do your own work

while i love to read books by men of old and even some authors that are still alive, i really don't like to read commentaries. to me, it is like not doing the work to find out what the author is intending. with a commentary, you get the author's opinion of what the passage is saying. i find that there is great satisfaction in struggling with a passage to find out what is meant by it. it brings a closeness to God and an ownership of the passage itself. prayer, before, after and during study, a quiet place, an awake mind, and the want to know what the bible says are the things, that i believe, are needed for bible study. i am saying all this to Christians though. no matter how long you study and "pray", a non-believer will not make sense of what the scriptures are saying. they may interpret it correctly, though they will not truly be able to grasp what it is saying. only the Holy Spirit can reveal what scripture says, which is why prayer is needed. the only way to get and receive the Holy Spirit is through a saving faith in Christ Jesus, who came, lived, died, and rose again to conquer death. only through Christ sacrifice may we come to Christ.