Week Eight: What is God s Word?

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1 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12 ESV) Week Eight: What is God s Word?

2 Week Eight: What is God s Word? Discovering what God says to mankind What do you think about when you hear the phrase, The Word of God? What is this? Take a moment to discuss your thoughts. God s word has many different meanings in Scripture. This week we ll take time to go through and descibe the different descriptions of God s Word as seen in Scripture. Take a moment to read the following passages: Psalm 33.6; ; Jeremish ; Luke 3.1-3; John 1.1-5; 17.17; Ephesians ; Revelation Certainly there are numerous other passages describing the word of God, but according to these passages, describe the Word of God in the spaces below. What are the different types and descriptions for God s Word? When you read God's Word, you must constantly be saying to yourself, It is talking to me, and about me. Soren Kierkegaard There are more sure marks of authenticity in the Bible than in any profane history. Sir Isaac Newton God s word is truth (John 17.17). Whatever is true is God s truth. Christ is described as the Word of God (John 1.1), that is, Christ is the ultimate truth of God. The New Testament is the account of the coming of Christ and so when we read it, we are reading about God s revelation of truth. The Bible is the written account of God and His final revelation of truth in Christ. When we descibe God s word, we are speaking about the truth that God has revelaed to mankind, and this truth is found in the scriptures that we call the Holy Bible. The word Bible is an english translation of the Greek words, biblos, meaning a specific composition or book and hagios, meaning holy and set apart. In closing, discuss different ways each of us can be in God s word more. What are some practical ways to read more of God s word? What about memorizing Scripture? This week s challenge: Memorize 2 Timothy How does this change the way you view God s Word? We will discuss this passage further next week. The Truth of God Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long. (Psalms 25:5 ESV) If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.by this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. (John 15:7 8 ESV)

3 Practical Ways to Abide Getting the Most Out of Your Bible by Coleman Ford How many of us have picked up our Bibles with good intentions to read it all the way through? How many got to Leviticus and said, Uh, maybe I ll just skip a few books. Reading through Scripture is not always the most thrilling thing in the world, however, maybe we are not looking at it from the right point of view. John, in his gospel, tells us that Jesus is the Word of God (John ). With this in mind, maybe we should change the way we read Scripture. Over and over throughout the New Testament writers explain that Jesus is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. Jesus himself said that Moses wrote about Him (John ). The great pastor and theologian, Matthew Henry, tells us this: Let us search and pray over the Scriptures, as intent on finding eternal life; let us observe how Christ is the great subject of them, and daily apply to him for the life he bestows. When we read Scripture, we are always to be looking for Christ. Christ is the fulfillment of the Law, therefore we should always be looking for how Christ is shown in the Old Testament. Maybe this will help you when reading through Leviticus, but if you re still having trouble reading your Bible from beginning to end, then maybe you need to start on a smaller scale. If you have s desire to know God s word but are having trouble reading through the Bible, a 40 Day Reading plan may be the answer. On the next page is a plan that will help you get an over-arching idea of what Scripture says about God and His plans. I invite you to begin going through the plan, reading the passages and meditating on how they apply to your life. After finishing, pray that God would open your heart to dive into other parts of His word. Construct your own Bible studys. Maybe take a couple months to read through the Gospels, or maybe read through Romans in a month. Take it in small chunks and really get to know God s word. Sometimes we think we re not being good Christians if we don t read our Bibles from cover to cover once a year. Maybe we just need to be more practical and take it in smaller doses as we build up our Scripture muscles into a deeper understanding of His word. My soul melts away for sorrow; strengthen me according to your word! Put false ways far from me and graciously teach me your law! I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I set your rules before me. (Psalms 119:28 30 ESV) Week Eight: What is God s Word? God s word is truth. What does the world say is truth? What are some things that the world says about teh Bible and God s truth? 3

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5 40 Day Bible Reading Plan the ridge church Day 1 Genesis 1-2 The Creation Account Day 2 Genesis 3 The Beginning of Sin Day 3 Genesis 15; 17:15- God s Covenant with Abraham 27 Day 4 Genesis 21:1-7; 22 God s Faithfulness and Abraham s Faith Day 5 Exodus 3-4 God Calls Moses to Deliver His People Day 6 Exodus 20 The Ten Commandments Day 7 Joshua 1 Conquering the Promised Land Day 8 1 Sam David and Goliath Day 9 1 Ki. 3; 8:1-9:9 King Solomon s Wisdom and the Temple Day 10 I Kings 18 The Prophet Elijah and the Prophets of Baal Day 11 2 Kings 25 The Siege of Jerusalem and Exile of Judah Day 12 Daniel 2-3 Daniel in Babylon; The Fiery Furnace Day 13 Ezra 3 Rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem Day 14 Isaiah 9, 53, 61 Isaiah s Prophecy of the Coming Messiah Day 15 Luke 1-2 The Birth of Jesus Day 16 John 1:1-18 Who Jesus Is Day 17 Luke 4:14-44 Jesus Begins His Ministry Day 18 Matthew 5-7 The Core of Jesus Teaching Day 19 John 3 God s Love for the World Day 20 John 5 Jesus Miracles and Authority Day 21 John 11 Jesus Power Over Death Day 22 John 15 The Christian Life Defined Day 23 John 17 Jesus High Priestly Prayer Day 24 Matthew The Arrest & Crucifixion of Jesus Day 25 John 20 The Resurrection of Jesus Day 26 Luke 24 The Ascension of Jesus Day 27 Acts 2 The Coming of the Holy Spirit Day 28 Acts 9 The Conversion of Saul Day 29 Acts 16 The Gospel Spreads to Europe Day 30 Acts 26 Paul s Defense of the Christian Faith Day 31 Romans 3 Justification by Faith Alone Day 32 Romans 7-8 The Battle With Sin; Life in the Spirit Day 33 1 Corinthians 13 The Way of Love Day 34 1 Corinthians 15 The Power of the Resurrection Day 35 Galatians 5 Freedom in Christ Day 36 Ephesians 4-6 Biblical Living Day 37 Phil. 1:18-2:18 Christ s Example Day 38 Col. 3:1-17 Putting on the New Self Day 39 James 1 Pure Religion Day 40 Revelation The New Heaven and Earth

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7 Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. (John 17:17 NLT) Week Nine: God s Word is Truth

8 Week Nine: God s Word is Truth What does it mean to say God s word is true? Last week we learned about the different descriptions of the Word of God. His word is communication to man through prophecy and Scripture known as the Bible. It is the truth of God. What does this mean? What do we mean when say, God s Word is true?" A couple of pages ahead you will find an article entitled, Fact or Fiction. Take a moment to read this as group. After reading this article, turn back to this page. Now that you have read this article, discuss the main points. What does it mean to say that God s word is true? In what ways does this come under attack in today s world? How should we respond? Write down your thoughts and answers below. You may as well quit reading and hearing the Word of God, and give it to the devil, if you do not desire to live according to it. Martin Luther The Bible is to me the most precious thing in the world just because it tells me the story of Jesus. George MacDonald Take a moment to read the following passages: Psalm ; Proverbs 30.5; Matthew 4.4; John ; Ephesians ; 2 Timothy ; 1 Peter ; and 2 Peter In the space below, describe your observations about God s word being truth. What are some characteristics of God s truth that come forth? What does the Word of God do? In today s world, calling God s word the truth is not very fashionable. Isn t it interesting, though, that people are willing to accept so many other things as true? One reason why people find it hard to accept God s Word as true is because it requires them to respond. We can believe anything as long as it doesn t challenge us to change. But this is what God s Word calls us to; a transformed life by faith in Christ. Maybe that s why many don t choose to accept it as true. This week s challenge: If you are reading the 40 Day Reading Guide, press on! If not, start reading! Either way, take some time to read through the book of Acts, making note of the phrase, Word of God. God s Word is True All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. (2 Timothy 3:16 ESV) Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God. (1 Peter 1:22 23 ESV)

9 Further Thoughts About the Truth of the Bible What does it mean to be inerrant? by Coleman Ford In today s world, the word inerrant has come under a great deal of fire. What does it mean when we say that the Bible is inerrant? Can you be a Christian and not believe in inerrancy? Jesus declares that God s Word is truth (John 17.17). We have discussed in great detail the different descriptions of God s word, and that ultimately, Christ is the final word of God as the greatest truth. So Christ is the Word and He is the truth. As believers, this is the core foundation of our faith. We believe Christ is who He said He is and we believe that God s plan for salvation is through Christ alone. Since we also believe that Scripture is the main vessel (read or spoken) for which Christ is revealed to mankind, we affirm that the truth of God in Christ is found in the Word, that is, in the Bible. This is how we are to understand Sciprture, as the truth of God revealed through Christ. We believe that God s truth will never fade (Isaiah 55.11). When we describe God s word as being inerrant, we mean that God s word is truth and will not contradict itself in those truth statements. So you ask, That s it? That s all it means to be inerrant? I believe it s the first and most important aspect of inerrancy, but I also feel like we can go further. Since God s word will not return empty, we must affirm that every translation of His word that seeks to remain faithful to the truth of God and the languages in which it was transmitted, is inerrant. Certainly lingual nuanaces differ from language to language, but the orthodox truth of God s Word is transmitted no matter what language it s translated into. There are certain groups who seek to change or twist Scripture in order to suit their needs and desires (Jehovah s Witness, Mormonism, New Age, Unitarian Church, Church of Christ Scientist, etc). In doing so, they take God s word out of context and seek to mold it to their own ideas and religious agendas. God s Word, as the whole and not taken out of context, is inerrant in it s desciption of history, mankind, and redemption. We affirm this as Orthodox Christians. I believe it is difficult to be Christian and ultimately not accept inerrancy, however, God s promises stand regardless of how we feel about them, and He will do what He has promised in His word. That s what it means to be inerrant. Week Ten: God s Word is Truth What are some truths found in Scripture that you have a hard time believing? You are not alone! Scripture presents many scenarios and truths that are hard for us to swallow from time to time. As you think about the things in God s Word that you struggle with, at the same time, pray that God will help you work through these certain aspects of His word and affirm the ultimate truth of Christ in your life. He is faithful to guide us and give us confidence in His word. 9

10 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith. (Acts 6:7 ESV) Week Ten: God s Word in Acts 10

11 Week Ten: God s Word in Acts How the early church viewed the Word of God God s Word is truth. In this way it is inerrant, meaning that everything God says about truth is true! What a great hope we have because of that! This week we look at how that plays out in the Book of Acts. Take a moment to read the following passages: Acts 6.2-7; ; 12.24; ; ; ; ; Now list what happened in each passage in regards to the Word of God. How was it received by the different peoples involved? What were the means of communicating God s word? I am profitably engaged in reading the Bible. Take all of this Book that you can by reason and the balance by faith, and you will live and die a better man. It is the best Book which God has given to man. Abraham Lincoln The word of God hidden in the heart is a stubborn voice to suppress. Billy Graham Now take a moment to read Acts What was the immediate response of these people after hearing the Word? The reponse of the Bereans calls us all to search the Scriptures daily. Many people turn to Christ simply by reading through Scripture. Have you shared Scripture with someone you know lately? What else do we see with the previous passages from Acts? The word of God was spoken to people, and people believed. Some didn t, but many did. What does this mean for your life? Discuss ways you can share through speaking God s word to others. This week s challenge: Continue on the 40 Day reading plan! Find other ways to get in God s word. Get creative! What about audio bibles? Seek to share God s Word with someone in your life. Proclaim His Word Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. (1 Timothy 4:13 ESV) But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. (1 Peter 2:9 ESV) 11

12 The Power of the Word of God A Perspective from King Josiah by Coleman Ford In chapter 22 of the book of 2 Kings in the Old Testament, we see a wonderful picture of the power of God s Word. King Josiah and his servants rediscover the Book of the Law (the first five books of the OT) and are devasted to realize that the land no longer follows God s law. He aims to set things right. The account ot King Josiah s reign is a pearl in the midst of many other accounts of the kings of Israel and Judah. Many have turned away from God and chose to follow the pagan practices of the nations around them. They didn t see God s law as relevant to their lives and instead chose to do what everyone else was doing, at times with grave consequences. We read that in the eighteenth year of King Josiah s reign, while cleaning out the LORD s temple, Josiah s secretary and High Priest find the Book of the Law, that is, the first five books of our Bible written by Moses. The way in which they find it points to the fact that it had not been read or used for a long time, and that this discovery was similar to finding one of your deceased relatives old treasures in their attic. What is this ancient treasure? What?! It s the Word of God? Why the heck have we not been doing as it says. Oh man, we re doomed! This is Josiah s reaction to the discovery (well, not word for word). He immediately asks the High Priest to pray to God. Beg for God to have mercy on us! is basically Josiah s request. In turn, he goes on a full scale reformation, tearing down pagan temples, shrines and idols. He rids the land of everything ungodly and submits to the Lord. It s a great story of how a man was convicted and repentant upon hearing God s word, and did what it took to obey it! So isn t that a sweet story to tell kids around the kitchen table? Well yes but it has a much deeper application for us all right now. Do you feel this way when you read God s Word? Do you say, That s me! I m in need of a savior! I need to repent from my old ways and turn to God and His will for my life! I absolutely love this story of King Josiah because it descirbes a man who was truly repentant and submissive to God, just as we all should daily be. I invite you to have a King Josiah moment and I pray God will continually convict you of HIs truth found in His Word. Then Shaphan the secretary told the king, Hilkiah the priest has given me a book. And Shaphan read it before the king. When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes. Go, inquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that has been found. For great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us. (2 Kings 22:10 11, 13 ESV) Week Ten: God s Word in Acts Many times we lack boldness to proclaim God s Word, and that s OK. The early church had to pray for boldness in order to preach His word (Acts 4.29). Begin praying for boldness and opportunities to share His word. It s not about how many people you share with, it s about having a heart that desires to share His truth whenever you can! Before your group breaks for the night, read ahead to next week and discuss what things you might want to do in order to practice abiding in God s Word together. Get creative! 12

13 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (Colossians 3:16 ESV) Week Eleven: Putting Abide Into Practice 13

14 Abiding in His Word Now that we ve talked about it, let s do it! By Coleman Ford For the past three weeks, we ve discussed what God s Word is; it is the truth of God regarding His plans for mankind. We find hope and salvation, and we also see what awaits those who do not believe. It s the real deal! As part of the weekly challenges, I ve presented a 40 Day Reading Plan in order to help you get a practical grasp on what God s Word says from front to back. I pray that you are doing this! It s ok if you miss a day or two, you can always pick up where you left off. We should never feel guilted into reading God s Word, we should desire to do so. The whole point of this study is to awaken that desire inside you. Ultimately, that desire comes from a faith commitment to Christ and a longing to know more about Him in His word. Do you have that desire? Have you accepted Christ through faith and now desire to grow through abiding in His word? For this group session, I invite you to get creative. How does your group want to abide? It could be something as fun (and slightly cheesy) as doing drills in which you quiz one another and encourage one another to memorize certain bible verses. Maybe you want to pick a passage of Scripture and do a quick study of what it says and how it applies to your life. Maybe you want to popcorn read through a book of the Bible. There are plenty shorter ones to tackle in which the whole group could do some serious popcorn reading action. Reading the book of Jude will take no time at all, and there is so much there to know and apply to your life! Maybe you just want to go back and visit a passage from a previous week and take some more time to discuss that! It s important to recognize the place of God s Word in a believer s life and not see it simply as something you have to read. It should be something you want to read! God s Word is unique in this world. Sure, there are other writings from other faiths that claim to be God s word, but only Scripture reveals the work of Christ as the only and final road to salvation. Christ says only He is the way to the Father (John 14.6). John says in his first epistle that if you don t know Christ, then you truly don t know God! (1 John 2.23). Do you believe this? Maybe take this time to share a few key verses with each other in order to encourage one another in the faith. It s so important that we have God s Word abiding in us and we in it. This is the message So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (John 8:31 32 ESV) Christ brings us in John 15. It s a important call to us all. In the end, I pray you will find this time refreshing as you seek to abide in God s word for this group session. Feel free to do what you want. Play a bible game, go outside and give everything some time to read alone and come back and discuss it, or decide to meet somewhere else and read God s word together. Again, get creative! This is your time to abide in God s word, use it. Encourage one another to pursue God s word on a daily basis. Hold each other accountable and build one another up through God s Word. It s such an unending fountain of truth and rich fulfillment. I pray you will see this as well for your own life. God s word is truth, and that s what we all need a little more of! Abide in the Word Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. (John 15:4 ESV) 14 Memorizing Scripture Practical Steps to Abide When I was a kid, our church had something called Bible Bowl. This was a program for kids to encourage them to know God s Word. I was always afraid to participate. I was never confident in my ability to memorize and know God s word and I still struggle with that today. Despite that struggle, I recognize the importance of striving to memorize and know God s Word. I am encouraged when I talk to people who have the same struggle and it drives me to press on. So what do people like me (and maybe you) do in order to memorize God s word? Here are some tactics that I currently do in order to help me know God s Word: 1.Flashcards - This could include verses you read and want to commit to memory for yourself, or verses that will help explain God s plan of salvation to others. Ask Coleman if you would like your own premade stack of verses to memorize. 2.Repeated Reading - When memorzing things for school, what do you do? More than likely you go back and read something over and over again until it s in your brain. Scripture memorization is no different! 3.Selected Reading - Sometimes we feel like we have to be reading the whole bible all the time. Not so! Why don t you try reading through one book repeatedly over a period of time.while you may not memorize the whole book, more than likely you ll familiarize yourself with the broad message of the book and be able to communicate that to someone else. 4.Accountability - Why don t you turn to someone next to you and say, Wanna memorize some Scripture and help each other out? Having a friend with you to help memorize God s Word can help tremendously. If you can think of other ways to memorize Scripture, go for it. The main point is that Scripture memorization is something we all need to do, and the benefits are immense in our spiritual walk. Let s do this!