Welcome and thank you for listening to Cultivating Growth Podcast, where each and every week we pick a topic and we talk about the importance of growing in that specific topic. This week we're going to talk about the importance of cultivating our growth when it comes to being a student of the Bible.

We've talked about some things very similar to this in different areas. But we'll get practical today and hopefully some ways that'll be applicable and helpful to you as each and every one of us strive to grow as a better student when it comes to our biblical studies. I'm looking forward to this discussion and I hope you are as well. 

Well, we want to thank everybody for joining us again this week. I've got Jeremy with me as always. And back for round two is Malachi Bard. Malachi, thanks for joining us again. We're excited to hear your thoughts on this topic. Jeremy mentioned that the, At the outset of this conversation, they're going to be talking about being a student of God's word and growing in that area.

And I think it's an important distinction to make at the outset, uh, the difference between reading the Bible and being a student of it. Uh, those are two very different things. You can read the Bible without being a student of it. And I think, unfortunately, a lot of people do that. They read it as they would any book.

You know, I, I finished a book not too long ago. I've read that book. I enjoyed that book. I'm not a student of that book. I read it one time. I got the story. I enjoyed it. It's back on my bookshelf now. The Bible is to be treated very differently than that. And so we're going to talk today about really what it means to be a student of God's word and really how we do that.

Hopefully we can get some answers. Some very practical ways in which we can grow in that area. So Jeremy, we'll start with you. What comes to your mind when you think about being a student of the Bible and why is this even an important topic to really be discussing? 

Well, it's important because of, you know, even using the illustration that you just used of you just finishing a novel or a book and having some enjoyment, but you finished it, you closed it, you put it back on the shelf and you're maybe ready to move on to, you know, something else.

And I think when we start talking about a topic like this, Always starting with the understanding of, you know, passage like 2 Timothy chapter 3, that when you're, you're opening up the Bible, even though it may look like and it may operate like all the other books that we have on our shelf,  It isn't like all the other books on our shelf.

And so you've got to be coming to your study, and you're going to grow as a student, and it's all going to begin with an understanding of the author. And so if you have an understanding of the author, that this is God, it is His words, it is His will, and so when you can really have an understanding, it's going to be the foundation of your life as a student.

Because you're going to come at that book now, and Different than you would almost all other books similar in ways of when you're in school, but even more so than even that. And so it just. It's such a unique book, and I, you know, I keep calling it that because in essence, it's what it is. But it's such a unique book, then all that there's nothing else in the same category as this.

Yeah, I mean, we're sitting here next to a student. You know, Jeremy, you and I haven't been students in the sense of going to school for quite some time, but you know, Malachi, you're a student. You're part of your daily routine is studying, preparing for class, reading through books. You're, you're a student.

And so when you think about the, the work that you do at school as a student, and then you take that. Translate some of that skill set that you're learning there as a student to your study of the Bible. I think there are some skills that translate. We have to learn how to be a student. And once we learn how to be a student, then we can apply some of those skills.

skills to our study with the Bible. 

Yeah. Well, in thinking about being an actual student of the Bible,  something that is inherent with being a student is, um, time commitment to that and effort, um, commitment to that we, that the example that you used earlier, John, was really good about. You know, just reading a book versus studying a book, because if I sat through class or I prepared, you know, something for class or I was reading a textbook and I read it through one time, but I never came back to revisit that, to connect that to larger points in the class, um, I'm not going to learn anything.

There's going to be no development within myself if I'm not putting in that specific time and that effort into that study versus just, you know, skimming or reading that book or whatever. 

I think one passage that stood out to me that I think connects with what you were saying,  Jeremy referenced 2 Timothy 3, but in 2 Timothy 2, in verse 15, Paul says there to be diligent to present yourself approved to God.

And then at the end of that, uh, the end of that verse, uh, so that you can rightly divide the word of truth. And so there's a, an importance placed on the fact of being diligent when you come to God's word. Be diligent. Be diligent to show yourself approved. Be diligent with how you handle the Word of God.

There's a seriousness to that. There's an intensity to that. And it is very different from how we treat most other books because I don't approach anything with the level of seriousness and diligence that I approach my study of the Bible because it demands it. It requires it from me. 

And going off of even both of those comments with Malachi talking about time just a moment ago, you know, you, you start to talk about it, you know, some practicality or some principles to enhance my role as a student is it takes time.

It takes regular study. I mean, you know, a passage that, you know, came to mind for me was Acts 17 with the brethren in Thessalonica, right? I mean, you, you have, you know, this, you know, this idea where you had these people in Thessalonica and they were  You know, thinking about things in certain ways. And Paul moves on to another city, in Berea, and he sees a contrast.

Right? He sees that contrast, and he says they're more fair minded than the ones that were in Thessalonica, and the contrast, what stood them apart, was their steady habits. That they searched the scriptures daily, he said, to find out whether these things were so. And so when he's thinking about these brethren in Thessalonica, and these brethren in Berea, and the difference, what was setting them apart.

Was in a lot of ways how they were as students of scripture and what that came down to was time 

And that was a big problem that Jesus faced when when he was dealing with the scribes and the Pharisees There were several instances where he called out the fact that you guys should have known I was coming You should have known this was gonna happen If you were good students of the law and the prophets that told of my coming, he, he called Nicodemus out for this very thing, as he was talking to him in John chapter three, talking to him about the need to be born again.

And Nicodemus is like, I don't understand any of this. And Jesus said, you're the teacher of Israel. You should understand these things.  He did the same thing in Matthew chapter 16, when he was dealing with the Pharisees. And, and they're questioning him and challenging him, and, and he says there at the beginning of Matthew 16 verses 4, he talks about, listen, you guys can interpret the skies and you can tell when weather's coming in, but you don't understand the sign that Jonah left for you.

It's like all of these signs that the Old Testament contained of Jesus is coming. And so many of them were lost on so called students of the scriptures and the law, but they weren't diligent in their study. They weren't approaching it with open hearts and open minds seeking to learn. And so as a result of that, Jesus came and many rejected him.

It was because they weren't ready for this, and it was because they weren't the kind of students that they needed to be with God's Word. And so it really, I think, impresses upon me the importance of being that diligent student approaching God's Word with an open heart and a sincerity that I want to learn what God has to tell me.

And that's something that I come back to then time and time and time again, and my study of God's Word as a result of that is never complete. 

Yeah, you made mention there of Nicodemus and Jesus there in John chapter 3, and that, that kind of, you know, another one that I had kind of written down, just, you know, just tips on how to grow as a student of the Bible, and we've talked about time and diligence and regularity, but, you know, one, another one that I had written down here that kind of just fits with what you've just brought up was not to, you know, fight common sense when it comes to, you know, being a student of God's word.

I think sometimes we come with preconceived notions or we come with an, you know, a thought process that is super challenging and it's, you know, it's not something that I can grab hold of and we lose common sense. And we don't do that in any other area of life. And I think Jesus is showcasing that even with Nicodemus when he says, you know, you need to be born again, and Nicodemus there says in John chapter 4, you know, how can I do that?

My mother is old. How can I, you know, enter into the womb, you know, and be born a second time? And you sense that Jesus is like, What are you talking about? You have to know I'm not talking about that, right? I mean, you have to know that isn't it. And so he's calling upon him to have some common sense. And we have to understand that, listen, God understands the way we think, the way the mind operates. 

He understands what common sense is. I have to believe that if God gave to us a book that no one can grab hold of, or that very few can understand, that wouldn't be a loving God in any capacity. Well, no, he has given us something that we can understand. And so we've got to be able to use that. Uh, and allow our common sense even to come to the forefront.

All right, Malachi, you're going to jump in here. Give us some, give us some, maybe some practical ways in which you have been able to grow as a student of the Bible. You're obviously still, you know, young in your years. But you're relatively mature in your understanding of scripture. And so what are some things that you have been able to do to grow as a student of God's word? 

Um, yeah, uh, oftentimes a lot of an excuse that you hear sometimes about, you know, studying the Bible is, uh, I don't have time for that. Um, something that has been impactful for me is, is making that time, you know, fine, making that a priority. And then. You know, organizing the rest of my life around that time.

So then I'm not trying to, you know, when that time, when that set aside time comes to study, um, that's the only thing I need to focus on. I'm not thinking about the other things, you know, um, in my life that are going on around. Another aspect, you know, of that is, is, is creating in, in striving after a deeper study of, you know, God's word.

You, you. You can track themes and connections through, you know, the entirety of the Bible, right? And, and, and it was true that I'm a very, you know, relatively, I guess, young, you know, student of the Bible. But it's so encouraging and so, you know, awesome to see, you know, Some, you know, elderly man that had been an elder or preacher for a long time and just in talking with them You know about the study of the Bible and be like, oh I saw this for the first time I saw this for the first time just the other day or I made this connection and that has enhanced my study and my knowledge Of of my life here or of of the God we serve or whatever.

So realizing  The importance of a continual study has also, you know, helped me create, um, good study habits. 

I think what you just said really highlights what's said in Hebrews chapter 4 about God's word being living. It really is a living word. And that is illustrated in the fact that someone who's You know, 20 years old and someone who's 80 years old can both still be learning from scripture because it's a living word.

And we're constantly learning and growing in our understanding of God's word. And that just emphasizes the fact that God's word is different. Then every other book, it just continually reshapes and challenges me and more so than anything else ever could, and that should really create within us than a desire to keep going back to it.

I'd say one thing that Malachi said to that kind of struck me and we do it. I mean, John, you and I do it, you know, all the time is, you know, just. You want to grow in your Bible study, surround yourself with people that also want to grow in their student, being a student of the Bible. And now you're building yourselves opportunities of, uh, of conversations.

Maybe you study the same thing over a period of time so that you can, you can talk about it, you can work off of each other. You know, Malik, I made mention of, you know, having a conversation with, with other folks about a specific passage and, you know, being open to those kinds of things. So if I'm surrounding myself With other students of the Bible, I'm going to be a better student of the Bible.

If I'm trying to go about that on my own, now I can grow as a student of the Bible on my own, but man, if I surround myself with students of the Bible, I'm really, really gonna grow. And so that, again, goes back to, man, diligence, effort, uh, it takes some thoughtfulness in being able to do that, and then ultimately just making the choice to do so.

Yeah, and what you just said is something we, it's a strategy that we implement, In other areas of our lives all the time, you know, it's, there's somebody that I work out with some mornings and I know he's going to be waiting on me and so I got to get out of bed and go because I don't want to let him down if he's out there waiting on me and I don't show up.

And that's positive peer pressure in a situation like that because you have someone that's holding you accountable to that. And I think we can do the same thing in our study of God's word together. We can, we can, uh, we can have some positive peer pressure for one another, and we can encourage one another in that way to stay accountable and to be the kind of students that we know we're supposed to be.

But to your point, in order for that to be effective, we've got to surround ourselves with people who are going to also exercise that level of diligence, because if we continually surround ourselves with people that are not going to hold us accountable, then it gets very easy, very quickly to lose sight of the importance of spending time in his word.

Malachi, I'm going to do it again. You got anything else you want to,  any words of wisdom you want to share with us before we wrap this thing up? 

I don't know about words of wisdom, but, uh, something that, uh, this ending topic of, you know, sharing in study and, you know, talking. To other people about study, you know, it's something that has really made me think about is when you're sitting in a Bible class, you know, you, you've all read the same passage, right?

And you have leading questions, you know, questions, you know, to help you process and think about, you know,  at did the different aspects of whatever passage, but Every single time I've been in a Bible class, you know, I read the same passages as everyone else and I brought out these few different things.

There's always, you know, something else that I was like, I didn't even think about that, you know, or like, oh, that's a really good point. I mean, that's staring me right in the face. So, you know, the importance of doing that and I think for You know, any young listeners that you may have, um, leaning on those that have been in the word for a long time, you know, those hat that have, you know, been, been through the Bible, you know, a couple of times and studied it, you know, their whole lives and the good things that they, you know, can help you with and that they, you with.

Have been able to bring out. 

Yep. We'll go ahead and stop there. Our, our whole conversation today has been about being a student of God's word and really placing the emphasis on God's word and what it means to us and what it is. And so we're gonna close in Psalm one 19, a beautiful psalm that's all about God's word and all about what it means to us and what it does for us.

And in Psalm one 19 and verse 1 0 5. It says, Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. 

Thank you for listening this week. If you haven't already done so, we'd appreciate it if you would take just a second to subscribe to the podcast, whatever platform you're listening, rate and review the show so we can continue to spread the good news of Jesus widely and effectively as possible. Thanks again for joining us this week, and we'll talk again next week.