"what certificate did you get?"
"you're not working for church?"
Many questions were asked. To some, I got excited telling them what I'd learnt and one led to another, and thought it's good to share the preparation work/where I begin when I receive a passage to lead bible study or to give a talk . It has affected my reading and you'll start to observe and hopefully listen carefully to God's word, with your mind blown away, going away repenting/rejoicing/thanking. Alot of hard work!! And lots of prayer!!
LOOK AT VARIOUS VERSIONS of the passage…
NIV (gives thought for thought words)
New Living Translation (gives sense for sense words)
ESV (is word for word)
CONTENT
What type of literature is it: parable, narrative, letter?
What’s passage about? Is there a clear argument, structure or theme?
What’s emphasized or repeated?
What are the difficulties – thing you don’t understand, or need to check?
What are the surprises – things you didn’t expect?
CONTEXT
Where does it come in the immediate context? How is it linked to what comes immediately before and after it?
Where does it come in the book as a whole?
Where does it fit in the bigger Bible storyline?
PURPOSE
Why did the author write this passage to these people?
Why did he say this, and not something else?
Why did he say this here, in this part of his letter or book?
FOR EPISTLES…
What are the ISSUES?
Any FACTS/ENCOURAGEMENTS?
Any OBLIGATIONS (to) ACTIONS?
BIG IDEA (form a sentence of 10 words or less)
This is the tough bit, as you'll keep thinking what the Big Idea is of the passage. By this time, you would have memorised the whole passage and thinking about it day and night, teaching yourself, struggling with your sin, asking God to help you with your stubborn heart, your dense mind.
AIM (to teach)
TEACHING POINTS (from passage which can become talk outline)
Dear friends, hope the above helps. Let me know if you have any questions.
Gobbet - In Cornhill, that means a chunk of a passage given to us to work on. It's not a full blown talk, but a passage to work on
