Bible Study Matthew 20.1-16

Bible Study – Matthew 20.1-16 – The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard Q1 In what circumstances did Jesus tell this parable? What specific question or remark was he responding to? Q2 How would you express in a single, short sentence the single main point Jesus is making in telling this parable? Q3 Can you relate any experience of seeing unemployed people standing in a marketplace hoping to be employed for the day? Have you been in the position of one of the unemployed or the landowner in this story? Q4 How many times does the landowner go to the market during the day, and at what times? Do you find anything unusual or surprising about this? Q5 Of the five different groups of workers who are taken on during the day, what do you notice about the terms on which they are employed? Q6 Putting yourself in the position of one of the workers taken on at the beginning of the day, how might you feel as each additional group arrives? Q7 Verse 8, at the centre of the parable, reveals the landowner’s instructions to his steward on how the wages are to be distributed. Does anything in this verse surprise us (as readers/hearers)? Q8 How different would the story play out if the first workers to be taken on had been paid first and the last workers to be taken on had been paid last? Q9 What do you make of the complaint made in verses 11 to 12 and the landowner’s reply in verses 13 to 16? Can you think of any other biblical examples of similar complaints and replies? Q10 This is one of those parables which ends without resolution. If you were writing the story, what would happen next? Q11 Are there any other conclusions you feel we can draw from this parable?

Matthew 18.21-35 Bible Study Questions

Bible Study Questions – Matthew 18.21-35

The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant

Q1 Do you think St Andrew was a particularly annoying individual? (See verse 21 in NIV!)

Q2 What is the point of Peter’s question? Does it deserve an answer? What answer would you give a child who asked this?

Q3 Jesus’ initial reply (v22) may be deliberately echoing Genesis 4.24. Some commentators also think he might have had the year of Jubilee in mind (see Leviticus 25.8ff). How do these OT references help us understand the point of Jesus’ parable?

Q4 What do you think is the main point of the parable?

Q5 Has Jesus given a satisfactory answer to Peter’s question?

Q6 Why is there such a contrast in the amounts of money involved in the two debts?

Q7 What should we make of verses 34 and 35? Is God merciful or not (18.33, Luke 6.35-36)?

Q8 What is the relationship between knowing ourselves as “forgiven”, and our showing forgiveness to others? (See also Luke 7.47 and Matthew 6.12)

Q9 Do we demand standards of behaviour from others which we are unwilling to appl to ourselves?

Q10 How can we learn to have a merciful attitude to others?

Ascension Day Bible Study

Bible Study Questions – Ascension Day

Passages to read: Luke 24.36-end, Acts 1.1-11, Ephesians 4.1-16

Questions to ponder:

Q1 How do you understand what happened at the ascension?

Q2 What if the ascension had not happened? How different might history and the contemporary world look?

Q3 In these passages, what do Jesus and Paul say about why the ascension had to take place?

Q4 How does the ascension fit in with God’s wider mission?

Q5 Where does the Holy Spirit fit in? What about the Day of Pentecost?

Q6 How can we answer when someone asks “So where is this Jesus who you say is alive?”

Q7 To sum up, why did Jesus not stay permanently and physically on earth after his resurrection?

Bible Study - John 11

Bible Study – John 11

Begin by checking the context of this chapter in John’s gospel. Note especially John 9.3-5, 10.27-33 and 12.23-28.

Now read John 11.1-10

Q1 What echoes of the situation in John 9 can you see? What differences are there?

Q2 Verse 6, when accurately translated, says that Jesus delayed for two days because of (not in spite of) his love for Lazarus and the sisters. How do you make sense of this?

Q3 What are the implications of Jesus’s decision to return to Judea? Are the disciples’ fears justified?

Now read John 11.11-28

Q4 How much did the disciples understand what was happening at this stage? What motivated the high level of commitment expressed here? (verses 15-16)

Q5 In verses 22 to 27, what progress does Martha make in faith and understanding?

Now read John 11.29-53

Q6 How do you feel about the expressions of the depth of Jesus’s feelings in these verses (especially 33-38)? Is there a contradiction when compared to the confidence of his statements in verses like 11, 26, 40 and 42?

Q7 How aware do you think Jesus was of his own approaching death? Is it helpful to see the events of this chapter as a preparation or rehearsal for what is about to happen?

Q8 The raising of Lazarus is considered the last of the seven “signs” in John’s gospel. How does it relate to the other signs and to passages like Isaiah 25.7-9 and Revelation 21.3-5?

Q9 How do you explain the differing reactions to Jesus’s raising of Lazarus? What do these verses say about the purpose and scope of the gospel? (it might be helpful to look back to the prologue, John 1.1-18)

Q10 If you were trying to explain the gospel to a non-christian friend, would John 11 be a useful chapter to refer to, or would you avoid it?

Bible Study - John 9

Bible Study John 9

Q1 How do you see the context of this chapter within John’s gospel?

Q2 The disciples’ first question is not “how can we help?” but “whose fault is this?” What reasons are there for this common human reaction to the misfortune of others? (verses 1-2)

Q3 What does Jesus mean by his answer to the disciples? (verse 3)

Q4 How do you interpret verses 4-5? What does it mean that Jesus is the light of the world?

Q5 Is this a “healing” or is there a better word for what Jesus does (v6-7)? What is the role of faith in this story and how does it relate to other passages you can think of?

Q6 What do we learn from the first reaction of his neighbours to what has happened to the man born blind? (verses 8-12)

Q7 What for you are the key points in the account of the Pharisees’ investigation? What is at stake here and why do they get so angry? (verses 13-34)

Q8 The man finally sees Jesus in verse 35. How does their conversation contrast with what has gone before? (verses 35-38)

Q9 Who is Jesus’ judgement directed towards and why? What lessons or warnings are here for the Church and for individual Christians? (verses 39-41)

Q10 Another gospel passage where Jesus deals with similar issues is Luke 13.1-5. What does this passage add to your understanding?

John 4 Bible Study

Bible Study – John 4.1-42

In this study we are looking at the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well.

First read verses 1 to 6.

Q1 Why did Jesus decide to leave Judea and return to Galilee at this time?

Q2 What do you know about the bad history between the Jews and the Samaritans? (For an explanation from the Jewish perspective, see 2 Kings 17.24-41).

Q3 We are told that Jesus “had to” go through Samaria to get to Galilee. In fact most Jews would take the longer route around Samaria, so how should we interpret verse 4?

Q4 Why was Jesus waiting at the well?

Now read verses 7 to 15.

Q5 Jews would not drink from a cup which had been touched by a Samaritan, for fear of becoming “unclean”. Have you ever experienced this kind of prejudice? What is the effect of Jesus’s opening request?

Q6 In what ways is physical thirst a useful analogy for spiritual thirst?

Q7 Jacob (also known as “Israel”, see Genesis 32.28) was an ancestor of both Jews and Samaritans. In what ways is Jesus greater than Jacob? How is the water he provides different?

Now read verses 16 to 42.

Q8 How significant is Jesus’s supernatural knowledge of the woman’s past and present life? (verses 16-18, 29, 39).

Q9 Thinking of our own lives, do you believe that God knows every detail and yet still loves and accepts us? If not, how would you put it?

Q10 Do you see any significance in Jesus’s words that salvation is from the Jews (verse 22)? (It might be helpful to refer to Genesis 12.2-3).

Q11 It seems that the Samaritans were also waiting and hoping for the Messiah, the Christ, the Saviour of the World (verses 25, 29, 42). How do you think Christians should relate to people of other faiths today? In what sense are we all waiting and hoping for the same thing?

Q12 What does this passage say about the evangelistic task – in terms of motivation, resources, approaches? In what ways are you challenged to see and do mission differently?

Bible Study - John 3.1-17

Bible Study – John 3.1-17

The background to this famous conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus is the cleansing of the temple and its aftermath. Begin your study by looking at the following passages in order to understand what the temple meant to the Jews and what Jesus was angry about:-

Psalm 84; Isaiah 2.3-4; Isaiah 56.3-8; John 2.13-25

It might be useful to write your own summary of what these passages have shown you and what was going on at the cleansing of the temple.

Now read John 3.1-17 and consider the following questions. It may help you to know that the greek words translated “born again” or “born from above” in your Bible can in fact mean either. “Born from above” is more strictly accurate, but in everyday usage, the phrase had also come to mean “born again”.

Q1 Do you consider yourself a “born again” Christian? What does this label mean in your experience?

Q2 Why do you think Nicodemus visited Jesus and why did he do so at night?

Q3 How are Nicodemus’s opening words connected with the protest Jesus had made in the temple (verse2)?

Q4 Why do you think Jesus responds in the way he does? In what way is he addressing Nicodemus’s concerns?

Q5 The kingdom of God has both present and future aspects. Which do you think Jesus is referring to in verse 5 where he says no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit?

Q6 How is the spiritual birth or birth “from above” that Jesus refers to related to the initiation rite of baptism?

Q7 Why is it important for followers of Jesus that they have been spiritually born / born from above? Does the manner or timing of their birth matter?

Q8 Why do you think Jesus’s words switch from singular to plural (from “I” to “we”) in verse 11?

Nicodemus cannot understand how this birth from above can take place. Jesus replies by making a comparison with Moses’ lifting up the serpent in the wilderness. Have a look at Numbers 21.4-9 to remind yourself of this incident. Jesus then tells Nicodemus that the Son of Man must be lifted up in a similar way, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life (which means the life of the coming age).

Q9 How is Jesus’s death on the cross related to the possibility of people being born from above / spiritually born? How is this related to Jesus’s words about the temple being destroyed and rebuilt (John 2.20-22)?

At last we come to John 3.16-17, the climax of the conversation and a simple yet profound statement of the gospel.

Q10 What do these verses tell us about the purposes and motives of God?

Q11 How does John 3.16-17 help us understand the reasons for Jesus’s temple protest and answer the concerns which brought Nicodemus to Jesus?

Q12 How can we live as God’s people today and co-operate with God’s purposes?

Advent Bible Study - Jeremiah 33.10-16

Jeremiah 33.10-16 – Bible Study

Jeremiah is known as the prophet of doom and gloom. His name is synonymous with miserable, critical pessimism.

Yet late in his active life, God gave him a new message – a message of hope and forgiveness and restoration to come after the period of exile. Chapters 31 to 33 of Jeremiah contain some of the most encouraging passages in the whole of the Old Testament!

Ironically, this change in Jeremiah’s mission happened during the siege of Jerusalem, just when people were beginning to realize his prophecies of doom had been correct.

Q1 Can you think of a time when you had to give somebody a warning that unless they changed their ways they were heading for serious trouble? How did this make you feel? Was your warning heeded?

Q2 The siege of Jerusalem had gone on for about a year and a half. What do you know about sieges? What would conditions have been like?
(Lamentations 4.4-10, traditionally by Jeremiah, gives an idea).

Read Jeremiah 33.10-11

Q3 In his prediction of a return of joy and gladness to Jerusalem and Judah, Jeremiah refers to weddings and worship? What is so powerful about these images? What kind of faith and hope do we express in wedding celebrations and in worship?

Jeremiah had of course previously predicted an end to wedding joy in 7.34, 16.9 and 25.10.

Q4 What other action expressing confidence in the future did Jeremiah carry out in Chapter 32?

He now goes on to give another powerful example of the coming transformation.

Read verses 33.12-14

Q5 How do these verses add to the picture of restoration? How do they encourage hope? Is there an echo of Psalm 23 here?

Q6 What promise is God referring to in verse 14? (See also verse 17 and 2Samuel 7.16). How does this relate to Psalm 72, which we looked at a few weeks ago in the study of Christ the King?


Now read Jeremiah 33.15-16

Q7 Who is the righteous Branch in verse 15? Would your answer be different if you were Jewish and not a Christian?

Q8 What qualities will characterize the reign of this ‘righteous Branch’? Do we see the fulfillment of this promise now, or will it come in the future?

Finally a couple of general questions

Q9 What kept Jeremiah going through 40 years of extremely unpopular prophecy? Is unpopularity a virtue?

Q10 Are we open to the possibility of receiving a change of direction and a new mission from God after many years of heading in the same direction? How can we stay tuned in and make sure we don’t miss the call?