5 Steps to Choosing the Right Bible Study for You

1. Sizes and Schedules of a Study Group

A Bible study can take shape as a small group in your home: 4-10 people for example, which is relatively intimate. You might simply meet with one or two friends at home, in a coffee shop, or even in the park at a bench. You could be the leader of a larger study advertised by and hosted at the church building to accommodate potentially dozens of people. You might even want to conduct a directed personal study for yourself.

A big group with a wide age range features a diverse group of people; those who go on holiday when their kids are off school, retirees with plenty of time on their hands, busy seniors who volunteer at kids’ camps, people who attend short term missions, and more. But if this is a consistent group meeting year after year, you will get a feel for the length of study they like and how to accommodate them. About 10-12 weeks is the maximum for a big group. With more people come more demands to talk and share, however, a good facilitator keeps things moving without rushing anyone.

Care groups are not always doing Bible studies. These groups are doing life as a small family of believers. Therefore, it is common to spend an entire session in prayer, or watching The Chosen, or visiting patients at the hospital. They will benefit from shorter workbooks of six sessions so they can move quickly when God calls them to something else.

A personal study is daunting, and most people are likely to finish a bite-sized challenge rather than become bored or discouraged. Use a major online bookstore as your resource to determine what is available and how each study is organized. Most of these sites let you narrow your search to consider how many weeks you want to commit to and how big the group is likely to be.

2. Know Your Audience

Your audience will influence the type of study you choose. There are several considerations:

- Gender
- Stage of life (parent with young children, parent with teens, retiree)
- Marital status
- Critical thinking levels
- How long they have been Christians

For example, if your group is mostly made up of new Christians, start with foundational tenets about salvation, grace, sanctification, etc. Some mature Christians like the challenge of a book study. Everyone reads the same expository work (Heaven by Randy Alcorn or Prodigal God by Tim Keller for example), and tackles the study guide that goes with it.

Some participants are uncomfortable with anything academic such as Greek word studies and homework. Even the sight of a thick workbook could be frightening to those unaccustomed to or uncomfortable with such involved studies. Find out from the start how everyone feels about homework; with some series, you get the most out of them if you are prepared to read and answer questions independently between meetings.

Certain studies are tailored towards seniors, parents, or singles, recovering addicts or intellectuals, or they focus on a time of year and the challenges it brings (Lent, Christmas).

There are mixed groups, singles’ groups, parents-of-teens groups – these are just some of the considerations you face as Bible Study leader and organizer. Any of these factors might have inspired you to start a group in the first place. Again, numerous online bookstores organize materials according to these various needs.

With a varied group whose learning styles differ (some auditory processors, some readers), you might want a study that combines written content with video teaching. This also helps reinforce the teaching and attracts some who are probably not going to complete homework, but still want to be involved.

3. Study Focus

You could focus your study on:

- A Book of the Bible
- A theme of the Bible
- A specific saying in the Bible
- Extra-Biblical challenges (gender identity, addiction recovery, mental health struggles, divorce)

If you can narrow this down first, your decision will be somewhat easier. The options are overwhelming otherwise, but the audience, size, and duration of a Bible Study can be of some help.

Recovering addicts want encouragement that nothing will separate them from God’s love (Romans 8:39) and that their sin has been defeated at the cross: “by his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24). Seniors wonder how they remain useful in the church as their bodies betray them. They need to hear that “wisdom is with the aged, and understanding in length of days” (Job 12:12).

Studies held in the run up to Easter could promote giving up something for Lent, where the mutual support of a team is helpful. Single adults might wish to discuss what the Word has to say about this particular type of loneliness. Many long-term groups switch back and forth between the Old Testament in the Spring and the New Testament in the Fall.

All of the Books are important because “all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). However, people who have survived trauma, individuals with mental health conditions, and seekers are frequently drawn to the Psalms and to the words of Jesus, not to the heaviness of Ezekiel or Job.

Although both of those books ultimately point to the hope of Jesus, bide your time and pray for your participants to be ready for the heavy texts one day. For now, remember that “a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench” (Isaiah 42:3). Reading the whole of God’s Word is hard, and those who truly seek him will long for teaching and support, whether as part of a large group or one-on-one with a mentor.

4. Careful Resource Selection

Holding a book in your hand enables you to examine discussion questions, even skim the entire study. Some online stores provide a “sample” where you click to read a few pages from the book. This way, you get a feel for the tone of writing and depth of the questions.

Most study leaders have a budget. E-books and PDF downloads are inexpensive if your audience likes reading from a screen. You also remove the cost of shipping, but some people like to make notes in the margins of a book. Read details about the product carefully, such as how many pages there are. You might be looking at a 15-page pamphlet, which is why the price is so low, or it could be an e-book.

Determine if a blog or website is trustworthy by reading their “About Us” section, if they have one. If not, then avoid the site. Where do you find a “Statement of Belief,” what does this section say about sin, the virgin birth, the Trinity, and the resurrection?

Along with Bible Study Tools, The Gospel Coalition and Ligonier are two good examples of trustworthy online resources. Buy something from one of their stores and you know it is biblically accurate. Lifeway Books and Christian Book Store are two more good sources. They helpfully provide information about all materials associated with a study so you can see the full cost of buying multiple study guides, videos or online video access, a leader’s guide, etc. Or you can find out if there is a study guide to go with an expository book you like. Amazon sells Christian books too. Usually there is a discount for volume purchases from any online store.

5. Write Your Own Study

Say none of the studies out there are really suitable. It costs too much, is too wordy or not wordy enough, or asks facile questions about the topic your group wants to study. If you have a gift for prompting meaningful discussion, enough time on your hands, and are a solid believer, know that you do not have to be a Doctor of Divinity to write a Bible Study.

Once you have chosen a focus and a book or series of verses to examine, ask:

- Who is your study about?
- What is going on?
- What is the context (time and place, geography, historical events)?
- Why is this in the Bible?
- Where is Jesus in the text (even in the Old Testament)?
- How do we/I apply God’s teaching today?

Ask difficult questions that make you think, not just rhetorical questions you already have the answer to. Expect to be uncomfortable: Bible studies should encourage us to look at our spiritual lives honestly and to address any need for change and growth, but also to help each other with that need. A good Bible Study reminds us that we have not arrived; we are still being sanctified. Everyone should feel humbled, convicted, but encouraged.

Whether you write a study or choose one, don’t worry if ten people show up or just one; that one person really needs to hear what God has to say through you. At the end of the day, your study is not about you – it is about Jesus, and his ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8). Prayerfully submit yourself to God’s plan and he will decide who attends.

Final Thoughts

There is no perfect Bible study because there are no perfect people writing them. Plus, there are the challenges of group dynamics: the silent ones, the voluble ones, the complainers and debaters. But to “stir one another up to love and good works” (Hebrews 10:24), there has to be “another.” After all, “iron sharpens iron” (Proverbs 27:17). With that in mind, be sure you choose a study which is biblically sound.

The “most popular” category does not mean “most biblical”. Ask God for discernment about what you should teach. Everyone, no matter how long they have loved Jesus, has something to learn from a Bible Study. This includes the leader, because the leader is also ultimately led by the Great Teacher, and his unchanging Word is so rich that it regularly reaches us in new ways.

Sources

https://www.focusonthefamily.com/live-it-post/bible-study-guide/
https://biblestudymedia.com/blogs/blog/how-to-choose-a-bible-study?srsltid=AfmBOorSbxoGIyeKVHoGMOJWXDKmttSVNjf3RFS0s-JPrNU6XqeoPzzM