How can I study the bible to learn more of God's character?

Question

I was particularly inspired to try to do this whilst reading "Disappointment with God
Three Questions No One Asks Aloud" by: Philip Yancey recently. However, I don't really know how to approach it, and would appreciate ideas.

(By the way, it's not a great idea to insult God - He's a lot bigger and more powerful than any of us, and it's just not clever!)

But thank you - everyone else - for your answers. There are lots of good points there which have made me think, and have also encouraged me to get studying the bible :) Thank you!!!

Answer 1

Most Bibles have a good concordance in the back of them- Pick one of the attributes of God- such as "Holy" and then look up all the verses that use that word. If you don't have a good concordance, you can always use a search tool like biblegateway.com. You can also learn a lot about God's character by how He used different people in the Bible throughout the course of time. No matter what method you use, pray and ask God to show you Himself- He DOES reveal Himself to those who (with a right heart attitude) search to know Him better.

Answer 2

When I became a new Christian, i was told by a friend to take baby steps to learning. Literally. She told me to get a children's Bible story book and read the inspiring stories from there to get a sense of God's wonderous works and His love. I thought it was silly, but i tried it. I read the stories and got a basis to start by; A simple understanding. I then built on that by reading the stories in their entirety out of a Bible. I then purchased a KJV OPEN study bible. It is a great Bible with multiple resources included. It has maps, literary commentary, devotionals, and much more. I enjoy reading the Bible, and the added study guides give me the tools I need to better understand what I am reading and still have my own understanding of the Word. Not just what a preacher or evangelist has TOLD me. I hope you stay in the Word and through your readings you find God's true Character.

Answer 3

Get into the habit of STUDYING the Bible. Give yourself a set time at which you will study your Bible prayerfully, using a decent application commentary that gives 3 months or so of readings, and take in what they say, which is likely to be what it meant to its original hearers, or better, how it fits in with other Bible passages.
A a new christian, I found Chick Tracts handy for makeing the verses relevant to daily life. Likewise, as I grew I discovered Dave Hunt's books, which have had the biggest influence (other than the Bible) on my Christian walk over the last six years. I particularly recommend his 'An Urgent Call to a Serious Faith'; check out
www.thebereancall.org
for more info on his books. See also:
www.christiananswers.net
www.answersingenesis.org
www.lightforthelastdays.co.uk
All four websites give answers the sceptics IGNORE, so desperate are they to believe the lie that everything created itself.
May God bless you in your walk with Him.

Answer 4

There is a wonderful book called, "God: A Biography". I have it, but don't remember the author's name. It would be easy to find at Amazon.com. The author uses the Bible to do a character study on God, just like you would do on any literary character. The book was fascinating, and written from a non-religious point of view. The author used the Bible to analyze the literary character of "god", essentially telling a life story.

There is a similar book called, "Jesus: A Crisis in the Life of God". Another wonderful book, using the Biblical character of Jesus as God personified to further elaborate on the "life" and character of the literary god described in the Bible. I would highly recommend both to you.

Answer 5

To learn more about God you need to learn to read between the lines, work out what, and how man has used the words to control others, read the text before it was badly translated and then you will see how wrong the bible we know today is

Answer 6

There are youth groups if your a teen you can go to and discuss the bible or you can talk with other people who read and understand the bible really well such as a friend or another family member. There are also different kinds of bibles you can read to get different perspectives.

Answer 7

I start by praying for the help of the Holy Spirit. I invite him into the study to show us a message from God.

For your study:I would start with Mat 13 regarding the parable of the sower. Understand what happens when God's word is studied.

Then study God's Ten commandments. Note that there is mercy inherent in the Ten Commandments.

6And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.


The book of John help you understand the great gift of Christ and his grace in your redemption.

Study Revelation.

The best place to find God's everlasting character is in REV. 21v
3And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

Answer 8

Study the words of Jesus in the New Testament. He teaches about His Father God. There is a good book called, " The words and works of Jesus" by J. Dwight Pentecost. One of my favorite books.
Rev. TomCat

Answer 9

Do this before to read your bible prays tell God to make you able to understand what you read and after pray open your bible and read God will touch you God bless you

Answer 10

If you want to know more about the Bible, Jehovahs Witness offer Free Home Bible Studys with people. We do this to help people UNDERSTAND the Bible. As you know just reading it isn't enough, we must understand it to come to know Jehovah God and his personality. In the scriptures he invites us to do this.

Jehovah is the best friend anyone can have. Because the patriarch “‘Abraham put faith in Jehovah, . . . it was counted to him as righteousness,’ and he came to be called ‘Jehovah’s friend.’” (Jas. 2:23) Jehovah desires that all persons possessing such faith walk in his name as his friends. If individuals are to please God and enjoy a friendly relationship with him, they must heed the words of the Congregator, who declared centuries ago: “Fear the true God and keep his commandments. For this is the whole obligation of man.”—Eccl. 12:13.

Accurate knowledge is vital in order to be God’s friend, to keep his commandments and to walk in his name. The Apostle Paul told fellow believers at Colossae: “We . . . have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the accurate knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual comprehension, in order to walk worthily of Jehovah to the end of fully pleasing him as you go on bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the accurate knowledge of God.”—Col. 1:9, 10

So if you are interested in learning more, contact the JWs and they will be MORE than willing to help you understand the Bible and come to an accurate understanding of it.

Learn more!
www.watchtower.org