We had our first session for our new Journey Family Bible Study, and it went very well. While there were a great many technical issues at the beginning, things started working out much better, and we were able to cover the material and have a very interesting discussion.
Here is a recap in case you missed it.
Discussion Questions:
1️⃣ What stood out to you most in the video?
We talked about the Bible being 66 books, written by 40 authors over a thousand-year period, and yet some are convinced that it is one message with one purpose. Others thought it was possible that there were multiple messages in the Bible, but that it generally pointed to Christ rather than explicitly. We had a great variety of people in the group. Those who are brand new and have never read the Bible before, and then others who have done extensive research. It was a great discussion.
2️⃣ Before watching this, how would you have described the Bible? Did this video change that at all?
Few people watched the video, so we tried to play it, but screen sharing kept tanking my internet connection, so we skipped it and just talked about the contents of the video instead—we assigned it as this week’s homework (as well as this week’s homework). There was one person in the group who had been very surprised by the Bible’s shocking stories, specifically mentioning the story of Lot and his two daughters (Genesis 19:30–38), and the sacrifice of Isaac by his father, Abraham (Genesis 22:1–19). This brought up the reality that the Bible is interpreted and misused by many people to paint a picture about the Bible, being a Christian, and even God that is just not true. It is important that we all do our due diligence in this life, for Jesus warned us not to be deceived. There is a lot of false teaching out there (Acts 17:11; Matthew 24:4; Galatians 6:7).
3️⃣ The video presents the Bible as a unified story. Does that idea make sense to you? Why or why not?
We talked about this extensively. We had differing opinions, and we talked about how each of us must be fully convinced in his/her own mind. That we all will answer to God alone (Romans 14:5). We talked about some of the false ideas Christians have about being a Christian. How it is often presumed that we must act a certain way, or not speak a certain way. I brought up the point that in my Christian walk, I never do anything and never stop doing anything unless God explicitly convicts me of it (Acts 5:29; Galatians 1:10).
4️⃣ What questions does this raise for you?
There were a few questions during the session. One was: how is God good if he allows so much evil to happen, and if he allows bad things to happen to innocent people? Like children dying of cancer. Or the devastation from natural disasters?
These are tough questions, and they have been debated for centuries. There are many, many opinions, but very few actual answers. Jesus said, “Woe to the world because of offenses. For offenses must come, but woe to the one by whom those offenses come” (Matt 18:7). But, we are reminded that not a single bird dying is outside of God’s will (Matt 10:29). We reminded everything that for a believer everything is filtered for us by God. Even the bad that befalls us is Father filtered (Jeremiah 29:11; 1 Peter 5:7). And, of course, there is Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Optional Reading:
Read Along with Us:
We have decided to start reading John as our first book. Jennifer and I will be reading through this together every day, and may do a deeper study of it if time allows. I would encourage everyone reading this to join in with us. Even if it’s years after this session recap was posted.
Next Google Meeting:
Tuesday, May 5th, 2026 – 7 pm
https://meet.google.com/vtp-pstx-tmo
Great First Session:
I think this was a great first session, and we had a great discussion and a lot of fun. We are all family and comfortable with each other, but we did not let that get in the way of asking tough questions and discussing difficult topics.
I’m looking forward to the next one on the 5th of May!
If you were at the meeting last night and want to add something else, please post it in the comments below. If you would like to join us for our online meetings, please email me.
Have Questions?
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What do you think?