grow your heart for Biblical literacy!

What does the bible say about itself? —

2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12; Psalm 19:7-11; all of Psalm 119

Why should we care?
/ why does biblical literacy matter? —

It’s connected to our very purpose of glorifying/enjoying God: Rom. 11:36; Psalm 86:9; 1 Corinthians 6:20, 10:31

It’s a command: Deut. 6:1-9; Matt. 22:37
Knowing what God commands & loving Him go hand in hand: John 14:15; 1 John 5:1-5

What is the Purpose of Scripture? —

By way of the Holy Spirit, through His Word, God is conforming us to the image of Christ.

We’re to be transformed. We’re either conformed to the world or conformed to Christ:
Romans 8:28-29; Romans 12:1-2

We never actually have to guess what God’s/Scripture’s purpose is for us:
Ephesians 5:1; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 1 Thessalonians 4:3; 1 Peter 1:15-16

We’re called to be imitators, be transformed, be holy. The doing will come as a result.

We also gain wisdom (chokmah) as a result. Not solely knowledge or simply knowing the right answers, but how that knowledge is meant to play out. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of this wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). He is God, we are not, so we fear/view Him rightly & look to Him for His wisdom.

The Word is also the sword (the only offensive part of the armor of God) we use to fight spiritual battle! (Ephesians 6:10-18; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5) We must wield them well and sharpen them often.

 
 
 
 

helpful terms

metanarrative

The metanarrative is the overarching story of Scripture. If you compare it to the term meta-analysis (examining individual studies to come to an overall conclusion), we can draw that the metanarrative of Scripture shows us that each individual story also has a connection to the larger story. You can point to the metanarrative by looking for the themes of Creation, Fall (Rebellion), Redemption, and Restoration (Consummation).

(The concept/definition of Biblical Theology has this same idea.)

a Christological perspective

Simply, a Christ-centered Biblical theology. How does what I’m reading ultimately point to Christ and not to me as the hero? How am I reminded of the Gospel and my need for Christ in every day life?

Exegesis vs. eisegesis

Exegesis is exegeting or drawing out (think excavating) the original and intended meaning of a passage. This is in contrast to eisegesis, which is when we put ourselves into the Scripture.

inductive bible study

This is a type of Bible study that takes an exegetical approach (so inductive/exegetical could be used interchangeably). This type of study is done by the steps Observation (Comprehension), Interpretation, and Application.

systematic theology

As the name would describe, this involves a concept being put into a system. Systematic theology would take one topic and look at all of what the Bible has to say about it. This allows topics in the Bible to be organized into categories, i.e. Christology is the study of Christ, Soteriology is the study of salvation, etc.

 
 
 
 

books & articles

 
 
 
 

podcasts

*These are specific episodes that specifically talk about Bib Lit. But honestly, each of these podcasts in their entirety can help you be more Biblically literate! You can check out my other podcasts recs on my resource page.

Help me teach the Bible w/ Nancy Guthrie

Developing Skills of Seeing Christ in the Old Testament
Why Do the Hard Work of Exposition?
Teaching Women to Teach

verity w/ phylicia masonheimer

Bible Study 101
Her series on the Canon is great! Here’s the Intro episode.
Why the Instagram Bible Won’t Free You

knowing faith w/ jen wilkin, jt english, and kyle worley

How to Read the Bible
Theology 101
Can You Trust Your Bible? w/ Michael Kruger

journeywomen w/ hunter beless

How to Read, Understand, and Apply the Scriptures w/ Elizabeth Groves
(this is part of a series on God’s Word - highly recommend!)
Grounding Ourselves in God’s Word w/ Tara-Leigh Cobble
Knowing God through His Word w/ Greg Gilbert

 
 
 
 

practical
resources

(titles here are also links)

In addition to these things, here’s the PDF of the Philippians 4 passage we worked through during our time. (And here’s an additional note to remind you of having a Christ-centered view of this verse!)

Blue Letter Bible —

I love using this to look up specific words in the original language. It also helps with cross-referencing, and there are commentaries if you want to make use of those. I’ll often look up a word in the original Greek or Hebrew & see where else that original word is used and in what context — definitely helps to broaden my understanding! You can watch this tutorial for some help. (The tutorial features the way I personally use the site most often, but there are lengthier tutorials out there too!)

The Bible Project —

Before starting a new book of the Bible, I like to watch TBP’s video on that particular book to get a visual overview. (It’s also good to give the book a couple reads all the way through to get your own overview before digging in.) They also have helpful video series on themes/topics through Scripture.

the loved Bible project —

This is a fairly resource I discovered on instagram, but they have a website too that has a number of different fantastic resources on how to love your Bible & how to use it in making disciples. They’ve created helpful guides on topics like how to love your Bible and the foundations of faith.

The Bible Recap —

This podcast will walk you through a short recap of each passage in your chronological Bible reading plan.

ESV Study Bible —

Many other commentaries exist, but this is the one I often find myself going to since it’s presently the most accessible to me. Remember, commentaries would come at the Interpretation step of your study. Take your time with the text before you consult an outside source.

gotquestions.org —

Pretty self-explanatory. This is one of the first sources that comes up when you google a question about faith or the Bible. It’s a solid place to search for specific answers and I’ve found it to be helpful!

 
 
 
 

Bible studies
i recommend

Amy Gannett’s studies —

(click here)

Amy does an excellent job of producing line-by-line studies through Scripture. You can learn a lot from her free resource, Bible Study Schoolhouse, and her membership program (that has access to all of her studies) opens twice a year! Even if you don’t get access to the membership program, all of her studies can be purchased individually. (She also has a great resource on disciple making!) She’s one of my favorites to follow on instagram too, and she does a weekly series called Theology Thursday.

Jen Wilkin studies —

(click here)

Note that she differentiates her books from her Bible studies on this page (which is important! Remember, there’s a difference between a Bible study and a book club ;)) It goes without saying at this point, but you’re gonna get some solid stuff from Jen!

at his feet studies —

(click here)

These studies are perfect for getting a study done in a short amount of time yet doesn’t lack in good, quality content. The ladies at AHF wanted to create approachable Bible studies for any season, and these are just that! I think these are perfect for discipleship on campus!

Daily Grace Co. —

(click here)

DGCo. does both inductive and topical studies, but whether inductive or topical, they do a great job at focusing on Scripture itself. As a bonus though, they also have really nice mugs, study tools, art, and verse cards (& are almost always having some sort of sale).

 

If you’d like additional recommended resources on other topics in addition to Bib lit, you can check out my resources page.