Books Jesus Read

Resources for Application

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helpful for the Christian life. 4 Foster’s four steps of study are listed in Table 1.

Table 1: Richard Foster’s Four Steps of Study

Step One: Repetition

Regularly channeling the mind in a specific direction, we ingrain habits of thought. Centering the mind, we focus attention on the thing being studied. Understanding what is being studied, we gain insight, discernment, and true perception of reality. Defining the significance of what is being studied, we may see things from God’s perspective and better understand ourselves.

Step Two: Concentration Step Three: Comprehension

Step Four: Reflection

An example of how the Apocrypha help us study the Bible is in order. The Scriptures contain a number of themes that appear across the books of the Bible. Such themes include creation, the kingdom of God, covenant, holiness, redemption, and so on. Tracing these themes throughout the biblical books is a fruitful way of studying God’s Word. One such theme is the Messiah, or Christ. Messiah literally means “Anointed One.” In the Old Testament, the prophets wrote that God would anoint the Messiah and make him ruler over Israel (Isa 9:2–7; 11:3; 42:1–7; 49:1–7; 50:4–9; 52:13–53:12; Ezek 34). As Christians, we understand that Jesus was the Messiah, the Christ, God’s Anointed One. However, we read in the Gospels that it was difficult for many Jews to accept Jesus as the

4 Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1978), 54–66.