Episode Details

Bible Study 101: What’s The Difference Between Reading and Studying? Hearing Jesus, Bible Study, Daily Affirmations

Summary

Hey friend, welcome to the first episode of Bible Study 101. Before diving into the fall Luke and Acts series, Rachael is taking a few episodes to go back to basics. In this one, she unpacks just how biblically illiterate most Americans really are (backed by real research), walks through a real example of Scripture being twisted to manipulate people, and lays the groundwork for learning to recognize God's voice for yourself instead of taking anyone else's word for it.

Join the email list at rachaelgroll.com/newsletter to be entered in the Bible Study 101 giveaway, starting August 28th.

• ☆Sign up for Rachael's newsletter here: RachaelGroll.com/Newsletter

• ☆Send Rachael a voicemail with any questions at her SpeakPipe here: SpeakPipe Voicemail

• ☆Go on a trip with Rachael: Bible Study Live

• ☆Get Ad-Free Episodes, Bonus Content, and more here: patreon.com/HearingJesus

• ☆Pick up a copy of my latest book: Bible Study and Devotional

• ☆If you would like to give to Hearing Jesus and financially support the podcast, you can do so here! ➤ Give Here

• ☆Facebook ➤ https://www.facebook.com/SheHears.org/

• ☆Instagram ➤ https://www.instagram.com/rachael.d.groll/

• ☆Website ➤ Hearing Jesus

Rachael realized at a recent gathering that not everyone listening had the same foundation for reading Scripture, even longtime believers. So before this fall's Luke and Acts series, she's teaching a short refresher on how to actually study the Bible, not just read it. If you're new to Bible study, this is the perfect place to start. If you've read your Bible for years, she still thinks it's worth the time.

Yes, and it's not a sign that you don't love God. Rachael describes the common experience of reading a chapter, underlining something that jumps out, and then being unable to explain what it meant by lunchtime. She compares it to handing someone a violin and telling them to play. Without the right tools, you'll make sound, but not music.

More than most people assume. Rachael cites the American Bible Society's State of the Bible study, where only 17 percent of surveyed adults said they'd read the whole Bible. A separate study, State of Theology, found that 53 percent of American evangelicals agreed people are "basically good by nature," which contradicts what Scripture actually teaches, and 43 percent agreed that Jesus was a great teacher but not God. These weren't casual respondents either. Everyone surveyed had to affirm the Bible as their highest authority to be counted.

Rachael walks through a real example: Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm (Psalm 105:15, NASB; the same line appears in 1 Samuel 24 and 26). This verse has been used for years to silence people who question a pastor, framing the pastor's authority as equal to God's. But read in context, the verse is about God protecting a vulnerable, powerless people, not shielding leaders from accountability. Rachael calls this pattern cherry picking: pulling one verse out of its paragraph and assigning it to an agenda it was never meant