During the second twenty minutes, we can turn to lighter subjects, such as the study of specific words. There are at least two to three hundred words in the Bible that need to be studied in depth. For example, the word blood is used in the Bible over four hundred times. We should go over all the verses that speak of the blood, note the important ones, and group the ones with similar meanings together. In this way we will compile for ourselves a kind of concordance. This is more meaningful than buying a concordance from a store. It also would be good if we could memorize these verses. Later the Spirit of God may give us revelations. When a revelation comes, we immediately will be able to recall all the verses on the subject. A word such as calling was once studied by some brothers, who grouped the verses into ten sections (See heading XXVI in Chapter Five, “Various Plans for Studying the Bible”). We can spend twenty minutes a day studying such words. Twenty minutes is enough for this kind of study. Do not expect to finish a word-study in a day. Some words require two months to finish. The study of the Bible takes time. We cannot be sloppy about it. Otherwise, we will not have the sword of the Spirit but a worthless reed. We have to dive into the Word in a solid way. If our study of the Word is solid, our preaching will also be solid. If our study of the Word is sloppy, our preaching will also be sloppy. Suppose someone comes to us and tells us that the blood can give us a new life. If we have studied the word blood carefully, we will know that this teaching is wrong. The life contained in the blood is the life of the soul, not the new life. We have to acquaint ourselves with the fundamental teachings of the whole Bible. Otherwise, we will simply take what others say and be led astray by their mistakes. A knowledge of the fundamental teachings of the whole Bible is not something that comes to us in an instant. We must study each word carefully one by one before we can know what the whole Bible says. Young brothers and sisters have to be conscientious in word-studies. If we can get through several dozen words in a year, we will be able to go through all the important words in the Old and the New Testaments in ten years.
In the third period, we should spend ten minutes collecting facts. We have to do this every day. What should we collect? All the metals in the Bible, such as gold, silver, bronze, and iron, have special significance. The precious stones in the Bible also have special significance. We should not consider them as minor issues. They occupy an important role in the interpretation of the Scriptures. Why was the bronze serpent bronze? Why does Revelation 1:15 say that the Lord’s feet were “like shining bronze, as having been fired in a furnace”? Why was the head of the image in Nebuchanezzar’s dream golden? Why were some of the utensils in the temple golden? Why was the ark covered with gold, not silver? Why were the bases of the tabernacle silver? In Zechariah 5 we find lead. What does this refer to? We have to study these things carefully before we can understand what they mean exegetically. During this period of time, we should collect all these facts and write down the verses one by one. Later, we may devote the first period of time to meditate on them and study them, or we may read about them in the second period. In other words, during the third period, we collect material for our study in the first and second periods. The book of Ephesians speaks of the spirit fifteen times. We can use the third period of time to find these fifteen instances. Ephesians 1:13 speaks of the seal of the Spirit, and we can write down all the verses in the New Testament that speak of the seal. Ephesians 1:17 speaks of a spirit of wisdom and revelation, and we can write down all the verses that link the spirit with wisdom. After we have collected and sorted out all these facts, we can study them during the twenty minutes of the first or second period. If we do not have the facts gathered and sorted ahead of time, our study will not have a basis and will not be that accurate.
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