A Glimpse – The Gambia

Perhaps you’ve selected a Bible and started reading it. Maybe you’re even setting aside regular times to reflect or pray. You’ve gotten a taste of what’s inside, and a desire for God’s words is growing in you as you recognize the nourishment God offers in these encounters. What comes next? How do you go from a surface reading to unlocking and taking in more and more of what God has for you?

Whether you are reading the Bible for devotion, prayer, or academic learning, it is helpful to know how to study a Scripture passage. Studying helps us understand Scripture in its context, setting the stage for us to hear how God continues to speak to us through it today.

Find a comfy chair, pour a cup of coffee, and join me in studying the parable of the lost coin in Luke 15:8-10. Download this worksheet to try these ten steps on a passage of your choosing—alongside my example or anytime after.

1. Pray

Begin your time with prayer. Take a moment to clear your mind and focus your attention. Ask God to be with you as you study and reflect on this passage:

“Dear God, meet me as I read your Word. Give me eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to understand. Amen.”

2. Read the passage

Get familiar with your passage by reading it several times. Try reading it in different translations: at least one that is more word-for-word (like NRSV, NKJV, or NASB) as well as a translation that is more thought-for-thought (like GNT, NLT, or the Message). Notice how different translations help you understand the passage in different ways. What words and images stand out to you?

NRSV: “Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

The Message: “Or imagine a woman who has ten coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and scour the house, looking in every nook and cranny until she finds it? And when she finds it you can be sure she’ll call her friends and neighbors: ‘Celebrate with me! I found my lost coin!’ Count on it—that’s the kind of party God’s angels throw every time one lost soul turns to God.”

3. Who is speaking? To whom are they speaking?

Sometimes the speaker and audience are disclosed in the passage; other times you have to go back several verses or chapters. In this passage, the previous verses tell us that the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. This made the Pharisees and scribes—the religious professionals—grumble. So Jesus addresses this teaching to them (Luke 15:1-3). Knowing Jesus is speaking these words makes us hear them as spoken with his authority. Take into account who is speaking, who they are speaking to, and what they are speaking about to discern the meaning and relative weight of your passage.

4. Who are the key characters?

Name the characters and find out who they are. Do they appear anywhere else in Scripture? Do they have a backstory? Do they have a title or role? In and around this passage, we have Pharisees and scribes, who are the religious elite in Jesus’s time. We have tax collectors and sinners, who are the outcasts. And we have the unnamed woman of the parable, respectable but with little status in Jewish culture because of her gender.

5. What is the genre of literature?

This teaching is identified as a parable (Luke 15:3), and it follows familiar markers of this type of writing. Parables tell stories using common images—like sheep and agriculture and families—to communicate deeper truths. They are fictional teaching illustrations, usually with some unexpected twist. Jesus often uses parables in teaching his disciples and other followers.

Other biblical genres you will encounter include narrative, law, prophecy, letters, wisdom, and apocalyptic literature. Identifying the genre helps us know how to read the passage—is this meant to be literal or figurative? Is it teaching or telling me something? Knowledge of the genre can help point us toward the intended meanings, similar to how we would read a novel or a history book with different expectations.

6. What does the original language say?

This step may sound daunting, but online tools now make the Greek and Hebrew behind our English translations more accessible to any reader. My favorite is Blue Letter Bible. Type in your Bible reference, then click on a specific verse to see it expanded in the original language. From that view, you can select a word and connect to its entry in their edition of Strong’s Concordance. You can see where else in the Bible this word has been used and the ways other translators have translated it, giving you a more nuanced understanding of its meaning.

7. What comes before and after the passage?

As we saw, zooming out a little helps us read the passage in context. What is happening before and after your verses? Is your passage a continuation of what came before? Is it setting up something that comes later?

Often parables come in a series, each expounding on the same teaching, or interpreting the other. In this passage, the parables before and after further illustrate the same concept. Each tells about something (or someone) that was lost being found—a lost sheep, a lost coin, a lost son. Each gives a metaphor for God personally seeking out the lost—the shepherd, the woman, the father. The recovery leads to great rejoicing, pointing to God’s joy “over one sinner who repents” (Luke 15:10).

8. What are characteristics of the whole book?

Zoom out even further. What can you find out about the whole book? You may want to consult a commentary, online Bible resource, or notes included with your Bible or study Bible. What is the historical or cultural context? What are the book’s themes? Do you know who wrote or compiled it? Remember, much of the New Testament was written in the Ancient Near East during the first century, and the Old Testament is even older, so its assumptions are very different from ours in the global twenty-first century!

Often some of this information can be found in the first chapter. The author may identify who they are speaking as, address their audience, or state their purpose. For our passage, we can identify Luke as one of the four Gospels, or accounts of the life of Jesus. Luke set out to write an “orderly account” about Jesus’s life, ministry, death, and resurrection (Luke 1:1-4).

Luke’s Gospel is set within the Roman Empire, which had harsh class distinctions and power structures. There were clear “in groups” and “out groups.” The poor, women, and certain ethnic groups were at the bottom of society, often shunned and mistreated. But throughout Luke, Jesus’s call includes the outsiders. And Jesus calls his disciples to do the same.

9. What is the passage’s message to its intended audience?

There are always layers to the audience when reading Scripture. Consider who is listening to the message, who the book was written to, who this writing spoke to on a wider scale, and who is receiving its words today. In this passage we have the hearers of Jesus, the church community of Luke, the wider New Testament church, and us too.

Piecing all our research together, we now get to make some initial conclusions. The Pharisees and scribes, who are powerful and elite, are grumbling because Jesus is including sinners and outcasts in his ministry. This is an ongoing tension throughout Luke’s Gospel. In response, Jesus uses a series of parables to reiterate that including outsiders is the focus of his ministry—and one of God’s primary concerns. Jesus came to seek out the lost, and God rejoices greatly when they are found. He uses an image of a woman—someone who did not have status in his culture—to represent God diligently seeking out those who are lost and celebrating at their return.

10. Reflect on the passage’s significance for you

The last step is to take all your gleanings and contemplate what this passage may be saying to you. Each person will find that different aspects or truths stand out. God may be showing you something specific about your own journey and spiritual growth. Take time to reflect and listen.

What is God saying to you as you reflect on the parable of the lost coin? Consider these questions: Who are the lost or outcasts in your culture, community, family? If God seeks out the lost, are you called to do the same? How might you do this? Conversely, what are lost parts of yourself, in need of Jesus? In what ways might God be seeking you now? How would it feel to be found?

As you go forward, live with the passage. Let the words and observations take root inside you. See if they come to mind in certain situations, giving you wisdom or insight or calling you to take an action. Let the passage’s meanings mature in you over time.

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Lenten Reflection Day 1

Genesis 1:1 by Reverend Father Anthony Gabisi, Parish Priest Of Saint Therese’s Parish, Kanifing.

In the beginning God

created the heavens

and the earth.

2 The earth was barren,

with no form of life;

it was under a roaring ocean

covered with darkness.

But the Spirit of God

was moving over the water.

The First Day

3 God said, “I command light to shine!” And light started shining. 4 God looked at the light and saw that it was good. He separated light from darkness 5 and named the light “Day” and the darkness “Night.” Evening came, then morning—that was the first day.

The Second Day

6 God said, “I command a dome to separate the water above it from the water below it.” 7 And that's what happened. God made the dome 8 and named it “Sky.” Evening came, then morning—that was the second day.

The Third Day

9 God said, “I command the water under the sky to come together in one place, so there will be dry ground.” And that's what happened. 10 God named the dry ground “Land,” and he named the water “Ocean.” God looked at what he had done and saw that it was good.

11 God said, “I command the earth to produce all kinds of plants, including fruit trees and grain.” And that's what happened. 12 The earth produced all kinds of vegetation. God looked at what he had done, and it was good. 13 Evening came, then morning—that was the third day.

The Fourth Day

14 God said, “I command lights to appear in the sky and to separate day from night and to show the time for seasons, special days, and years. 15 I command them to shine on the earth.” And that's what happened. 16 God made two powerful lights, the brighter one to rule the day and the other to rule the night. He also made the stars. 17 Then God put these lights in the sky to shine on the earth, 18 to rule day and night, and to separate light from darkness. God looked at what he had done, and it was good. 19 Evening came, then morning—that was the fourth day.

The Fifth Day

20 God said, “I command the ocean to be full of living creatures, and I command birds to fly above the earth.” 21 So God made the giant sea monsters and all the living creatures that swim in the ocean. He also made every kind of bird. God looked at what he had done, and it was good. 22 Then he gave the living creatures his blessing—he told the ocean creatures to increase and live everywhere in the ocean and the birds to increase everywhere on earth. 23 Evening came, then morning—that was the fifth day.

The Sixth Day

24 God said, “I command the earth to give life to all kinds of tame animals, wild animals, and reptiles.” And that's what happened. 25 God made every one of them. Then he looked at what he had done, and it was good.

26 God said, “Now we will make humans, and they will be like us. We will let them rule the fish, the birds, and all other living creatures.”

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As we journey through the spiritual essence of AFRICA, let us embrace its blessings, celebrate its diversity, and honor its heritage. For in this vast and vibrant continent, we discover echoes of God's faithfulness, reminders of our shared humanity, and glimpses of His divine purpose for all creation.

27 So God created humans to be like himself; he made men and women. 28 God gave them his blessing and said:

Have a lot of children! Fill the earth with people and bring it under your control. Rule over the fish in the ocean, the birds in the sky, and every animal on the earth.

29 I have provided all kinds of fruit and grain for you to eat. 30 And I have given the green plants as food for everything else that breathes, including animals, both wild and tame, and birds. And so it was.

31 God looked at what he had done. All of it was very good! Evening came, then morning—that was the sixth day.

1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

6 ¶ And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

9 ¶ And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. 11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.

14 ¶ And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: 15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. 16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. 17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, 18 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. 19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. 21 And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. 23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

24 ¶ And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. 25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

26 ¶ And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

29 ¶ And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. 30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. 31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.