STEP ONE: THE BIG PICTURE
- Read the entire text in one siting in a version that you love.
- Listen to an audio version of the text (YouVersion app, DWELL app, etc.)
- View book overview on BibleProject.com
- Use a Bible Introduction, i.e.
- The New Testament In Its World by NT. Wright and Michael F. Bird
- The New Testament: A Historical and Theological Introduction by Donald A. Hagner
STEP TWO; ZOOM IN
- Study one chapter at a time, slowly.
- Take notes in your Bible or in a journal as you study each chapter.
- Use commentaries following each chapter.
- First, use an accessible commentary, such as N.T. Wright’s Everyone Commentary Series.
- Next, use an academic commentary series (see bestcommentaries.com)
STEP THREE: REVIEW AND REFLECT
- Anything you highlighted or underlined, copy into an electronic document or a physical journal.
- Reflect on the following questions:
- What have I learned from reading this text?
- What has God taught me from the text?
- What is my response to the text?
- Give the text one more reading in one sitting.