Week 3 - DISCOVERY
WORSHIP
What can we praise or thank God for? (You could sing this or pray this to the Lord.)
What do we need to repent of? (This can be a time of silent or public confession.)
Review
We’re working through the four key relationships and crucial priorities of a church family. Last week we looked at:
WORSHIP - Our Relationship with Jesus
Devote yourselves to connecting with and following after Jesus
Today, let’s look at:
DISCOVERY - Our Relationship with the Bible
DISCOVERY
Ask God to speak to you as you read His Word.
Acts 17:1-3 (GW)
1 Paul and Silas traveled through the cities of Amphipolis and Apollonia and came to the city of Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue. 2 As usual, Paul went into the synagogue. On three consecutive days of rest—holy days, he had discussions about Scripture with the synagogue members. 3 He explained and showed them that the Messiah had to suffer, die, and come back to life, and that Jesus, the person he talked about, was this Messiah.
Acts 19:8-10 (GW)
8 For three months Paul would go into the synagogue and speak boldly. He had discussions with people to convince them about God’s kingdom. 9 But when some people became stubborn, refused to believe, and had nothing good to say in front of the crowd about The Way, he left them. He took his disciples and held daily discussions in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. 10 This continued for two years so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.
Acts 20:7-12 (GW)
7 On Sunday we met to break bread. Paul was discussing with the people. Since he intended to leave the next day, he kept talking until midnight. 8 (Many lamps were lit in the upstairs room where we were meeting.)
9 A young man named Eutychus was sitting in a window. As Paul was [discussing] on and on, Eutychus was gradually falling asleep. Finally, overcome by sleep, he fell from the third story and was dead when they picked him up. 10 Paul went to him, took him into his arms, and said, “Don’t worry! He’s alive!” 11 Then [he] went upstairs again, broke the bread, and ate. Paul talked with the people for a long time, until sunrise, and then left.
12 The people took the boy home. They were greatly relieved that he was alive.
Read the passages again (perhaps in another version).
Have someone retell the passages in their own words.
What stands out to you in the passages?
Do you have any questions about the passages?
What do the passages say about God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit)?
What do the passages say about people, including ourselves?
What do the passages say about the life God is calling us to live?
Dig Deeper
Paul’s Teaching Style
Whether Paul was teaching in a Jewish synagogue, a Greek lecture hall, or a Christian house church, what word describes his teaching, and what does this suggest about his teaching style?
In the above passages, the Greek word dialegomai appears five times. We get our English word “dialogue” from this Greek word, and the God's Word Translation often translates it as discuss.
The idea behind dialegomai, however, isn't merely a casual conversation. It describes a purposeful discussion that helps people understand, believe, and obey God's truth.
Paul's teaching was not merely a monologue. He engaged people in purposeful discussion that helped them understand, believe, and obey God's truth.
Why would discussion be an effective way to communicate God's Word?
Jesus’ Teaching Style
Let’s consider Jesus’ teaching style.
Luke 10:25-37 (CSB)
25 Then an expert in the law stood up to test [Jesus], saying, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
26 “What is written in the law?” he asked him. “How do you read it?”
27 He answered, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,” and “your neighbor as yourself.”
28 “You’ve answered correctly,” he told him. “Do this and you will live.”
29 But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 Jesus took up the question and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him up, and fled, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down that road. When he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 In the same way, a Levite, when he arrived at the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan on his journey came up to him, and when he saw the man, he had compassion. 34 He went over to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on olive oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him. When I come back I’ll reimburse you for whatever extra you spend.’
36 “Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?”
37 “The one who showed mercy to him,” he said.
Then Jesus told him, “Go and do the same.”
How did Jesus lead the expert in the law to discover the truth for himself rather than simply telling him the answer?
Why do good questions lead to good discoveries?
Communal Teaching in the Early Church
1 Corinthians 14:26
What should you do then, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all these be done to build each other up.
Colossians 3:16 (NET)
Let the word of Christ dwell in you (plural) richly, teaching and exhorting one another with all wisdom, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, all with grace in your hearts to God.
What do these two passages from Paul suggest about how teaching was done in the Early Church?
These passages don't mean the Early Church had no recognized teachers. Scripture clearly identifies teachers and describes the apostles teaching the churches. But these passages show that teaching God's Word was not limited to one person speaking while everyone else listened. Believers were also equipped to teach and exhort one another as they gathered.
The Bible gives us multiple ways of communicating God's Word. Throughout Scripture we see public preaching, apostolic teaching, personal conversations, storytelling, questions, and communal discussion. Each has its place.
Paul's example shows that teaching God's Word could take place through interactive discussion. Jesus frequently used questions to engage people and lead them toward truth. And the Early Church gathered in ways that encouraged believers to teach and exhort one another.
In our MicroChurches, therefore, we intentionally emphasize communal discussion. This reflects the interactive teaching we see in Jesus, Paul, and the Early Church and encourages everyone to participate in discovering, believing, and obeying God's Word.
Discovery through Discussion
Perhaps you've heard God's Word preached or taught. What are the advantages of listening to the preaching and teaching of God's Word?
In our MicroChurches, we seek to follow the biblical pattern of communal discussion by asking the following questions that help people discover God's truth together.
What stands out to you in the passage?
Do you have any questions about the passage?
What does the passage say about God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit)?
What does the passage say about people, including ourselves?
What does the passage say about the life God invites us to live?
What are the advantages of a Discovery Bible Study?
How does discussing God's Word in Christian community prepare us to live it and share it?
How do these five questions move us from discovering God's truth to believing, obeying, and sharing it?
What truth is God highlighting for you from the passage?
What would keep you from believing or obeying this truth?
What blessing would you experience if you believed and obeyed this truth?
How will you live out this truth this week? ("I will ...")
Who needs to hear this truth? How will you share it?
Following the example of Jesus, Paul, and the Early Church, Discovery Bible Study invites people to discuss God's Word so they can discover its truth, believe it, obey it, and share it with others.
Reflection
Facilitating Notes
For the sake of time, or more importantly, to encourage deeper sharing, you could divide into groups of 2 to answer the following questions.
Ask these pairs to connect midweek to see how their “I will …” statements and sharing goals are coming along and how they can continue to support and pray for each other.
If you don’t divide into pairs, record each other’s “I will …” statements and sharing goals and remind each other of them during the week through a text or an email.
Now let’s answer these Discovery Bible Study questions for today’s study.
What truth is God highlighting for you from the passages?
What would keep you from believing or obeying this truth?
What blessing would you experience if you believed and obeyed this truth?
How will you live out this truth this week? (“I will …”)
Who needs to hear this truth? How will you share it?
In Summary
The church’s first two key relationships and crucial priorities are:
WORSHIP - Our Relationship with Jesus
Devote yourselves to connecting with and following after Jesus
DISCOVERY - Our Relationship with the Bible
Devote yourselves to hearing and obeying God’s Word
Our Meal and His Supper
Acts 2:42, 46 (NIV)
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 46 They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,
Acts 20:7 (GW)
On Sunday we met to break bread.
When the early church gathered, they broke bread together. This expression can refer to sharing a meal and, in many contexts, celebrating the Lord's Supper. It is likely that the early Christians often combined the two, sharing a common meal and remembering Jesus together. You are encouraged to do the same.
As you gather around the table, begin by celebrating the Lord's Supper together:
Take the bread and say, "The body of Christ, given for you."
Take the cup and say, "The blood of Christ, shed for you."
Then offer a prayer of thanksgiving for the sacrifice of Jesus and the new life we have through Him.
Closing
Who will facilitate next time? (See FOR THE FACILITATORfor help in leading a gathering.)
Pray for God’s help as you seek to follow Jesus this coming week.
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