2 Timothy 3:14–15: [14] But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it [15] and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. (ESV)

Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. - Acts 17:11 (ESV)

Now that the articles for each book of the Bible have been published, it is appropriate to publish this post, which was mostly written before the Bible series began. In that series, each post presents a summary interpretation of successive books of the Bible, along with a sampling of implications to show how the book is useful for Christians who seek to live for God through Christ. Having completed the series, it is worth asking how profitable it is for individual people to set their minds to the task of understanding what Scripture says.

How important is it for Christians to learn to study the Bible for themselves? My guess is that most people's answer would split along two lines. There are those who would instinctively answer, "Of course it's important." Others would respond, "It's not a big deal."

Why the contrast? The sharpness is evidenced in the fact that some would think it obvious, as though they would be incredulous at the idea that the question is debatable at all. But others simply wouldn't see the importance.

What argument would Christians make that it's not important to study the Bible on their own? I have heard some say that they are confident in what they know and don't need to learn anything they don't already know. I have heard others say that they rely on their preachers and teachers to do the studying for them.

I have often spoken with people who have been in church for most of their lives and still do not know how to study the Bible.

When I have spoken with churched people who also have significant sin issues in their lives, their understanding of Scripture and doctrine often has been like a mass of cables that are misconnected or unconnected. There are doctrines, principles, stories, and prayers from the Bible that are scattered throughout their understanding. We all lack a full and complete set of proper connections between the biblical material the Bible gives us. We misinterpret, under-interpret, over-interpret, or fail to interpret altogether different parts of what God has given us in His Word.

How do we think through these things? The two passages at the head of this article complement each other to resolve the issues brought up so far. On the one hand, Paul reminds Timothy of how he has been acquainted with the Scriptures from his childhood. So far, so good. Many Christians would say they are acquainted with the Scriptures. But the level of acquaintance varies tremendously. What some call "acquaintance," others would consider near total ignorance. Conversely, the first group may consider the second's standard of acquaintance much too high.

On the other hand, Paul does not equate acquaintance with the Scriptures with being made wise by them. Instead, he says that those Scriptures with which he has been so long acquainted are able to make him wise for salvation. This makes a distinction between being acquainted with the Scriptures and being made wise for salvation by them. The acquaintance seems necessary to be made wise for salvation, but it is not sufficient. How do we bridge the gap? Could there be a more important question than that at this point? Enter the Bereans.

Acts describes how the Jews of Berea were nobler than the Thessalonians because they examined God's word to check that what they were hearing was what the text actually said. And this is the key. If we are going to bridge the gap between acquaintance with the Scriptures and being made wise for salvation by them, the way to do that is by examining or studying the Scriptures.

So we see the importance of studying God's word in the need to check what we hear taught with what we see written. This brings us to an important point about preachers and teachers.

It is common for people to have a particular set of favorite teachers or preachers to whom they enjoy listening most. It is also common for trusted teachers to be assumed to be right because they said it rather than because of the way what they said comports with Scripture.

Does this mean we should do away with teachers? Not at all. But this seems to be another common response to the felt need to understand God's word. There are some who believe they are best left on their own and do not need preachers or teachers. But where would the Bereans have been if they had not had teachers? They would have been in a far more difficult place. They would have had to develop their own understanding of the Scriptures from scratch. It is much easier to check whether what a teacher is saying is true than it is to develop a system doctrine on your own.

So we do not need to do away with teachers. That does not help us bridge the gap between being acquainted with the Scriptures and being made wise for salvation by them. It only makes it more difficult. Instead, the gap is bridged by the Berean practice of devoting ourselves to the text to see how what we are acquainted with is true for us and what it means. The Bereans were not prepared to acquiesce to what they were taught until they had verified by their own study that what they were taught was actually true. In doing so, they bridged the gap between acquaintance and being made wise.

The Scriptures are the basis for doctrine. It is one thing to be acquainted with the Scriptures. It is quite another to be made wise by them. We need to learn to connect the original meaning of any given passage to our lives today. This can be deceptively difficult. This does not mean that we do not need teachers. Teachers and preachers should show their work whenever possible. We should see teachers and preachers as a means of learning to study. We should not fail to learn to study because we listen to so much teaching. If we fail to learn to study, it should be despite consistently hearing good teaching rather than because we knowingly exposed ourselves to poor or misleading teachers.