PASSAGE (30-40 minutes)
The goal of the passage is to direct people to find answers in God’s word in the midst of community. Notice we said, “find answers in God’s word.” We want them to look in the context of the Bible, not to be spoon fed by an “all-knowing” leader.
Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. Don’t just give answers, give people the tools to find them in the Bible so they can find answers the rest of their lives.
We want people to focus on six questions. These are crucial to helping people find truth in the Bible by themselves. Don’t feel the need (or liberty) to develop amazing, thought-provoking questions that are really long statements that show your knowledge. That simply isn’t reproducible and while it may benefit your group for one night, it won’t develop critical thinking skills in your group. Simply have the person leading the session ask these questions:
“The passage for this week is ____________________. Everyone turn or scroll there and I’ll start reading the passage after everyone’s found it. (You read the passage by yourself all the way through.) Now get in a group of 3-6 people around you. I’ll read the first question and you’ll have some time to respond to it in your small group. After a few minutes, I’ll move on to the next questions until we all come back together as a large group to discuss. Sound good? Go.
- What is this passage about?
- What does this passage say about God?
- What does this passage say about people?
- How do I obey this?
- Making a specific goal will help us think about what we’ve read and how we can obey it. Hey, one way to remember that is to use the acronym S.M.A.R.T. SMART goals are goals that are Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. Let’s set a goal that we can do before we met again next week.
- Who will I share this passage with and invite to Tribe next week?
- We always want to be inclusive and thinking of ways to include others in Tribe. Because of that, who can you invite?”
After all the groups have had time to answer the last question, call them all back together as a large group. Take the time to ask:
“Now that we’re all back together again, who would like to share something from their group discussion about what this passage is about? (Give time for 1-2 quick responses.) And what does this passage say about God and His global purpose? (Ask for 1-2 quick responses. Continue in this way until you’ve briefly walked through all the questions.)”
Helpful Tips for Passage:
- Always split into at least three groups. Never two. If you just have two groups you will always overhear the single voice of the other group when yours is silent. With three groups the two other groups drown out each other. Two groups in the same room will always be awkward. Always.
- The group must stay true to the Bible. If something questionable is said during discussion, a great question (to ask with much grace) is “Where do you see that in the text?” Your job is to direct people back to God’s word. Train your group to ask each other that question.
- Give some time at the end to walk through the questions as a large group and give people the opportunity to share practical next steps. Not everyone’s goal needs to fit the SMART acronym, but we do want to challenge people to real action and obedience.