The Four Questions
This is an easy tool for those who are starting to engage with God’s Word. It doesn’t require a college essay each time you open your Bible. It only asks that you underline important verses and make one of four marks in the margins. Each mark connects to a different question.
! – What is interesting or exciting about today’s passage?
? – What is difficult or confusing about today’s passage?
↓ – What does this passage teach us about people?
↑ – What does this passage teach us about Jesus/God?
These four questions create a natural conversation about the Bible with your friends or family:
- The exclamation point is an easy ice breaker. It is simple to talk about the things we enjoy, and the Bible has much to enjoy.
- The questions mark challenges us to grow in our understanding of God’s Word. Is there something that confuses you? That’s ok! We won’t learn if we don’t ask. Even if you don’t have an answer right now, you can be confident that God has an answer to all our questions.
- The down arrow points down to us who live on earth. The Bible often reveals our sinful human nature that we still struggle with today. Sometimes we read about the good identity given to us through Jesus Christ.
- The up arrow points to God in heaven. This teaches us about the holiness of God or his work of salvation. When we can, it’s valuable to connect our passage to the work of Jesus, who is God made flesh.