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A Crucial Question to Help You Find the Main Point of a Bible Passage

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This is a guest post by Brian Stenson and Lincoln Fitch, who serve with DiscipleMakers in eastern Pennsylvania. They share a love for good coffee, good books, and good Bible study.  Listen to their talk on Bible study from the DiscipleMakers Fall Conference here.

Why the Main Point Matters

Can you imagine pouring yourself into your study of a passage, only to discover you were missing the main idea?

I (Lincoln) had that experience a few months ago. After reviewing my notes for an upcoming sermon, my ministry supervisor asks me straight out: “What would you say is the main point of the passage?” And upon hearing my answer, he holds nothing back. “I don’t think that is the main point of the passage.” Though it is hard to hear this, I know he is right. I can’t even justify my proposed main point to myself. And now I feel like a total failure. Will I ever be able to understand or teach the Bible accurately?

While finding a text’s main point is not easy, it is crucial. Consider what happens if we teach the Scripture without grasping the main ideas. At the very least, the message (even if it has some real truth) doesn’t arise clearly from the page to stick in your listener’s hearts. At the worst, you could be working at cross-purposes with what God actually wants to communicate through the passage. But finding the main point empowers you to access the boundless power of God’s transformative word. Whether you lead Bible studies, teach and preach, or study the Bible on your own, finding the main point of a passage is foundational to understanding and communicating who God is.

A Crucial Question

If you’re familiar with OIA Bible study, you’ve probably experienced the challenge of finding the main point. After observing, you ask questions, especially “why” questions. You consider the context. You try to figure out the author’s intentions. But often, you feel stumped.

We find one particular question to be crucial when it’s time to identify the passage’s main point:

Why did the author write the passage this way?

ed_needs_a_bicycle (2012), Creative Commons

It’s not a flashy or revolutionary question, but it usually gets the job done. And it does so by causing us to examine a few more specific questions.

  • What gives the passage its shape?
  • What does the author emphasize?
  • How did the author get from beginning to end?
  • How does the structure of the larger section, and the book as a whole, help us see what the author is trying to get across in this passage?

For example, notice how the shape of John 6:60-71 reveals much about the author’s main point:

  • This relatively short passage concludes a long discourse between the Jews and Jesus. These final verses show the responses to Jesus’ teaching.
  • The passage begins with many disciples following Jesus but ends with few. John 6:66 says, “After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.” This statement serves as a turning point in the narrative.
  • This turning point raises the following questions: 1) “Why did so many people turn away?” and 2) “What was the difference between those who turned away and those who continued to follow Jesus?”
  • The disciples who turned away gave a reason: “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” (John 6:60). Jesus also knew they were grumbling and asked if they took offense at his words (John 6:61).
  • After many turned away, Jesus turns to the Twelve and asks if they want to go away as well (John 6:66). Peter explains their reason for staying: “You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God” (John 6:69-70).

Do you see how both groups of disciples comment on Jesus’ words? The first group turns away because they are challenged and offended by Jesus’ words. The second group keeps following because they hear Jesus’ words and receive them, knowing them to be the words of eternal life. This text reveals a lot about people by their response to Jesus’ words, and by the inherent contrast in the structure.

Here’s where we think John is going: People’s responses to Jesus’ words demonstrate whether they’ll follow him or fall away. There is our main point.

You could state the main point in many ways, but the passage clearly highlights both Jesus’ words and what we do with them. May the Lord help us to hear and love the words of eternal life found in the Scriptures!

Conclusion

Do you see why structure matters? The passage has a significant change (the number of people following Jesus) from beginning to end, which shows us the author’s intentions: to demonstrate the impact of our response to Jesus’ words. This insight arises from examining why the author wrote the passage this way.

Finding the main point of a passage is not easy, but it’s worth it. The main point is your front-row ticket to the revealed glory of God, and it will equip you to think and speak with clarity and power when you teach the word.

Community-Building is Not Optional

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If you want to lead, being useful and not merely annoying, you’ll love your people. And one of the best ways to love your people is to get to know them. It’s worth it to do so.

As you engage in ministry, however, it doesn’t take long to realize the main thing working against you: There’s only one of you, and there are so many of them. The hours will run out long before you do all you could do to love and serve people, while remaining faithful to the other responsibilities God has given you. You’ll need help to get the job done.

Alex Spiers (2012), Creative Commons

Alex Spiers (2012), Creative Commons

This fact is nothing new. Jesus spoke at length to his disciples of his coming departure to save the world (John 13-16). He “knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world” (John 13:1), and he would no longer be physically present to carry on his ministry. Yet he would not leave them as orphans; he would send help to be with them forever (John 14:16-19). It was to their advantage that he depart and send this help (John 16:7-11).

Now there are many ways we are not like Jesus. The Father has not given all things into our hands. We have not come from God, nor can we go back to God on our own merit. We are not the heavenly hosts, with authority to prepare a place for those we love. We cannot send the Holy Spirit into the hearts of our people to guide them into all truth.

But there are plenty of ways we are like Jesus. God’s plan is not for us to do all the work of ministry ourselves, but for us to make disciples who will carry on the work alongside us. Though we don’t send the Holy Spirit, we certainly can rely on him to provide the help we need in the community of believers. Like Jesus, we will have tribulation. And like Jesus (though for us, it is through Jesus), we have hope and the promise of God that we will overcome the world.

What does this mean?

Just as Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to help the community grow in love and faith, we can trust the Spirit to be at work in the community to grow people in love and faith. That means that we, as leaders, should not be the hub of ministry such that all that is true and loving passes through us to the rest of the group. We need the group members to help us love the group members. Part of leadership is facilitating a God-honoring community where love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control flow freely among the members. We can foster healthy relationships, attractive group dynamics, winsome recruiting, and redemptive counseling among group members.

If we fail, the group will never outgrow our particular idiosyncrasies and insecurities as leaders. If we succeed, the world just might realize we are his disciples (John 13:35), and we’ll see mountains move.

One Vital Behavior Determines the Success of Your Teaching Ministry

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Have you attended a Bible study with a leader who had no people skills? Have you been to Bible conferences where the speakers refused to hobnob with the proletariat? Have you taken a Bible class where everything you heard was true and precise, but you wondered if the professor had ever interacted with a live descendant of Adam?

What you do outside your Bible study meeting is just as important as what you did during it. You can reinforce the lessons you taught, or you can undermine them with your own hands. You can guide softened hearts into beneficial spiritual disciplines, or you can subsidize the calluses that deaden people to the very truth you proclaim.

It all depends on whether you live to serve the teaching, or whether the teaching exists to help you serve others. This goes for small groups, youth groups, Sunday school classes, and sermons. It goes for conference talks and classroom lectures. It even goes for 1-on-1 mentorship. Your teaching ministry matters, but it will be counterproductive if you don’t care about the people you teach.

By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. (John 13:35)

Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. (Heb 13:7)

One Vital Behavior

I’ve spent many weeks focused on the mechanics of leading a Bible study. I’m a firm believer in a strong ministry of the word, and I affirm that bad (shoddy, false, ignorant) Bible studies are costly and dishonoring to God. But I also deny that the ministry of the word is limited to the truthful and precise words that pour from a leader’s mouth. The ministry of the word is incomplete apart from the love and mercy that pour from the leader’s heart.

Therefore, to all who want to learn how to lead a Bible study, I commend one vital behavior above all others: Love your people. Get to know them. Learn their names and their histories. Find out what in life encourages them and what discourages them. Ask about their disappointments, dreams, and values. Make sure you understand them before you disagree with them. Find out why they come to the Bible study. Ask them regularly how they think it’s going and how you can improve. Ask them what God is teaching them through it.

You’ll never be able to do all these things during the meeting itself. Love requires investment; a price must be paid. You’ll have to spend time with them (both in groups and 1-on-1). You’ll have to learn what they do for fun so you can learn to have fun doing it with them. You’ll have to express your love in ways they feel loved, which won’t necessarily be the same ways you like to express love. I write “you’ll have to…you’ll have to…you’ll have to…” not because your righteousness depends upon it, but because love has the inscrutable power of compulsion.

The Cost of Failure

Simon Webster (2011), Creative Commons

Simon Webster (2011), Creative Commons

The success of your Bible study—or of any teaching ministry—depends upon this one vital behavior. Is that a naïvely bombastic claim? I think not.

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. (1 Cor 13:1-2)

I’ve performed in orchestras when the gong and cymbals crashed at just the right time. Few earthly experiences are as moving as such powerful musical climaxes.

I’ve also performed in orchestras when the percussionist dropped the cymbals on the floor during the concert. Few earthly experiences are more embarrassing, more useless, or more counterproductive.

It is good for us to earnestly desire teaching gifts and to diligently develop teaching skills. But let us never forget: There is a still more excellent way (1 Cor 12:27-31).

How to Encourage Heart-Oriented Application

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Practical application often has a bad rap among Christians.

Some people read the Bible and believe they’ve done the work of applying it if they come away with a list of truths about God. “But that’s not practical,” many object. “When does the truth get out of your head and into your life?”

Others read the Bible and believe they’ve done the work of applying it if they come away with a list of behaviors to carry out the next day. “But you can’t reduce the knowledge of God to 10 easy steps,” the first group objects. “It doesn’t matter what we do if it’s not grounded in the truth of the gospel.”

And both groups are right, after a fashion.

What is Application?

Applying is believing. John wrote his Gospel with one purpose: “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” (John 20:31). Have you studied that book lately? You may find each chapter pretty repetitive, and fresh or innovative application will seem like a long-lost dream until you move to another book. I once had a guy stop coming to a Bible study in John for this very reason.

Applying is doing. James wrote his epistle to highlight the “doing” life of the scattered people of God. “Be steadfast under trial.” “Be doers of the word.” “Show no partiality.” “Do not speak evil against one another.” And so on. Theology is not absent from James, but it covers itself in thick layers of action and imperative.

Capturian (2010), Creative Commons

Capturian (2010), Creative Commons

Let us not forget, however, that applying is also loving and cherishing. We can know the truth and still be far from God (James 2:19). We can do all the right things and yet not come to the only one who can give us life (John 5:39-40).

As we lead Bible studies, we do well if we help people to believe and do. But we must not neglect the opportunity we have week in and week out to help them deepen their love for God and be conformed to the image of his Son. Our application should target the heart.

How to Target the Heart in Bible Study Discussions

It’s not rocket science, but it does need forethought and intention.

1. Show them how to do it. “Follow the leader” isn’t merely a game for preschoolers. Your group members play it every week. You must apply the Bible to your heart, and you must do so publicly with your group. Only then will they see how it’s done and that it’s not so scary (Heb 13:7, Phil 4:9, 1 Cor 11:1). Figure out why vulnerability is so hard for you, and repent.

2. Ask about obstacles or hindrances. When we hit a good, solid “do” application from the text, I find it helpful also to ask people, “what keeps us from doing this thing God wants us to do?” When people answer that question honestly, they’re usually cracking open the door to their heart. It often reveals what they value more than obedience, or more than the Lord himself.

3. Suggest options. Getting to the heart is not as complicated as some may think. We love something other than God, and good leaders can expose those loves and offer more godly alternatives. Are you concerned with what people think of you? What would happen if you didn’t get that [promotion, mobile device, spouse, child] you want?

4. Celebrate progress. We get more of what we reward, and we foster micro-cultures in the process. So when someone gets it and identifies character deficiencies or expresses desires for deep-seated change, I’m all over it. If I give more air time to those folks than to the folks who want to discuss their third cousin’s upcoming surgery, the latter folks learn quickly how to target their own hearts as well.

Sample Launching Questions for Bible Studies

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Stephen Crawford (2011), Creative Commons

Stephen Crawford (2011), Creative Commons

Bible studies often begin well with a good launching question. When I prepare to lead, I usually prepare the beginning at the end. I like to know where I’m going before I decide which way to kick the thing off.

For those who like examples, I now spread a feast. Here’s a list of sample launching questions I’ve used in the last 6 months with (hopefully) enough context for you to make sense of them. The “Central Truth” was the passage’s main point that I wanted the group to see by the end of the study. The Launching Question was my very first question to begin the study.

Exodus Launching Questions

Context: church small group with a variety of ages and life situations among the members.

Exodus 3:7-4:17

Central Truth: God’s agents must share God’s heart for God’s people, but often they don’t.
Launching Question: How do you normally respond to the weakness or suffering of other people?

Exodus 4:18-31

(I can’t take credit for this one. My co-leader Warren Wright led this study.)

Central Truth: God prepares and provides for His servants so that they may be ready for service.
Launching Question: How does God prepare you for service? Or: How do you prepare for important events/actions?

Exodus 5:1-21

Central Truth: When God’s plan doesn’t match our plan, we usually look for someone to blame.
Launching Question: What would you like to see God do in our Growth Group? (Dream big!) What will you do if the group doesn’t meet your expectations?

Exodus 5:22-7:7

Central Truth: To know Yahweh as your God, you must experience deliverance and the fulfillment of his promises by the hand of his mediator.
Launching Question: What do you think it means to know God? How does one go about knowing God?

Exodus 11:1-12:28

Central Truth: All must know that Yahweh owns everything and remakes his creation at will.
Launching Question: What does it mean to “redeem” something? In ordinary usage? In the Bible? [I wanted to get at the idea of ownership.]

Exodus 12:29-13:16

Central Truth: Future generations must know that Yahweh owns the firstborn (=everything) and remakes his creation at will.
Launching Question: What is the most important thing you would like to be remembered for in the future?

John Launching Questions

Context: ministry small group with summer interns (all undergraduate college students). I felt like I could push the boundaries of social awkwardness just a little to make John’s points clear.

John 1:1-18

Central Truth: The eternal God entered human history to reveal himself so we might become his children, but our natural response is to reject him.
Launching Question: Let’s test the quality of your sex education: How is a baby born?

John 3

Central Truth: We must know two things to see and enter the Kingdom of God: 1) The Bad News: our need for rebirth, 2) The Good News: the arrival of a savior.
Launching Question: What happens when a willing couple can’t get pregnant? [Insert discussion of modern fertility treatment procedures and the understandable desire to make new births happen.] Why do you think people won’t accept Jesus’ message today? [Connect to our inability to force a new birth.]

John 19

Central Truth: The King’s work is complete.
Launching Question: Would you like to have a romantic relationship? Why? How else do you respond to your innate sense of incompletion or loneliness?

I invite your opinion. How could these launching questions be improved?

Why Vulnerability is So Hard

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Yesterday I arrived at one of those small but significant decision points that threaten my composure and test the limits of my willingness to be known. It came when my coworker greeted me with his usual, “How are you today?”

I earnestly sought a perfunctory “Fine, how are you?” so I could move on from the greeting and get on with my day, but it eluded me. The truth was that I was not fine. Twice in the last week I had pled with dear friends who were departing from the faith, one into false doctrine and another into immorality. Both cases of apostasy hit me hard, and I had mourned and prayed over them, wondering what on earth God was doing.

So I cracked open the door—”I’m pretty sad today”—and it was costly to do so. It cost me a measure of self-confidence and self-respect. It cost me a few minutes of my life to explain what I was sad about. It reopened the wound and renewed the pain. It sucked more energy out of me, as I tried to balance openness with self-control (to avoid gossip, venting, or speaking other words that wouldn’t edify).

But such vulnerability is Christlike, and by faith I trust it was worth it.

J (2008), Creative Commons

J (2008), Creative Commons

Why is it so hard for us to be vulnerable with one another? Why do we struggle to lead and to teach the Scripture with transparency? Why are we more attracted to a pretense of perfection or a veneer of imperturbability? I can think of at least 3 reasons.

Theological Reasons

I have heard pastors say they won’t tell personal stories from the pulpit because it would get in the way of representing Christ. They believe that for Christ to shine brightly, they must completely get out of the way. So in private they’re happy to share of their need for grace, but their preaching focuses much more on proclaiming the truth than on incarnating it.

This same sort of thinking shows up when Bible study leaders think only about how to apply the text to the group members and not about how to apply it to themselves. One sign of this struggle is when their preparation time doesn’t feel devotional and they need to schedule separate personal time with the Lord.

I greatly respect those who want to “get out of the way” so people can see Christ. This desire to serve others at great cost to oneself is a noble one.

But I think the attempt misfires, for we miss the fact that God shows people himself by showing himself to people. He doesn’t merely declare truth; he demonstrates the truth and lives it out. He became a man and perfected his power in weakness. He demonstrates his love by dying for sinners. He exposed and disgraced himself that he might lead us to glory.

And so John can say that while no-one has seen God, Jesus has made him known (John 1:18). But at the same time, while no-one has seen God, they will see him if we love one another (1 John 4:12). For them to see, we must give them something to see.

Personal Reasons

Some brave souls like Eric, who commented on last week’s post, perceive pride and fear as the greatest enemies to vulnerability.

  • We don’t want people to think less of us.
  • We fear losing our position or influence.
  • We don’t want to be a burden.
  • We don’t want to be laughed at or seen as mistaken or needy.

Perhaps we even feel like our reputation—or at least our self-perception of it—signifies our standing with God, such that God’s pleasure is shown through others’ pleasure and people’s displeasure betrays God’s displeasure.

Whatever the exact issue, we find our identity in something other than the finished work of Christ. We must not forget the guttural cry of him who bowed his head and gave up his spirit (John 19:30).

Practical Reasons

My biggest struggle, as I mentioned above, is that vulnerability is hard work. It’s costly, and I’m often unwilling to pay that cost.

Many in the “theological reason” camp react rightly against those who see their leadership as an opportunity for dealing with their personal demons. If I’m vulnerable for my sake—to cleanse my conscience or even to get people to feel sorry for me—I have missed the point. There’s a foolish sort of vulnerability that serves nobody but myself, but there’s also a wise sort of vulnerability that serves others deeply (for example, see 2 Corinthians 11-12).

This wise vulnerability takes an effort. It requires forethought and godly character. It demands unwavering confidence in Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Cor 12:10).

When you teach the Scripture, beware sanitized hypocrisy.

Beware Sanitized Hypocrisy

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The third practice for preparing effective Bible studies is to allow the message to change you. The fact should be obvious, but so often it’s not: We can’t teach what we haven’t learned. Our words are just words if we can’t show them by our lives. Paul said, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Cor 11:1, ESV), but his exhortation would have fallen flat if he hadn’t opened his life for them to see (1 Cor 9:1-7, 15-23; 10:32-33).

I’ve been really challenged by this point lately, especially when I feel pressed for time in my teaching preparation. It’s so hard to deal with the log in my eye before I try to remove the speck from others’ eyes!

But the biblical word for leaders who say one thing but do another is “hypocrite.” Of course, I might successfully avoid aggressive forms of hypocrisy: preaching integrity while robbing the church, promoting purity while secretly indulging immorality, etc. But how often do I sanitize my hypocrisy, justifying my sins of omission while passionately promoting their opposite? For example:

  • Do I exhort people to confess their sins, but I never confess mine?
  • Do I oppose pride and promote humility, but I’m afraid to let anyone see me when I’m weak?
  • Do I preach about how much people need the grace of Christ, but I don’t reveal an inch of my own need for the grace of Christ?
  • Do I urge people to love one another, but I believe my leadership position prevents me from having any close friends?
  • Do I want people to be open to feedback, but I never ask for it myself?

Shepherds shepherd, and leaders lead. This means they go out in front and don’t ask people to do anything they haven’t done first. So before Jesus asked Peter to feed his lambs and die (John 21:15-19), he was the Good Shepherd who laid down his own life for the sheep (John 10:11). So also Paul can beg the Corinthians to open wide their hearts to him after his heart was opened wide to them (2 Cor 6:11-13). And Jonathan can call his armor bearer to come up after him; Jonathan goes first to make them fall, and the armor bearer simply mops up after him (1 Sam 14:12-13).

This kind of leadership requires two kinds of vulnerability:

  1. When preparing to lead a study, we must allow the text to change us.
  2. When leading the study, we must explain how the text has changed us.
rikdom (2007), Creative Commons

rikdom (2007), Creative Commons

This means that I must apply the Scripture to myself before I try to apply it to anyone else. And when appropriate, I must be willing to share these lessons to give people a model for how the text can change them. After practicing these things, I’ll be in a position to suggest further applications for others.

Hear Jesus’ warning against those who wouldn’t do what they asked others to do:

The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so practice and observe whatever they tell you – but not what they do. For they preach, but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. (Matt 23:2-12)

I have some ideas about why such vulnerability is so difficult, and I’ll write about them next week. But in the meantime, I’d like to hear what you think. Question: Why do you think it’s hard for us to be vulnerable in our leadership?

A Little Greek can be a Big Distraction

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I’ve argued that you don’t have to reference Greek or Hebrew to study the Bible. You can observe, interpret, and apply just fine using a decent English translation (I use the ESV and NET the most).

In this post, I’d like to give an example of how knowing a bit of Greek can actually distract you from careful OIA of a passage.

Afghanistan Matters (2009), Creative Commons

Afghanistan Matters (2009), Creative Commons

In John 21:15-19, Jesus and Simon Peter eat breakfast and chat about love and lambs. Three times, Jesus asks Peter, “Do you love me?” Three times, Peter affirms his love, and Jesus calls him to be a godly shepherd.

Those who dig into the Greek text of John 21 quickly discover that John uses two different words for “love.” Jesus’ first two questions use the word agape. Jesus’ third question and all three of Peter’s responses use the word philia.

“Do you love (agape) me?”
“Yes, Lord, you know that I love (philia) you.”
“Do you love (agape) me?”
“Yes, Lord, you know that I love (philia) you.”
“Do you love (philia) me?”
“You know that I love (philia) you.”

The question arises: What is the difference between agape and philia? What’s really going on in the conversation that doesn’t come across in English?

So the student reads commentaries and consults lexicons. Many blogs address this particular question in this particular passage (just Google “agape philia john 21,” and you’ll have no shortage of reading material). Some say that agape love is the higher form of love, and Jesus comes down to Peter’s level the third time. Others reverse it, saying that by the end Peter convinces Jesus that he has the right kind of love.

The problem with this approach is that it assumes that Greek words each have a focused, specialized meaning. It approaches lexicons as technical manuals, almost as if there’s a code to be broken, and the right tools offer the key.

But no language works that way. Not English or German, Greek or Hebrew. Words certainly have histories. They have ranges of meaning. Lexicons help us to understand their range of usage.

But literature is as much an art as it is a science. Writers have agendas, but they advance their agendas by making them beautiful. So they use synonyms, turns of phrase, metaphors, and other such devices.

Referring to John 21;15-19, D.A. Carson explains:

Some expositions of these verses turn on the distribution of the two different verbs for “love” that appear…This will not do, for at least the following reasons…The two verbs are used interchangeably in this Gospel…The Evangelist constantly uses minor variations for stylistic reasons of his own. This is confirmed in the present passage. In addition to the two words for “love,” John resorts to three other pairs: bosko and poimano (“feed” and “take care of” the sheep), arnia and probata (“lambs” and “sheep”), and oida and ginosko (both rendered “you know” in v. 17). These have not stirred homiletical imaginations; it is difficult to see why the first pair should (The Gospel According to John, pp. 676-677).

If we hadn’t gotten distracted by Greek expeditions, what treasure might we mine from this passage? Note the following observations, which could easily be made from the English text.

  1. The setting: the scene takes place at a charcoal fire (John 21:9), the same setting where Peter denied Jesus three times (John 18:18). Charcoal fires appear in only these two scenes in the Gospel of John. It’s not an accident.
  2. The flow: Peter begins the chapter chasing his former vocation as a fisherman (John 21:3). Jesus wants to turn him into a shepherd (John 21:15-17). Peter gets it. Later, when he instructs church elders, he doesn’t call them to be fishers of men. He commands them to shepherd the flock of God (1 Peter 5:1-2).
  3. The model: Jesus wants Peter to follow him (John 21:19b). This means Peter should be a shepherd like Jesus was (John 21:15-17). This means dying for the good of the sheep, just like Jesus did (John 21:18-19, 10:11-15).

John 21 shows Jesus restoring and commissioning Peter for sacrificial leadership in the church. This much is clear even in translation.

Sure, the Greek (or Hebrew) text often reveals wordplay that doesn’t translate well. Sometimes the structure of a passage or argument is more clear in the original language than in translation. And Greek and Hebrew are simply beautiful and fun.

But the main point of a passage rarely depends on intimate knowledge of the original languages.

Observing John 3:16

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Will Humes (2009), Creative Commons

Will Humes (2009), Creative Commons

Douglas Smith has some helpful observations on the Bible’s most famous verse (John 3:16). In my summer Bible study, I may ask the group to make 50 observations on this one verse, as it summarizes much of the Bible’s message.

There is so much life-changing truth packed into this verse that, according to some stories, evangelist Dwight L. Moody’s life and ministry were changed by sitting under the preaching of a man who preached from John 3:16 throughout daily meetings over an entire week!

Check it out!

Please Don’t Try to be Profound

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The first mistake of rookie preachers or Bible study leaders is trying to be profound.

I remember my first study. I had convinced two J/V football players and a skateboarder from my freshman hall to discuss the Bible with me. They didn’t know Christ yet, and I wanted to be the one to win them to him. Good teachers had influenced me deeply, and I wanted to influence others the same way.

We met two or three times, and I gave it all I had. But all I had wasn’t good enough. They lost interest and stopped showing up.

Profundity Strangles Influence

Now I don’t mean to suggest that my overzealous attempt to influence was the only factor in their lack of interest. I simply want to suggest that we get in trouble when we put things in the wrong order.

We teach the Bible because we want to minister to people. But people are like wet bars of soap, and you know what happens when you squeeze too hard. Teaching the Bible so you can influence people is like getting married so you can have sex. You’ll feel really good about yourself for a little while, but you won’t be either satisfied or effective for very long.

Chuck Olsen (2009), Creative Commons

Chuck Olsen (2009), Creative Commons

Because I love to get a “Wow” response from people, I turn to my ingenuity to produce new heights of “Wow.” I can even do this in the name of Christ and succeed for a time. But I’ve shifted the attention from the Lord to myself, and the endeavor is destined to implode because I’ve disconnected myself from the vine.

Dependence Produces Love

For this reason, the first practice for preparing effective Bible studies is to depend on the Lord. Jesus explains godly dependence in John 15:

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5, ESV)

Countless mystical interpretations have been given for what it means to abide in Jesus, but the context leaves little doubt:

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. (John 15:9-10)

This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. (John 15:12)

I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide….These things I command you, so that you will love one another. (John 15:16-17)

Jesus describes the flow of vitality and power through the following grid: The Father loves Jesus→Jesus loves his disciples→The disciples love others. The disciples get the power to love by abiding in Jesus’ love. Jesus gets the power to love by abiding in the Father’s love. Thus, if anyone in the chain unplugs from the sequence, he loses power, and his fruit dies. In other words, he’ll fail to love.

So what does it mean to abide in Jesus? It means that we abide in his love. We grab hold of it and never let it go. We remind ourselves of his love by thinking and speaking of it incessantly.

What is Jesus’ love? It’s not a mystical or emotional experience, but the act of laying down his life to make his servants into his friends (John 15:13-15). It’s the message of the gospel.

What does it mean to bear fruit? It means, of course, that we love others by laying down our lives for them.

Love Unlocks Joy

What does all this have to do with leading Bible studies?

When we try to be profound, we’ve disconnected ourselves from Jesus’ love. We’ve turned from the message of his death for sin, and we’ve turned to our own need to be needed. The solution to this problem is to get reconnected to the vine, to depend on the Lord and his love.

Trusting in Jesus and his love for us frees us in a few ways:

  1. We’re free to discover more than create. What cleanses people is not our love for them but Jesus’ word to them (John 15:3). This removes the pressure of having to create a brilliant lesson, study, or sermon. We can simply discover what Jesus has already spoken in the text and then speak that very message to others.
  2. We’re free to repeat the same things over and over. We don’t have to come up with something nobody has ever heard before. This removes the pressure of having to think perfectly on our feet. We can simply abide in Jesus’ love, telling the old, old story time and again.
  3. We’re free to lay down our lives to serve. We don’t need to get other people to make us feel good. This removes the pressure of having to evoke certain responses or outcomes. We can simply shape our studies in a way that will serve these people at this time.

Compared to profundity, love is not only more honoring to God; it’s also much more fun. It eliminates anxiety and produces satisfaction. “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11).