Current Bible Study

Our Encounter Bible Study meets Sundays at 9AM and Wednesdays at 7PM; choose the time that works best for you and join us; each week's two classes are identical!

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December: Preparing the Way

The season of Advent is an invitation to ground ourselves in hope, peace, love, and joy as we prepare the way for Jesus’s arrival. Our texts this month from both the Old and New Testaments will remind us that God’s people have always faced trouble, but we can wait on God with hope and trust. Waiting, however, is not passive. As we wait for God’s promised day, we are to be faithful messengers who proclaim God’s presence and the promise of salvation, living joyfully in the time between Jesus’s first coming and his return. As we accept God’s offer of hope, peace, love, and joy in our own hearts, we will be able to tend to a weary world that cries out for salvation.

January: Creator of Heaven and Earth

This unit explores the concept of our creator God as experienced through four psalms and other selected texts. In session 1, readers are introduced to the ancient Near Eastern concept of creation through divine struggle, affirming that the God of Israel is the divine warrior who creates through conquering primeval chaos. Session 2, based on Psalm 104:1-4 and Hebrews 1:5-14, confronts us with the creation of the angels and their purpose. In session 3, exploring Psalm 65, God is the creator and sustainer of all life and deserves praise for creation. The passage also emphasizes humankind’s role in caring for and nurturing God’s creation. The final session, drawn from Genesis 1:26-31 and Psalm 8, highlights God’s activity in creating humans and God’s purposes for humanity.

February: The Prophet Elisha

For the next four weeks, we will explore the ministry of Elisha and learn about his distinctive contribution to the biblical story. We begin with his devotion to his mentor, Elijah, and his transition into Elijah’s role. We will then explore two stories—one of a military campaign and one of a healing event—in which God uses Elisha to provide for others’ needs. Finally, we will consider the contrast between our point of view and God’s with a story about divine protection from an invading army. Just as our unit began with heavenly chariots as Elijah ascended to heaven, it ends with heavenly chariots defending God’s people.

March: Questions Jesus Answered

Throughout Scripture, faithful people ask questions of God in the face of startling circumstances. Jesus is asked more than 180 questions in the four Gospels—most of which he does not directly answer. However, in five major speeches in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus offers insights into how we handle some of life’s most persistent questions. These five speeches include the Sermon on the Mount in chs. 5–7, the Missionary Discourse in ch. 10, the Kingdom Discourse in ch. 13, the Community Discourse in ch. 18, and the Judgment Discourse in chapters 23–25. Through our five lessons on these speeches, we will see Jesus demonstrate a deep knowledge of what troubles our hearts and challenges our discipleship.

April: Proclaim Easter

For these next four weeks, we will journey through the days surrounding Jesus’s death and resurrection. We will see how a woman’s powerful faith leaves a legacy that continues to convict and inspire our own sacrificial love toward Jesus today. Then, walking through the crucifixion narrative, we wil see how Jesus’s death not only removes the barrier between heaven and earth but also reveals the deep meaning of a God who understands grief and suffering. With God there is rejoicing, but God also sits on the ash heaps of our own pains and struggles. Next we will follow the women to the empty tomb, an even we remember with joyous celebration, but that filled these women with concern and confusion. Finally, we will consider how we might live differently in light of these history-altering events. In all four Gospels, the risen Christ sends his followers on a mission. Will they choose to accept it? Will we?