The Bible for Grown-Ups | Week 1
Week 1 The Bible for Grown-Ups
INTRODUCTION
Most of us know some Bible stories, but very few of us know the story of the Bible. And you may be surprised to discover it’s a story that doesn’t actually begin in the beginning. It begins with the accounts of a few men who sat down to record the death and resurrection of Jesus. It begins with the words of his followers, who were compelled to document the events that had changed everything for them—because they knew it could change everything for us.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
If you had the chance to read the personal journal of someone whose life has influenced yours, who would you choose? Why would their stories and ideas be meaningful to you?
How were you first introduced to the Bible? What people and ideas do you associate with that time?
Luke was a first-century Greek doctor who documented the life of Jesus.
Read Luke 1:1–4.
Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.
Why do you think it was unusual in ancient times for many people to write about an event?
How does Luke describe his purpose in documenting Jesus’ life?
4. It’s possible you or someone you know left your faith because of something in the Bible. What is the “it” that you or they didn’t believe?
Read John 20:30–31 to find out the only “it” that really matters.
Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
How does John describe his purpose for writing?
What do you think John meant by “have life in his name”?
5. If John’s account of Jesus’ life was all you had, what would change about how you approach Jesus and encourage others to move toward him?
MOVING FORWARD
Many of us carried our childhood understanding of the Bible into adulthood. Faced with questions we couldn’t answer and doubts we couldn’t ignore, we walked away. If that’s your story, there’s another approach—one that John offers in his personal account of the life of Jesus. And if this account were all we had, it would be enough. This week, approach your faith in a new way by reading John’s account of Jesus’s life as though it was the only Scripture you had.