May 18

Luke 10:30-37
Memorise 2 Timothy 2:15
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, …rightly dividing the word of truth”

God is a God of order, and he had made us such that all of us appreciate some degree of order in our environment.

It’s the same with our minds. When we read the Bible, we often have to organise the passage, so that we can understand it better. One way to do this is to outline the passage.

Now read Luke 10:30-37. How would you outline the passage?

This is a narrative passage, and so it should have a beginning, the main body, and an end – simple. Yes, it’s simple - but consciously knowing this helps us to understand the passage better. Here is an example of how this can be done:

Theme: Who is my neighbour?

V. 30 - The Hapless Man

V. 31 - 32 - The Unhelpful Religious Men

V. 33 - 35 - The Helpful Samaritan

V. 36 - 37 - Am I a Helpful Neighbour?

The idea of outlining a passage may appear to be a no-brainer, but very often we are too lazy to do so, and so miss much valuable lessons. Have you learned the theory of entropy? It says that things tend to go from an initial orderly state to an ultimately disorderly state! I confess my brain is often in a state of disorderliness, and so I have to work hard to get things organized, outlined – it’s worth all the hard work!

If you find a passage difficult to understand, it often helps to read it again, and outline the passage to give you some landmarks! From this, you will be able to draw out the main points and lessons that you can take away from that particular passage.

Thought: Is there more than one way to outline a given passage of the Bible?
Prayer: Lord, forgive me for the many times I take Thy word lightly