Flexible Format

Every Summit Studies study guide contains twelve (12) lessons organized into six units.  Each of the six units contain two lessons: one emphasizing scripture understanding and the other emphasizing life applications.  The application lessons for each of the 6 units are specifically designed for use in a small group setting. 

Format – When using the study guide in a six (6) week format, there will be two lessons per week.  The first lesson will explore the Scriptures to gain a deep understanding of the message.  The second lesson will utilize group discussion to guide students in finding life-changing applications. 

Theologically Based – Don’t be scared off by the big term theology.  Theology is nothing more than understanding what the Bible has to say about God, church, people and the relationships between them.  By emphasizing the theology of the passage, important messages of the Scriptures are brought to the foreground that often go unnoticed in a mechanical verse-by-verse approach.

Synchronized Format– Each 6 unit study is designed to allow synchronization between Bible study, sermons and small group discussions.  When used as a synchronized study, students will discuss and examine each passage using the Study lesson emphasizing understanding.  Then, building on the understanding gained in the Study lesson, the students can explore life-changing applications using the Small Group lesson.  It is also suggested that the Sunday sermon be derived from the same text.  By synchronizing the Bible study, sermon, and small group focus, students gain both knowledge and experience with the relevance of Scripture. 

Study - The focus of the Study is to guide students in the understanding of the selected text.  Understanding forms the foundation for exploring how God’s word impacts individual lives.  It is imperative to first understand clearly what the Bible says before leaping to application.  To gain a clear understanding of the word the students will be expected to prepare for the study by reading the assigned text and answering pre-study questions.  In the study the teacher will engage the class in discussion using the questions provided in the Study lesson.  The Study lesson section of each unit will include:

• Focus – a concise description of the aims of the lesson
• Overview of the passage including a discussion of the context, theological observations and interpretive clues.
• Student Assignments to allow the student to be prepared for class by providing a reading assignment and study questions.
• Discussion helps – the key to good discussion is asking good, open-ended questions which challenge the students to think.  The class guide will provide several challenging questions for each lesson. 

Sermon – The Sermon, when synchronized with the unit, will come from the same passage as the Study.  The focus of the sermon however is different than the study.  While the study focuses on understanding, the sermon will focus on amplifying a particular aspect of the text.  In this amplification process, the goal is to allow the text to be “heard” by placing the text in a modern context.  Inherently, the sermon will be based on the preacher’s interpretation of the passage. 

Small Group – The small group lesson is designed to build upon the Study lesson and sermon by challenging the participants to apply the text to their life situations.  The focus of the Small Group lesson is on seeing where God’s word has something to say about each person’s life.  The Small Group lesson of this study guide will include:

·         Focus – a concise statement of what the aim of the lesson is about

·         Text – The specific Scripture references for the lesson

·         Text Summary – a one paragraph summary of the Bible text used in the unit

·         Ice Breaker – a single “get them talking” question to use at the start of the group meeting

·         Application Questions – a set of open-ended questions designed to move the group from understanding to personal application.

·         Challenge Areas – a set of more challenging personal application question(s)

·         Teaser – a short sentence which connects to the following week’s lesson

© Stephen Shaffer 2006