How to Do a Bible Character Study – Bible Study Methods

In the previous post in this Bible Study Methods series, we looked at how to do a Bible word study. But in this post, I’m going to be showing you how to do a Bible character study. We all have those days when we sit down, open God’s Word, and then blankly stare at it because we have no idea what to read, what to study, or what to do. It’s because of those moments that I want to give you a few different Bible study methods. So I’m going to show you what a Bible character study is, how to do this type of study, and I’ll walk through some examples with you as we go. Because I am a visual learner, I find it helpful to have a physical worksheet in front of me to walk me through the process. And lucky you! I’ve created a free downloadable worksheet for you to have as you do your own Bible character study (you can grab it at the end of this post).

Just remember, you CAN study your Bible on your own. God’s Word is meant for YOU. God’s Word is meant to be studied by YOU. And when you choose to spend time in the Bible, God will change you from the inside out. He wants you to spend time in His Bible because when you spend time in His Word, you are spending time with Him. God’s Word is transformative. His Word is living and active, teaching us and guiding us, reforming us and convicting us (Hebrews 4:12; 2 Timothy 3:16). So even when it is difficult to push yourself to read and study the Bible, even when you’re feeling stuck, I encourage you to open your Bible anyways. Use one of these Bible study methods to help you out. Ask God to give you a desire in your heart for Him and His Word. He will bless you, grow you, and transform you in Jesus Christ each and every time.

Okay, let’s jump in, shall we?

What is a Bible character study?

A Bible character study is a method for studying the Bible that focuses on one specific person written about in God’s Word in order to learn from their mistakes and victories, understand their role in God’s ultimate plan, and apply lessons in their life to ours. 

Why do a Bible character study?

Doing this Bible study method seems a little odd and, frankly, a little less applicable than some other study methods. But! There are so many benefits from this type of study. One benefit is that we get to learn from real life people who walked with God (or who chose to walk against God). We get to learn from their mistakes and their victories, from their strengths and weaknesses. They are past examples of what we should and should not be doing in our walk with Christ today.

Another benefit is that we get to see how they play into God’s plan to save us from our sins. It’s SO amazing to see the lineage of Jesus or the role people play in leading others to Christ and repentance.

A third benefit from this study is getting to learn more about a Bible character that you may have already learned about previously. It’s easy to get caught up in the mindset that we’ve already read this passage or we’ve already learned about this part of the Bible, so we don’t need to do it again. Oh how wrong and foolish this is to think (I am guilty of this too)! Like I mentioned earlier, God’s Word is living and active. Anytime that we open the Bible, read it, and study it, we are being taught, even if it’s from the same passage. So when you study a Bible character that you’ve learned about before, you’ll be surprised at how many new things you will learn.

How to do a Bible character study

Now that you understand what this type of study is and why it’s worth doing, I’m going to walk you through each step. Along the way, I’ll give you an example as if I were doing this study on my own. There are seven steps in this study: choosing a character, summary of their story, what they’re known for, their strengths and weaknesses, their victories and challenges, how they point us to Christ, and lessons we can learn from them. 

1. Choosing a character

Simply choose your character. They can be from the Old or New Testament, male or female, old or young, it doesn’t matter. I will say that there are no particularly easy characters to choose. Some will have a lot of information to sort through, some will have very little to their story. There are challenges either way. BUT! Either way you will learn and grow!

At the end of each step, I will give my example.

Example: Esther 

2. Summary of their story

In this step, you’ll be looking up their stories and the passages and verses they are in. You need to have an understanding of who they are before you can complete some of the other steps later on. Some characters will have A LOT of content on them, others will have a short story. For those that have a plethora of passages, it’s okay to skim through them to get an overall feel of who this person is, what they’ve done, and what they’re known for. But it’s more than okay to read all about them. This study doesn’t have to be finished in one go. You can spend a few days on this study. It’s entirely up to you and how much you want to learn.

When you feel like you have a good understanding of this character’s story, write a summary of it. Write down some highlights and some key points in their life. Jot down some things that stood out to you. But because this is a summary, keep it short. Narrow things down. Try and write only a handful of sentences or bullet points. 

Example: Esther, the cousin of Mordecai, was chosen to be the new queen for King Ahasuerus. King Ahasuerus’s second in command, Haman, hated Mordecai for not bowing down to him. Finding out Mordecai was a Jew, Haman plotted to kill all the Jews in the king’s land. Mordecai charged Esther with the task to convince the king not to kill the Jews. But doing so would require her to go to the king without being summoned, something that could result in death. However, she boldly went anyways and the king did not kill her, for he found favor with her. Long story short, she opened the king’s eyes to see the evil plot of Haman and was able to save the Jews from annihilation. 

3. What they are known for

With the summary written down, you’re going to go a little bit deeper and write down what this character is known for. While the summary focuses on the overall view of their story, this step focuses on specifics. Think back to what you’ve learned in the past or what you’ve heard about this character already. Ask yourself this, “when I hear about __(your character)____, I automatically know they did __(whatever they did, whether good or bad)____ and/or they were like __(what was their personality)____.” Keep it simple. Try to answer this section in one sentence. Use the sentence above and fill in the blanks if you need help keeping it short.

Example: So for Esther, even though I wrote a summary on her story, I’m going to write down: she is known for boldly confronting the king to save her people (the Jews) from annihilation, even when faced with the possibility of death, and successfully saving the Jews.

4. Strengths and Weaknesses

Now you’re going to go even deeper. Find their strengths, find their weaknesses. Write them down. 

Example: Esther

Strengths – bold, courageous, willing to sacrifice her life to save her people

Weaknesses – hesitant at first, fearful, 

5. Victories and Challenges

Just as you looked at your character’s strengths and weaknesses, you’re now going to look at their victories and challenges. This is looking at things that they have or haven’t done. 

Example: Esther

Victories – convinced the king to not kill the Jews

Challenges – going around Haman and straight to the king, there was already a written decree to annihilate the Jews

6. How they point us to Christ

Everything in God’s Word points to Christ and His redemption for us (the gospel). Same goes for the people written about in the Bible. Sometimes they exemplify Christ. Other times their actions point us to God’s plan. Some people are in the physical lineage of Christ. Other characters reveal some of God’s attributes, whether in their example or how God interacts with that character.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself as you complete this step: do they exemplify Christ, and if so, how? Do their actions point to Christ and what He has done for us, and if so, how? Are they in the lineage of Christ? What attributes do they reveal about God? How do they fit in God’s redemptive plan for us? How does their sin and/or their righteousness point us to Christ?

Example: Esther exemplifies the boldness that Christ displayed on the cross. She was willing to sacrifice her own life to save her people just as Christ was willing to sacrifice His life in order to save us. 

7. Lessons we can learn from them

Regardless of who your chosen Bible character is, there is something you can learn from them. Either you can learn to do something that they did OR you can learn what not to do based on what they wrongly did or didn’t do. This is the application portion of this study. Look over the previous steps you’ve done to formulate some lessons that you can apply to your own life.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself: what did this person do in their walk with God that I can be doing in mine? What things did this person do or not do that I need to be doing or not doing? How did this person grow in their faith with God? What can I learn from their mistakes? 

Example: A lesson I can learn from Esther is to not let fear keep me from doing the right thing. When God calls me to do the seemingly impossible, I can rely on Him to be bold and courageous to accomplish what He has for me to do. Another lesson I can learn from Esther is how she listened to her cousin Mordecai’s advice. It’s important to listen to other believers around us. They are our accountability partners, our encouragement, our brothers/sisters, and our fellowship. God gives them to us for a reason. So I can learn to rely on who God has placed around me and wisely heed their godly advice when they give it. 

_____________

Learning how to do a Bible character study is a great way to dive deeper into your Bible, learn more about God’s Word, and grow in your faith. When you’re struggling to know what to read and what to study, I encourage you to try out this Bible study method. To help you even further, below is a free downloadable Bible Character Study Worksheet for you to download, print, and use in your study time. Use it alongside the Bible Character Study List to help you find characters to study (find it in the free Resources!).

I would love to hear about the Bible character you chose and what you have learned from doing this study. Feel free to leave your answer in the comments below!

If you’re looking for other ways to study your Bible, try doing a Bible Word Study, a Bible Verse Study, or use one of the Bible Study Guides. 

AND…

If you’re looking to create a cozy environment filled with biblical truths and general reminders, shop my NEW minimalist digital prints today. Not seeing a verse you’d like? Shoot me a message:)

To access the free Bible Character Study worksheet…

Simply CLICK HERE if you’ve already subscribed (you’ll need the password… check your welcome email for the password if you missed it) OR enter your email address below to receive it in your inbox in just a few moments!

Pin these pictures and share with your friends!