What does it mean when we say, "I'm going to a Bible study"? Beleive it or not, the person you are talking to, althought they speak English, may be speaking an entirely different language!

The longer you spend in a culture, the more you begin to understand it. We have spent four years ministering in the greater London area of the United Kingdom. Sometimes it seeems pieces of the puzzle keep coming together. One thing that I was amazed about is how little of the Bible the Christian culture of the U.K. was familiar with. It seemed as though there were a lot of Bible studies going on in different churches, but somehow the result of this was rarely a healthy and sound understanding of God's Word. I remember at one point sitting down with someone and saying, "What is it that you actually do at Bible studies?"

His response was really nothing new, but it helped put a lot of things into perspective. Most often, Bible study in the U.K. is what is called "reader response". In other words, everyone reads the passage and responds to it. Without giving heed to what the author intended to say, or who his audience was, or what the historical/cultural setting was, everyone simply generates his own personal interpretation of the passage.

For example, if the Bible study group is reading in Provers 18:22 where it reads, "He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the LORD." Then the group goes in a circle and all express what think it means to them.

Finally one guy in the group says, "To me this verse is special. I always seem to be out of God's favor. In order to be in favor with God, I need to find a wife."

Then everyone nods their head in acknowlegment of the bachlors insight, and everyone is happy because the Bible "spoke to them".

You probably noticed the problem with this. We need to properly understand that the author under inspiration of the Holy Spirit had a specific message he was trying to get across. But that aspect is disregarded (honestly I didn't mean to write an article on reader response, it seems to have just happened - sorry).

But knowing this helped me understand why Christians would go and get drunk after work and joke about filling themselves with the Spirit, or why Christians would not stand up for truth often times because they are afraid of appearing too holy.

Picture a person who has only been exposed to they typical U.K. Bible study. They are hungry to know God but their understanding remains unfruitful. Picture that person walking into a room where the Bible is being taught, explained, and applied in context. This is one of the things we get to experience. People hearing something that we can take for granted and they simply rejoice over it with great joy. I am so blessed that God has called me to teach His Word in a place that is so hungry.