Teaching Biblical Content

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Episode 112: Leading a Study
Choosing Your Curriculum

When you are getting together with others to study the Bible, you need to decide on what you will be focused on learning and/or teaching. I offer 3 main areas for your focus and then discuss strategies you can use to approach teaching those core components.

A Starting Point

Thinking broader: The curriculum of your Bible study is essentially what you would like to teach to the participants of the study. This is made up of several parts. Most would first think of biblical knowledge as the only object of the curriculum. However, it is only one of the parts which should be taught so that participants become literate in their ability to study the Bible on their own. Even if your goal is to simply teach the gospel, these other components add an extremely important part to the study mentality. If those in the study know that they are not just taking your word for it but are actually studying the Bible and discovering truth, they will see the important difference between true Christianity and other beliefs. Our belief are grounded in the Word alone.

The subject: The first thing that usually is determined is the content of the study. Some spend their time going through a book of the Bible. Other groups take topics or doctrines as their study material. This is going to determine much of what you will be planning as you participate in designing and leading a Bible study. Below are some different types of study and how they have been used in this method.

Studying Books

Books of the Bible: A critical understanding that must be grasped when studying the Bible is that different books need to be studied in different ways. This is mainly true because there are many different genres of literature that make up the Scriptures. To examine a Psalm like you would a chapter in Romans would be like dissecting a butterfly. You might understand the creature, but it would no longer be able to fly. These same considerations ought to be made for the students that are in the study. They need to see how this is done while they are doing it so that they will know how to study when they are by themselves. Here are some key things that need to be in the minds of the students as they progress through the project.

Historical: When working through a historical or narrative text, there is a natural outline in the form of a story line. This is a great place to start for those first studying the Bible. The progression of thoughts is much more clear as they see the story move frame by frame. Identifying the storyline, characters, interactions, and other events lead to an understanding of how to interpret and ultimately apply those truths to our lives. Since there are so many different elements that can be highlighted in a historical text, this provides for many activities of study. As the one preparing the study, it is important to focus on the elements that are most significant to the passage.

Doctrinal: Studying books that are focused on doctrine, as many of the epistles are, require a much more trained eye to find the flow of thought. This theme often follows through the entire book. Those participating will need prompting to continue their train of thought for the duration of the study. Reviews can be helpful if the study is not regular or if there is a long break in the study. This genre of study will require more attention to detail and more exhaustive study of words and ideas. When preparing the study, make an effort to encourage students to explore new words and ideas. These sections are also full of good questions for those ready to ask them.

Poetical/Wisdom: The Scriptures should be read and studied the way that they were written. And so when king David writes an emotional victory song, it should be examined with that same vigor. Those in the study should be confronted with the emotion behind the words in the passages. This will require looking at the stories on which these sections are based. An examination of the author and the events leading up to the writing are very important. The structure of the passage can also be significant. Many of these portions are quoted throughout the Bible, so make sure to look at those quotations and how these earlier writings were applied after so many years. There are many more applications to be made in these sections. It can be challenging to study an actual passage because of this. Make sure to first study it out before applying the text. Many times people will seek application before interpretation, which can lead to incorrect understandings.

Prophetical: Finally, prophetical writings can be a little trickier to navigate. In many of the prophetical books, the character of God can be seen in dramatic ways. The mercy, wrath, holiness, righteousness, etc., of God are seen in vibrant colors. Balancing these ideas so that God is fairly represented is an excellent task for the prophetic books and for Christian living in general. These are the times God speaks through chosen men to reveal Himself. This should be the focus of these books. Many prophetical books overlap with historical events mentioned in other books, and some even have contemporary books that should be examined alongside the text being examined.

Studying Doctrine

Doctrine: We see that the New Testament church spent their time going through the apostles’ doctrine. Doing this can be a very helpful way for believers to grasp a body of truth. This is generally done in two ways. Either it is done quickly in a week or two to get an overall idea, or it is done in detail through systematic studying.

Overviews: A basic overview of a doctrine is useful to give an overarching idea but neglects many of the details. If you are completing a study and see a large gap in the group’s understanding, sometimes a break to fill in that gap can be helpful with a basic overview. This is not to be exhaustive. It is simply to help get the big picture of the major ideas God has given in His Word.

Surveys: A full survey has the advantage of examining many different aspects of a truth as well as experiencing how different genres of God’s Word deal with the same topic. It is important to look into many kinds of books to see the different dimensions of the rich doctrines revealed. This tends to be more work on the front end as the leader must first find and understand the Scriptures in which the groups will participate.

Studying Topics or Themes

Topical: The premise of the inquiry method is to allow individuals to explore the Scriptures. Besides the first topic of study, I have always asked those coming to the study what they would like to study once we have finished our previous study. In a topical study, very specific ideas and questions can be examined. Included in this are characters, words, events, or any other topic that can be found in the Bible. Most of individual study is started because someone has a question. Teaching someone how to start with a question, examine the Bible, and end with an answer is a very valuable use of time. This method allows for just that, along with a dramatic sense of choice and diversity in the study of the Bible.