May someone help in interpreting scripture? : )

[Spirit Reborn]

Hello everyone c:

I'd like some help..since lately, I find that God is trying to tell me to get deeper into scripture without taking any of it out of context in it's true interpretation.
Can anyone recommend commentaries, Bible studies, sermons, etc that interprets scripture accurately? (Hope I'm going about this the right way)

Thanks in advance!  

[real eyes realize]

First a disclaimer: commentaries and bible studies are helpful at first, but what makes them so is the author's working knowledge of the whole canon: law, prophets, gospels and epistles. So of course it is helpful to read what other believers have studied, but never consider it more than training wheels. You can do the same thing they did. The sooner you read through the whole bible—and the more you meditate over its words on a consistent daily basis—the easier it is to keep all of it in context (and you may notice where the commentary may be off on a point or two that changes the whole perspective). Before reading as well, what I do is pray for discernment, to see things through the eyes of the Father.

That said, when I started out as a total newbie to scripture, David Guzik's commentary was really helpful for me (and I didn't know how to pray at that point so that's all I could really do: rely on man). I read it on studylight.org. But really, if I had to narrow it down to the number one thing that helped me keep the whole bible in context was gaining a familiarity of the first five books, going through it first-hand, asking questions, writing them down/typing them out, and searching for verses that answered my curiosities. So, keep a journal. Some questions don't/didn't get answered until I advanced through the books. Nothing that Jesus, the prophets or the apostles said will deviate from what was spoken in the first five (hence all the references to Adam, Noah, serpent/devil, Moses, references that we're all familiar with in the New Testament). And even the prophets (which I would say is the second most important thing which helps me keep things in context) refer to those past events in Genesis-Deuteronomy; it's worth getting very familiar with them. 1) the first five books 2) the prophets.

I think prayer is a vital part of keeping it in context. Had I not voiced a concern or my confusion to our Heavenly Father, I don't think I would've been led to certain topics, or had a certain question come to mind. Reading through the commentary as a newbie wasn't a comfortable experience for me anyway, not because it was difficult to understand (on the contrary it was very easy) but because I didn't want man's interpretation/prejudices to taint anything; the experiences which led me to want to read the bible in the first place had to do with my disapproval of how most people interpreted it (lol) and not wanting to ignorantly hate on the bible based on how another person interprets it. Despite my reluctance, I did manage reading through it just for the sake of being aware of certain verses. Overall, it is difficult to come across individuals that just want to get to the truth of what the bible says because it may threaten some man-made doctrine they hold to. Which, now that I mention it, the only two sources of information that I frequent, and have managed to maintain that honest attitude, are 119 ministries and whatever videos/lectures Dr. Michael Heiser puts out (or someone in the audience records his lecture? not sure which). Their lectures go deep. I think you'll find their material really satisfying.

This turned into more of a reflection, but I hope this will help. emotion_sweatdrop

Also, I find the apologetic resources Garland posts to be very helpful. razz  

[Spirit Reborn]

real eyes realize

First a disclaimer: commentaries and bible studies are helpful at first, but what makes them so is the author's working knowledge of the whole canon: law, prophets, gospels and epistles. So of course it is helpful to read what other believers have studied, but never consider it more than training wheels. You can do the same thing they did. The sooner you read through the whole bible—and the more you meditate over its words on a consistent daily basis—the easier it is to keep all of it in context (and you may notice where the commentary may be off on a point or two that changes the whole perspective). Before reading as well, what I do is pray for discernment, to see things through the eyes of the Father.

That said, when I started out as a total newbie to scripture, David Guzik's commentary was really helpful for me (and I didn't know how to pray at that point so that's all I could really do: rely on man). I read it on studylight.org. But really, if I had to narrow it down to the number one thing that helped me keep the whole bible in context was gaining a familiarity of the first five books, going through it first-hand, asking questions, writing them down/typing them out, and searching for verses that answered my curiosities. So, keep a journal. Some questions don't/didn't get answered until I advanced through the books. Nothing that Jesus, the prophets or the apostles said will deviate from what was spoken in the first five (hence all the references to Adam, Noah, serpent/devil, Moses, references that we're all familiar with in the New Testament). And even the prophets (which I would say is the second most important thing which helps me keep things in context) refer to those past events in Genesis-Deuteronomy; it's worth getting very familiar with them. 1) the first five books 2) the prophets.

I think prayer is a vital part of keeping it in context. Had I not voiced a concern or my confusion to our Heavenly Father, I don't think I would've been led to certain topics, or had a certain question come to mind. Reading through the commentary as a newbie wasn't a comfortable experience for me anyway, not because it was difficult to understand (on the contrary it was very easy) but because I didn't want man's interpretation/prejudices to taint anything; the experiences which led me to want to read the bible in the first place had to do with my disapproval of how most people interpreted it (lol) and not wanting to ignorantly hate on the bible based on how another person interprets it. Despite my reluctance, I did manage reading through it just for the sake of being aware of certain verses. Overall, it is difficult to come across individuals that just want to get to the truth of what the bible says because it may threaten some man-made doctrine they hold to. Which, now that I mention it, the only two sources of information that I frequent, and have managed to maintain that honest attitude, are 119 ministries and whatever videos/lectures Dr. Michael Heiser puts out (or someone in the audience records his lecture? not sure which). Their lectures go deep. I think you'll find their material really satisfying.

This turned into more of a reflection, but I hope this will help. emotion_sweatdrop

Also, I find the apologetic resources Garland posts to be very helpful. razz

Praise God! I'm so thankful .. thank you for your time and recommendations. I will definitely go through the first 5 books and the prophets. I agree that prayer is vital in keeping the Bible in context. I have come to the point in my life where.. I'm searching through all these web sources, copying and pasting commentaries that I find relevant to someone else's concern. And in those commentaries.. I do find some points to..differ or at least feel wrong. And I feel bad when I don't even understand fully the context of what I just pasted for them.

When you said: "I didn't want man's interpretation/prejudices to taint anything; the experiences which led me to want to read the bible in the first place had to do with my disapproval of how most people interpreted it (lol) and not wanting to ignorantly hate on the bible based on how another person interprets it." It struck me because I can totally relate, lol. I want to make sure that I understand it thoroughly in its context and to be able to apply them in my life more. And I'll be sure to check out Dr. Michael Heiser and the 119 ministries. emotion_hug