Opening the Bible for Seekers
Discussion Bible studies are powerful agents of change.
by Marilyn Kunz | posted 11/15/2006

---

Those new to Bible study should start with Mark; it's clear, concise, full of action, and does not require familiarity with the Old Testament. No wonder missionary translators usually begin with Mark.

Well-prepared Questions

Groups function best with questions that help them observe, interpret, and apply what they find in the Bible text. The questions should be forthright enough to allow each person to take a turn as moderator, moving the group paragraph by paragraph through a chapter. The material must not assume that everyone understands Christian jargon or can easily comprehend a religious mind-set.

Three Ground Rules

The following ground rules protect a group against misuse of Scripture:

Confine the discussion to the chapter being studied. This keeps the newcomers at equal advantage. As the weeks go by, of course, everyone's scope of knowledge enlarges, and the group is able to refer back to chapters previously studied.

Expect everyone to be responsible for pulling the group back from digressions. The moderator's job is greatly eased if others in the group help say, "We've gotten onto a tangent. Let's get back to the chapter."

Agree that the document (Mark, for example) will be the authority for the discussion. People should not be coerced into believing the Bible, but they can be encouraged to be honest about what it says and to refrain from rewriting it. As a group continues to study week after week, most members come to recognize the Bible as authoritative.

These guidelines keep a group on the path of orthodoxy. It is difficult to promote heresy in a group studying a book of the Bible in context.

Non-expert Study

Not every member should attempt an outreach Bible study. A wise pastor will not try to get the whole church into this approach to evangelism. Some Christians tend to tell others too much too soon. The discussion approach requires patience and a willingness to let the non-Christian build a framework of Bible knowledge and discover Christ's claims for himself.

But once this has happened, the person is much more likely to hear and believe a gospel presentation from the pulpit or from a Christian friend.

For those the church wants to encourage in this kind of outreach, a preparation series of four or five Wednesday nights or an all-day Saturday workshop may be used. Such a training program should include:

1. An explanation of inductive study.
   
2. Instruction in sensitivity to the non-Christian.
   
3. Practice in introducing the idea of a Bible study to friends and colleagues.
   
4. Participation in an actual Bible study discussion.
   

Copies of the study questions for Mark should be available as well.

At one such workshop, two men were role-playing the initial invitation. Jim later reported, "When Charlie asked me how I'd like to 'join a group and study the Word of God,' he lost me. I was suddenly aware that a person who had never studied the Bible would not call it 'the Word of God.' It would have been better if he'd simply asked me if I'd like to be in a Bible study for non-experts. I would have said yes to that."