In the book Effective Bible Teaching the authors discuss the merits of “topic and theme” and how we can use this to help prepare a bible lesson verses an essay. In this section the authors argue the universal principles of good writing, speaking and teaching and what the different handbooks say about composing a good essay. There are several different writing options such as picking a topic and then narrowing it to a specific thesis. Or doing the complete oposite and picking a broad subject and then narrowing it to a specific area of your topic. Another option would be to control your idea through a central theme. Personally, I was instructed by a teacher to formulate my thesis last, after I have the essay written, to make sure that I unify everything that I wrote about into the thesis. The authors of Effective Bible Teaching advocate a two-step method of writing an essay, which can also be used to prepare a Bible study. The first step would be to determine what the Bible passage is about. It is helpful to look for repetition when determining the topic of a passge. After this, we must formulate a statement that tells what this topic is about. This is where the writers interpreation of the subject comes into play. While it is helpful to use universal writing practices to formulate a Bible study, we must always remember to include God’s divine intention when He gives you something to share with others. The authors of Effective Bible Teaching urge us to work our way through a
Chapter three of Engaging the Christian Scriptures goes into detail over selective parts of the sections of history, writings, and prophets. Chapter three gives the reader information over several books in the Bible such as Joshua, Judges, Jeremiah, etc. The chapter dives into the text of Joshua and gives the reader useful insight over Joshua and him leading the Israel across the Jordan river to conquer the land of milk and honey, Jericho. The book of Judges purpose was to teach Israel that God is faithful and certain to punish sin therefore each person must remain loyal and devoted to the Lord. The purpose of Jeremiah was to warn of the destruction that they were about to face and to urge Judah to return and submit to God. Towards the end
The Bible in an Hour by Wade Butler splits the Bible up with four different charts. They all cover different parts of the bible. The first chart depicts the whole Bible from beginning to end. Charts two and three covers the themes of the Old Testament. Chart four covers the New Testament.
students beginning their journey of academic biblical studies and is supposed to be used as a guide
When studying the Bible, it is important to understand its origins; for me, I I have become enlightened, but troubled after learning about the subject. I found the unit, as a whole, very important and a positive experience for me. But, with this comes much apprehension and confusion as to the strength of the Bible.
Teaching prayer in schools has been a controversial topic since Abington Township School District v. Schempp (1963) that removed prayer from the classroom. However, a Bible-literacy course at New Braunfels High School (NBHS) in Texas exemplifies the successful teaching of the religion without imposing it on the students. This is an ideal that would satisfy both conservative Christians and secular liberals. The consensus that David Van Biema comes to in his article “The Case for Teaching the Bible” is that schools should teach the Bible from a neutral perspective that allows students to understand the concepts behind the text’s arguments while observing and forming their own beliefs and opinions.
In Shaped by the Word, by Robert Mulholland Jr., one finds a way to read scripture in order to provide a deeper understanding of God and allow His Word to shape one’s spiritual life. In the Introduction, in chapter 1, the reader is introduced to the idea that there is a movement in the church that seeks to become deeper and stricter in spiritual formation. He claims there are many books written for this purpose, and his intending purpose for this book is for God to use however he may want in the reader’s spiritual life. Mulholland provides the reader with a prayer to pray in preparation of reading this book and states there may be points where God is knocking and calling the reader’s attention to something new.
Personally, from the class of English 1101, I have learned on how to use the writing processes effectively, where the first step is to have a pre-write, which focuses on brainstorming ideas form either the group or from individuals’ brain for the required topic. The second phase of the process is the thesis statement, which is the primary idea of the entire essay. I discovered that the thesis statement should be persuasive and truthful. The third step is on developing drafts, where it showed me on how to focus on content, organization, and style. Again, I noted that I must ask myself who is my audience, and what do they want or need to hear.
Reading the text as if it were addressed to God’s people in all times and places, would help us to “make ourselves at home and allow the texts to shape us” (61).
Writing an essay can be difficult if a person does not know how or where to begin. I personally believe the first step of writing is to list down ideas about the topic. After
Biblical wisdom emphasis is another approach in which one can investigate to see what reigns to be important. Like the wisdom approach, biblical share in the importance of seeking wise counsel. Horton (2009) states that in the biblical approach several areas are important in determining spiritual discernment. These areas consist of decision being determined by the guidelines in the Bible, common sense, individual gifts, God has a plan but do not reveal it, sovereignty of God, and free to make choices (Horton, 2009). One may object to the fact that God would want us to do something but do not give us the tools or clues to do it. God being sovereign is an area that many can agree on. Gill, (2006) states that it is through the sovereignty of God which is presented through the Holy Spirit that allows for us to understand God’s will for our life. Gill (2006) also implement the wheel of life for the coaching process whereas God is at the center. I highly believe that nothing happens without God ordaining it to happen. God is in control of all things. Roman 8:28 states that God works all things together for those who love him and who are called according to his purpose (NIV). Therefore God is in control and guiding us towards his plan or purpose for our lives.
“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of thy womb a reward.
Fee, Gordon D., and Douglas K. Stuart. How to Read the Bible Book by Book: A Guided
Introduce my topic get the readers attention by starting the essay with a good catching attention getter, and follow through with background information about the topic
Bible as the Inspired Word of God The Bible is the work of various authors, who lived in different continents and wrote in different eras. Furthermore, much of the text does not claim to have been 'dictated' by God and is not always God speaking to people. In parts it consists of people speaking to God, as in the Psalms, and people speaking to people, as in the New Testament letters written by Paul. In light of this, some maintain that it is not possible to treat the Bible as a book of divine oracles, delivered once by God and recorded by its authors through divine inspiration, since biblical authors were products of their time and subsequently their understanding of divine truth was culturally
A Bible study curriculum uses this structure: Attention (intro.), Analysis (content), Application (implications & application).