How to Teach a Home Bible Study | Part 1: Preparation
Overview
The Bible 101 is designed to be taught in four 1-hour sessions using a PowerPoint presentation with speaking notes. Here is an overview of the process:
Get The Bible 101 PowerPoint presentations on your device
Choose a presentation method
Study the content and rehearse your presentation
Schedule a time and place to meet
Complete all four sessions (each lesson should last about an hour)
Record and report your results
Part1: Preparation
Good preparation is the key to success in teaching Bible studies. If you aren’t prepared, it will show and likely hinder your message. Let’s look at five ways to prepare for your Bible study.
1. Foster Relationships
Before starting the study, try to build friendship and trust with your student(s). Remember, people don’t care what you know if they don’t know that you care! Here are some strategies to build a relationship:
Ask questions about their life. Most people want to tell you about their life and experiences if you invite them to do so. A great place to start is asking them about their family and background.
Be an active listener. Active listening is the practice of fully focusing on, understanding, and responding to a speaker. It goes beyond passively hearing words by requiring you to set aside distractions, observe nonverbal cues, and engage with the speaker to absorb the full context and meaning of their message.
Tell them about your life. Doing so will often reveal shared experiences and interests.
Why is this so important? When you have fostered a friendship, they are much more likely to say “yes” when you ask if they would like to join you for a Bible study.
2. Choose a Location
The environment you meet in will have a great impact on the effectiveness of the study. Try to select a place that is comfortable, quiet, and has minimal distractions. It should also be in a convenient location for your student(s). Here are some examples:
Your home / their home
Coffee shop
Restaurant
Park / Library
Empty conference room at work
3. Communicate Well
Your students need to know when and where you will be meeting. Make sure you confirm the lesson time and location by text or phone prior to meeting. Make sure you are communicating clearly if you use text messages. Be willing to make a quick voice call to clear up any confusion. Here is an example of an effective message:
Hi Paul! Looking forward to our Bible study tonight at 7pm. The address is 1234 Oakridge Lane. See you soon! 😊
4. Pray for Breakthrough
Spreading the Gospel will provoke spiritual opposition because it is an offensive attack against the powers of darkness. When teaching a Bible study, pray for spiritual protection and revelation for you and your students. Pray that the Holy Spirit would break spiritual strongholds and mental arguments that prevent people from receiving the truth. As 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 states:
We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.
5. Know the Content
It is very important for you to be mentally prepared to teach. Teaching is an impartation of knowledge. Always review the current lesson content prior to the meeting to refresh your mind. In the long term, work to memorize the content for better delivery. Periodically, do “deep dives” into specific topics to add depth and color to your teaching. Being well-versed and knowledgeable will give you instant credibility! As 2 Timothy 2:15 says:
Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.