Study to shew thyself....

I have been doing a lot of preliminary study lately.

By that, I mean I have picked a subject and searched out as many verses and passages that are relevant to the passage, listed them in a document file, and then, verse by verse, looked at and added my thoughts between.

Some of these I have completed in a preliminary sense and come to a general conclusion.

Some have far more depth to investigate.
For instance, Marriage.
So far I have looked into the Biblical origin of marriage, and the Biblical pattern of marriage, but there is far more to look into with this subject.
Like, the Biblical interaction of a husband and wife, on both spiritual and emotional levels - and some also on the physical.
And the family issues that result from marriage.
And even the matters surrounding divorce.

But the initial basics I have found so far are that Biblical Marriage is between one man and one woman. Plural marriages are recorded in the Bible, and God even used people who were involved in plural marriages, but it seems pretty evident that God's original design was one man for one woman for life.
Plural marriages appear to be biblically against God's will, not in accord with God's will.

And these things have been settled with me from God's Word alone - yes I have pre-existing opinions on these matters, but my investigations are to find out what the Bible says about various matters, and I try to set aside my own opinions. And I also do not want to just take on someone else's opinions.

Since the Word of God is the rule and guide for my life, then I should be able to find the answers to these questions in God's Word.

I have not sought out commentaries or web pages or sermons by others.

I may look to these things further into my study of a particular issue, but only once I have found a solid Biblical baseline. It may also be of help to find other's opinions so that I can investigate their arguments against the Bible and against the position I find myself at - If their position is closer than mine, then I need to change mine. I may find a direction of argument that has slipped by me that someone else has seen - and of course maybe there is a good reason why I never saw that thought in God's Word - it might not actually be there....

Anyway, study of God's Word is a good thing, and if you have the time - or can make the time - it is a profitable thing - it must be, because God says that study makes you approved unto God, and that can't be a bad thing.