1. READ THE BIBLE. LISTEN (ATTEND) TO IT. Think about what it says, how it says it, and what it means. Keep on getting to know it better. Read parts you might not automatically turn to.
2. BE OPEN TO THE HOLY SPIRIT. Prayerfully listen to the one who brings the scriptures to life.
3. READ IT WITH OTHER PEOPLE TOO. Discuss what you read. Other people see things we don’t.
4. NOTE THE TYPE OF WRITING. The style of writing needs to be considered when interpreting any scripture. Parables, poetry, proverbs, prophecy, letters, laws, apocalyptic literature etc are all written with different assumptions in mind.
5. RESPECT IT. Even when the words are tedious, challenging, confusing or reveal ancient prejudice. Maybe reflect on why the passage or sentiment is in the Bible at all.  Ask what prejudice you (and we in our culture) bring to the topic. And accept that often we don’t understand. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways …” says the Lord (from a great chapter about God’s word: Isaiah 55).
6. READ LARGER CHUNKS WHEN POSSIBLE. Chapters and verses are not ‘original’. Reading a whole letter or story, as originally written, may communicate much more to us than a few verses at a time.
7. DON’T ASSUME! Don’t assume that the passage you are reading is the only thing the Bible says on the subject. It might be strongly stated. Feel the force of what you read but do look wider before you make hasty conclusions.
8. GET SOME STUDY HELPS – e.g. Bible notes, a study bible, commentaries, a concordance, a Bible dictionary etc. Remember you’re reading one translation from Hebrew or Greek, not the original text – so it’s always good to look at other translations if possible! And the historical and cultural setting is always important. Don’t assume that a prophetic word to 8^th century Israel, or an instruction about farming or how to build a house, can be lifted out and applied in another time and culture. It might be applicable, or it might not. But there is probably something to be learned from it.

I have to say also: don’t trust the commentary, or even the church leader!! It is rare for scholars to come without an agenda (me included!) but keep your own brain in gear and ask what they are not saying and stick with your questions if they are not satisfactorily answered.

9. BEWARE THE SCISSORS JOB. Be careful when you or others snip a verse or two out of Scripture to make your point. a) Is it true to the writer’s intention? b) Is it fair to what else the Bible says on this subject?

10. HONOUR THE BIG THEMES OF THE BIBLE. After reading the scripture in its original context, and seeing what else the Bible has to say on the subject, are there any broader biblical teachings which may apply? For Old Testament passages, the life and teaching of Jesus, and the New Testament will normally give new perspective. If you do this, you’re doing Biblical Theology!

11. MAINTAIN YOUR INTEGRITY. Be honest about what you don’t understand. Use your common sense. Engage your brain. Be open to new ideas and challenging teaching, but don’t accept these, even from respected leaders, without question. Questions and doubts help us grow. It’s surprisingly easy to create an unreal world, an alternative culture, where answers to complex questions are simplistic, inadequate or plain wrong. Doubt is part of faith. God can meet us anywhere but much more so in the real world, amidst our struggles and doubts.

AND FINALLY: LOOK BEYOND THE BIBLE

A) There are key Christian beliefs that come from the Bible but are not explicitly taught therein. Most notably two:

i) THE TRINITY: the Christian belief that God has made himself known as Father, Son and Holy Spirit: one God in three persons.

ii) THE TWO NATURES OF JESUS CHRIST: the CHURCH holds to the belief that Jesus is BOTH fully human and fully divine.  How this is possible is beyond our limited understanding – but that shouldn’t take us by surprise! We are dealing with God, and with questions we cannot expect to understand. So, in both instances Christians make the best sense we can of them.

B) There are practices which are acceptable, and even promoted, in the Bible which the CHURCH has reflected on and cannot accept as truly Christian. Slavery is a good example. Slavery was a fact of life and accepted in both OT and NT writings. Yet over time (far too long!) the Church came to believe that all slavery is abhorrent and against the major themes of biblical teaching although it is not specifically condemned in the Bible.

C) The Bible is not an expert in every subject. Its aims are promoting faith. It does not have a Science degree, nor one in Astronomy, not even a 2,500 year old one! It gets its Cosmology ‘wrong’. Hardly a surprise for something written in, say, 500 BC! Most obviously, the messages of Genesis chapter 1 are about God, human beings and the world around us, and not a scientific account of how God created the universe in 6 days out of nothing.

D) Use your common sense. Apply the wisdom you already have. The Bible is ‘holy’, different and precious, and yet it invites us to bring our experience, wisdom and skills to understanding its meaning.

E) There is, of course, a danger in looking beyond the Bible. There are numerous practices which have grown up in the early Church and later with at most a questionable basis in the Bible. To some extent this is natural. The Church must ‘fill in the blanks’ because there is no blueprint for worship or other necessary activities.

The New Testament, for example, knows nothing of Christian priests except the priesthood of all believers – Christians together are a holy priesthood The only ‘individual’ priest is Christ, the high priest (according to the Book of Hebrews). There are simply church leaders (in Greek ‘episkopoi’ or ‘presbuteroi’) who are overseers assisted by deacons (‘diakonoi’). But the Church from early days developed bishops and then began to speak of priests and priesthood. Quite informal gatherings where Christians broke bread and recalled the Last Supper, became formal services of Holy Communion. An increasingly detailed ritual presided over by a bishop or a priest. Whether these and other doctrines and practices are good is still the cause of debate and division, but we need to recognise that different Christian groupings can legitimately have different practices.

For me, the reality has too often been the Church retreating into a self-propagating and self-serving institution which fails to develop the God-given talents of its members and loses sight of its mission to make Christ known. 

Much more could be said but this is probably not the place!