I’ve adapted this excerpt from my soon to be released book that will help believers familiar with Scripture get far more out of it while building a meaningful reading routine. This is from a chapter on know how to apply Scripture to your life.

I’ll be sharing from the book on Saturdays now through the book’s release. It just moved out of editing and into production. I’d love to hear your thoughts:

…When I mention Leviticus, you can almost hear the sighs. Many don't like that book because they don't understand it.

But it's also unpopular because people don't know how to read or apply it. It seems irrelevant, complicated and easy to ignore.

Because it’s not your mail, you won’t read it as prescriptive, but you will read it as a historical narrative that described how they had to do things before the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

When you move to seeking application, you won’t be adopting what they did (historical and doctrinal application).

But you will be able to see how something as important as the doctrine of atonement is developed in Scripture and then draw rich spiritual insight, nourishment and encouragement from it (practical application).

Using what you learned earlier in the chapter you’ll be able to determine what was right, wrong, how to get right and keep going in the right direction for those it was written to.

Even Leviticus can then become an amazing book full of life and benefit to you once you honor all three forms of application and their four-fold context you already learned.

Wherever you read in the Bible, God gave it for a purpose and said all Scripture is profitable.

But for what?

For whom?

When you determined context first, you can read a book like Leviticus and not get lost.

In fact, you can fall in love with it and won't want to skip it because God said there's value in it for you (2 Tim. 3:16).

That Was Then, This Is Now

It's helpful to remember that Adam did not have a Bible, neither did Abraham, and Moses wrote the first five books.

They were only accountable to what they had been given by God and no more.

This is the idea behind progressive revelation. Whether in the Old or New Testament, as God reveals more, we become accountable to what is revealed and to what is truly our mail.

Part of the job of Historical and Doctrinal Application is to gain that perspective first.

What was expected of the original audience and how did they respond?

You’ll want to remember this so that you don’t read into their context or application what God reveals later in the Bible.

This is a common error that creates a lot of confusion.

You and I have the benefit of all sixty-six books of the Bible. But those recorded only had what was written or verbalized at that time.

God was not holding them accountable to what He reveals later.

You will benefit by reading the Old Testament repeatedly.

We all learn from history — but don't need to repeat it.

However, when you read the New Testament, because so much of it is your mail, you'll read more of it like a letter written directly to you instead of a history book.

Leviticus describes life before the cross and a letter like Romans prescribes your response because of it.

Christ makes the difference and His will for believers today is found in what He calls the New Testament. Christ’s crucifixion is where that line is drawn.

The New Testament takes priority in the development of God's plan for man today. The Old Testament is important but not the most important.

It’s called Old for a reason so use caution in how you or others apply it….

These short excerpts are just a sample of the book’s content. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Reply and let me know. I read every one.

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Steve is married to Lorie and together have four grown children and three grandchildren. Now in their forty-fourth year together you’ll find them busy with family, church, ministry or taking a walk around the neighborhood.

Retired from pastoral ministry Steve authored his first book that will help those who quietly struggle because they don’t get more from their personal Bible reading.

His mission is to help as many believers as he can fall in love with God’s word and have a faith they can truly call their own.

He also teaches the live online cohort that is companion to his book, teaches in the Bible Institute at his local church and writes this bi-weekly newsletter.

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