One of the noblest pursuits a child of God can embark upon is to
get to know and understand God better. The best way we can
accomplish this is to look carefully at the book He has written,
the Bible, which communicates who He is and His plan for
mankind. There are a number of ways we can study the Bible, but
one of the most effective and simple approaches to reading and
understanding God’s Word involves three simple steps: Step 1:
Observation—What does the passage say? Step 2:
Interpretation—What does the passage mean? Step 3:
Application—What am I going to do about what the passage says
and means? Step #1: Observation Observation is the first and
most important step in the process. As you read the Bible text,
you need to look carefully at what is said, and how it is said.
Look for: ● Terms, not words. Words can have many meanings, but
terms are words used in a specific way in a specific context.
(For instance, the word trunk could apply to a tree, a car, or a
storage box. However, when you read, “That tree h