And we're back!!!!! Time to break for coffee?

Coffee Break's restarting, and so are our Gospel Bible Studies. If it's true that Jesus' ministry lasted three years, I guess we shouldn't worry that we've only just reached the end of the Sermon on the Mount. We could take three years to follow the journey and feel those years well spent. Anyway, here are the questions we'll spend our time looking at this week:


(24) A Slight Digression on Notes and Translations

We ended last time at the end of the Sermon on the Mount (in Matthew 7), which is also the Sermon on the Plain (Luke 6), with segments from the sermons in Jerusalem too (Luke 12).

1.       When you were in school, do you remember taking notes during lectures? What did your notes look like—neat compositions in straight lines down the page? Tangles of interconnected points with spiderwebbed arrows between them? Keynotes in bubbles connected by slant lines of text?

2.       What about when you tried to organize your thoughts later: What did your notes look like then?

3.       What do you think Matthew’s notes would have looked like?

a.       What about Luke’s when he interviewed those who knew Jesus?

b.      What about John’s as he planned out his gospel?

c.       Do your notes always look the same, or do you take notes differently in different circumstances?

Does this help shed light on how the gospels end up being so “same, but different” when we read them?

4.       When you imagine Jesus delivering a sermon, what kind of setting comes to mind?

5.       Do you think the disciples took notes? All of them? Some of them? Or the listeners (the people Luke might have interviewed later)?

6.       Do you think Jesus preached from notes?

7.       Do you take notes on sermons in church? Why or why not?

Even if Jesus didn’t preach from notes, he preached from a very deep knowledge of the Old Testament, which leads to questions of our many “same, but different” translations…

8.       Do you think Jesus quoted the Bible when he preached? (Read Matthew 5:17-18, 21-22, 27-28, 38-39)

9.       Do you think Jesus quoted a favorite translation of the Bible?

10.   What happens when we make one translation the only one we’ll accept? Why might it be good to have and use several translations? (And what was the equivalent in Jesus’ day?)

Do you remember John’s reference to “the first sign that Jesus did”? We’re moving on to the second sign next week, so read Luke 7:1-9, Matthew 8:5-13 and John 4:46-54.

1.       What similarities do you notice? (Most scholars believe these describe the same event)

2.       What differences do you notice?

3.       Can you describe John’s first sign (the Wedding Feast at Cana) and his second sign (healing of the nobleman’s son) in one sentence each?

a.       What stands out to you as the most significant fact in the story of the feast and this story of healing?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Meeting a ghost?

 Last week our group followed Mary and Cleopas (or possibly some other unknowns) on the road to Emmaus and met a rather familiar stranger. They rush back to tell the disciples who they've seen, and, of course, no one quite believes them. The same old story. Until suddenly... (112) Meeting the Risen Lord The risen Jesus appears to the others as well. 1.       Read Luke 24:36-37 Does it surprise you that Jesus’ disciples believe in ghosts? a.       Are wrong beliefs evil, or simply incorrect? 2.       Read Luke 24:38 Why were the disciples afraid? Why might they have been doubtful or unwilling to believe? a.       When something good happens, do we sometimes doubt? b.       What about when something bad happens? 3.       Read Luke 24:39-40, John 20:19-20   What’s so important about Jesus’ wounds? a.       What’s so important about Jesus saying “Peace”? b.       Do we have peace? What does peace enable us to do? 4.       Read Luke 24:40-43 What’s so special about Jesus’ eating? a.   
Read more

What happens when that stranger turns out to be a friend?

 It's been a "long and winding" year, but we're getting back to those Gospel Bible studies at last, and here's the next in the series: (111) Some Very Important Meetings Last time (yes, I know, a long long time ago) we read Mark’s cryptic comment that the risen Lord had appeared to “two of them.” This time we’ll join those two, travelling from Jerusalem after the crushing of all their hopes – having heard rumors of resurrection, but clearly not believing them. 1.       Read Luke 24:13-18, John 19:25 Who is traveling, where and why? a.       Some traditions say Clopas was the brother of Joseph, making Mary the “sister” of Jesus’ mother Mary.   Clopas’ son Simeon becomes Bishop of Jerusalem after the destruction of the city in 70 AD, which might make him Jesus' cousin. But what difference does all this make to how we view the story? b.       Was Jesus’ face hidden by supernatural means, or natural? How easily would you recognize someone if you knew they
Read more

A Prayer for Open Hearts and Doors

  O Lord May all your people be Transparent witnesses; may we, Instead of closing, open doors That all around us, evermore May see Our God is love not hate; Our God is watching, ever waits To mend our hearts and bodies heal And souls replenish, futures seal To Him To hope, to love, to more Than any dream; Lord we implore That you would free our hearts to sing Till lives with holy mercy ring Restored.
Read more