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Top Bible Studies for Christmas

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Christmas. The best time of the year?

The calendar flipped to December, and this means many churches and small groups have turned towards their plans for the new year even as they aim to finish out the Christmas season well. After all, Christmas is supposed to be about Christ, right?

Yes, but many church and group leaders feel pressure and stress around this time and can actually find it harder to focus on Christ than during other times in the year.

We understand. And we want to help in any ways we can.

Here are some Bible study suggestions to help you, as the group leader, keep your focus on Christ during this season, and here are some resources to help center your group on Christ as 2020 rounds the corner.

For You

  • Foundations: A 260-Day Bible Reading Plan for Busy Believers

With Foundations, you can read through the key, foundational passages of the Bible in one year, while still having the flexibility of reading 5 days per week. Along with supplementary devotional content each day, you can experience the miracle of reading and responding to God’s Word. By using the H.E.A.R. journaling method, you will be guided through Highlighting, Explaining, Applying, and Responding to passages, allowing for practical application throughout the year-long plan.

 

 

Based on the success of Foundations (described above), Foundations: New Testament uses the same H.E.A.R. method to provide a 5-day a week, year long devotional scripture reading experience that takes studiers through only the New Testament. You’ll also be guided with weekly scripture memory options for the duration of the study

For Your Group

With the recent Thanksgiving release of the latest Kendrick brothers movie, OVERCOMER, you can launch your group into thinking through themes of identity and overcoming difficulties this Christmas and New Years season. Many people feel they are less than who God says they are. We get our identity from our careers, our political positions, our roles in the family, and a number of other lesser things. However, when we understand who God is, we more fully understand who we are. This new small-group Bible study uses clips from the Kendrick Brothers film OVERCOMER to examine how we determine our identity and how we can find our true identity in Christ. (5 sessions)

Most Christians want to make real, noticeable progress in their walk with Christ. We long to forgive, to have a pure heart, and to find peace, but we just don’t know how to get there. It’s time to get unstuck and build momentum toward a more godly life. The understanding and strength we need to pursue holiness are available through the path Christ laid out for us in the Beatitudes. Find out what it really means to be poor in spirit, to be meek, and to mourn, and discover how those qualities will help you live a life in which God’s blessings are abundantly clear and present. (8 sessions)

Christmas and New Years is a time of reflection, so why not direct your group to reflect towards eternal change? When David Platt took a trip to the Himalayan mountains, the staggering hardship he witnessed transformed the trajectory of his life. Now, in this study, he’s inviting you to reflect and wrestle with him as he describes his life-altering trek through the Himalayas. You’ll ask hard questions alongside Platt about human need, suffering, faith, the gospel, and our role. For Christians, ignorance of profound human need is not an option. Neither is indifference. It’s time to explore what it means to follow Jesus in a world of urgent physical and spiritual need.

You can have the first two sessions of this Bible study for free here! And you can also find a 7-Day guide, showing you how to pray for the unreached people of Asia for free here.

The Gospel is foundational to all aspects of the Christian life, so why not finish out a Christ-centered Christmas by keeping the momentum towards seeing Christ in all of scripture continuing throughout the entire next year? From cover to cover, the Bible is the story of God’s plan to redeem sinners through Jesus—the gospel. Gospel Foundations tells that story. From the creators of The Gospel Project, this six-volume resource is comprehensive in scope yet concise enough to be completed in just one year. Each seven-session volume is video-enhanced to help your group engage in discussion with a clear understanding of how each text fits into the storyline of Scripture.

See the first two sessions of this Bible study as well as gain access to wallpapers, sermon guides, and more here.

Christmas doesn’t have to be the most stressful time of the year. Here’s to keeping the focus on Christ and to helping others do so as well.

 

Church Leadership

10 Ways to Optimize Small Group Bible Study

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by Reid Smith

As a small group leader, there are things that you can do in your preparation for your gatherings that can optimize the impact of God’s Word on people’s lives (Hebrews 4:12). These practices will actually help your group members get the most out of your Bible study together and become more responsive to the transformational work of the Holy Spirit in their lives:

1. Pray for it – Give each gathering over to Jesus. Pray for each group member by name. Ask for specific break-throughs and invite the Holy Spirit to have His way.

2. Preview it – It is well worth taking 15-minutes before each meeting to…

  • Read the key passages in at least two different translations (bible.com or biblegateway.com)
  • Refer to cross-references and commentaries to give yourself a good feel of the context.
  • Review the questions that are a part of the study you are using and select ones you sense your group will grab onto the best. 
  • Reduce the volume of material given by 50%. This helps the group time feel more relaxed and more focused, which increases overall participation.
  • Rephrase the questions you decide to use in ways you think will spark further dialogue. Restating the same question in different ways helps some people formulate their thoughts.

3. Facilitate it – Don’t get into ‘teaching mode’ or feel like you have to have all the answers. You want your group’s Bible study to be a peer-to-peer learning experience where every person’s insight and personality influences the discussion. Here are some reusable questions that can enliven the dynamic of any discussion:

    • What stands out to you in this passage? What impacted you during the reading?
    • Was there something read that is new for you, reaffirming, confusing or challenging?
    • How can we apply this to our lives today?
    • How could this be shared with people who do not yet know Christ?
    • Be patient with moments of silence. If nobody shares after a few seconds, put the question in another way. Here are a few other facilitation tips that will help to accelerate spiritual conversations: 1) Be ready to answer questions briefly and naturally if nobody initiates after giving a prolonged pause 2) People think primarily in pictures so try to portray a topic visually by applying questions to personal stories or hypothetical situations 3) Provide guardrails to keep the discussion on track so you don’t drift too far off topic. 

 

4. Include them – When people feel included, they feel like they belong. When people feel like they belong, they want to engage. When people are engaged, they grow. Time may not allow for every person to participate in the way they would like, but you can help them feel more included by…

    • Giving each person a purpose to fulfill in the group that corresponds with their gifting and passion – start them off with small tasks that have a shorter-term commitment.
    • Circling back to people who have not shared, but looked like they were on the verge of saying something.
    • Make eye-contact with those who share, acknowledging their input with simple affirmations like, “Thanks for sharing” or “Good insight,” and then try to relate it back to the passage being studied or keep the momentum going by inviting others to add their thoughts.
    • Expressing your love for them, e.g. “I’m so glad you’re a part of our group!” Simple acknowledgements go a very long way in boosting people’s sense of belonging, which optimizes group Bible study in the future.

5. Open up – Not enough can be said about the importance of authenticity. This is essential to healthy leadership and Bible studies. The more open you are, the more open others will be. You make the group feel safe when you are real and it frees people up to be themselves, which is the kind of community everyone wants.

6. Listen up – One of the best ways you can love on the people in your group is to listen to them. This will probably mean you lay aside your own interests, agenda, or things you would like to say. Give people your full attention and reflect back to them that you understand by nodding or putting what they said into your own words to make sure you heard them correctly. When people see that others are being heard, they will feel more secure about opening up and sharing things on their heart. 

7. Lighten up – People tend to be more reserved when there is a serious edge to the study. A light-hearted atmosphere actually encourages more involvement. If you have fun with it all, others will too.

8. Wrap-up – Summarize what happened in your group and give a teaser for what’s next before you end your group on time.

9. Follow-up – If somebody asks a question or shares a personal prayer need during your group study, be sure to follow-up with them. Also, don’t hesitate to contact people who said they were going to be at your Bible study, but were not. Let them know they were missed and see if there is anything they need. 

10. Offer up – The way a group stays healthy in the long-run and goes deeper in their Bible study is by letting the grace of God flow outward. He wants to use our Christ-centered community to engage the world, not insulate ourselves from it (Acts 2:47; Rom 1:16, 10:14-15). God always makes room for the lost so expand your group circle as much as possible (Luke 15). He will provide the time and space for additional members if our hearts are seeking to extend His grace to those who have yet to come home. Practically-speaking, you can offer up your group by…

    • Turning your group’s attention to lost people during your time of discussion and prayer. 
    • Telling members that you would LOVE for them to invite people they know to your group.
    • Thinking together about how your group can share God’s grace with spiritually empty people.
    • Traveling to locations beyond the home where you meet, e.g. hold your study in a public space or go on a mission trip together.
    • Transitioning your group into new seasons of study by empowering people to look after different aspects of your group’s life together or handing off more responsibility to a person who could co-lead with you. This will prepare your group to multiply so that more people can be impacted by the love and message of Jesus Christ.

You know you’ve been successful at optimizing your small group’s Bible study if your group members love more: Love God more, love people more, love the lost more, and love Scripture more!

Reid Smith has been equipping leaders in churches of all sizes and stages of growth for effective disciple-making since 1996. He currently serves as a Pastor of Groups at Christ Fellowship in Palm Beach County, FL and has been a contributing author for various publications, including LifeWay’s Ministry Grid. Learn more about how to start and multiply healthy groups throughout your church at www.reidsmith.org.

 

Church Leadership

Links We Love

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The Simplest Way to Grow Your Love of the Bible – Michael Kelley

Here is an expression that, even if you don’t use it, I believe will resonate with you if you’re a Christian: I want, to want… “Wanting to want” means this: It means that as Christians, we are to have a different value system than that of the world. We are to value things that, in the eyes of the world, might often look like a waste of time. We are to make eternal kingdom investments rather than spending our time, finances, and emotional energy on earthly things.

3 Things for Christian Parents to Remember When Their Kids Play Sports – LifeWay Men

Here we are again – another season starting up. For our family, it’s basketball. I suppose it could be any number of other sports for you and your kid especially with year round travel leagues and all. Because the season is starting up, it’s time for me to remind myself of a few things. The reason I need to be reminded is because I see the tendency in myself to be “that dad.”

Answering 5 Questions about Starting a Bible Study – LifeWay Women’s Ministry

Starting a Bible study group can be intimidating. If you’re considering starting a small group Bible study, you probably have many questions swirling around in your head, like: What Bible study or Bible passage should I choose? Whom should I invite to participate? Can I even lead a Bible study? What preparations need to take place? Does my pastor need to know? Let’s tackle these questions one at a time to give you confidence in what God has called you to do!

3 Ways Not to Use Social Media in Your Church – LifeWay Leadership

Social media is an extremely useful tool. The way that you utilize social media personally will greatly differ from the ways that you use social media for your church, ministry, or job.

3 Questions to Test Your Ambition – Eric Geiger

C.S. Lewis gave a graduation commencement speech to graduates at Kings College at the University of London. The students were graduating from a prestigious school with their whole lives in front of them, and Lewis talked to them about their ambitions. He knew many of them would land a great job and long to be in the inner circle of wherever they worked. Lewis called it “the inner ringer.” He warned them that their desire to be in the “inner ring” is like peeling back the layers of an onion. In the end there is nothing left. When you get to the place you thought would satisfy you, you realize there is another ring. There is always going to be another ring. Lewis said this: “As long as you are governed by that desire you will never get what you want. You are trying to peel an onion: if you succeed, there will be nothing left… The quest for the inner ring will break you unless you break it.”

 

Group Answers Podcast

Group Answers Episode 117: Student Groups

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On this episode of Group Answers, Chris and Brian talk with Karen Daniel about student groups.

Karen Daniel is a publishing team leader in LifeWay Students.

Suggested resource: Within Reach by Ben Trueblood

Questions:

  • What is unique about student groups?
  • What kind of questions are you asking as you develop a Bible study for teens?
  • Why do you think some churches struggle to have consistent student groups?
  • What are a couple of studies that have worked really well with students, and what made them different?

Quotes:

  • Any student minister has four to six years to reach a group of students.
  • Students are very eager to learn, and they are at a point in their lives where they are asking themselves, “What does God want me to do?”
  • We want to meet students where they are, and we want to resource student ministers so they’ve got everything that they need to develop their strategy.
  • The conversation around identity is going to be different for girls than it is for guys.
  • From Within Reach: Of the students who say no adults from their church invested in their lives while they were in high school, 88% dropped out of church after high school. Of those who say one or two adults invested in them, 72% dropped out after high school. Of those who say three or more adults invested in them, 58% dropped out after high school.

This Episode’s Sponsor: You’ve probably heard about the movie OVERCOMER. But you may not know there are a few books and Bible studies inspired by the film. One is called Defined by Alex Kendrick and Stephen Kendrick, which is a book and Bible study based on insights from the Book of Ephesians. You can find these books and Bible studies at LifeWay.com/Overcomer.

 

The Group Answers Podcast is a weekly show designed to resource, train, and encourage small group leaders. Each episode considers current trends and resources as well as timeless truths and methods of discipleship. It is hosted by Brian Daniel, a Bible study and discipleship expert in LifeWay’s Groups Ministry, and Chris Surratt, the small group and discipleship specialist at LifeWay and author of Leading Small Groups.

Church Leadership

How Can Smallgroup.com Help Us Kick-Off Our Fall Groups?

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by Tyler Quillet

As summer winds down and more groups begin to pick back up, it often leaves pastors and group leaders wondering what topic to study or what resources to use for their group time. I’d like to share with you a little bit about Smallgroup.com, both what it is and how you can use it, and also some specific series that we think will be a great kick-off to your fall!

First, what is Smallgroup.com? Smallgroup.com is an online Bible study resource. It contains an ever-growing customizable library of over 2,300 text and video-enhanced studies from all 66 books of the Bible.

With a membership to smallgroup.com, you can: 

  • Search a topic or passage to find the study you are looking for.
  • You can create a whole class or series based on any topic or text you’d like and make it your own.
  • Right there within smallgroup.com, you can further customize any existing study with your specific teaching points, language, illustrations, church information and logo.
  • You can align the content to your pastor’s sermon series in minutes.
  • If you can’t find what you’re looking for, you can “request a study” as part of your subscription. The Custom Bible Study team at LifeWay will write it for you and upload it to the site.

Of particular interest to many group leaders is the ever-growing selection of popular video-enhanced studies from teachers like Priscilla Shirer, J.D. Greear, Beth Moore, David Platt, Matt Chandler, Lisa Harper, and many more. Through a membership to smallgroup.com, you can log in and stream these videos through any web-enabled device or through your Roku®, Amazon Fire®, or Apple TV® apps.

Smallgroup.com offers three subscription plans to suit every need:

  • Basic is $199/year and includes unlimited access to the entire Bible study library, the “Write your own” Bible study feature, downloadable study guides to share with group members, and streaming videos. This is perfect for a single group or a pastor!
  • Plus is $399/year and includes all the features of Basic plus the ability to email study guides and videos to an unlimited number of people, a groups management feature, smallgroup.com access for an unlimited number of group leaders, and 20% off all contracts with CustomBibleStudy.com. Every group in your church has access to just the right study for them!
  • Premium is $3,999/year. This subscription includes all of the above features, plus a fully custom experience year-round with your very own dedicated small group specialist. That means you’d have the services of someone on the Custom Bible Study team at LifeWay to whom you would send sermon outlines or study requests. Your dedicated specialist would then build or write your requested studies for you in your smallgroup.com account within five business days. Your specialist would also be available to manage your groups, leaders, and members and create discipleship pathways. This subscription plan offers 30% off all contracts with CustomBibleStudy.com.

If you are interested in checking out Smallgroup.com, but aren’t sure if you are ready to commit, go ahead and try our 30-day free trial. Just click the button on the front page and begin to explore all that Smallgroup.com has to offer you, your group leaders, and your entire church!

Let’s look at 4 newer series on Smallgroup.com to help us kick-off the fall:

Imago Dei 

This 6-session (Video-Enhanced) series examines the image of God biblically within the grand narrative of Scripture, relationally as it applies to ourselves and others, and missionally in our service to others and in our obedience to the Great Commission.

As You Go 

This series covers six passages in the book of Acts to explore what it means to live in a missional fashion.

Devoted  

This 6-session series sees that healthy churches and healthy Christians are marked by their focus on God, each other, and witnessing to the lost. We are all called to this same focus.

Love as Our Witness  

This 6-session series through 1 John explores our love for God and others in response to His great love for us.

With over 2,300 small group study guides and hundreds of series and video-enhanced studies, we are confident that you will find what you are looking for as you seek to point your groups to Jesus! We are praying for you as you enter into your fall groups!

Tyler Quillet is the Discipleship Strategist for the Custom Bible Study team at LifeWay Christian Resources. He lives in the Nashville, TN, area with his incredible wife, Cathie, and two boys, Cylas and Bowen. Tyler also speaks, writes, and coaches alongside Cathie as they pour into and love on the infertile community through Cathie’s “The Missing Peace Project”. Tyler previously spent 15 years as a pastor and is passionate about serving churches and pouring into church leaders in a variety of ways. 

 

Church Leadership

Help Your Group See Jesus in the Entire Bible

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What’s more important than the Gospel? Nothing.

As Christians, we recognize the importance of finding God’s redemptive plan throughout the Word of God. We desire to live with this plan in mind, being ambassadors of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:11-21). We seek to take up our crosses daily to follow Christ while remembering His finished work on the cross even as God is still working in believers’ lives today (Matthew 16:24).

But how do we maintain a focus on Christ even in difficult passages of the Bible? Can we see Christ connections throughout all of scripture? Can we see Old Testament connections even in the New Testament?

Thankfully, we can. 

And we can help you lead your groups to dig into these discoveries as well. 

Gospel Foundations is a seven volume, year-long journey through the storyline of scripture, seeing how Christ is hero from beginning to end. Each of the individual volumes has seven sessions and can be done individually. 

But there’s more.

We’ve chosen many of the graphs that detail how we can see Jesus in various portions of the Bible and put them in a “Gospel Guide” for easy reference. Along with sample content from the studies, wallpaper, sermon outlines, video previews, and more, you can access this all for free here.

Because Jesus is that important.

 

Group Answers Podcast

Group Answers Episode 108: Reid Patton on Asking Good Questions

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On this episode of Group Answers, Chris and Brian talk to Reid Patton about how to ask good questions when facilitating a Bible study.

Reid Patton is a Content Editor for the Short-Term Discipleship Team at LifeWay Christian Resources. He is the thankful husband of Kristen and proud father of Ceile and serves with the Life Group leadership team at the Church at Station Hill in Spring Hill, Tennessee. In his free time, Reid likes reading, watching NBA Basketball and Auburn Football, and going to record stores. You can find him on Twitter @jreidpatton.

Questions:

  • If I’m using a pre-written curriculum, how can I make the most out of those questions?
  • What types of questions invite conversation?
  • How should I structure the questions in my group?
  • How would you sum up the big questions small groups should answer?

Quotes:

As someone who writes Bible studies, I don’t know your group better than you do.

I would rather give someone more than they need than less than they need.

The open question is far superior to the closed question.

There are going to be three types of questions in every Bible study: observational, interpretive, and application-based. A good Bible study will balance between those three types of questions.

The three big questions are what? so what? and now what? What does the Bible say? So what do we do with that, why does that matter? Now what do we do with it?

A holistic approach to the text will give you a holistic disciple.

This Episode’s Sponsor: The Overcomer movie has inspired the creation of several resources. For small groups, there is the Overcomer Bible study. For individuals, there is a book called Defined. Both are based upon powerful insights from the Book of Ephesians. Learn more about all the resources at LifeWay.com/Overcomer

The Group Answers Podcast is a weekly show designed to resource, train, and encourage small group leaders. Each episode considers current trends and resources as well as timeless truths and methods of discipleship. It is hosted by Brian Daniel, a Bible study and discipleship expert in LifeWay’s Groups Ministry, and Chris Surratt, the small group and discipleship specialist at LifeWay and author of Leading Small Groups.

 

Uncategorized

Friday Feature: Not Forsaken

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You Are Known

Meet Brandon. He’s a well-liked art major at a state university, where he works hard, makes good grades, and is active in his campus ministry. If you saw him, you’d think he’s got it all together and possesses all the blessings a student could ever want. But there’s a hidden problem. Brandon comes from a broken home. He never knew his parents as a couple, and he was raised by his grandparents. His childhood years were spent splitting weekends between his mom and his dad. And although no major conflict ever occurred, the relationship between Brandon and his dad has always been distant. He doesn’t see his dad more than once a year, and phone calls are sparsely shared. Now a young man entering adulthood, Brandon calls his dad, longing for a deeper relationship. But the conversations never go beyond sports, politics, and the weather. Brandon can’t understand why a father wouldn’t want to know his son. Introspective and defeated, he muses, I’m doing so many great things in my life. If only he would get to know me.

Brandon has grown from being a boy to a man, but he still has a deep longing to be known by his dad, not on the surface level but at the heart level.

Among your family and friends, who knows you best—the real you?

Just as human beings yearn for approval and worth, we also long to be known—and to be deeply known. And when we don’t feel that we’re known by our parents, we’re left feeling isolated or abandoned. Those feelings can then lead to a whole host of responses. We might erect relational walls, refusing to let others in. Or we can go to the other extreme by sharing to a fault without a filter. We were created to know and be known by others, especially our parents.

What’s one detail you wish your dad knew about you?

What stands out most about the way your dad pursued you?

Maybe you’re reading these questions, but you don’t have an earthly dad. Perhaps you never knew him, or maybe he’s no longer living. That’s not an easy station in life for anyone. I don’t want to be callous or to ignore real hurt or absence. But I want to help you process your thoughts too. So here’s a question for you:

What have you most longed for from a dad?

Some of these questions might be difficult, but don’t let the difficulty push you away. Instead, allow them to expose the need in your heart so that you’re prepared to receive the answer to that need. We’re going to learn today that your longing to be known can be satisfied by God. Whether you have a blessed or an estranged relationship with your dad, you’re perfectly known by your Heavenly Father. And it’s a deeper knowledge than even the best dad on earth could ever give.

God Knows Everything

Psalm 139 is one of the most personal passages of Scripture in all the Bible. In it we see the depth of God’s knowledge of, presence in, and design for our lives. Each way God is involved in our lives is illustrated through a display of who He is.

READ PSALM 139:1-6. Record the significant details God knows about you.

God is omniscient. Simply put, that means God knows everything—including everything about you! He knows your actions, your ways, your comings and goings, and even all of your words—before they’re audibly spoken. Your Heavenly Father knows your deepest thoughts, highest aspirations, and wildest dreams. He’s intimately acquainted with all of your victories, struggles, fears, and doubts. The psalmist David was overwhelmed in response to God’s deep, personal knowledge of his life.

Why is it good that God knows us personally, truly, and deeply?

God Is Present Everywhere

God isn’t defined by space and time. He’s literally present everywhere. That means God is omnipresent. He not only knows everything about you, but He’s also with you wherever you go.

READ PSALM 139:7-12.

Many of us know what it means for our dad to have missed an important event or to have been at work when we needed him most. Some people experience these absences as isolated events in the midst of an otherwise blessed existence. Others know these as the norm. The psalmist David proclaimed the good news that your Heavenly Father never misses an important date. He never fails to show up. And He will never leave you or forsake you (see Heb. 13:5).

According to Psalm 139:7-12, why should it comfort you to know that God is always with you?

God Is All-Powerful

In addition to being all-knowing and ever-present, God is all-powerful. He’s omnipotent. You can see His power on full display in the next section of Psalm 139, illustrated in the intricate ways He created you.

READ PSALM 139:13-16. Reflect on the way God intricately and personally designed your body and your life. Record any words or phrases from these verses that you find especially meaningful.

You may have inherited your grandfather’s nose or your mother’s laugh, but your Heavenly Father ultimately designed, created, and gave the gift of life to you. This means no one knows you like your Creator. No matter the joys or sorrows you’ve experienced with your earthly father, your Heavenly Father knows you, accompanies you, and fashions you as no other father can.

Precious Promise

Next David reflected on the continual, vast thoughts of God toward His children.

READ PSALM 139:17-18.

Here’s the liberating truth to grasp and hold on to as you go through life: your Heavenly Father knows you. He’s with you always. And He will never abandon you or let you down. Just as you’re known by God, He also wants to be known. Jesus said knowing God is the ultimate meaning of life:

This is eternal life: that they know

you, the only true God, and Jesus

Christ, whom you have sent. 

JOHN 17:3

Simply going to heaven when we die isn’t the goal of the Christian life. Jesus tells us that the ultimate end to which all of existence points is for us to know God. All of your life—from the time you give your life to Jesus and continuing throughout eternity—should be characterized by a deepening knowledge of and love for your Heavenly Father.

Prayer

Father, You’re all-knowing, all-powerful,

and present everywhere. I marvel at Your

works, and I’m humbled by the vast sum

of Your precious thoughts toward me.

Give me grace to be satisfied by Your

presence in my life now and forever.

This content is excerpted from Louie Giglio’s Not Forsaken Bible study. To find out more about this resource, please visit lifeway.com/notforsaken.

 

Church Leadership

Help Your Group See Jesus in All of Scripture

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Have you ever sat down with a particularly difficult text and wondered “How do I see the Gospel story here?” 

Many of us have, and as group leaders, we are often faced with answering hard questions from our group members as we journey through scripture.

How can we train ourselves to notice God’s plan (from Genesis to Revelation) to rescue and redeem His creation through His Son, Jesus Christ?

Good news. 

Meet Gospel Foundations, a Bible study series designed to take you on a one-year journey through the storyline of scripture to see Jesus as Hero from beginning to end. 

How does this study practically show you Christ and the Gospel? Through context, content, and visuals. See an excerpt below from Volume 4: The Coming Rescue (2 Kings – Malachi). 

Setting the Context

The first order of business for the restoration of Jerusalem was the rebuilding of the temple. This was how it should have been, given the central place of worship in the lives of the people of God. Though there were delays, the new temple was completed in 515 BC. Sacrifices and festivals were resumed, and the people committed themselves to obeying the law. Things were going well. It seemed they had learned their lesson. 

What difficulties are prone to arise when things are going well in one’s spiritual life? Why?

Sadly, within a few decades, the prophet Malachi had to deliver his message because the worship of the people had grown stale. He focused on the failure of the priests to fear God and to serve the people conscientiously during difficult times, but the priests mirrored the people—they all lacked the sincere worship God commanded. The Book of Malachi is the last prophetic message from God before the close of the Old Testament. Then came four hundred years of silence from God. Malachi, like many prophets before him, gave the people a severe warning, but he also spoke of the hope to come. As “Seeing Jesus in the Return from Exile” (p. 83) shows, the Messiah was coming, and He was coming to deal with the true problem of humanity—the sin in our hearts. But would the people be ready for Him?

Why is the gospel of Jesus the only solution for our true problem of the sin in our hearts?

CHRIST Connection

After Malachi, the prophetic word of God went silent for four hundred years. But Malachi prophesied about a messenger who would prepare the way for the Messiah to bring God’s kingdom. Centuries later, John the Baptist arrived as the messenger who prepared the way for Jesus. The last word of the Old Testament is “curse,” a reminder of the consequence of our sin. But in the New Testament, one of the first words we hear from Jesus is “blessing.” The One who bears our curse is the One who brings us blessing.

 

And this is just the beginning. To see a full preview of the Gospel Foundations products (including sermon outlines, sample content from volumes 1 and volumes 2, a preview guide, downloadable mobile wallpaper, and more), visit the Gospel Foundations site here.

Deborah Spooner is a Minnesota-born analytical creative serving as a Marketing Strategist for LifeWay’s Groups Ministry. As a pastor’s daughter with a background in Digital Communications and Media and Biblical & Theological Studies, you can find her at her local church, in deep conversation, or with a book or pen in hand as she seeks to know Christ more and make Him known.
Church Leadership

How to Talk to Your Group about Making a Difference

By

The leading cause of death in the United States is heart disease. In 2015, 633,842 American lives ended as a result of heart disease, almost a quarter of total deaths that year (1). Steven Houser, the president of the American Heart Association, believes “the future of cardiovascular research is to stop the disease before it starts” (2).

Perhaps this goal explains the increasingly common labeling of various foods as heart-healthy. Salmon, almonds, blueberries, dark chocolate—all of these are applauded as heart-healthy foods and are recommended to include in our diets.

As serious as these heart-health issues are in our society, you and I come into the world with a heart problem that can’t be prevented. Ever since the first human beings, Adam and Eve, sinned, we’ve all entered this world with hard hearts. Instead of loving God and loving our neighbors, we love ourselves most of all. Instead of worshiping God and honoring Him as Lord, we try to kick Him off the throne and take it for ourselves. And because of this heart problem, we come into this world as God’s enemies. It’s not His fault; we’re the ones who sin. And we make ourselves His enemies because of our sin. What does the condition of our hearts have to do with being difference makers? You see, before you and I can be difference makers, a difference must be made in us. We need our unhealthy hearts to be replaced with healthy hearts.

An Old Testament Answer (Isaiah 1:1 – 15)

The Old Testament Book of Isaiah was written between the years 740 and 700 BC. The book has one major theme: trust God. In the Old Testament, Isaiah was a difference maker in the highest degree.

Isaiah was writing to people with hard hearts. They had a heart problem. They trusted in anything and everything before they trusted in God. They trusted in their kings and their military. Then when that strategy failed, they tried to make alliances with other nations so that they could trust in those kings and armies. They trusted in their external religion to keep God off their backs. But meanwhile Isaiah was speaking to their hearts, trying to help them understand that their greatest need was to trust in God.

Isaiah painted a bleak picture of rebellion against God. Through Isaiah, God said His children had “rebelled against [Him]” (v. 2). He called them a “sinful nation” and a people “weighed down with iniquity” (v. 4). As a result, God had made their land “desolate” (v. 7). He rejected their offerings and hated their festivals (see vv. 11-14); He stopped listening to their prayers (see v. 15). The Bible tells us that before we can make a difference in the world, a difference has to be made in us. But how? What can be done? The words of Isaiah give a clear outline.

Stop Doing Evil (Isaiah 1:16 – 18)

First Isaiah told the Israelites to stop sinning. Stop doing evil. Coming through loud and clear, Isaiah! Verse 16 says, “Wash yourselves. Cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from my sight. Stop doing evil.” When it comes down to it, sin is always the problem. And God is serious about sin. Why? Because He’s holy.

To be holy means to be distinct and set apart. There’s no one like God. He’s completely, uniquely holy, and all of His characteristics flow from His perfect holiness. In God’s total otherness and His complete purity and perfection, He exercises all of His other characteristics. God is concerned about human sin because it’s an affront to His holiness. Choosing evil is rejecting God, and rejecting God is never good for us. However, God doesn’t just ask us to stop doing something bad. He always points us toward something better. All of God’s commands are meant to lead us to life.

Start Doing Good (Isaiah 1:17)

In verse 17 Isaiah told the Israelites not only to stop doing evil but also to start doing good. When we hear the command to do good, we immediately think, I’ve got to go to church more. I’ve got to work really hard to be religious. I’ve got to make sacrifices for God so that I can please Him and get Him off my back. But the Lord knew that response was coming.

We pursue religious activity because it seems easy and achievable. Isaiah’s point was that God isn’t interested in our attempts to earn His favor. They can never be enough. We don’t worship to get God off our backs; we worship because we love God. If we really love God, our devotion to Him will be evident in the way we love our neighbors.

Rest in the Finished Work of Christ (Isaiah 1:18)

Seven hundred years before Jesus walked on earth, God promised His people that He would remove their sins from them, and they would become pure. How does this happen? Only by an exchange. Jesus came to trade places with us. He came and lived the life we failed to live and died the death we deserved to die so that we could be cleansed of our sin and enter a right relationship with God.

We can’t stop doing evil and start doing good on our own. First our heart problem has to be fixed. Once that happens, God also enables us to do good. When God gives us new hearts, he gives us new affections. On the cross Jesus took on Himself the punishment for our sin, and He gave us His righteousness so that we’re no longer enemies of God but sons and daughters of God. This is the difference God has to make in us before we can be difference makers in the world.

Make a difference today by admitting you need a Savior.

This content is excerpted from Pastor Gregg Matte’s Difference Makers Bible Study. Find out more about living a difference making life here.

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