Biblical Characters Written by Jennifer Banman, McLean Bible Church

Biblical Characters Written by Jennifer Banman, McLean Bible Church Throughout this study I want to keep in mind Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. We are going to go through a few of the non-amazing characters of the Bible and see what we can learn from them. We ll also look at a few of the well known characters and see what hope we learn from them in just a week of study. WEEK 1 RAHAB Read the following 4 passages and summarize what you learn about Rahab (consider your first impression and what is happening in Israel): Joshua 2 Matthew 1:5 Hebrews 11:31 James 2:25 Describe Rahab: Here are some general Notes about Joshua/Spies Account of scouts employed to bring an account to Joshua about the city of Jericho Spies were only to bring an account to Joshua, not everyone (different from the 12 spies in Numbers 13 Moses sent out) Faith in God s promise ought not to supersede by encourage our diligence in the use of proper means. Point of why it was okay for Joshua to send spies. In this Joshua passage, what do you think the key verse is? Why? 1

Review these 2 passages how do you see them apply to Rahab? Romans 10:17 ~ Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. Psalm 117:2 ~ For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD. How and why did God use this woman? How do you relate? WEEK 2 JUDGES DEBORAH & SAMSON Look at the end of Joshua, start in Joshua 24:14 27. What is the state of the Israelite s minds concerning God? Read Judges 2:6-23. What is going on with Israel? Read Deuteronomy 16:18-20. What is the rule of the judges? Let s look at Deborah first. Read Judges 4 & 5. What are your first impressions? In Hebrews 11:2, Barak is mentioned in the great hall of faith instead of Deborah. Who do you believe had more faith? Why? 2

What did you learn from Deborah s time as a judge? Why study her story? Now let s look at Samson. Read Judges 13 16. What are your first impressions? Write down some general notes about the passage. Reading through the whole story, I wonder Samson has 4 chapters that focus on his weak and foolish actions. Why do you think there is so much written about him and his mistakes? Samson is a child of prayer just like Isaac, Samuel, John the Baptist. Does that impact you? What is a Nazarite? Read Numbers 6:1-21 for help. What do you learn about Samson s parents? His enemies? His wives? What did you discover about his character? Was he a godly man? I m struck by how many times you see the Spirit of the Lord came upon him are you? 3

Did Samson fulfill his potential? What was Samson s fatal flaw? Just cause reading as you have time (jot notes you should see a theme look for the key word and how to apply what you ve learned I used the NIV) Exodus 15 1 Chronicles 16:11 Psalm 18:31-40 Psalm 28:7 Psalm 46:1 Psalm 59:9 Psalm 73:26 Psalm 84:5-8 Ecclesiastes 9:16 Isaiah 30:15 Mark 12:29-34 Philippians 4:13 2 Thessalonians 3:3 Revelation 3 Hebrews 11:32-33 Hebrews 12:1-2 What do you learn from Samson? 4

WEEK 3 DANIEL (HIS CHARACTER NOT PROPHECY) Read Daniel 1 2. Why did God deliver His people into captivity? Who is Daniel? What is said about him? Why would he be defiling himself with the food from the king? (Hint see Leviticus 11) What is the key word in verse 8? What do you think of the reward in verse 17? Read Daniel 6. Read this story at least 3 times, you might even try different versions on line. Tell me about this story. Facts, key words (definitions), lessons for then, lessons for now. We discover that Daniel is found without corruption. The life lesson are we living this way? Even when those around us are trying to trap us or hurt us, do we still live a trustworthy life that is full of integrity? Can we live in our excessive, self-absorbed culture without becoming corrupted by it? This is a favorite children s story. Why? 5

Let s look at one more passage about Daniel s character. Read Daniel 9:1-21a. Don t get caught up in the prophecy since that s not the focus of this study and that will take you on a huge tangent. It s terrific to study, but try to focus on Daniel s character and prayer. What does it say Daniel did first (9:2)? In 9:3, He turned to the Lord more literally I gave my face to the Lord God. Why was this his posture of prayer? During this prayer, Daniel is in sackcloth and ashes and confesses. Why? See 9:5, 8, 11, 15. Read Psalm 51:5 and Jeremiah 17:9. Do you have a sensitivity to the true depth of our sin the way Daniel did? This prayer stops because the answer comes in the midst of it. Are you praying so fervently and without ceasing? Beth Moore says If God was this anxious to speak, why didn t He just save Daniel the trouble and send Gabriel in advance? Isn t this one of life s hardest questions: If God is sovereign and all-knowing and will do as He pleases, why should we pray at all? Word Biblical Commentary poses a wonderful explanation. One person s prayer brings about the restoration of the people of God; but it is a matter of relations that restoration which God already purposed. He s relational to the core. He often waits to be asked and waits to be sought. And not just for answers but for the very presence of relationship. 1 Read Psalm 31:19. Action comes long before the action. What kinds of examples can you think of here? What is the truth you ve discovered? How do you need to work on your own character building? 1 Beth Moore study on Daniel 6

WEEK 4 HANNAH & SAMUEL Read 1 Samuel 2 & 3. What does Hannah say of God? How did Hannah handle her sorrow? How can you personally apply Hannah s prayer to your life? Re-write it as if you were praying it today. What part of your life would you bring to God? When was the last time someone misjudged you and then accused you of something that wasn t true? (Like Eli of Hannah) How did you react? What does Samuel s name mean? (Use Bible Gateway or Crosswalk) What do these chapters teach you about Samuel? What about how he responds to the Lord? 7

When was the last time you felt God asking you to speak truth? How did it go? Read the following passages and answer: With whom does the Lord group Samuel? What characterized Samuel? I Samuel 3:21 I Samuel 4:1a I Samuel 12:1-5 Psalm 99:6-7 Jeremiah 15:1. How is your devotion to the Lord? WEEK 5 PETER List out 5 things/stories that come to mind when you think of Peter. If you aren t familiar with him, start with the passages below. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Read the introduction to Peter when Jesus calls him. What do you learn? Matthew 4:18-20, Mark 1:16-18 and Luke 5:1-11. Peter jumped into everything full speed ahead. He rarely stopped to look back. A few years ago a previous small group went through John MacArthur's Twelve Ordinary Men looking at the disciples. In learning about Peter, we discussed his name: Simon Peter. Simon was his given name at birth. Peter was the name Jesus gave him (John 1:42), "the rock." 8

Throughout the Gospels Jesus sometimes calls him Simon, sometimes Peter and sometimes Simon Peter. It was explained like this: Simon was his old self, before Christ. Peter was his changed, new self, after Christ. Simon was the sinful nature of man, living for his own glory and desires. Peter was the growing man, living for the glory of God and desiring to know Jesus in the most intimate way. Do you find yourself in this old self vs. new self struggle? How do you handle it? Read Mark 8:31-9:1. Jesus is predicting his death, his suffering and rejection to come and he did so in a very plain way. What does Peter do/say? Have you ever been in a situation where you rebuked Jesus? Really consider this. To rebuke means: To criticize or reprove sharply; reprimand. To check or repress. 2 Now ask yourself, have you ever checked or repressed Jesus? What does Jesus say in reply? Back up a few verses to Mark 8:27 30. What was the question/answer session about between Peter & Jesus? Peter understood enough that Jesus was the Messiah and yet he rejected the possibility of the coming suffering. Was Peter crazy? No, not crazy, just eager, eager to know and be with Jesus every moment. Yes, Peter denied knowing Jesus in the heat of the battle, but he learned from the trial, confessed, experienced forgiveness and continued pursuing God and spreading the good news wholeheartedly. Let s look at one of the final conversations between Peter and Jesus. Read John 21:15-23 What did Jesus ask Peter? What was Peter s response? Was it the same each time? 2 www.dictionary.com 9

Why did Jesus call Peter Simon during this conversation? What do you think the point was? Why did Peter care about John? Now flash forward. We re going to look at Peter in Acts. In Acts Peter is a new apostle who takes Jesus command to feed His sheep literally. Peter has become the Shepherd. He shakes it up in Acts. No fear. No babbling. No questioning. Just down right serious preaching. After Acts, we will journey to the book of 1 Peter. We will look at Peter in the closing years of his life and all he has to teach. As you study forward, consider what you have just studied. Are there any comparisons to your own walk with the Lord? Read Acts 2:14-41. This is one of Peter s first messages. Read it from the perspective of the man who not soon before cut off the ear of a solider to defend Jesus and then denies Jesus and then runs to Jesus grave to find it empty. What does Peter say? What is the result? (keep reading to v. 47) 10

Now Read Acts 5. Summarize the lesson and Peter s action and/or teaching in each story of this chapter: Acts 5:1-11 Acts 5:12-16 Acts 5:17-42 Finish up by reading 1 Peter 1. Do you see the growth of Peter? Peter worked out his salvation. He knew the cost. What does he detail out about our role? In Romans 6:6, Paul says: "For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin - because anyone who has died has been freed from sin." For me, it boils down to the depths of Peter's heart and what was there was Jesus and the deep realization that Jesus was crucified for his old self, so that he could become new, forgiven, born again. Are you Simon or Peter or a mixture of both? What is in the depths of your heart? 11

WEEK 6 PAUL Read Acts 9:1 9:31. Focus on verses 1 & 2 of chapter 9 describe Saul s mindset and define the Way according to what you already know. Describe what happens in 9:3 9. What stands out to you? What do you think is significant in Saul s conversion? Why do you think God blinded Saul? What do you think is a key verse in Acts 9:1 31? It s impossible to study the life of Paul in one week, but I want to take you on a quick overview. The goal of this chart is to help you get a good sense of where Paul was on his missionary journeys and to whom he was teaching. Take the time to fill out this chart. It will help you grasp the life of Paul. Then maybe consider doing a deeper study of his life after these 8 weeks are finished. After going through this chart, come back to this page and answer: What did I learn? Passage What is happening Who is with him? or Who is he writing to? Acts 11:25-30 Why? (Point of message) Acts 14:8-28 12

Passage What is happening Who is with him? or Who is he writing to? Acts 15:40-41 Why? (Point of message) Acts 16:16-34 Acts 18:1-17 Acts 19:1-41 Acts 21:26-36 Acts 22:22-29 Acts 23:11 Acts 27:13-28:10 Acts 28:30-31 13

Let s finish up by reading a few verses from some of the books he wrote. What do you learn from each? Passage What do you learn? How do you apply it? Romans 1:1-16 1 Corinthians 1:1-17 2 Corinthians 1:1-11 Galatians 1:1-10 Philippians 1:1-11 Colossians 1:1-14 If you have time, read the opening verses to Ephesians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus & Philemon. 14

Go back and circle which book you d love to study first. Why? What jumped out to you most in the opening words of Paul s letters? What impacted you personally in this study of Saul s conversion, his change to Paul, and his life? Why? WEEK 7 JOSEPH Joseph is my mother s favorite biblical character for many reasons. He made good and right choices. He chose to have the right attitude. He fled from tempting situations. He focused solely on God. He forgave in difficult circumstances and he chose God. I can t wait for you to learn more about him and his relationship with God. We re going to do a quick walk-thru of his life and then focus in on the last few years. Read each passage and write out the key happening. Genesis 39:6 Genesis 33:2, 37:3, 4, 35 Genesis 37:5-11 Psalm 105 Genesis 37:29-36 Genesis 39 40 Genesis 41:37-57 15

What is the overall picture of Joseph through these stories? What about those around him? What would you have chosen if you had been the favorite child and sold by your family? Read Genesis 42 44. What are the highlights of these chapters? Read Genesis 45:1 2. How does Joseph react? What does that tell you about his character? Read Genesis 45:3. How do his brothers react? Read the rest of Genesis 45. What happens? Is the road mended with his brothers? Read Genesis 50:14-21. What characteristics distinguished Joseph s final days? 16

WEEK 8 WRAP UP Have you ever truly considered the depth of this question and statement? How can you live it out in your own life? Genesis 50: 19 But Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. Where is your own faith challenged, grown or developed as you read this? Which character study has been your favorite? Why? What passage of scripture really stood out to you? Do you allow flaws and failures to keep you from seeking God? Are lies acceptable? Did/does the ends justify the means? If a particular behavior is considered ok by society does that mean it is or is not a sin? Let s reread the Romans 15:4 passage do you have encouragement and hope? For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. How can you focus your faith completely upon God? 17