Welcome to a new year of BSF!
Each week, I will provide summaries about the lessons, starting today. Since I serve in the School Program, I also will share the students’ memory verse each week. I am extra excited this year because Avery will be attending BSF with me! She will be participating in Level 1 of the School Program.
This year, we will be reading through the Gospel of John (and supplemental Scriptures from other parts of the Bible). The Gospel of John is all about Jesus. In fact, the entire Bible is one story about Jesus Christ. So before we look at the Gospel of John, we need to understand the outline of the Bible.
There are 39 books in the Old Testament:
- Genesis to Deuteronomy are The Law.
- Joshua to Esther are The History of Israel.
- Job to Song of Solomon are The Books of Poetry.
- Isaiah to Malachi are The Books of prophecy.
There are 27 books in the New Testament:
- Matthew to John are The Gospels.
- Acts is the book about the disciples and the beginning of the church.
- Romans to Jude are The Epistles (or letters).
- Revelation is the revelation of Jesus Christ.
The Bible contains 66 books. More than 40 human writers composed the Bible as they were directed by the Holy Spirit. The Bible was written over the course of 1,500 years. God is the Bible’s Author. God uses the Bible to reveal Himself to the world and to reveal His purposes. The Bible is God’s written revelation of Himself. The Bible tells the story of redemption. Jesus used his blood on the cross to purchase sinners, setting us free from sin’s bondage.
God’s Word is all-inclusive – we cannot add to it or subtract anything from it. God’s Word is true and inerrant. Reading Scripture is like looking in a mirror. God shows us who we really are and who He really is. The Bible is the final authority for life.
There are four Gospels in the New Testament. Each one recorded the events of Jesus’ life in a slightly different way. Matthew wrote his gospel to prove that Jesus is the promised Messiah and eternal King. Mark wrote his gospel to present the work, person, and teachings of Jesus Christ. Luke wrote his gospel to present an accurate account of the life of Christ and to present Jesus as the perfect human and Savior. These three gospels recorded what Jesus did.
John wrote his gospel to record what Jesus meant in his actions and words. John wrote his gospel to reveal Jesus as the Son of God and so that all who believe in Him have eternal life. Here is an outline of the Gospel of John:
- The Prologue – John 1:1-18
- Jesus Revealed to the World – John 1:19-12:50
- Jesus Revealed to Disciples Alone – John 13-17
- Jesus’ Crucifixion and Resurrection – John 18-20
- Epilogue – John 21
Are you ready to see the life of Jesus through John’s eyes? I’m looking forward to another exciting year as we study God’s Word together each week!
Things to Think About
- God transforms believers who study and apply the Bible. Will you commit to studying and applying God’s Word with me this year through the Gospel of John?
- Will you surrender to God’s authority, purpose, and plan for your life?
- Jesus is the Son of God, and belief in Him leads to eternal life.
- In the book of John, the truth of Jesus is revealed. We will see many people reject Jesus, and a small minority will accept and follow Him. Which one are you?