Romans 1:25: “They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator.” Sometimes it sheds light on patterns in the world and in your own life that may be bringing your towards God or away from God. Sometimes it brings to light something that challenges the way that you currently see the world, or the way that you currently live. Sometimes SOAP reminds you of a Biblical truth that you may have forgotten. Using The Message translation, by the way, is a quick and easy way to engage with Scripture in contemporary language and using contemporary images and metaphors.īut if you press through the hard bits, you will be rewarded. Another challenge! In that passage, you have to set aside all the language of circumcised and uncircumcised to see what Paul might be saying that applies to our current context. Or trying reading Romans 4:1-15 using SOAP (the passage where Paul writes about Abraham being justified by faith and not by works). Try reading Revelation with the SOAP method, for instance! There’s a challenge. (I love commentaries and study Bibles! I love having all the background information at my fingertips.) The challenging times, for me, come when the passage presumes something about the cultural context that I don’t know about. I find the SOAP method of Bible study to be at times fruitful and, honestly, at times challenging. These free printables will make using SOAP to engage with Scripture a breeze. Prayer – Based on your reflections, offer a prayer to God.ĭownload your free study guide template here. Observation – What do you observe about the passage? About the characters, events, and claims being made? What did you find interesting about the Scripture? What did you learn?Īpplication – How can you apply this passage to your life? What challenges or encouragements does it have to offer? Scripture – Read a piece of Scripture and write down the sentences, phrases, and words that stand out to you. My favourites are the Apologetics Study Bible and the Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible.ĭoing SOAP with a study Bible means that, during the observation stage, you can peek at all kinds of background information about the text and use that to help inform your understanding of Scripture. Note: If you are a research addict like me and have a burning need to have cultural context, notes on authorship and audience, and just about the whole history of theology at your fingertips, you can easily do SOAP with a study Bible. No outside research means that means that you are getting less of the context of Scripture, and less of the depths that others have plumbed before you, but it also means that you are relying more on your personal relationship with God, and you are cultivating your ability to listen to that still, small voice. That makes the SOAP method especially non-threatening to Bible study beginners and to smaller kids. While you can definitely do this type of Bible study with a study Bible, this method requires no commentaries, no concordances, and no research. reflecting on how you can take any Biblical truths that you find there into your life.
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