Bible Study Series

[KING OF THE HILL VIDEO]

-this is it! I know it seems like we’ve been talking about this series for a long time, but this is the last week of it. Hopefully, by the end of tonight you will understand why we do what we do here at Fire & Water. If someone were to come up to you and ask you “Hey, why do you do this at your church?” you will be able to help them understand why we do it and how it helps you grow in your walk with Christ and helps us grow together.

-like the first week, we talked about why we have time to hang out and games and After Hours. To someone who knows nothing about church it may seem like filler, like we’re just babysitting you guys or something, but in reality, it’s to help you get to know each other. It’s to give you a chance to be the real you in front of the people here so you have people you can trust and rely one. It gives you a chance to have fun with each other and let your guard down and get to know each other.

-then we talked about praise and worship. Again, it may seem weird to people who don’t go to church. After all, where else do you get together with people to sing? A concert maybe? But this is more than a concert, we are sharing prayers in song with God and recognizing Him for who He is, we are telling Him how amazing He is and giving Him praise, we are singing prayers that share how devoted we are to Him. And we do it loud.

-this moment, what is happening right now was next, teaching and discussion. Every week someone comes up here and talks, a lot of the time it’s me, but not always, and we look at how we can apply the Bible to our lives. Usually at Drink Deep it’s not as verse oriented, we don’t often take a passage of Scripture and pick it apart, but we look more at topics and how the Bible can apply to our lives, how we can live it out. Then, we give you a chance to talk in small groups, asking questions to get you thinking, even giving you a chance to ask questions. I realize I don’t have the monopoly on all knowledge, you guys know a lot about God from your personal experiences (even if you haven’t thought of it in that way), and by sharing those stories you help us all get to know God a little better.

-last week we talked about equipping, or to use a less Fire & Water word, serving. You can hear about what God thinks or feels for years and years, and that’s a good thing, but when you actually live it out, when you serve, when you take part in Sunday night and help it be impacting to other people instead of just coming in and being served, it makes a huge difference in how you see God and understanding how He works, how He thinks, how He feels.

-but there’s one more ting we do here. It doesn’t happen on Sundays. It doesn’t happen at Drink Deep, well not really. It happens Wednesday nights at 7:00 right here in the Wharf, it’s Downpour, our weekly Bible Study.

-now I know what you’re thinking. I already come to church Sunday mornings. I spend more time here Sunday nights. I even volunteer some extra time to God about that. Do I really need to be here another night?

-no, you don’t. You don’t need Bible Study the same way you don’t need to workout that extra day a week, the same way you don’t need that extra night studying for school, the same way you don’t need that extra time with your friends to get to know them better. You don’t need that. But if you put in that extra effort, you’ll reap the extra rewards.

-I mean, look at these verses that talk about studying the Bible:

**Josh. 1:8 -> 8Always remember what is written in the Book of Teachings. Study it day and night to be sure to obey everything that is written there. If you do this, you will be wise and successful in everything. (NCV)

**Duet. 11:27 -> 27You will be blessed if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today. (NLT)

**Luke 11:28 -> 28Jesus replied, “But even more blessed are all who hear the Word of God and put it into practice.” (NLT)

-all sorts of great verses about reading the Bible and learning from it.

-did anyone notice the theme? God blesses those who study the Bible. He blesses those who know His Word and put it into practice. So there’s your first blank: