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Leading Bible Studies
Lead, Don't Teach
You notice that in all of the material, the task of teaching is never
mentioned. So what is leading?
 | Leaders do not like
the sound of their own voice. |
| Leaders know the right questions to stimulate thought and personal
growth. |
| Leaders guide, nurture and mentor by example. They live their lessons. |
| Leaders humbly accept the premise that there may be people in the group
that know more than they do. They listen and encourage participation. |
| Leaders make sure that the values and traditions to be taught are not
compromised. They are willing to stand up for their faith. |
| Leaders invite the Holy Spirit to be a member of
their group. |
Preparation
There is no more important point to stress than the need to enter a
group Bible Study prepared. Discussion-oriented studies wander based on
the interests, the levels of experience, and the backgrounds of those in
the group. Before starting the study, the leader should do the following:
| Decide how much time do you have? You owe it to the group to cover all
of the material and end on time. |
| Start on time. Don't delay the start because someone is late. Again,
you owe it to your group to be prompt, thorough and complete. |
| Don't make it a history lesson. While the Bible is filled with
wonderful history, target your lesson to change lives. Intellect and
knowledge do not save. A humble heart placed in Christ's hands is the road
to salvation. |
| Determine the point of your study? Don't try to cover too much. Answer
this question, "What is it you want each member of your study group
to do differently after they leave?" Make this the aim of your
lesson. One life changing point is enough per lesson. |
| Do research, read supplemental materials, use a study guide or plan. |
| Bring notes. It is OK. There is a lot of information and it is
perfectly all right to bring it to help you do a good job. |
Style
Do what comes natural. That is the great point about leading. There is
no right or wrong way. Just step out in faith. If there are people
following you, then you are leading correctly.
Keep the style discussion-oriented. The varied experiences of your
group can help teach each other. Encourage a difference of opinion.
However, be prepared to defend the tenants of your faith. By this, I mean
that there are fundamentals of your faith that you should know. If someone
strays or is in error, as the leader, you must bring them back on track.
You are leading a Bible Study, not an open forum on religious beliefs.
Don't Guess
It is not unusual to have someone ask a question that you do not know
the answer for. In varied groups that are open to discussion, you will
always have someone who is seeking clarification of something that you are
unprepared to answer. If you do not know, don't guess. Just take notes and
follow up. Do research and, the following week, include the answer in your
next lesson plan. You owe it to your group to do the best job you can of
presenting the Gospel's message accurately. New leaders should check
out the study on Leading
The Flock.
Open with Prayer
Each lesson should open with an introduction of visitors, discussion of
needed prayers and prayer, directed at opening the hearts and minds of
your group. The best studies rely on the Holy Spirit to be present.
Be Flexible
If during the lesson, you discover that some within your group has a
deep concern or issue, try to help them. You are better off dropping the
lesson and helping each other than sticking to a fixed agenda. Christ
always took care of the needs of His followers before He changed their
lives.
For large groups, break into smaller groups for parts of the lesson. It
is often fun to assign a research task to smaller groups and let them work
independently for 10 or 15 minutes. Letting others report back is a nice
way of breaking in future leaders.
Let others speak. This is the hardest part for people who want to
teach. However, one of the goals of Bible Study should be to give people
the opportunity to share their faith with others. Faith sharing is best
learned by practicing in small groups. Everyone should be encouraged to
tell stories, share experiences and participate. If each member of your
group becomes comfortable with telling what their life was like before
Christ was important to them, how they came to know Christ, placing Him as
the number one priority and how their life is different now, you have just
help build a group of evangelists.
Listen
As group leader, you hold a responsibility to make sure that the
message being taught is understood correctly. I once heard it said,
"the lips are responsible for what the ears hear." This means
that unless you get feedback, you don't know what people understood.
Leaders have a much better chance to listen than teachers do.
Be Creative
Use little things to drive home points.
| Music or poetry to open or close a study. |
| Use the Internet to search out articles or current events that can be
tied to your topic. |
| Use demonstrations:
 | To show how Christ
is the light of mankind (See the first chapter of
John), give each person a candle then darkened the room. Light a
match. The match, small as it is, will overcome the darkness. There is an
important message in this example (Darkness cannot overcome Christ, Christ
overcomes darkness). Then each person shares the flame and the room will
light up. There is another important message (by sharing Christ, our world grows
brighter). |
| To highlight to a group that we must work together to accomplish God's
earthly plans, hand out 3X5 index cards and a large box of crayons. Ask
each person to pick his or her favorite color and take a card. When everyone
is
ready, simply asked each person to draw a rainbow. The point is suddenly
clear. Read Genesis
9:13 to the group, "I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of
the covenant between me and the earth." This supports the need
for diversity and cooperation. To draw
a rainbow, we cannot use only our favorite color, we need the uniqueness
of each creation of God (each other's colors also). |
| You can buy
peacock feathers at your local fabric/craft shop. They are
about three feet long. Buy several and hand them out.
Tell your group to balance the feathers on the end of their
finger. You show them first (the secret is below. This is the
quill down and the colorful end of the feather up. You
should have no trouble with people struggling to do this, it's
hard. -- Now for the secret. -- Most people look at their
finger or half way up the feather. Instead, concentrate on
the very end (the colorful part) and as you move your finger to
compensate, use the top of the feather as your focal point.
The lesson learned is much like the one taught in the Bible: Focus
on the goal, the end prize, the finish, not the start. Once
they know the secret, you will have your whole group balancing
feathers on the end of their finger. |
| Purchase a plumb
bob (plumb line) from your local building supplies. Read the
Old Testament Book of Amos 7:7-8, "This is what he showed:
The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb,
with a plumb line in his hand. And the Lord asked me,
"What do you see, Amos?" "A plumb line,"
I replied. The the Lord said, "Look, I am setting a plumb
line among my people Israel; I will spare them no
longer." Now, Who is the plumb line? Christ of
course. Demonstrate that no matter how you stand, straight
or crooked, a plumb line hangs true. That is our Christ,
straight and true. If we use Christ as our "plumb
line" to measure our lives against, our lives will, like the
wall, be built true. |
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| Hand out props:
| Go to a local building supplier and
purchase the largest nails you can. Each person gets a nail that
should be almost 10 inches long and 3/8 of an inch in diameter. If you want to draw
someone's attention to the sacrifice our Savior made for use on that
cross, just put a big nail in his or her hands while you talk about it. |
| Go to a fabric
center. Purchase some royal colored velvet. Cut in
into two inch squares. If you want to prove what Christ gave
up for us, just ask everyone to close their eyes and touch their
piece of velvet. They are to imagine the feel of a king's
robe. Christ traded velvet robes for the cross and our
salvation. Ask everyone to place the cloth in their pocket
or purse for a week. Each time they touch it, they should
reflect upon the lesson. |
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These are just a few
ideas that can help people understand God's Word. If you come up
with others that you would like to share, just e-mail me.
Close in Prayer
Give thanks to God for the freedom to study. In much of the world, this
must be done behind closed doors.
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Author: Robert Samson
Copyright © 2001 [Lost Pine]. All rights reserved.
Revised: June 10, 2007
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