Section 1 pgs 12-21
1. What is the difference between inductive and deductive thinking?
a. INDUCTIVE - examining the particulars in order to come to conclusions about
what you see there and what it means.
i. Inductive Bible Study: Carefully examining the text for whatever
information it contains on the subject it addresses and seeking to discern
the universal principles thus revealed.
1. subject: revealed by the text itself
2. aspects: discovered in the writer's treatment of his subject
3. purpose: receive the writer's teaching
b. DEDUCTIVE- begins with assertions of truth and moves to the particulars that
might express such truths.
i. Deductive Bible Study: Bringing your own or others' ideas to the text in
order to find support and verification for them in the text.
1. subject: brought by the preacher
2. aspects: determined by the preacher
3. purpose: confirm the preacher's ideas
2. Why is objectivity so important in analyzing the biblical text?
3. Distinguish between inductive movement and inductive elements.
a. INDUCTIVE MOVEMENT - is from the particular to the general, we intend the
particulars of the text to lead us to general understandings of its message. requires
not only this intention to let the text speak but the methods necessary to receive its
message
b. INDUCTIVE ELEMENTS are those particulars, as opposed to general and
abstract statements of principle. are the details that call for your careful attention
4. What are the seven advantages of inductive Bible study?
a. With inductive Bible study you can get to work whether you are particularly
inspired or not.
b. In an inductive approach to Bible study, the preacher is a first-hand user of the
primary documents, the Scriptures.
c. As a result of beginning with the text itself, the preacher is less dependent on the
interpretations of others.
d. Inductive Bible study also allows the preacher to be more receptive to the Holy
Spirit.
e. The inductive approach to Bible study means we have more enthusiasm for truths
we have discovered ourselves
f. Using an inductive study method makes the preacher more creative in discerning
the text's meaning.
g. Inductive Bible study assures that the preacher is better prepared for every kind of
preaching.
5. What are three tasks for an inductive Bible study?
a. Our first task in analyzing the text will be to prepare a structural diagram using
the exact wording of the biblical text.
b. Second, we will record our observations from the details in the text
c. The third task in the text analysis is to discern the questions for research that will
fill in the gaps in your knowledge concerning the text.
Skill 1 pgs 22-35
1. What is the main purpose of the structural diagram exercise?
a. purpose is to show in graphic form the relationship of various ideas in the text.
2. What is the structural diagram?
a. A Structural diagram is a phrase-by-phrase chart of the text in the exact word
order of the translation you use. Its purpose is to show in graphic form the
relationship of various ideas in the text
3. What steps are necessary to prepare the structural diagram?
a. Begin by identifying the first independent clause in the text. This clause is the first
core sentence with a subject and verb.
b. Place supporting phrases under (or over) the center of the words they modify
c. Put all direct quotations at the left margin as new statements.
d. Put the connectives in brackets and set them apart for emphasis.
e. Underline all the verbs to emphasize their important role.
f. Highlight the words that carry theological significance.
g. Draw lines to connect words separated by intervening phrases.
h. Identify the rhetorical function of words and phrases in a column to the left.
4. List some of the benefits of the structural diagram.
a. The main ideas in the text will stand out with the most support from secondary
ideas.
b. Secondary ideas in the diagram will provide vital information about the concepts
they support
c. Notice the placement of the four outcomes vertically as a series.
d. The structure of a long complex sentence will show up clearly with the structural
diagram.
e. The progression of thought will show the writers ideas moving toward some end
or conclusion
5. What are the eight kinds of structure signaled by connectives?
a. Comparison shows ideas to be alike, similar, or of equal weight in the writer's
thinking.
b. Contrast means two elements are unlike, possibly opposites.
c. Conditional statements reveal a relationship in which a particular condition is said
to lead to a predictable result.
d. When you diagram conditional statements, show the link between the two.
e. Correlative structure shows two elements to be related to each other reciprocally.
f. Connectives of reason point to arguments that show that one element is the reason
behind another: because, therefore, for this reason, for, since.
g. Purpose statements are often apparent by connectives like that, so that, and in
order that.
6. What is meant by "rhetorical function”?
a. Rhetorical functions can be classified in the general sense with four kinds:
explanation, illustration, argumentation, and application.Each of these elements is
needed for the development of your sermon. Each of them is also discernible in
the development of the text writer's ideas. As you read the text, you can see that
the writer sometimes explains, sometimes illustrates, sometimes argues, and
sometimes applies his ideas.
b. Within these broader categories of rhetorical function are more specific functions
for words and phrases
Skill 2 Pgs 36-49
1. What is the skill the observations exercise aims to strengthen?
a. recognizing and noting details in the wording of the text and their significance for
its meaning
2. Identify the factors involved in strengthening your power of observation.
a. Skill in observation depends heavily on one's motivation.
b. Skill in observation demands an eye for the details.
c. Skill in observation calls for a healthy learner's curiosity.
d. Skill in observation requires a willingness to suspend judgment.
e. Skill in observation demands a ruthless realism about the facts
f. Skill in observation requires knowing what to look for.
3. What is the recognition factor?
a. recognition factor will become an increasingly valuable strength as you study the
Bible for your preaching ministry. You will find that the Scripture is consistent
throughout. The central themes will come up again and again in the Old
Testament and the New. Some of the figurative language will make increasing
sense. Like flowers springing up here and there in a field, the great theological
themes of Scripture will come out again and again, and you will recognize them
in each new context
4. What are three kinds of observations you will note from the structural diagram?
a. The relationship of various ideas in the text
b. The significant words you have highlighted
c. The rhetorical functions of various phrases
5. When making immediate observations, why is it important to suspend judgment?
a. Most of us are prone to jump to conclusions. With even one "fact" in hand, we
tend immediately to assume we know where it leads. The skilled observer,
however, will intentionally wait to make a judgment even though he may see the
beginnings of a trend. Unless he waits until sufficient particulars are clear, he may
find himself trying to prove a hasty conclusion and thus ignoring other particulars
that do not support it. The discipline of suspending judgment is at the heart of
inductive Bible study. We record all the observations we can before coming to a
conclusion about what they mean.
6. What is the purpose of writing summary sentences?
a. summary sentences that distill from the text the particular truths revealed in it.
Sometimes these ideas will be obvious; at other times they will only be implied.
In simple statements, show how the theological themes in the text are related. In
doing so you are not only showing that the two ideas are connected but also how
they are connected.
Skill 3 Pgs 50-62
1. Why is it necessary for the preacher to use expert sources?
a. So we can interpret the information for the listener
2. What are three major distances between the modern interpreter and the world of the
Bible?
a. The historical distance to the world of the Bible raises questions
b. The literary distance to the world of the Bible raises questions.
c. The theological distance to the world of the Bible raises questions.
3. What are some of the resources the preacher will use for his research?
a. My first resource is the Bible itself
b. Concordances lead to related texts.
c. Word study books are my next resource
d. Bible handbooks help get the whole book in view.
e. Bible dictionaries allow you to look up any topic related to your text.
f. Commentaries help you analyze and interpret your text.
g. Bible software can put it all together.
4. What are the investigative questions?
a. What other passages help clarify the meaning of this text?
b. What does the context of this book tell me about the message of this text?
c. How does this text's literary genre affect its message?
d. What seems to be the writer's purpose in this text as a part of the whole book
e. What are the overall tone and style of the text language?
f. What are the apparent implications of the writer's statements in the text?
g. . What is the significance of the ideas in the text for the response of contemporary
believers?
5. What are the interpretive questions?
a. What other passages help clarify the meaning of this text
b. What does the context of this book tell me about the message of this text
c. How does this text's literary genre affect its message?
d. What seems to be the writer's purpose in this text as a part of the whole book?
e. What are the overall tone and style of the text language?
f. What are the apparent implications of the writer's statements in the text?
g. What is the significance of the ideas in the text for the response of contemporary
believers?
6. Why should the preacher number his questions and answers?
a. will help you keep track of your research. For those questions that seem to have
no answer, just write "no answer" beside the number.
Section 2
1. What are three basic questions for interpretation?
a. What do we have here?
b. What does it mean?
c. What is its significance for us?
2. What is the classic method of interpretation presented in this study?
a. the interpretive process by which we discern the meaning of the text and prepare
to present it in the sermon with its central idea and what the writer says about that
idea.
3. What are the four sentences in the classic method?
a. The first sentence you will write is a complete statement of the text idea. The
heart of this statement is the careful wording of the writer's main idea.
b. The second sentence in this interpretive method is the sermon idea. This
statement keeps the heart of the text writer's idea but drops the historical elements
in favor of a timeless and universal statement of theological truth. The sermon
idea sentence contains the same meaning as the text idea but states it for the
contemporary audience.
c. The third sentence in this method is called the interrogative, in which the sermon
idea is written as a question.
d. Finally, you will write a transition sentence designed to open the way into your
sermon body and division statements. This sentence will include an important
element called the key word. This method is sometimes called the key word
method because of the central role of this element.
4. What are three reasons biblical interpretation is a challenge?
a. the nature of the believer,
b. the nature of the Bible,
c. the difference between the Bible world and our own.
5. What principles of interpretation can guide the preacher as he interprets his text?
a. Identify the kind of literature your text is for insight into its meaning.
b. Consider the context of the passage for a better understanding of its meaning
c. Read the text for its plain and obvious meaning.
d. Try to discern the writer's intentions when he wrote the text.
e. Look carefully at the language of the text for what it reveals about its meaning.
f. Notice the various theological themes in the text.
g. Always take a God-centered perspective for interpreting your text.
6. What is the preacher's first job if he is to preach God's message to his own generation?
a. Discovering the writer's original meaning is your first task as you prepare to
preach to your own generation.
7. What are the three tasks in this section on theological interpretation?
a. first task in interpreting the text is naming the text idea
b. The second task in this interpretive phase of your sermon preparation is bridging
text to sermon.
c. The third task for theological interpretation is writing division statements.
Skill 4 pgs 71-83
1. What is the greatest weakness of preaching?
a. Fuzzy thinking. The sharp focus of precise thought is lost in the flow of slogans,
platitudes, and other "preacher talk" that seems designed to sound good rather
than to communicate clearly.
2. What is the aim of the skill exercise in this chapter?
a. Our aim is for the text idea to become the sermon idea. Then the sermon idea will
be the guiding concept in the writing of sermon division statements. We want to
maintain a straight line of thought from the text to the sermon. Unless we find the
right words to identify the text idea, how will we ever preach that idea?
3. What is a word crafter?
a. professional communicators, we are called to be word crafters. Several different
skills are necessary to any craft. You need to understand the raw material you
handle, its possibilities and limits. You need to be skilled in the use of the tools
necessary to that craft as you prepare and shape your material. You also want to
be skilled at combining the stuff of your craft and in finishing your product with
smooth edges, vibrant color, the right touch.
4. What are three reasons that naming the text idea is vital for sermon preparation?
a. first reason for accurately naming the text idea is to make sure it reflects what the
biblical writer is saying
b. In the second place you need to name the idea carefully so as to define it precisely
in your own mind.
c. Third, you must give the text idea an accurate name so that the same words can be
used in the sermon idea.
5. Define the text idea.
a. discovering the writer's central idea in the text and designating it with precise
terminology.
6. What are the two basic components of an idea?
a. subject
b. modifier
7. What is the difference between the subject and modifier of the text idea?
a. SUBJECT- the central topic of the idea
b. MODIFIER- the defining focus of the idea
8. What are some of the guidelines you might follow in wording the text idea?
a. Carefully consider all the theological themes in the text for insight into its central
idea.
b. Examining the context of the passage will help identify the writer's central.
c. Look closely at any expression of intention by the writer for an understanding of
his central idea.
d. Translate figurative language in the text for insight into the writer's theological
subject.
e. Look for the plain and obvious meaning of the text as the key to the text idea.
f. Look at the rhetorical functions and grammar of phrases in the text for dominant
themes.
9. How does the idea of being a word crafter fit into your concept of the teaching and
preaching ministry?
Skill 5 Pgs 84-98
1. What is the connection that links the sermon to the text?
a. its basis for authority
2. What are the four sentences in the classic text to sermon method?
a. The first is the text idea that presents the theological truth of the text in its
original setting.
b. The second statement is the sermon idea, in which you word the theological idea
of the sermon.
c. The third sentence is called the interrogative, in which the sermon idea is written
as a question.
d. Finally, you will write a transition sentence as a statement designed to open the
way into your sermon body and division statements.
3. What is the importance of stating the text idea as a historical statement?
a.
4. Why is it important to write both the text idea and sermon idea as separate statements?
a. The revelation of God in Scripture comes in particular historical settings.
b. Discerning the timeless theological message requires giving due attention to the
historical particulars of the text.
c. The theological message of the text must be isolated from the text for clear
statement.
d. The "particularized" message of the text is to be "reparticularized" for the
contemporary audience.
5. What elements in the historical setting might be included in the text idea statement?
a. Include the writer, speaker, or key character in the statement.
b. In the Gospels, you may be uncertain whether to refer to the Gospel writer as the
key character or the speaker or actor in the narrative. It is legitimate to refer to
either. If Jesus is speaking, you may write, "Jesus taught his disciples that..." Or
you may use the Gospel writer as the key person. "John introduced his Gospel
by..." "Jeremiah recorded his call of God to be a prophet."
c. Note the purpose of the writer or tone of the text in the statement’
d. Make reference to secondary characters, hearers, or readers.
e. Consider the occasion of writing, the situation or circumstances.
f. Include any literary features relevant to the meaning of the text.
6. What are four kinds of purpose statements you might write for a sermon?
a. Direct
b. Indirect
c. Casual
d. Corrupted
Skill 6 Pgs 99-
1. What is meant by division statements?
a. Division statements reflect the text writer's treatment of his subject. They
complete the text-to-sermon bridge by expressing the predicates of the sermon
idea as they are revealed in the text.
2. What skill is to be strengthened by the Writing Divisions exercise?
a. wording sermon division statements clearly to reflect the text writer's treatment of
his subject.
3. What is the relationship between the sermon idea and the division statements?
a.
4. What is meant by "a straight line of thought from the writer's idea to the preacher's
sermon"?
a. this method will keep the preacher's train of thought from wandering off and
ultimately getting stuck in a bog of fuzzy thinking
5. Explain the subject/modifier -- > predicates pattern.
a. Like a well-maintained railway, the discipline of this method will keep the
preacher's train of thought from wandering off and ultimately getting stuck in a
bog of fuzzy thinking. That train of ideas is pulled by the core concept, the text
idea as subject/modifier. Every other aspect of the sermon must follow that
concept down the same track.
6. Identify four formats for writing division statements.
a. Sermon divisions can be written as historical statements.
b. Sermon divisions can be written as propositional statements.
c. Sermon divisions can be written as applicational statements.
d. Sermon divisions can be written as exhortative statements.
7. Distinguish between anthropocentric and theocentric division statements.
a. ANTHROPOCENTRIC (man-centered)
b. THEOCENTRIC (God-centered) way.
8. What are some guidelines for analyzing the writer's treatment of his subject?
a.
9. Why are subpoints to be avoided?
a. Some preachers use subpoints and sub-subpoints to outline in an intricate and
complex manner the audience cannot possibly follow
10. What qualities should the preacher use to test his divisions statements?
a. Use complete statements rather than phrases or single words
b. Make sure your division statements are distinct from one another
c. Use parallelism in phrasing, rhythm, and terminology for poetic symmetry
d. Use present-tense contemporary language suitable for the audience you will
address.
e. Use statements that will stand alone as universal principles
f. Follow a logical progression of thought in the arrangement of the division
statements
g. Avoid the use of subpoints in favor of balanced development for each division
h. Avoid laboring over alliteration in favor of clearly expressing the text writer's
ideas
