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OICA is an acronym representing the four steps of an inductive Bible study:
| 1. | Observation - What is being said |
| 2. | Interpretation - What is being meant |
| 3. | Correlation - Where else is it being said and/or explained |
| 4. | Application - What will I do about what is being said |
I have added a fifth step, "M", to the above which, while closely related to the step of applying what you have learned to your life, is more of a stand alone practice whose sole purpose is to keep God's word at the forefront of your mind.
| 5. | Meditation - Keeping the Bible and what it teaches on your mind |
Inductive Bible study is that Bible study which occurs when the passage being studied is allowed to speak to us, our conclusions being drawn from the passage. It is the opposite of deductive Bible study, that which forms conclusions prior to the Bible study and searches the Bible for support for these conclusions, often taking passages out of their context in the process. In performing inductive Bible study we are reading data from the passage, while in performing deductive Bible study we are reading data into the passage.
The Bible study methods that follow are all built upon the principles of OICA.
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