guidelines for conducting a bible study group

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Guidelines for Conducting a Bible Study Group

Introduction

Why a Home Study Fellowship?

There are many advantages of doing a Bible Study in a home. First of all, it is a much more relaxed and

casual atmosphere. People feel that they are guests coming to a friend¶s house. The intimate home

atmosphere makes it easier for participants to share their ideas, their fears, and their problems. They will

soon feel an important part of the church because they experience the love and fellowship of their Home

Study group. Those who become part of a small group study get in the weekly habit of worshippingGod, praying for one another¶s needs, and studying God¶s word. This will help them grow and mature

in the Lord. It also provides a place for people to share their deepest needs, to ask questions without fear of ridicule, and to learn compassion for each other. It¶s a way for everyone to share in the ministry of

the church by reaching out to others.

To successfully lead a Home Study Fellowship, you must believe in this ministry: you must be sold on

it and consider it an important way for believers to grow in the word. I am excited about this form of

ministry. I have seen people literally transformed by this ministry. New believers become grounded in

the word. Old believers get a new excitement for serving God. And most importantly all participants

become closer to the Lord as they spend more time learning from his word. If you can get new visitors

plugged into a Home Study Fellowship, they will soon feel more comfortable with the church, and have

a quicker understanding of the church¶s philosophy of ministry. The love and fellowship from the small

group will spill over into other areas of the church.

But as important as small groups are, no one should ever lead a Home Study Fellowship who hasn¶t participated in one. Many years ago, the standard format for a Bible Study was the teacher doing most

of the talking in a lecture-type format. Occasionally, students were asked questions or asked to read

scripture, but it was primarily a one-man show. For years I taught this way. Then for awhile I was the

student in a Bible Study. It was then that I realized that, as a student, I learned more and received morefrom the study when I was an active participant, able to share and ask questions. And from that point on

I abandoned the lecture format for a participation format where the group was encouraged to participatewith their own thoughts and insights. I learned more about a small group Bible Study in a few months

as a student than I had in years as a leader. You cannot truly understand the small group format until

you¶ve participated in one. Being a participant in a small group is a necessary requirement for being a

small group leader. You will better understand and relate to your group when you know what it¶s like to

be on their end of the discussion. And to my way of thinking, if you don¶t believe in Home Study

Groups enough to attend one, you shouldn¶t be leading one.

Section I

The Nuts and Bolts of a Bible Study

Format of the Bible Study



I believe every session of your Home Study Fellowship should contain the following six elements:

1. Time of fellowship

2. Worship

3. Prayer

4. Snack break 5. Bible Study

6. Closing

The order of some of these elements and the time spent on each activity will differ according to theemphasis of the group leader and the desire of the group, but each should be included. Here¶s a

description and suggestions for each activity.

FELLOWSHIP

There needs to be a time when people can freely talk to one another and get to know each other. This

can begin when people start arriving before the Bible Study "officially" starts. This will also occur

during the snack break. As the leader, it¶s best not to spend this time answering a person¶s question byturning it into a mini-teaching session, although there will be times when this is necessary. It¶s best to

hear what others have to say. The most successful time of fellowship, in my view, is when all the

participants are engaged in talking with each other, even if the leader is left out of all these private

discussions. It¶s OK to just sit there in silence. Don¶t feel you have to be part of every conversation. As

people get to know each other better, they will feel more relaxed, and feel more at ease about discussing

their personal struggles in the group. If the group is new or shy, you can help initiate a time of sharing by asking people questions. You may remember a prayer request they had the previous week, and ask

how everything turned out. Don¶t only have a conversation with one person, but be sure to include as

many people as possible.

WORSHIP

Ten to fifteen minutes of singing and worshipping is a good way to get everyone¶s focus on the Lordinstead of on their own problems. If you have musicians or singers in the group, get them involved in

helping with worship. If not, then it¶s up to the leader to prepare ahead of time a list of songs to sing. I

like to type the words to all the songs on a sheet of paper to be handed out to each participant. This wayyou can go from one song to the next fluidly. Or you can use a words-only praise book. If you do this,

it¶s better to have all the songs within a few pages of each other. This way people¶s attention is on

worship instead of turning pages to find the songs! New songs are fun to sing, but each time of worship

should have some songs that everyone knows. I usually do five songs that take about 12 minutes. I sing

one or two uptempo songs, and the last two songs are slow and worshipful which are either well-knownor easy to sing. If you know nothing about music, don¶t worry. Just pick out songs that you enjoy

singing. No one expects the group leader to be an accomplished musician or singer. For those who do

have some understanding of music, here are some additional suggestions. If you have limited musical

accompaniment, you will find that if all the songs are in the same key, it will be easier to find the

beginning note of the next song, unless all the songs are very well known and easy to sing. Also if you

are singing acapella, songs in minor keys are more difficult to sing on pitch than songs in major keys.

PRAYER

One of the advantages of a small-group atmosphere is the opportunity to share our needs and pray for

one another. Some will be very willing to share their prayer requests, others will be hesitant. After all

the requests are made known, it¶s good to tell everyone to feel free to pray for any of these requests they



have heard, then you open the prayer. Allow others to pray, and then you close the prayer. After the

group has been together for awhile, this will become easier. At first you may have many who are too

shy to pray out loud, and many groups are very hesitant about sharing their prayer requests and need the

leader¶s encouragement to learn how to make their prayer requests known. Some will never open up.

Always respect each participant¶s individuality. There may be times when someone has a very serious

need, and you will want everyone to gather around the individual to pray for them. Don¶t be afraid to dosomething different. Allow the Holy Spirit to lead you in your time of prayer. One potential problem in

a small group is someone taking up a lot of time with their prayer request. The prayer time is an area

which can easily take up a huge amount of time if the leader does not take control of the situation. Don¶t

ever forget that the reason we have a Bible Study is to spend time together studying God¶s word. Prayer is important, but long, rambling accounts of a prayer need is not. God already knows the need. If your

group is spending 45 minutes in prayer requests and leaving only 15 minutes for Bible study, you need

to step in and encourage everyone to keep it brief. But you don¶t want to do this until you really have a

problem.

SNACK BREAK

This may seem frivolous to you, but drinks and some snack are an important part of a Home Study

Fellowship. People¶s throats do get dry, but besides the practical aspect, by serving snacks you aresaying, "Welcome to my home; we are doing something special because you came." Snacks add to the

homey atmosphere of a Bible Study and make people feel welcome. We hold our Bible Study in the

living room, but have the snacks in the kitchen. This way when we break for snacks, people have to get

up and mingle. It¶s also gives them a natural break when they can use the bathroom. It facilitatesconversation among people as they are standing around the snack table pouring their drink and getting

their piece of cake.

BIBLE STUDY

This is why we meet: to learn something from God¶s word. The successful Home Study Fellowship will

be a time when everyone enters in, sharing their ideas and insights. Some teaching by the leader is

essential, but people tend to remember better what they learn when they are involved in the teaching

process. The way I do this is I ask how those in the Study answered Question # 1, or I ask what theythink this verse means, or some other question to get the group¶s input. Then I don¶t respond to their

answers with my own thoughts until all who wish have answered. Only then do I reveal what I have

learned from the passage under discussion. Even if it¶s already been said by someone else, I think it¶sgood for the leader to confirm the main ideas of the scripture, what it means to him. Although we want

to encourage others to share, I believe it is essential for the leader to do some teaching. He should not

dominate the time, but neither should he just sit back and moderate the discussion. The leader mustspend some time in preparation and be prepared to teach something. When people ask questions, it¶s

sometimes good to see if anyone else has an answer before the leader jumps in with his answer. Some

of the best times in our Bible studies have been when someone asked how to handle a certain situation

in their life and someone else shared what they did when they went through the very same thing. All I

did was sit back and watch the Holy Spirit minister.

When people take home the study questions and answer them on their own, there will be times whenthey will come up with some far-out answers. I have learned that the way the leader responds to these

"wrong" answers can determine whether they will be frustrated with their self-study or encouraged to

continue doing it. I try not to contradict a student¶s answer, but add to it, unless of course their

statement violates one of the essentials of the Christian faith. Or I say something like, "That¶s a possible

interpretation," or, "That¶s an interesting point." I try to speak in such a way that even though I may

disagree, they sense I respect their opinion and admire the time they spent in study. How you respond in

tone of voice, expression of face, and body language is much more important than the actual words you



say.

There will be times when the group will go off onto a different subject. Sometimes this can be very

helpful and instructive, but generally you need to steer the group back to the subject at hand. Although

there have been times when someone asked a question, and I felt the discussion was so relevant to the

group that I allowed it to take up the whole time because I felt the Holy Spirit was doing somethingworthwhile. But these times should be the exception, not the rule. If we have spent a long time in group

discussion and it¶s almost time to quit, I like to bring the group back to the verse under consideration

and conclude with some teaching from my own study. This way the group will always leave with some

new thing they can take with them that week. I don¶t like to end a Bible Study without at least some

teaching from the word.

CLOSING

I always close in prayer. I like to have a definite closing, and I believe it is essential to end on time or

very close to on-time. People have obligations. They have to get to work early the next day or get their

children to bed. No one likes to be rude and interrupt, but they will feel uncomfortable if they never

know how late you might go. If they know you will always end on time, they will be more likely tokeep coming to the Bible Study. Our Bible studies end at 8:30. I almost always close in prayer no later than 8:33, and I usually do it at 8:30. Of course, even though you are officially dismissed, you need to

let people know they are welcome to stay and talk if they don¶t need to rush off.

Suggested Time Schedule for 1 1/2 Hour Bible Study

6:45-7:08 Fellowship

7:08-7:20 Worship (5 songs)

7:20-7:40 Prayer requests and prayer

7:40-7:50 Break for snacks and bathroom

7:50-8:30 Bible Study

8:30 Dismiss in prayer

8:30-? Fellowship

Notes: The biggest variable is the prayer time. In an hour and a half study you have to be sure that some

don¶t take up all the time sharing their requests. It can easily become a time when everyone is sharingmore than just prayer requests. At the beginning of the study I believe it¶s important that at least one of

the leaders of the study is free to greet and spend time talking with those who arrive early at 6:45. This

helps people feel welcome and aids in starting on time. I try to dismiss exactly at 8:30. This way thosewho have to get up early or those with young children will not feel uncomfortable about leaving too

late.

Suggested Time Schedule for 2 Hour Bible Study

6:45-7:13 Fellowship



7:13-7:25 Worship (5 songs)

7:25-7:50 Prayer requests and prayer

7:50-8:00 Break for snacks and bathroom

8:00-9:00 Bible Study

9:00 Dismiss in prayer

9:00-? Fellowship

Section II

What to Teach and How to Teach

SELECTING THE STUDY

Before you begin, it is essential that you spend time in prayer finding what God wants you to teach.

Don't make the mistake of getting ahead of God. Wait on Him and allow the Holy Spirit to speak to

you. It may save you much time and confusion.

The number of possible studies that you could do is almost endless. The type and form of a Home Study

Fellowship will vary according to the leader and the group. You could study a book of the Bible, part of

a book on a specific theme, or a topical study. Any book of the Bible will make a good Bible Study, but

it¶s better to start off with a shorter book at first. You can study a book in minute detail examining every

phrase and word of each verse in depth. Or you can do an overview of a book examining the verses and

how they fit together to give the main message of the chapter or paragraph.

The best way to start the selection process is to read through some of your favorite books of the Biblethat are possible candidates for your Home Study Fellowship. Another good way is to examine the

studies available at the Bible Book Store and see if any appeal to you. Remember, you must be excited

about the study, and completely convinced of its benefits. In order for this to happen, you may have to

spend some time doing research before you are ready to choose.

FORM OF TEACHING

As the group leader, you will have to spend time each week preparing the study. How much time you

have each week to devote to study will help to determine the form of teaching that you will want to

choose. Not only time, but also your personal preference for a Home Study Fellowship will enter intothis decision. Basically, there are three ways to conduct the study. The first (and the one requiring the

most time) is where both you and the other members of the group do all your own analysis and share the

conclusions of your own studies of the passage with each other. You will probably have to prepareahead of time study questions for the group to take home and research. The second form of teaching(and the one requiring the least amount of time) is where you closely adhere to a Study Guide purchased

from the bookstore. The third form is a combination of these two. You use a prepared study guide, but

then you add your own independent research to the author¶s. For many years I taught solely out of

purchased study guides. It was only after gaining confidence in this area that I added my own analysis

and eventually branched out to do my own research for the whole study. But this was an evolution, and

determined by increased available time after my two boys grew up and moved out of the house. When



you start off in a small group study, there are many things to learn besides how to study. So it really is

best to start with a purchased Study Guide and adhere closely to it. This will give you time to learn new

study habits, learn how to answer difficult questions, learn about group dynamics (how to get everyone

involved), and learn how to handle problems and special needs that will arise. But if you are the kind

that enjoys doing personal Bible study, you may want to do the exercises in Section VI ² How to Make

Up Your Own Study to see if you would enjoy adding your own research to the study materials.

SUGGESTED STUDIES AND STUDY MATERIALS

Here is a list of possible studies:

Shorter Books of the Bible:

Ephesians

PhilippiansColossians

1 John

JamesA favorite Psalm

Ruth

Jonah

Longer Books of the Bible:

Gospel of John

The Book of Acts

Romans

HebrewsIsaiah

Part of a Book Study:

Life of Abraham: Genesis 11-25

Ministry of Elijah: 1 Kings 17-19, 21, and 2 Kings 1-2

Sermon on the Mount: Matthew 5-7

Spiritual gifts: 1 Corinthians 12-13 and Romans 12

Jesus¶ Teaching on the End Time: Matthew 24-25

Topical studies:

Parables of Jesus Names for God used in the Bible

What does the Bible say about raising children?

New Believer¶s StudyHow to Disciple the New Believer

How to Tell Others about Jesus

Here¶s a list of excellent study guides:

1. Jensen Self-Study Guides (available for every book of the Bible) King James Version



2. LifeGuide Bible Studies. Mostly questions with a brief introduction to each study.

3. Life Application Bible Studies. Based on New International Version

4. LifeChange Series of Studies

5. Precepts Studies by Kay Arthur

WHERE TO FIND GOOD STUDY QUESTIONS

To have a successful Bible Study with lots of participation it¶s essential to have good study questions

for the students to take home and research for themselves. But how can you find them? Good questions

can be found in three areas. First, there are many single-book resources that cover the whole Bible. One

of the best sources for study questions is the Serendipity Bible for Study Groups. It has a long list of questions for each section of scripture. Some are very good, others you will want to overlook, but

overall it¶s the best single-book resource. Other single-book sources are Search the Scriptures and The

Quest Study Bible. An excellent source of questions on the New Testament is the New Testament

Lesson Maker.

Second, you will want to go to your local Bible bookstore and look at all the study guides available for

the book of the Bible that you are studying. Be selective. Some have very good questions, but many are

shallow and hardly worth the price of the book.

Third, you can make up your own study questions. If you enjoy doing it, this is the best approach since

you can customize your questions to the teaching. This is the approach I use. Over the years I¶ve found

that even the best study guides will sometimes give brief treatment to the areas that I feel necessary to

study in depth. And other times they will give a slant to the study which is in a different direction thanwhere the group is going with it. By writing your own study questions, you can come up with

discussion questions that you know are pertinent to the group: where they are in their walk with theLord; common problems unique to the age, family situations, work environment, or emotional make-up

of the group; and practical questions that hit them where they live. For all these reasons, I do my own

study questions. But even then, I still consult other sources. When you are creating your own study

questions, it is important that you base them on the text, and not just on general practical-living

considerations. Of course, it¶s always good when you can come up with questions that apply the text of

scripture to our everyday life problems, but be sure that¶s what the verse is really talking about!

PREPARING THE STUDY

I can¶t stress enough the importance of proper preparation. Time spent in prayer with God and in study

of his word is essential to the success of any Home Study Fellowship. The leader who has not spent

enough time in preliminary study will come across as disorganized and confused. Soon the group will

start wandering off the main point, and each individual will have their own pet subject, and the sessionwill end in total disarray. The more time spent in preparation, the smoother the Bible Study will go.

Everything should be prepared ahead of time. First the house should be organized and set up, ready to

go, and the snacks and drinks should be set out. Everything you do gives the group a message of what

kind of Bible Study this will be. Second the song service should be prepared. You should know what

you¶re going to sing, and have song sheets or song books for everyone. This may seem minor, but you

should know what your order of doing things will be. You should have it prepared in your mind: after singing we pray, after prayer it¶s snack time, after snacks it¶s study time. All these little things will help

the study to go smoothly.

But the most important thing is your own preparation in prayer and study. Your group will reflect

what¶s important to you. Maybe not at first, but after awhile you will see more and more following your leading. Is in-depth study important to you? Then it will be important to the group. Is researching the



study questions important to you? Then it will be important to the group. Do you find that God¶s word

is alive and exciting? Then your group will also discover this. But do you consider Bible study a chore?

So will your group. And do you only have enough time to just barely do enough study to get by each

week. Then that¶s what your group will also do: barely enough to get by.

In order to be properly prepared, and also be able to answer some of the questions your group will comeup with, each leader should have a basic study library. Now to start off, you can successfully lead a

Bible Study with only your Bible and a Study Guide. But a basic library will help you immensely as

you study and prepare.

A REFERENCE LIBRARY

Here are two lists of study materials: the first for the beginning group leader, the second for someone

who has been teaching for awhile or who wants to get into more in-depth research and study.

BASIC LIST:

A Bible: either King James Version, New King James Version, New American Standard Bible, or NewInternational Version

An Exhaustive Concordance: Strong¶s Exhaustive Concordance (King James Version) or NIV

Exhaustive Concordance

Either the Eerdmans¶ Handbook to the Bible or at least one commentary on the book you are studying

besides the student¶s book: Both Wiersbe and McGee have brief, practical, down to earth commentaries

which are sold separately for each book of the Bible. Good one-volume commentaries on the whole

Bible are the Believer¶s Bible Commentary by MacDonald and The Wycliffe Bible Commentary.

INTERMEDIATE LIST:

A study Bible: such as NIV Study Bible, Ryrie Study Bible, or Life Application Bible

A topical reference: such as Nave¶s Topical Bible or Torrey¶s Topical Textbook (sometimes called The

New Topical Textbook)

A resource for references: such as The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge or the Thompson Chain

Reference Bible, or simply use the references given in your study Bible.

A Bible dictionary: such as The New Bible Dictionary or the New Unger¶s Bible Dictionary.

Word Study: Vine¶s Complete Expository Dictionary (also sold as The Expanded Vine¶s)

A Commentary Set: Two good 3-volume commentaries written in the nineteenth century (and thereforecheap) are Matthew Poole¶s Commentary on the Whole Bible and Jamison-Fausset-Brown

Commentary. A modern inexpensive multi-volume set is the Tyndale Commentaries (sold as the

Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries and Tyndale New Testament Commentaries).

BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE INDUCTIVE METHOD OF STUDY



All of these suggestions are simply that: suggestions. There may be times when you will use a different

approach, or change the order of doing things, but these suggestions can prove to help you understand

scripture as you study on your own.

There are four stages in our proposed method of study.

1st Stage

Pray. Before beginning any study of God¶s word, be sure to pray for the Holy Spirit to reveal God¶s

truth to you. This is an essential step and should not be skipped!

2nd Stage

Read the passage of scripture and write down your thoughts using the Inductive Method of study. You

should only use your Bible and a notebook or lined paper. A plain Bible with no comments is best, but

use whatever the Lord has provided you. The Inductive Method of study is done in three areas.

First, you observe the text,

Next you interpret the text,

And then you apply the text.

You observe the text to find out what the words of this portion of scripture actually say. You interpretthe text by looking at what you think this scripture meant to the writer and his readers. You apply thetext by asking yourself, what is this portion of the Bible teaching me! As you do the study, write down

your own thoughts in a notebook before consulting any outside materials.

3rd Stage

Look up scripture references and do any word studies. You may find scripture references in your Study

Bible or Concordance, or the passage may remind you of another scripture that you will want to look

up. You can do a word study of important words by consulting Strong¶s Exhaustive Concordance, a

lexicon, or a Bible dictionary for significant words.

4th Stage

After you are convinced you know what the passage is talking about, then consult other reference

materials such as commentaries or Bible handbooks. Use these to confirm your thinking, expand upon

your ideas, or even change your thinking. Don¶t hesitate to re-evaluate your own conclusions.

The Inductive Method of Bible Study

Here¶s an example of the Inductive Method of Bible study from Psalm 103:1.

Observation

Using the King James Version there are four phrases in this verse: Bless the Lord, O my soul, all that is

within me, bless his holy name. Notice that it is the soul that David is exhorting to bless the Lord. In



addition he wishes all that is within him to bless the Lord. And not only bless the Lord, but also bless

his holy name. Also observe that God¶s name is holy. We may make a note to do a word study on

"bless" since it is mentioned twice in this verse.

Interpretation

It seems David is earnest in his exhortation to himself to bless the Lord. He calls on all his faculties: his

intellect, his emotions, his spirit. As he is kneeling before the Lord, he is escaping some danger or

illness which is threatening him and focusing himself entirely on God. Perhaps this was the time when

Absalom overthrew his throne and he had to flee for his life, or maybe he wrote this during some illness

in his old age. He comes to the Lord because he is holy and all that implies: just, true, righteous,abundant in mercy. Because of these attributes of God, David knows he can place all his problems in

the Lord¶s hands.

Application

Do I spend enough time alone with God? Do I only give him half-hearted worship, or do I bless him

with all that is within me? Do I allow the Lord to take my problems or do I hold back because I want to be in control? I need to gain a better understanding of God¶s holiness and what that means. I need to

spend some quiet time blessing the Lord.

How To Do a Word Study

In the example of Psalm 103:1 a word study of "bless" was suggested. If you cannot read Hebrew or

Greek, there are lexicons available which are keyed to Strong¶s numbers and important Biblical words

can also be found in most Bible dictionaries. For example, I found "bless" (blessed, blessing) in six of

the seven Bible dictionaries I own. But most new Bible students will use Strong¶s Exhaustive

Concordance for their word studies. By looking up "bless" in Strong¶s Concordance, other examples of

its use will be found ² for instance in the very next psalm, Psalm 104:1.

By looking up many scriptures where "bless" is found, its true meaning in context can be determined if you are willing to spend the time necessary to do the research. All words in Strong¶s Concordance have

a number to the far right of the verse. In the example of "bless" Strong¶s number is 1288. In the back of

the Concordance, Strong has two dictionaries, one Hebrew and one Greek. By looking up #1288 in theHebrew dictionary (The Old Testament is written in Hebrew, the New Testament in Greek), Strong¶s

brief definition of the word can be discovered. The NIV Exhaustive Concordance is set up similarly, but

instead of a definition, there is a listing of the English words used in the NIV for that particular Hebrew

or Greek word. In this case, you would be looking up "praise" #1385.

A NOTE ON COMMENTARIES

Something should be said about the role that reference books and commentaries should play in Bible

Study. You should start studying the portion of scripture on your own. Allow God to minister to you

directly through his word. We learn better when we learn it from the Bible instead of from acommentary. What G. Campbell Morgan advised to preachers is true for all Bible teachers (How to

Study and How to Teach the Bible pg. 697-698), "...the first work of the preacher is that of Bible

study.... The idea that expository preaching can be done without work is entirely false. On the other hand, that is not Biblical preaching which finds a text, and then reads all available books to see whatother men have said about it, finally arranging these thoughts into a sermon." Morgan ably illustrated

the wrong way to use commentaries. We should not use them as our primary source of learning.



However, I believe all Bible study should include consulting commentaries. They will help you with

things you may have missed. More importantly, in many cases, as you begin studying a portion of

scripture, you will realize you are traveling into the wilderness for the first time. After the Lord has

taught you from his word, it¶s good to read what God has taught other Godly men who have traveled the

same path you are undertaking. Reading commentaries is like being able to travel the globe and time to

hear some of the great Bible teachers. Their sermons and teachings are still ministering to others. Allowthem to minister to you.

This is what Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote (Commenting and Commentaries pg. 9), "...you will need

to be familiar with the commentators: a glorious army, let me tell you, whose acquaintance will be your delight and profit. Of course, you are not such wiseacres as to think or say that you can expound

Scripture without assistance from the works of divines and learned men who have labored before you in

the field of exposition. ... It seems odd that certain men who talk so much of what the Holy Spirit

reveals to them, should think so little of what he has revealed to others."

Another advantage of commentaries is they can help check your conclusions and interpretations. I

always feel nervous when I come up with an interpretation of scripture that no one in the past has

thought of. Am I so special that God has only revealed to me this truth? Or maybe I¶m seeing something

that¶s really not there! When I know my interpretation is going against the mainstream of thinking insome area, I like to find one or two evangelical commentators that have arrived at the same conclusion.

There was one time when I was so convinced that God was teaching a certain thing in Psalm 22 that I

went ahead and taught in anyway, but it did make me feel uneasy. A few months later I found two other

commentators who also argued my position, so then I was able to relax a little bit. Let¶s face it, it¶sunlikely that God has only revealed something to you and no one else. After I had written these words, I

did research on what others had to say about small group study. How delighted I was to find Kay

Arthur, the author of the Precepts Studies, make this statement (How to Study Your Bible pg. 65), "Infact, teachers and commentaries can be a safeguard for you in your own interpretation. Be very wary if

in your study you find something that no one else has ever seen before. God probably would not blind

godly men to truth for almost 2,000 years and suddenly reveal it to you."

Some find commentaries difficult to read. They think they are "too technical" or "too boring" and "they

spend too much space talking about things I¶m not interested in." The more you study, the more youwill appreciate commentaries. The "technical matters" that they spend a lot of time on are usually

foundational to proper understanding of what the verse really means. But you have to spend time

wrestling with these difficult passages first before you can appreciate the commentator¶s technical

assistance. The more you read commentaries, the more you will come to appreciate and, yes, love them.

When I was starting out studying with commentaries, I made a point of writing down at least one quote

from each commentator on the chapter or psalm in the Bible I was studying. I figured that even though I

may not be seeing it, each author must have at least one thing to say important enough to write down. If

you will do this, you will discover new insights from Godly teachers from the decades and centuries

past.

Section III

How to Get the Group Started

How To Get People To Come

STARTING THE NEW GROUP

The best way to get people to come when you are first starting up your Bible Study is to personally ask



them. Some people feel uncomfortable doing this. You need to ask yourself why do you want people to

come to your Bible Study? Is it because you want them to grow in the word and mature in the Lord?

Then you should want to invite everyone you know to come. Of course, if you are leading a Home

Study Fellowship to build up your own ego or so that people will think you¶re wonderful, or worse, that

people will think you¶re super spiritual, then you should feel uncomfortable asking people to come

because you are doing it for the wrong reason! But if you are doing it for the right reasons, you should be excited about seeing others grow in grace as they learn from the Bible. Personally, I am so sold on

small group ministry that I want to see everyone in the church in a Home Study Fellowship. I know it

will be one of the best things that will ever happen to them. I know God will minister to them. I know

they will gain so much as they spend time fellowshipping with other believers, and fellowshipping inhis word. I strongly feel that if every believer in America were involved in a small group study, it would

have a profound impact on Christianity in our nation. If you really are sold on Home Study Fellowships,

you will want to get everyone involved. There are other ways to get people to come. You can send out

flyers in the mail. You can put an announcement in the bulletin. You can phone them. If you are really

the shy-type, ask someone who is more outgoing to make the contacts for you. People love to help a

new ministry get started off right.

Sometimes it is easier to get people to come the first few times than to keep them coming. We are a

very busy society. Everyone has many obligations and activities in which they are involved. Everysmall group will have its core that is very faithful, but others will come sometimes and then miss for

awhile. In order to keep them coming back, you must be tireless in your efforts. When people miss afew times, it¶s easy for them to get out of the habit of going. A phone call from the leader will

encourage them to continue. You can also send brief notes or postcards to those that miss. Periodical

mailings to remind everyone of a new part of the study that may be really interesting to them can also

help. Occasionally, people in our group have volunteered to make a simple dinner for the Study. When

this happens, I am on the phone to everyone that week to remind them that they don¶t have to eat dinner

before the study. Of course this also reminds them to come to the study. We have also had pot luck

dinners. The group enjoys these times of eating together. You could also plan some special event: perhaps an outreach event, or the study held in someone else¶s home. Use your imagination, and you

can probably come up with many more good ideas.

Now some may think that all this phoning and mailing will make you seem like a pest. But I have to tellyou about Beverly. After her family was grown, her husband decided to leave her. Depressed, she left

the church where he was still attending and came to ours. We encouraged her to become involved insmall groups. She would come faithfully for awhile, then she would start missing. Every time she

started missing I was on the phone with her telling her how we missed her. Then she would come back,

and then start missing again. This went on for some time until you could sense she had renewed her commitment to the Lord. When she moved away to Texas, she sent us a letter saying, "Thank you for

being persistent with me, and not giving up on me, and helping me to rediscover the joy of the Lord."

When I read that, I just felt so overwhelmed that God had given us the privilege of being part of his

work in her life. It made all those hours of study, all the time in preparation, all the time cleaning the

house, all the effort we put into every week¶s study seem like such a small price to pay for someone to

rediscover the joy of the Lord. How wonderful God is that he uses such weak and imperfect vessels as

us. But looking back at all those times I had to contact Beverly, frankly, there were times I was afraid I

was being a pest. But it¶s that very thing that she thanked us for the most. All those phone calls had been the catalyst for her new-found joy. Don¶t be afraid of being a pest. It may rescue someone from

destruction.

HOW TO GET NEW PEOPLE

Once your group is going, you must continue to try to get new people. Your group will constantly be

changing as some move away, others have their work schedule changed, and others have new family



obligations. The best way to get new people into the Bible Study is for the members of the group to

invite their friends. Some people will come to a home, but would never dream of coming to church.

Many ways to get new people to come will be unique to your group. Each group is different. They have

different personalities and different approaches to talking to people. Find out from your group what they

think will work. You could hold some event such as a family picnic to facilitate your group members in

inviting their friends so they could become familiar with the Bible Study group. There are probablycountless ways to find new people. Use your imagination and encourage your group to invite others.

Another good way is to invite those who are new to the church. People who are looking for a church

home can float indecisively from church to church waiting for God to strike them with lightening. Ioften tell visitors that are searching that if they really want to understand how our church works and

how our people think, come to a Home Study Fellowship. They will learn a lot about us quickly and

easily. Every week, get a list of the new visitors and give them a phone call or send them a flyer. If there

are many Home Study Fellowships in the church, you could do a mailing which would include all the

groups. But this church mailing should be in addition to the personal contact or individual flyer. There¶s

a big difference between being invited to some church Bible Study, or to being invited to my specific

Bible Study. People respond best to personal invitations.

The third way to get new people is to keep letting everyone in the church know what your group isstudying or doing. Once every six months it¶s a good idea to send out a mailing to everyone in the

church who are not already going to a Home Study Fellowship and tell them where you are in your

study. We even had people from another church who came to our Bible Study because they heard about

it from one of our friends that attends their church! So don¶t hesitate to let everyone know.

A fourth way is to invite your neighbors and those with whom you work or have business dealings

throughout the week.

Whichever ways you use, be consistent in inviting new people. If your group gets too large, someone

could always start another group. But that new group will never be started if you stop inviting new

people. Never feel that you are too full for any more.

Adjusting To the Group

No matter how well-prepared you are and how much you think you know the people that will beattending your Home Study Fellowship, each group has its own character and dynamics. Until the

people actually get together and start interacting, you can¶t be sure what kind of group you will really

have. And after a period of time if the group changes, the dynamics will also be different. It¶s up to the

leader to adjust the study and the format to the group as it evolves. A group can start with new believers

and those who have never studied the Bible seriously before, but after awhile you may find the group participating more and have a greater interest in doing their own study. As a group changes, the leader

must also adapt the approach to the study. At the beginning the leader may have to do more guiding and

have more input to keep the study on target. But as the group grows and reveals its personality, the

study must adjust to the group dynamics.

If you have a Home Study Fellowship that enjoys sharing their personal experiences, problems, and

blessings with each other, then the group leader could ask penetrating questions as to how the studymight personally affect each believer and hear their response. On the other hand, if you have a very shy

group of students that hesitate to reveal their feelings, you may want to temper the life application

questions to more general considerations such as: how do you think most Christians would respond to

this? I¶ll give you an example of one thing I have done. When our group first started meeting, few haddone much in-depth study of the Bible. So on many occasions I would have a list of scriptures for the



students to look up so they could better understand what some word would mean in the particular verse

we were studying. This was done in our Bible Study time at our regular meeting. But after the members

of the group became more excited about studying God¶s word (and in fact some began purchasing

reference books), then I would have the students try to find their own verses at home by looking up in

their Strong¶s Concordance or Study Bible scriptures that deal with the particular word or idea we were

studying. Now, if I had started the group off with the more difficult assignment, they would have probably been discouraged and some may even have dropped out of the study. On the other hand, if I

had not changed the format when the group was ready for more independent study, then I would have

hindered their progress in their home study skills. The leader must always be prepared to adjust the

study since the group will constantly be changing and growing.

Many times how you respond to a particular area of interest to the other members of the group will

determine how the group responds. For example, if every time someone shares something personal, you

or someone else indicates discomfort with discussing personal matters, the group will tend to not be

very open in these matters.

In the same way, if you are faithful in your preparation, and come ready to discuss the study questions

or ideas from the verses or chapter you are studying, you are encouraging the group to take this study

seriously ² even if your ideas are not that in-depth and sometimes may even turn out to be wrong. Butno matter how much preparation you put into the study, you need to realize there will always be some

people who really are not studiers and probably will never do the homework. But as the group learns to

take the study seriously, most people will at least try to do some of the study materials. You can include

the shy non-studiers by occasionally asking them what they think of the passage. Just be sure the passage at hand will be comfortable for them to comment on ² not too obscure or too deep

theologically.

The biggest difficulty that I have encountered is with people taking up too much time with long

discussions in areas that have nothing to do with the study. This will be discussed further under How to

Handle Problems, but it¶s important to note here that if you squelch discussion too much, even for goodreasons, your group will tend to not want to share. This is why a husband-wife team is very good. If the

spouse is sharing his or her thoughts, it gives the group permission to also jump in with their own ideas.

It is important for the group to understand that they are free to enter in with their own thoughts even if they are off the subject. Then it¶s up to the group leader to try to gently guide the discussion back to the

text. Of course there will be times when you will want to allow these "off the road" discussions to take

over the meeting as you see people being ministered to. But most of your times together as a group

should be focused on the study at hand. A group that consistently gets together and has a free-flowing

discussion on whatever topics of the moment they feel like discussing is not a Bible Study. Your group

may feel good and get to know each other better by doing this, but you will not learn much from the

scripture. This will also discourage people from doing any homework or preparation at home, since they

will rarely have a chance to share it. A good Bible Study will encourage people to read their Bible at

home and to do their own study of the scripture.

Section IV

How to Handle Problems

HOW TO GET PARTICIPATION IN THE DISCUSSION

This is a potential problem anytime you start up a new group, but especially if it¶s composed of new

believers or those who don¶t know each other very well. What do you do when they just sit there andwon¶t share? Every group, and the emphasis of each study, is different, so it¶s hard to give a set of iron-



clad rules. But these suggestions may prove helpful.

1. You may simply have a shy group. They will need to get to know you and each other better before

they are ready to open up. Be patient. At the beginning of every study, it¶s good to have some general

discussion questions to see if your group is ready to participate. Here are three questions that we used at

the beginning of our study of Philippians with its emphasis on being full of joy: Are Christianssupposed to be joyful all the time? What are some of the things that cause us to lose our joy during the

day? What are some of the things you do to try to make yourself happy, but they never seem to work?

After you ask the question, if your group hesitates to share much, then you answer the question with an

example from your own life how you had to struggle, in this case, with maintaining a joyful attitude. Beas specific and open as possible. Then ask if anyone else has something they want to share. As they see

you being honest and open, they will feel more comfortable with sharing. If they don¶t open up right

away, don¶t make a big deal about it. Give them the time they need to adjust to the Bible Study format.

2. Include many life-application questions. This gives a point of discussion to which everyone can

relate. You don¶t want to skip over questions about what the verse really means or how this verse fits in

with the whole teaching of the Bible, but by sprinkling in life-application questions, your group will be

able to relate the scripture to their everyday life.

3. Especially at first, allow people to talk even when they are far from the subject at hand. If they arenew to a Home Study Fellowship, they don¶t understand how to relate the discussion to the portion of

scripture yet. But if you cut off any discussion early in the group¶s existence, it will promote silence

from your participants. Even after the group has been in existence for awhile, sometimes long

discussion in an area that concerns some of the members can prove very beneficial even if it leads you

far astray from the prepared study. In these cases, I like to see the leader conclude the discussion (even

if it goes all the way to the end of the meeting) with a tie-in to the study at hand. Even if it¶s only a brief

summary of what you have been studying up to the point the discussion departed from the text, it will

leave the students with the teaching from scripture in their minds as they leave.

4. Once your group is participating in the discussion every week, it¶s a good idea for the leader not to

insert his opinion on the discussion or study question until everyone else has had their say. Many group

members will feel that the leader¶s answer is the correct one, so if their answer disagrees with it, theywill be very reluctant to share at all. Also, some participants may not have had much time to prepare, so

they realize their remarks are off-the-top-of-their-head and may feel intimidated from sharing after

hearing the leader¶s (hopefully) well-prepared answer or comment.

5. Unlike some authors who have written about Home Study Fellowships, I feel it is essential for the

leader to also participate, and not simply be a moderator who steers the group in their own discussion. If

you are sold on the idea of Home Bible Studies, you will want to study the material. You will probably

spend more time studying than any other member. The more we study God¶s word, the more we learnfrom Him. It would be a shame not to share what the Holy Spirit has taught you. Also, when the leader

takes the study seriously, and obviously has spent much time in preparation, it is emphasizing to the

group the importance of this study. This will encourage others to become deeply involved in their own

study. I have been teaching Bible Studies for 30 years. The more preparation I did, the more home study

the group did. When I spent little time in preparation, I was lucky if anyone read the material beforehand.

6. There will be many times when people ask you questions. Sometimes it¶s a matter of doctrine,

sometimes something in their life they are struggling with. When this happens, I have learned to hesitate

before replying and see if anyone else would like to answer the question. Sometimes I even ask if

anyone else has had experience in this area ² especially for questions about our everyday struggles inthis Christian walk. Some of the best times in our Bible studies have been when someone asked how to



handle a certain situation in their life and someone else shared what they did when they went through

the very same thing. All I did was sit back and watch the Holy Spirit minister.

7. Most groups will have at least one person who is very shy and hardly ever participates. If the rest of

the group is sharing, it is usually an easy task to get the shy person to share also. There are usually some

questions on which everyone would have an opinion, or there may be some questions where almost anyanswer could be right. When I get to these questions, I periodically try to include the quieter members

of our group. This way they feel part of the group without feeling intimidated by a difficult question. It

is easy to overlook the shy member. But encouraging their participation every now and then will help

them gain confidence.

Remember, they are naturally shy, so don¶t expect them to all of a sudden become very talkative.

HOW TO RESPOND TO THE SHARING OF PRIVATE OR PERSONAL MATTERS

Sharing private matters in a Home Study Fellowship is like sharing with your family. You will continue

to share as long as you feel secure that the personal matters will stay within the group. It is essential that

the group maintain the confidence of anything shared. It is even more important that the leader maintains that confidence at all costs. Once a group has bonded and trusts each other, there will be

sharing of sometimes very deep and personal areas of their lives. In my experience most of this has been

very positive. In almost all cases it has been a springboard to spiritual growth, but every now and then

something inappropriate may be shared.

I try to look at where the person is coming from. Is this from humility where they are admitting they

have a problem and need to change, or is it pity-me-time to gain attention and sympathy? The latter

attitude should not be encouraged especially if it involves putting down other family members. In my

experience, the bad attitude is the exception. Most of the time group members are sincere and open. But

when it does happen, I like to say something like, "We¶ll make a point of praying for your family

member, but we should also pray for you that God will help you two get along." I know of oneWomen¶s Study where one of the women started complaining about her husband, and the group leaders

cut her off with, "We¶re here to encourage and help one another. We don¶t feel it¶s productive to say

bad things about our husbands."

Most of the time when someone has shared something personal in our group it was along the lines that"I really haven¶t been the kind of family member I should be. I¶m trying to change, but it¶s difficult." Or

it has been when someone has a legitimate problem with another family member and is genuinely

seeking what God wants them to do. In all these cases, if the group acts with love and encouragement, it

will help the person get through their difficult time. Many times someone else has gone through a

similar situation and can speak words of comfort and perhaps offer some new insight.

People will generally share private matters for two reasons: 1. They want an answer, or 2. They want

people to sympathize with them and uphold them in prayer. The first type of person is looking for

advice; the second type is only wanting to know others care. When someone is genuinely seeking an

answer to their problem, if you or another member of the group has been through something similar or have some insight into the situation, by all means share it. There may be times when you don¶t have a

ready answer, but often you can think of sections of scripture which, although they don¶t specificallyanswer the problem, point to how others have found the answer from God ² through prayer,

circumstances, repentance, teaching, studying God¶s word, or being ministered to by the Lord. As the

leader, don¶t feel you must offer an answer. Allow your group to respond. Someone may have only

recently gone through a similar problem.



When people are sharing to receive encouragement, they are not really looking for advice. They may

listen to it, but they really just want the members to say, "We care about your problem, and we will be

praying for you." How do you tell the difference between these two approaches? Sometimes it¶s not

easy, but usually the person who really wants advice makes it very apparent that help is what they are

seeking.

Many group leaders start to feel uncomfortable when group members start offering advice. After all,

what do you do when it¶s bad advice? Frankly, this seldom happens. And when it does, the person

asking can usually determine the difference without your help. But if it is really awful, I will try to

gently say something ² either during the meeting, or sometimes afterwards in private. It has been myexperience that the benefits far outweigh the risks. I have seen lives transformed because students were

willing to open up to their Home Study group and not afraid to listen to what others had to say.

HOW THE GROUP LEADER SHOULD HANDLE QUESTIONS

If you have a successful group, you will have people from time to time asking you questions. Generally

they fall in four categories: 1. How can I solve this personal problem in my life? 2. What does the Bible

or the church teach on this subject? 3. What do you think of this (false or way-out) teaching? or 4.Questions that you simply have no answer for. Many times these question-askers will put you on thespot. I believe it is the group leader¶s obligation to be prepared for questions, although you may not be

prepared with answers. Let¶s take a look at each of these four areas.

1. How can I solve this personal problem in my life? Don¶t feel frustrated if your answer seems weak.

You cannot be prepared for every conceivable situation a person may go through, but you can pointthem to the One who has the answers. Also, as mentioned previously, sometimes other group members

have gone through similar difficulties and may be able to offer insight. I like to ask if others havesomething they¶d like to share even when I have something I could say. In this way, you get the whole

group involved in ministering to each other.

2. What does the Bible or the church teach on this subject? Usually this is an answer for the leader to

answer since he should have a better doctrinal grasp than other members of the group. But again, you

certainly can get other¶s input. When someone asks this question, it is usually sparked from the Bible

Study, and means the person is getting more interested in what the Bible really teaches. This is very positive, and needs to be encouraged. Keep it brief. But if you shut off this kind of question with

something like, "We don¶t want to bore you with doctrine," you have squelched someone¶s natural

learning process for the things of God. One thing, when you are answering this kind of question, you

don¶t need to discuss all the different views that Bible scholars have debated over the past 20 centuries.

Simply state your church¶s or your personal opinion (hopefully they both agree).

3. What do you think of this (false or way-out) teaching? When people ask me questions about a far-out

or controversial teaching, I try to determine why they are asking before I give them an answer. Have

they had experience with this teaching? Is someone at work talking to them about this teaching? Where

did they hear about it? You may have someone who was born and raised with the teaching under

discussion, and I like to know that before I begin. No matter how way-out the teaching may be, if it

does not subvert the essentials of the Christian faith, it is best to deal with it sympathetically. For example, you could say, "I¶ve known people that believe that way, but our church doesn¶t believe that

this teaching is correct because.... Of course, this is not one of the essentials of the Christian faith, and

so honest believers can disagree over areas like this." On the other hand, it they are asking about some

false teaching, it¶s best to answer it with scripture and identify it as false so your Bible Study member

won¶t be led astray. If a person wants to debate the point with you, don¶t allow it. Instead offer to do

some research this week that you will make available to all the members of the study next week, and be



sure to do it!

4. Questions that you have no answer for. So you were stumped! Big deal. Readily admit when you

don¶t have an answer. There is no way you can be prepared for every possibility. When someone comes

up with a question that cannot be satisfactorily answered, I don¶t like to leave it at that. I believe the

group leader has an obligation to do some research and come up with an answer. If he can get it to thegroup the following week, that¶s great. But even if it takes a few weeks, that¶s OK. Just don¶t delay it

too long.

How to Handle the Long-winded

There is a country plaque that we have seen in the stores with a picture of a person with their mouth

wide open and the caption, "I¶m talking and I can¶t stop." Every group leader will experience members

like this from time to time. In order for a group to be successful, there should be much sharing. Nothing

can put a damper on a study than when one person dominates the discussion, especially if it¶s off the

subject and mostly about himself. But before we get into how to handle the gabby, it¶s necessary to

distinguish between the chronic big-talkers and the occasional ones. There was one lady in our Home

Study Fellowship who would ordinarily participate in a limited fashion and usually had insightful thingsto add. One Bible Study night she went off on a tangent which had nothing to do with the study and alsowas diametrically opposed to what our church believed. She wouldn¶t let us go on; she was so adamantin her position. I tried to gently point out our church¶s position with the additional statement that

obviously Christians could disagree over interpretation in some of these areas, but this just made her

even more strident. This was so out of character with her that I honestly did not know what to do. I felt

if I really cut her off, it might discourage her from future participation, and we might lose her from the

Bible Study. On the other hand, she was being very disruptive. I let her speak. At the end of the meeting

I really wondered if I had done the right thing. After she had left, others in the group came up to me,

sympathizing with my plight, and mentioned that they heard that she was on medication for manic-

depression. They suggested that perhaps she was in her manic stage that night. This was good to know.

We never had any problems with her after that night, and she continued to come to the study and participate in her usual insightful manner. If I had stepped in, I could have done real damage to her

spiritual walk. I was afraid that she was disrupting the group, but it was the group that understood her

better than I. Even though they agreed it was a terrible disruption, they sympathized with her. Everytime you are forced to cut someone off, you are in danger of not only offending the big talker, but you

are also in danger of stifling free-flowing conversation from other members of the group. They may fear

that if you cut someone else off, then you might really not want to hear any dissenting views. This could

cause them to hesitate to share anything. So, be careful how you do it. Do it gently and with love.

Most people know when they are talking too much, so a gentle statement by the leader can often correctthe problem. Here are some ways I have learned, and I¶m sure you can come up with your own ideas

too.

DURING FELLOWSHIP TIME

At the beginning of the meeting, there may be times when someone takes up a long time telling a

personal story. This may happen when someone is new to the group and wants to share his life story.Simply saying, "You know Dan, we want to hear your story, but right now we have to get started with

the Bible Study. Perhaps you can share with us more after the meeting." Don¶t say it if you don¶t mean

it. You will have spared the group his verbosity, but you haven¶t spared yourself. That¶s why you are

the group leader. Be sure to ask him before he leaves to share with you what he was telling the group

before ² and be prepared to listen for awhile. He may be boring, but he is someone who God loves and



who Jesus died for.

DURING PRAYER TIME

The time that you take prayer requests can cause the greatest problems of long stories being disguised as

prayer needs. Many times I have seen students use this time to try to tell their life story. Not all long

prayer requests are bad, but most of the time they can be shortened. God already knows the need. Prayer

time is important, but the purpose of the Home Study Fellowship is to study the Bible. If people are

very talkative with their prayer requests, you will have little time left for studying God¶s word. One way

to gently cut someone short is by summarizing what they have said and then moving on into another

area. For example, if they are giving a long prayer request, you could say, "So then we need to pray for you to get a better-paying position, and for your wife to have more peace in your financial struggles."

Then turn to another person in the group who isn¶t so loquacious and say something like, "OK, who else

has a prayer request? John, do we still need to pray for your son and his muscle strain?" If the original person jumps back in with more about his situation, saying something like, "We will pray for all your

concerns. The Lord knows what they all are, but we need to hear the needs of the others too."

I have no problem with cutting short someone¶s prayer request, but I hesitate to try to cut shortsomeone¶s prayer. Prayer is a personal thing between the person and God, and my feeling is that whensomeone is praying to God, it is God who must shorten the prayer if He so desires. If God won¶t do it, Ifeel uncomfortable stepping in for Him. However, if some people have taken an inordinate amount of

time praying, I have no problem after they are done to conclude the prayer time even though not

everyone had a chance to share in prayer. There can be no iron-clad rules given here. Allow the Holy

Spirit to minister to you at the time. There are times when we have had very long prayer times that were

ordered by God, and there have been other times when I felt led to end the prayer time. I suppose if you

have someone who consistently takes up a huge amount of time praying each time, and you feel it¶s not

ordered by God, then it would be all right to speak to that person in private afterwards and ask them to

keep it shorter. But this needs to be done gently and with wisdom.

DURING BIBLE STUDY TIME

Sometimes people are so enamored with their opinions that they will take a long time expressing their

interpretation of the scripture, and then feel they have to respond to everyone else¶s interpretation if itdisagrees in any way with theirs. If you are doing study questions, I find a good way to cut someone off

like this is to ask, "Who else answered that question?" If the person persists in jumping in, a gentle, "I

appreciate your opinion here, but I want to give others a chance to comment," will usually silence the

big talker. I need to re-emphasize here that as a general rule, cutting short someone¶s comment on the

study is counter-productive to the open, sharing atmosphere that you want to maintain in any group

study. So be very careful that you only do it when absolutely necessary. The whole purpose of a Home

Study Fellowship is to get people to share their ideas about the scriptures. Often people are very shy todo this, and perhaps afraid that their ideas will be considered stupid or somehow inferior. If they see the

leader cutting short other¶s comments, it may cause them to hold back their comments too.

Section V

Duties of the Leader

In order to have a successful Home Study Fellowship the group leader must take on certain

responsibilities. Some of these have already been mentioned and others may seem obvious, but I think

they all are very important.



PRAYER

This is, after all, not your Bible Study, but God¶s. Every week it¶s a good idea to spend time consulting

with the Boss. And you need to spend time each week praying for those in your group ² some will be

going through extreme difficulties. Remember, prayer changes things.

PREPARATIONThis has already been mentioned. If you don¶t care enough about your Bible Study to spend time

preparing, why should anyone else? Set aside time each week for prayer, study, and reflection on the

Bible Study.

HOSPITALITYThis seems kind of obvious, but I thought it should be mentioned. Making people feel like welcome

guests is part of your responsibility. Whenever someone comes to my home for group study, I feel real

joy inside ² to think that they sacrificed their evening to come visit with my family and to studytogether with me God¶s word. I think people need to understand we are happy they are there. Their

presence is not a drudgery, an imposition, or a burden on us. Let people know they are welcome.

CONSISTENCYOnly real emergencies can be a cause to cancel your Bible Study. You cancel due to illness only whenyou¶re really sick. If you can go to work, you can lead a Bible Study. I¶ve even held a Bible Study whenI was too sick to work. When relatives come visiting, they can join you in the study. When you schedule

family outings, schedule them around your Bible Study times. If you will cancel for any lame excuse,

you are giving a message to your group members that you do not feel the study is that important. Pretty

soon you will hear your lame excuses repeated from your group members as they tell you why they

missed. I don¶t want to sound too harsh here, but how important is this Bible Study to you? How

important is God¶s work to you? I believe it should be a high priority.

FORMING GROUPS IN CHURCH

There are three dangers of Home Study Fellowships in the church body that should be recognized so

they can be avoided. The first is the tendency of the group to become close-knit to the exclusion of

everyone else. If you see this happening, you should be initiating conversations with others outside of

your group and encouraging others in your group to "Come over here with me and meet Mr. and Mrs. Not-A-Groupie."

The second pitfall can be our behavior. We all have a tendency to talk to the same people at church each

Sunday. We get comfortable with them, and people may perceive that there is an elite church group. If

some members of the Bible Study are part of this group, and others are not, it could make some feel

unwanted and unwelcome. As a group leader you have an obligation to "make the rounds." Talk with

different people of the church each Sunday. Make a point of including everyone. My wife is very shy

about going up to people. But during the greeting time at church each Sunday, she looks around to seewho is being ignored and then forces herself to go talk to them even though this is the opposite of her

personality.

The other problem is ignoring group members at church because of your other obligations. You must be

careful that people don¶t get the impression that the only time you are friendly to them is when you seethem at your Bible Study. People will understand if you are busy during church time, but a simple

recognition and a few words of welcome go a long way.

FAITHFUL

If you are a group leader, in the eyes of everyone in your group, you are a leader of the church. Whatkind of leader are you? Are you faithful in your attendance of the services and activities of the church,



or do you just go when you feel like it? Our purpose of a Home Study is to get people grounded in God,

solid in their faith, and established in the church. It is not a ministry unto itself. If we take church

attendance lightly, we are giving the wrong message to our home group. We need to be faithful to

church.

AGREEMENT WITH PASTOR AND CHURCHWe cannot teach whatever we feel like during our Home Study. If most of the group members attend

your church, your teaching must be consistent with the teachings of your pastor and your church. When

I was a layman before I entered the ministry, I never purposely contradicted what I knew my pastor

taught or believed. And I always taught what the church believed. If you don¶t know the beliefs of your church, find out. You don¶t need to find yourself in an embarrassing situation. Nothing is more

confusing to a new believer than when they hear one thing from the Pastor on Sunday and then the

opposite from their Bible Study leader during the week. It¶s OK to discuss different viewpoints that

believers have disagreed over for centuries. Just don¶t use the discussion as a disguise to sneak in your

pet doctrine with which the church disagrees. And it¶s all right for others in your group to express their

different opinions. But your teaching should be in agreement with the church.

LETTING OTHERS KNOW ABOUT GROUP MEMBERS NEEDS

Sometimes you are the first and only one in the church to find out about a group member¶s medicalemergency or family troubles. It is your obligation to pass this news on to the pastor or others who

would like to help out if they knew there was a problem. You don¶t want to be breaking confidences,

but many times there were people in our home group going in for surgery that no one else in the church

knew about. By alerting others, it helps the person get through their difficult times a little easier.

Section VI

How to Make Up Your Own Study

Although I recommend that the new Bible Study leader start by using a prepared study, I have decidedto include these study exercises for those who may want to try to add to the study their own materials

and study questions. It is not that difficult to make up your own study, and you may be able to use some

of these ideas in your purchased study. Some may hesitate to do their own research until they realize

how fun and painless it really is.

3 STEPS TO DOING YOUR OWN STUDY

There are 3 main things to do when making up your own study.

1. Select the study. You are the one who must ultimately decide what to study and how your group will

tackle it.

2. Make up Study Questions. If you are using a purchased Study Guide, you can add to the questions

already in the book.

3. Have comments prepared for each verse, or section, to share with the group.

Before we get into specifics on what to look for, and how to analyze a specific portion of scripture, I

want you to do some work on your own first. I want you to spend some time with the 103rd Psalm. I am

going to give you as few directions as possible because I think it¶s important for each person to

approach any study their own way, the way they will feel most comfortable. That is the way you will



get the most out of it. We will start with an overview of the whole psalm, and then do detailed study of

the first 5 verses. Of course, you can go on and do the whole psalm if you wish.

There are only five things I would like to see you do

First, write down the main messages (or teachings or sections) of the psalm.

Second, make notes to yourself on verses 1-5, or do the whole psalm.

Third, write out what you think the psalm is teaching you, especially in verses 1-5.

Fourth, make up questions you think would be good for others to think about for the whole psalm

generally and specifically verses 1-5.

Fifth, do any additional study ideas that you enjoy doing. Make this study your own.

Before any study of God¶s word, be sure to pray for the Holy Spirit to guide you. Take your time with

this study. You can use your own version of the Bible, but all my examples on the following pages arekeyed to the King James Version and the New International Version, so it really is preferable to use one

of these translations. As you study, don¶t try to be like me or anyone else. In analyzing scripture there

can be a wide range of interpretation. Every time we look at scripture we discover something new, so

don¶t feel you have to match my comments or my method. Do your own thing. If you find you enjoydoing this kind of study of scripture, you may be the kind of individual that will want to make up your

own Bible Study.

Here¶s the 103rd Psalm for your study

King James Version New International Version

1 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is

within me, bless his holy name.

1 Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost

being, praise his holy name.

2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all

his benefits:

2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all

his benefits--

3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healethall thy diseases;

3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,

4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who

crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender

mercies;

4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns

ou with love and compassion,

5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so

that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

5 who satisfies your desires with good things so

that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

6 The LORD executeth righteousness and

udgment for all that are oppressed.

6 The LORD works righteousness and justice for

all the oppressed.

7 He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts

unto the children of Israel.

7 He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to

the people of Israel:



8 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to

anger, and plenteous in mercy.8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow

to anger, abounding in love.

9 He will not always chide: neither will he keep

his anger for ever.

9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor

his anger forever;

10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor

rewarded us according to our iniquities.

10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or

repay us according to our iniquities.

11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

11 For as high as the heavens are above theearth, so great is his love for those who fear him;

12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath

he removed our transgressions from us.

12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he

removed our transgressions from us.

13 Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.

13 As a father has compassion on his children, sothe LORD has compassion on those who fear him;

14 For he knoweth our frame; he remembereththat we are dust. 14 for he knows how we are formed, heremembers that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.

15 As for man, his days are like grass, helourishes like a flower of the field;

16 For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone;

and the place thereof shall know it no more.

16 the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its

lace remembers it no more.

17 But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his

righteousness unto children's children;

17 But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord'slove is with those who fear him, and his

righteousness with their children's children--

18 To such as keep his covenant, and to those that

remember his commandments to do them.

18 with those who keep his covenant and

remember to obey his precepts.

19 The LORD hath prepared his throne in the

heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.

19 The LORD has established his throne in

heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.

20 Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in

strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.

20 Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty

ones who do his bidding, who obey his word.

21 Bless ye the LORD, all ye his hosts; ye

ministers of his, that do his pleasure.

21 Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts, you

his servants who do his will.

22 Bless the LORD, all his works in all places of

his dominion: bless the LORD, O my soul.

22 Praise the LORD, all his works everywhere in

his dominion. Praise the LORD, O my soul.

How I Analyzed Psalm 103

Please notice my title for this section of the study. I did not title it, "The correct way to analyze Psalm

103." Analysis varies with the individual. There really is no right or wrong way. Obviously you and I

will probably agree on many things about this psalm, but each of us will bring our unique interpretation



based on what God has revealed to us about his word. It is astonishing to think that men have been

writing commentaries on the Bible for over 2000 years, and everything possible has not been written

yet!

I will try to explain how I arrived at my conclusions by setting down a few general rules for Bible

Study. Whole books have been written on how to study the Bible so we¶re just going to give a brief overview here.

OUTLINE

This is usually the first thing you should do: make a simple outline. Notice that I didn¶t even call it that.

My instruction was, "write down the main messages of the psalm." That¶s all an outline is. This was my

original outline of Psalm 103:

verses 1-5: God takes care of us

verses 6-10: God¶s mercy toward us

verses 11-18: Man¶s insignificance compared to God¶s care for us

verses 19-22: God is in control of everything

Nothing fancy here. It doesn¶t have to be. On the other hand, you can get as detailed as you want to.

Later, my outline did get more detailed, but it doesn¶t have to. An outline is a very personal thing in my

opinion. It¶s simply an aid to help you sort out the material you¶re studying.

MAKE LIGHT NOTES ON THE WHOLE PSALM (OR THE WHOLE CHAPTER, OR

PARAGRAPH, OR BOOK)

I like to make little notes to myself as I read over a portion I am studying. Some things you can look for are:

Favorite verses ² two of mine are verses 11 and 12.

Reference verses ² verses in other parts of the Bible that I am reminded of as I read the scripture. Here

I was impressed with the New Testament understanding of God¶s mercy and I thought of 1 John 1:9.

Key words ² these are words unique to this portion of scripture. I thought the key words were KJV-

"bless" (NIV- "praise") in verses 1, 2, 20, 21, and 22 (twice), and NIV-"love" (KJV- "mercy") in verses

4, 8, 11. Don¶t get carried away with key words. They need to be genuinely unique to the portion of theBible which you are studying. For example in Philippians, the key words would be "joy" and "rejoicing"

which occur 19 times, a large number of times compared to Paul¶s other writings. But J. Vernon McGee

notes that the words "Jesus" and "Christ" occur 40 times in Philippians so he considers this the mainteaching of Philippians and discounts the emphasis on joy. Although his point is well-taken that there isno joy without Jesus, you could apply this same argument to almost all of Paul¶s writings. In all his

other writings he uses the words "Jesus" and "Christ" just as much as in Philippians. So this use in

Philippians isn¶t unique to that book

Problem passages ² As you¶re reading through scripture, you may spot problem passages which youknow are going to require some research on your part. Psalm 103:5 is one of those areas where you



notice the King James Version says, "Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things," but the New

International Version words it, "who satisfies your desires with good things." So you know you¶re going

to have to do some work on this one to find out what the true meaning is.

Finding lists ² Throughout scripture there are all kinds of lists that the Holy Spirit has caused the

writers to include for our benefit. They can be very instructive. For example in verses 3-5 there is a listof the 6 main benefits bestowed upon us by God. There are many other benefits either mentioned or

alluded to in the psalm. In fact Dake listed no fewer than 30 benefits he thought were mentioned in

Psalm 103. By carefully examining the list of 6 main benefits in verses 3-5, you get a real lesson in

God¶s plan of redemption and care for us.

WHAT DID THE SCRIPTURE TEACH YOU?

Making up your own study is simply this: conveying to others what the psalm has taught you. Of course

the best way to do this is by helping your group discover these truths for themselves through study

questions, group discussion, and then you sharing your insights. Here are some things I learned from

studying these first 5 verses.

Verse 1 ² I need to spend more quiet time alone with God just blessing him: not asking him for

anything, just worshipping him.

Verse 2 ² I need to spend time counting God¶s blessings to me: all his many benefits that he has

bestowed upon me.

Verse 3 ² The most important thing is listed first: forgiveness of my sins. If that¶s all I ever received

from God, it would be enough.

Verse 4 ² He crowns me with mercy and compassion. He gives me mercy and compassion not as a

friend to a friend, or even as a father to a son, but rather as a king at the coronation of the crown prince.

Verse 5 ² Even when my body is weak, he has promised to renew my strength. I can do all thingsthrough Christ who strengthens me.

HOW TO WRITE STUDY QUESTIONS

Generally, Study Questions fall into three categories:

Questions that I have when I first read the scripture ² This could be almost anything. It certainly would

include the Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How. For Psalm 103 you may ask, who wrote the psalm? (The title says David did, but liberal scholars will debate this point.) You may also ask when

and why. Some commentators think David wrote this during a time of illness or time of trouble. That¶s

a possibility, but maybe there was no special occasion which prompted his writing. You may run across

questions in the text. For example, what is verse 4 talking about anyway ² "who redeems your life

from the pit" (KJV ² "destruction")?

Questions about what the verse means ² For example in verse 1 what does the phrase mean "all that is

within me" (NIV ² "all my inmost being")? And verse 5, what does it mean to have our youth renewed

like the eagle¶s?

Questions about how the verse applies to my life ² If you want to keep the interest of the group, you



need to have a lot of life-application questions. Guess what the largest selling Study Bible is today in

America? It¶s the Life Application Bible. There is a reason for that. People want to study scripture, but

they especially want to know how it applies to them. There are all kinds of questions like that in these

first five verses. For example, here are two questions from the phrase in verse 2, "forget not all his

benefits." Are you sometimes guilty of forgetting God¶s benefits? What can you do to help yourself

from forgetting all of God¶s benefits to you?

Here¶s a sampling of some of the questions that I used in our study of Psalm 103.

General questions ² these first questions were done at the beginning of the study as an overview.

1. What are your favorite verses from Psalm 103? Which ones have special meaning for you?

2. Which key words are repeated in the psalm?

3. Do you think you spend enough quiet time alone with God?

4. What lessons does this psalm teach us about the nature of God?

5. What do you spend more time doing: complaining to God, or blessing God?

6. Optional question: Make an outline of the 103rd Psalm breaking it up into three or more

sections. What would you consider the theme of each section?

Specific questions from verses 1-2 and 3-5 ² These questions get much more detailed

Verses 1-2

1. (verse 1) What do you think it means to bless (NIV-praise) the Lord? How can frail man give

blessing to the sovereign God?

2. (verse 1) What specifically do you think David is referring to when he says "all that is within

me"?

3. (verse 2) Do you think there is a reason the psalmist repeats the phrase "Praise the Lord, O mysoul?" (KJV - "Bless the Lord, O my soul")

4. (verse 2) Who is David addressing in the first two verses?

5. (verse 2) David closes verse 2 with "forget not all his benefits." Are you sometimes guilty of forgetting God¶s benefits?

6. (verse 2) What can you do to help yourself from forgetting all of God¶s benefits to you?

Verses 3-5

1. (verses 3-5) List the 6 benefits mentioned in verses 3-5

2. (verses 3-5) If you were to place these 6 benefits in order of importance for your own life,

which would be first, which would be second, third, all the way to 6th?

3. (verses 3-5) Optional question: Make your own list of benefits God has bestowed on your life.

4. (verse 3) Do you think there¶s a reason forgiveness is mentioned first?5. (verse 3) Does God heal all our diseases?

6. (verse 4) What do you think the word "destruction" (NIV-"pit") is referring to?

7. (verse 4) How do you think God crowns you with love and compassion (KJV-"lovingkindnessand tender mercies")?

8. (verse 5) Does verse 5 mean we¶ll never get old? What do you think the phrase "your youth is

renewed like the eagle¶s" means?

CONCLUSION

It¶s important to realize that the more you study the Bible and the more practice you get making up



Study Questions, the easier it will be. Remember, if you have a question about something, probably

others in the group do too. If you have learned something from your personal study, then others will be

just as excited as you are to discover the same lesson themselves. And you can help them by your

questions. Don¶t be afraid to insert teaching from your own study. Not only will it benefit your Home

Study Fellowship, but as you learn from God¶s word, you will also grow in his grace. One final note:

you are not doing this alone. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would be there to guide you in all truth.The more time you spend in personal study, the more you will sense that God is right there with you,

and you will feel God¶s complete presence. You will not only be spending time in God¶s word; you will

also be spending time with God: with the Father, with Jesus, and with the Holy Spirit.

Footnotes:

This 31 page Training Manual for the Bible Study Group Leader © 1996 by David Humpal. All Rights

Reserved.

How to know what God Wants of Us

Introduction

Christians sometimes find it difficult to determine God's will for their lives in certain situations. Times

when you don't find a clear direction can be very confusing and frustrating. God gave Moses the burning bush, he showed his will to Gideon with the fleece, and he spoke to Saul with thunder andlightening. When he does this for us, it's easy to understand God's guidance. But he seldom does it this

way. To truly find God's will for our life we often must step out in faith. This can be scary, but we need

to realize God is there beside us and he will not allow us to stray as long as we trust in him. Proverbs3:6 promises us, "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." Psalm 37:23 tells

us, "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord...." And Isaiah 30:21 informs us, "Your ears shall

hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it,' whenever you turn to the right hand or

whenever you turn to the left." God's word plainly is saying that God will help us find his direction, but

how does he do it?

I believe God reveals his will to us in two or three stages. Initially, we may get a feeling of direction

from God from different sources:

1. Prayer. In order for God to speak to us, we need to be in his presence listening for his voice. As we

spend time in prayer, we may sense God's leading in our lives. 2. His word. God speaks to us through

his written word as we study and meditate upon his holy scripture.

3. Circumstances. Many times God will cause doors to open, or others to close. If we are walking in

obedience to him, we have to assume that events in our life are ordered by God. They don't just happen



by chance. Maybe the reason why a door has opened up to us is that God wants us to go through it!

4. Our heart. Sometimes the Holy Spirit will minister to our spirit and reveal God's plan for us. We will

have an assurance deep in our heart. We will feel God's voice guiding us.

5. Others. God can use other believers to bring us his direction. Sometimes we will be singing a song in

church, or we will be reading a Christian book, or hear the Pastor's message, or one of our friends will

say something that will show us God's will. God can reveal his direction to us through any of these five

ways. But even when he does, it's sometimes difficult to discern that what we sense or feel is truly

God's plan for our lives. Jesus said in Matthew 18:16, "...by the word of two or three witnesses every

word may be established." Jesus is here quoting Deuteronomy 19:15, "...by the mouth of two or threewitnesses the matter shall be established." I believe this is a good principle to follow in trying to figure

out God's plan for you. Initially, you get the direction from one of the five ways mentioned above, but

now God will confirm his plan to you in the mouth of two or three witnesses: in other words: one or twomore things will confirm God's direction for you. When you see this confirmation, then you will know

it's time to step out in faith. There have been times in my life when I simply had to take that first step of

faith, and when I did, God confirmed his plan for me as I went. You may sense God asking you to do

this, but remember, God understands our human weakness. If we sincerely seek him and are willing to

obey his word, he will usually affirm his will for us in other ways.

He confirms his direction for us the same way he revealed it to us in the first place ² through one of

these five ways:

1. Prayer. We need to seek God in prayer. Luke 11:9-10 promises, "So I say to you, ask, and it will begiven to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks

receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." If we truly seek God's will,

we will find it.

2. His word. Sometimes while we're struggling for God's guidance, a scripture that we are reading willseem to pop out at us confirming which way God wants us to go. Psalm 119:105 tells us, "Your word is

a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." Allow God's word to illumine your pathway.

3. Circumstances. Events will sometimes indicate God's direction for us. Paul wrote about such a

circumstance in his life in 2 Corinthians 2:12, "Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ'sgospel, and a door was opened to me by the Lord." As you are seeking God's direction, events may

establish what you have already felt God telling you to do.

4. Our heart. God will sometimes speak to our heart. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would helpguide us in John 16:13, "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all

truth; for he will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell

you things to come." Just like Elijah in 1 Kings 19:11-12, we need to be listening for God's still small

voice speaking to our soul.

5. Others. Many times when we are struggling with indecision, God will use others to affirm his will.Sometimes a song will speak to us, or God will use the Pastor's message. Many times a friend will

speak to us and, not realizing our struggle, will speak words of encouragement which will help solidify

our decision for the Lord. Other times someone on the radio, or a book will proclaim God's answer to

us. God uses his whole church body to minister to one another. Colossians 3:16 instructs us, "Let the

word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and

hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." God will speak to us whether

it's the word of Christ, or wisdom, or teaching, or admonishing, or songs, or grace in our hearts. God



will confirm his will in our lives.

Footnotes:

This study on Finding God¶s Will for our Life © 1996 by David Humpal. All Rights Reserved.

All scriptures unless otherwise noted are from the New King James Version © 1984, Thomas Nelson

Publishers

Selected Passages

Introduction

Scriptures that encourage us to go to church, the house of the Lord.

There was a young woman in our congregation who was struggling with whether she should come to

church. Years ago she had been offended by a certain situation in the church. The people involved in the

event that bothered her so much were long gone, but she was still thinking that God was telling her to

stay home. So she asked what the Bible said about the subject. These scriptures were a result of that

request. I am happy to report that the young woman is back in church worshipping God.

Psalms 122:1 (KJV)

" I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord."

Hebrews 10:25 (NIV)

" Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one

another ± and all the more as you see the Day approaching."

Matthew 18:20 (KJV)

" For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them."

Psalms 27:4 (KJV)

" One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all

the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple."



Psalms 135:1-3 (NKJV)

" Praise the Lord! Praise the name of the Lord; Praise Him, O you servants of the Lord! You who stand

in the house of the Lord, In the courts of the house of our God, Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;

Sing praises to His name, for it is pleasant."

Psalms 92:12-14 (KJV)

" The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bring forth fruit

in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;"

Psalms 134:1-2 (NKJV)

" Behold, bless the Lord, All you servants of the Lord, Who by night stand in the house of the Lord! Lift

up your hands in the sanctuary, And bless the Lord."

Footnotes:

This study on Do We need to Attend Church © 1996 by David Humpal. All Rights Reserved.

guidelines for conducting a bible study group

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