The process of interpreting and understanding the Bible is called exegesis. It is a scholarly way to approach the Bible, and to discern what the various passages mean within their whole context. It is necessary for the exegete, i.e., the scholar studying the Bible, to be a believer. (Professor Brian Lambert, Lecture Eight, BIB 355, Grand Canyon University). This means that every step of the way, when one is discerning the meaning of a given passage, one is aided by the Holy Spirit.

You might argue that it is indeed possible to understand and read the Bible without being a believer, but why would you? Most of the time, people who do this are trying to find fault either with each other or with the Bible itself.Of course, this is not always true. Some people read the Bible and like it for itself without the benefit of the Holy Spirit- but it takes on a whole new meaning when one is a believer in God and Christ. (Of course, here I am assuming that you are Christian. I apologize to those of other faiths.) If you are a believer in the Bible, then, with the aid of the Holy Spirit, layers of meaning come forth and provide the reader with a true sense of what God is trying to say to us.

Exegesis has particular steps towards finding the truth in a given passage. The first step is to consider what the author's original intent was in his own language. One might have to go all the way back to the Hebrew or Aramaic to gather this meaning. Then one reads the whole passage and the passages before and after to be sure to gather the correct context. And so on.

So before FACT, FAITH, and FEELING comes BELIEF IN THE BIBLE. Without this belief, the words of the Bible can be distorted and misused.

So, I would put the order this way (as a Bible Scholar) BELIEF in the Bible, FACTS to be discerned, MEANING to be uncovered, AND FAITH AND FEELING coming from the correct exegesis of the Biblical passage.

Many Blessings,

Jaianniah

How about this, If we are spirit in manifested form, or manifestation of LOVE,(which LOVE is a condition of FEELING) then we have descended (like stairs) from WISDOM down through the FAITH or understanding that LOVE's law does not change to the FACT or knowledge that someone had to interpret this WORD of GOD. and to ascend back to SPIRIT you climb back up the stairs from FACT, FAITH, FEELING.

In Summary from the spiritual perspective, the order is FEELING, FAITH, FACT.

From the material perspective, the order is FACT, FAITH, FEELING.

The Bible has never been factually inaccurate. It is the interpretation of the Bible that has always been the source of error. Interpretation is inevitable; it is the reason that personal discernment is necessary.

I like what you said in one of your other questions about the true CHURCH being from within, and not from without. I think we can all agree that it is this connection to the DIVINE that provides the FOUNDATION for the fact, faith and feeling that establishes knowledge, understanding and wisdom.

But I'm having a hard time pulling all of that out of the Bible passage from Timothy that you quoted. I understand that you have provided an explanation in your question, but isn't that your interpretation of the scripture?

Yes I agree, I know my church and pastor would too, the first and foremost thing is to study and know the Bible. That is like the first step up a stairway or ladder, it builds the foundation of solid stone or concrete, that shows how to have faith and even inspires us to have faith when we see what our brothers and sisters before us have achieved through their faith. Many do not realize all the people in the bible that through their faith had great miracles not just Jesus and Moses but many, when they read of these wonderful and amazing stories it shows them as Jesus said "the things I do you will do too" because they see yes that has happened and not once but repeatedly that isn't even to mention the old testament and the many there too. But to have that faith that they had you need to know about all those people so you can say, "Hey, these where ordinary people just like me but they had strong faith, if I do too I can have the same relationship with God as they did."

So yes first comes fact, then faith, next comes feeling.

After you have the faith you experience the feeling of that connectedness, the feeling of changing someone's life, or having them healed and their gratefulness to Jesus, you experience the feeling of the Holy Spirit when it comes over you, all of this is like the reward of the faith and the study.