How to grow your faith.

The bible is a book about God. Here are two questions we should always ask when we study the scripture.

1. What does this tell me about who God is?

2. Therefore, how does that affect how I live?

Depending on what you read it could be God the Father, The Son or The Holy Spirit. What does the text teach us about who God is? His character? His love? His Grace?

We then need to ask; as a result of who God is, how does that impact my life? i.e. What do we do about it.

Here’s an example; if you read Psalm 23:1a ESV it says “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”

What does this teach me about who God is? He is our shepherd. Shepherds protect, feed and find water for the sheep.

How does that affect how I live? If He is my shepherd, I can trust Him to care for me and protect me, the way a shepherd cares for sheep.

Don’t just read the verse / passage in isolation. It is important that we place scripture in the correct context. We are blessed to have an abundance of resources at our finger tips to help us understanding the language and history, allowing us to place the text in context.

We would also encourage you to try one of the following methods for Bible Study;

Inductive Method

Who? (who is speaking; who is the intended audience; who is present in the moment, etc.)

What? (what is this passage about; what problem is this addressing; what is happening; what is being said; what commands need to be obeyed, etc.)

When? (when is this event taking place?)

Where? (where is this event taking place, where does it fit in the larger context of the book and Scripture?)

Why? (why is this message needed, why is it relevant today?)

How? (how does this change what I know about God and humanity; how do I apply this to my life so that I can live more faithfully as a follower of Jesus?)

S.O.A.P. Method

Scripture Write down the scripture you are reading

Observation Write down all the things that you have observed in the scripture

Application - Write down how it applies to your life

Prayer - Prayer using the scripture as a guide.

TEXT Method

Talk to God in prayer before you read the passage of scripture

Encounter God and humanity through the scripture asking two questions - What does this scripture tell me about God? What does it tell me about humanity?

eXamine your heart, think about what might need to be confessed, added, taken away as we continue to follow Jesus.

Talk to God and others, thanking God for what He has shown you and sharing this revelation with those around you.

Where should I start?

The Gospels are always a great place to start as they teach us about Jesus. As a church we are teaching on the book of Luke.

The You Version Bible App has many reading plans available. Here is one we would recommend by The Bible Project. This is ideal for anyone new to reading the bible as it comes with helpful videos all about how top read the Bible;

Check out the Bible Project reading plan.

Community is vital for a Christian, it isn’t an added bonus - Christians NEED community. Why? Because we were created to follow Jesus in community. In Genesis, during the creation story God says that the only thing not good in creation so far, was man being alone.

Community takes time and commitment. It doesn’t just happen. Here are three ways to find community at Liberty Church London;

1. Sunday Services

2. Community Groups

3. Serve on a Team

Sunday Services aren’t a show. They are our main gathering as a church community, where every week we come together to worship, pray and be taught the word of God. Plan to prioritise Sundays so you can be there every week.

Community Groups are midweek smaller groups that meet in locations across the city. They eat together and study the bible together. They work alongside Sunday Service like pedals on a bicycle to move us forward in our faith. Find a Community Group.

Serve on a Team. Jesus said he did not come to earth to be served, but to serve. There is something powerful in serving together. Speak to one of our Guest Experience team to find out more.

The phrase “breaking of bread” in the bible refers to a few different things. In Acts 2 it would be part of their fellowshipping.

Breaking of Bread also refers to taking communion together. In 1 Corinthians 11:23-39 it describes when Jesus takes the bread and breaks it, saying “this is my body broken for you” - telling his disciples to do this in remembrance of him.

Both understandings are important.

Eating with fellow believers (which we do at Community Groups) and reflecting on the good news of the Gospel.

Prayer is “talking to God.”

It is the communication of the human soul with the Lord who created the them. Prayer is the main way for the believer in Jesus Christ to communicate with God and to fellowship with God

Jesus followers asked him to teach them to pray. He taught them what we know as the LORDs prayer in Matthew 6:9-13.

This is not a script, but a guide to help them pray. It starts with “Our Father, in heaven hallowed by your name”. This is a great way to start as we beigin by worshiping God and reminding ourselves how powerful God is. When we are facing mountains in life, reminding ourselves in orayer that God is bigger than those mountains help build our faith.

Praying alone can be hard so we would recommend join our Zoom prayer meeting every weekday from 6:45-7am. This shouldn’t be the only time you pray each day, but it helps keep it regular. Click here to join.

OWN YOUR MORNING

You can plan your day, but the later the day gets, the more likely that things outside of your control will change your plans for you.

You can plan to study your bible in the evening, but work was stressful and you’re tired, so you watch TV instead. You plan to put worship music on and really spend time praying, but then a friend calls who broke up with his girlfriend and wants to “go for a pint”… It could be anyone of a hundred scenarios which steals your evening from you… you get the point.

However, 9 times out of 10 you can plan your morning and it won’t be disrupted. That makes your morning THE most important part of YOUR day. Yours, because you can make it work for you.

If you really want to take your faith seriously then we need to own our mornings and build our Spiritual Rhythms into our morning routine.