Bible study is held on Sunday mornings from 9:00–9:45 am. If you would like to receive a Zoom link, please email us. Handouts are posted below for each session.
Bible study
mass chaos: the book of judges
The book of Judges records one of the lowest parts of ancient Israel's history, a time period of mass chaos before the Israelite monarchy when everyone did as they saw fit. This time period is not for the faint of heart. It records bloodshed, war, idolatry, apostasy, abuse, and faithlessness. Through it all, we see how God raised up judges, despite all their massive flaws, to deliver his people—and this deliverance for God's faithless people ultimately foreshadows the work of Christ. Through what seems to be a primitive, chaotic book, we'll see how we can still take away lessons for our lives as Christians today.
january 11: historical background
Today we overview the book of Judges and begin with the historical setting in chapter 1. After the time period of Joshua, some Israelites trusted the Lord and took possession of the Promised Land he had given them, but many did not. We will focus on why it was so important for the Israelites not to be spiritually influenced by the surrounding Canaanites. The book begins with a glimmer of hope, but it also includes some foreshadowing of the bad things to come. Our goal for today is to defend why Christians need to study a seemingly depressing book like Judges in secular America today.
Download the study guide here: L1_Historical_Background.pdf
JANUARY 25: cycle of disobedience
Today we overview the cycle that repeats throughout the book of Judges. It is often summed with with the four R's: rebellion, repression, repentance, and rescue. We will see how quickly the Israelites forgot what the Lord had done for them and instead worshipped the Canaanite god Baal. We will especially focus on the archaeological and historical background to what Baal worship was really like. Our goal for today is to see how this book really is about the patience and grace of God.
Download the study guide here: L2_Cycle.pdf
february 1: othniel, ehud & shamgar
Today we see how the cycle of rebellion, repression, repentance, and rescue plays out in Israel's judges. The first judges seem pretty good, but even here, there are some concerning things in the lives of Othniel, Ehud, and Shamgar. The Lord used these judges to rescue the Israelites from the Arameans, Moabites, and Philistines. Our goal for today is to see how the Lord uses flawed characters, who are not what we might expect to be ideal leaders, for his work.
Download the study guide here: L3_Othniel_Ehud.pdf
FEBRUARY 8: deborah
Today we see how the cycle of rebellion, repression, repentance, and rescue plays out in Israel's judges. Next we turn to the prophet and judge Deborah. She lead Israel in a major victory over the Canaanites and their king Jabin. We will role play the battle and look at how the Song of Deborah that recounts the battle touches our hearts in a different kind of way. In the ancient world, it was very unusual for the glory of a battle to go to a woman, and our goal is to find lessons in this story for the church today.
Download the study guide here: L4_Deborah.pdf