Category: Bible Challenge

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Bible Challenge Week 49: The Church – On to Glory!

At the end of the book of Acts, Luke leaves his narrative hanging with Paul in Rome, under house arrest and preaching the word to everyone who walked through his door.  That’s a strange ending, until we realize it’s not really an ending at all.  The story goes on, and we’re in it.  But with Revelation, a notoriously frustrating book for many readers, we get a divine view of the heavens and the earth that God created in Genesis 1:1.  Terrible, glorious, frightening, and encouraging events unfold as the curtain rings down on this present age.

As several commentators have noted, the gist of the story is “God wins.”  And how!  To Christians who have suffered through the ages, to persecuted believers in Nigeria and North Korea and Iran and elsewhere, to those of us who survey the moral destruction of our country and wonder where it will all end, the apostle John addresses this vision.  This is where it ends: God wins, and “the dwelling place of God is with man.”

For a printable download of this week’s final challenge, with Scripture references, thought questions, and family activities, click here:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 49: The Church – On to Glory!

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

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Bible Challenge Week 48: The Church – God’s Family

“I’m so glad to be a part of the family of God.”  That was a popular chorus thirty years ago when our kids were growing up and we were trying to decide on a church to attend.  The notion of church as family is preached from many pulpits, but how many listeners (or preachers) actually believe it?  Church attendance drops every year, “organized religion” takes more hits than ducks in an arcade.  Even professing Christians ditch the family terminology as soon as something they don’t like happens in the church they’re currently attending.  As for “membership”–what’s that?  Many churches don’t even have membership status.

But church as family is one of the plainest principles taught in the Bible.  It’s not just a metaphor–it’s a fact.  Jesus even said that there’s no marriage in heaven, and presumably no parent-child relationships.  Christ will be our husband, and God (the Father) our Father.  We don’t know exactly what this will look like, but we can be sure that the only family that will last into eternity is the church.  Maybe we should start taking it more seriously.

For a dowloadable .pdf of this week’s Bible challenge, including scripture references, thought questions, and family activities, click below:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 48: The Church – God’s Family

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

Previous: Week 48: The Church – By Faith Alone

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Bible Challenge Week 47: The Church – By Faith Alone

“The plain things are the main things” in the Bible, but the plainest things present the church’s greatest challenges.  Last week, we looked at “Christ as the Center,” which is the theme of the entire scripture.  So why is it so hard to keep him there?  Mainly because we keep putting ourselves at the center.  The question of faith versus works, which has vexed the church from the beginning (we’ll be looking at Acts 15), is still an issue today.  What does “justification by faith” mean?  Why do Christians keep slipping off on one side of the other, toward legalism (attempting to earn heaven by good works) or antinomianism (living as we please while claiming to believe in Jesus)?

It would take more than one Bible lesson to do justice to that subject, but this week we’ll at least look at the root of the problem and the primary scriptural support.

For a download of this week’s challenge, with scripture references, key verse, discussion questions, and activities, click below:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 47: The Church – By Faith Alone

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

Previous: BRC Week 46: The Church – Christ the Center

Next: BRC Week 48: The Church – God’s Family

 

 

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Bible Challenge Week 46: The Church – Christ the Center

We have one more month of this series to go!  This week, we move out of the historical record (Matthew – Acts) and into the part of the Bible known as “Epistles,” or letters to the very first churches established in Asia and Europe.  I find it interesting, and significant, that the historical record does not come to a strong, ringing conclusion.  The book of Acts ends with Paul in Rome under house arrest, arguing the claims of Christ with anyone who came to visit   That’s not the conclusion we’re looking for–what happened to Paul, and Peter, and the other apostles?  Where’s the big victory at the end, the soul-stirring, confetti-flinging, music-swelling ending?

What we need to remember is that the story does not end with Acts 28:31,  The story is ongoing.  We are the story now.  The Bible does come to a ringing conclusion in Revelation, which we’ll get to, but that ending is not yet.  We are living in the in-between time, where God’s story is still being written in our hearts and lives.  From that perspective, Romans – Jude are like author notes for the major themes of the story.  What are those themes?  The greatest comes first, and we’ll look at that one this week.

For a printable download of this week’s reading challenge, including scripture references, discussion questions, and family activities, click here:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 46: The Church – Christ the Center

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

Previous: BRC Week 45: The Church – to the Uttermost Parts of the Earth

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Bible Challenge Week 45: The Church – To the Uttermost Parts of the Earth

It was to Peter that Jesus gave “the keys to the Kingdom,” to unlock doors previously closed.  The door was the good news of the gospel, first open to the Jews, and then to the Gentiles.  Peter opened both doors.  But the one who stormed through the second one was the young man called Saul, later an old man known to us as “Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ.”  In a total of four journeys, he would carry the gospel of Christ all the way to the capital of the Empire, and maybe even beyond.

It’s an exciting story we unfortunately don’t have the time to tell in one session.  But for a printable one-page download of this week’s challenge, with scripture passages to read, questions to discuss, and family activities, click here:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 45: The Church – to the Uttermost Parts of the Earth

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

Previous: Week 44: The Church – To the Gentiles

Next: Week 46: The Church – Christ the Center

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Bible Challenge Week 44: The Church – to the Gentiles

The shocking death of Stephen acted like a catapult, flinging Christians out from Jerusalem in all directions.  That was God’s purpose, to carry out the next stage of his plan.  That next stage shouldn’t have been a surprise–the LORD had been hinting about it at least as far back as Abraham: “In you all nations shall be blessed.”  Prophets from Jonah to Isaiah had prophesied about God’s mercy extending beyond the Jews, out to “the nations.”  But as usual, the disciples were slow to catch on, including Peter.

What God is about to do will cause anger, confusion and bewilderment . . and finally acceptance.  In the 2000 years since, all nations have indeed been blessed.

To find out more, click below for the printable .pdf, with scripture references, discussion questions, and activities:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 44: The Church – To the Gentiles

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

Previous: Week 43: The Church – From Jerusalem to Samaria

Next: Week 45: The Church – To the Uttermost Parts of the Earth

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Bible Challenge Week 43: The Church – From Jerusalem to Samaria

The church is growing because the gospel is spreading.  But just what is “the gospel”?  There’s a lot of confusion about that today, just as there was in the first century.  And just as there is in today’s church, the first-century church faced its problems.  Some of them were unique to those early days, but other problems are still with us: hypocrisy, glory-seeking, false teaching, and sudden, wrenching losses.  You would think that twelve divinely-appointed and sanctified apostles, who had spent the last three years with Jesus himself, would be able to run things perfectly.  In some ways it’s a reassurance to know that even the best, most saintly saints can’t do everything right.

It’s reassuring because the growth of the church didn’t depend on them.  Who was really in charge?

Click below for a printable download with scripture passages, thought questions, and family activities:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 43: The Church – From Jerusalem to Samaria

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

Previous: Week 42: The Church – He’s Alive!

Next: Week 44: The Church – To the Gentiles

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Bible Challenge Week 42: The Church – He’s Alive!

If the main character of the Old Testament is Yahweh, the main character of gospels is, of course, Jesus Christ.  But the  main character of the “Acts of the Apostles” is not the apostles–not even Peter and Paul.  It’s the Holy Spirit, or the third Person of the Trinity, who completes the work of salvation in the disciples of Jesus and goes on to make more disciples: “First in Jerusalem, then in Samaria, and on to the uttermost parts of the earth.”

When we last saw the handful of disciples that were left after their leader’s shocking death–about 120 of them–they were disheartened and bereft, but still together.  Two stunning events are about to occur, which will turn not only their lives upside down, but alter the history of the world.

What were they?  Click below to find out:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 42: The Church – He’s Alive!

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

Previous: Week 41: Messiah – The Lamb of God

Next: Week 43: The Church – From Jerusalem to Samaria

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Bible Challenge 41: Messiah – The Lamb of God

It’s been a roller-coaster week.  After whining and complaining about his triumphant entry into the city, Jesus’ enemies have been trying to catch him in a verbal stumble, but he’s always a step ahead of them. They are almost in despair until an opportunity opens: unbeknownst to them, a greater enemy has entered on the scene, and the supposed Messiah now has a new struggle to face.  The greatest one of his life.

To find out who it was, and to download the free .pdf, with scripture passages, discussion/though questions, and family-centered activities click below:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 41: Messiah – The Lamb of God

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

Previous: Week 40: Messiah – The Last Days

Next: Week 42: The Church – He’s Alive!

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Bible Challenge Week 40: Messiah – The Last Days

Jesus is still rock-star famous: that splashy entrance into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey signals that something BIG is about to happen.  The inner circle knows it, the followers know it, the casual observers know it, and what’s more–his enemies know it.  You can almost sympathize with them, at least looking at it from their point of view.  To them it looks like the relative political stability that allows their Roman overlords to leave them in peace is about to be overturned, with serious consequences not only for them, but for the nation.  (Think of the opposition party’s response to the election of 2016 and you may get an idea of what that felt like.)  Personal animus aside (of which they had plenty), for the good of the nation, the man must be stopped.

But when the ruling class and the crowds expected Jesus to upset the political order, they were thinking way too small.  He was out to upset the cosmic order, and by Thursday night there would be no turning back.

For a one-page printable of this week’s challenge, including scripture passages to read, questions to think about, and activities for the family, click below:

Bible Reading Challenge Week 40: Messiah – The Last Days

(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible.  I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF.  The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids.  Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)

Previous: Week 39: The Road to Jerusalem

Next: Week 41: The Lamb of God