Encountering the New Testament, 4th Edition

A Historical and Theological Survey

series: Encountering Biblical Studies

Materials available for professors by request only

Chapter

9. Lord, Teach Us

Discussion Questions

  1. What were the common bases of understanding between Jesus and the people to whom he preached?
  2. What was the sermon you heard most recently? Did you learn something you didn’t know?
  3. Do you think it is ever inappropriate to use object lessons in teaching God’s Word?
  4. Why can’t we find a systematic presentation of Jesus’s theology in the Bible?
  5. Why do you think that Jesus only spoke of a special relationship with other human beings?
  6. What methods did Jesus use to make God real in the lives of the people?
  7. There has been much discussion about whether the lost will be tormented or destroyed. What does Jesus teach about this?

Assignment Ideas / Class Activities

  1. Divide the class into small groups and ask each group to give some object lessons for teaching a passage of the Bible that they select. End by having all of these shared with the class.
  2. Divide the class into groups and have each group decide the significance of one of the titles for Jesus: a. Teacher b. Rabbi c. Son of David d. Son of Man
  3. Present a ten-minute skit based on one of Jesus’s teachings. Place the setting in the time of Christ. Then present the same teaching in a contemporary setting.
  4. Have a group study what Jesus says about who God is and what he is like. Present the findings to the class in the format of a panel discussion.
  5. Have a group work together to find all the titles of Jesus in the Gospels. Have them make a banner for one of them to be used in one of their churches.
  6. Locate all of the “I am” sayings in the Gospels. List them with the references and show how these make Jesus the absolute answer to all human needs.