Discussion Questions

The chapter says Scripture is “the most accurate way to consult the mind of God” because counsel from Christians can err and subjective feelings can be imagination; what does that claim reveal about God’s intentions in giving a written word, and where do you feel internal resistance to treating the Bible as “infallible words” addressed to you personally? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If the Bible is the surest way to know God’s mind, what does that say about why God gave us a written Word? Where do you resist seeing the Bible as God’s true words spoken to you лично?

David Bercot quotes Tozer saying God “spoke a book in lives” and that the Bible is “now speaking to us,” not merely history; how would your Bible reading change if you truly approached it as a present-tense encounter with God rather than an ancient document? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If you believed God is speaking to you right now through the Bible, not just telling old history, how would you read it differently?

The chapter compares daily Bible reading to daily eating and says Kingdom-life people “should likewise never let a day pass” without letting God speak through His word; what exposes your real priorities when a day passes without Scripture, and what practical re-ordering would be necessary to make Bible reading as routine as “washing and sleeping”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: When you skip Scripture for a day, what does that show about what matters most to you? What would you need to change to make Bible reading as normal as washing or sleeping?

Bercot admits Bible reading may begin as “drudgery” that you “force” yourself to do until joy comes—“unless there is something…impeding the Holy Spirit”; what kinds of impediments (sins, distractions, spiritual habits) do you think most commonly block that joy, and how would you diagnose which one is operating in you? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What things most often steal the joy from Bible reading (sin, distractions, bad habits)? How could you tell which one is getting in your way right now?

The “love letter” illustration describes savoring, rereading, carrying, whispering, and pondering; what would it look like to read Scripture with that kind of cherishing in a normal modern day, and what specific practices (not intentions) would have to change? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What would it look like to treat Scripture like a love letter you reread and think about all day? What specific daily habits would you need to change to do that?

The chapter lists what Scripture reveals—God’s love, the invisible realm, spiritual dangers, “rights, privileges, and responsibilities,” enemies and how to defeat them, and “what we must do if we are to spend eternity with Him”; which of those categories do you tend to avoid or downplay, and what might that avoidance imply about what you want God to be like? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Which parts of what the Bible says (God’s love, spiritual danger, responsibilities, enemies, eternity, etc.) do you tend to avoid? What might that show about the kind of God you prefer?

Bercot critiques reading for “head knowledge” and using proof texts to defend a “theological fortress,” warning that such reading produces little nourishment and that “knowledge puffs up, but love edifies”; where do you see fortress-building in your own use of Scripture, and how can a group like this tell the difference between faithful doctrinal conviction and prideful reinforcement-seeking? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where do you use the Bible to “win” arguments or defend your own views instead of letting it change you? How can this group tell the difference between real conviction and pride that just wants to be right?

The chapter urges making specific commitments while reading (forgiving “Susan,” quitting anger at “Pete”), plus praying, praising, confessing, and asking for power; what is one concrete obedience that your recent Bible reading should have produced but didn’t, and what does that suggest about how you are currently “using Scripture as a mirror”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Name one clear action you should have taken because of your recent Bible reading, but didn’t. What does that say about whether you are really letting Scripture show you what needs to change?

The “blank slate” approach asks, “If I didn’t know better, what would I think this passage is saying?” and explicitly says easy believism negates many New Testament commands; what teachings of Jesus or the apostles become most uncomfortable when taken “at face value,” and how would early Christians—without modern debates about assurance and grace—likely have responded to those commands? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Which of Jesus’ or the apostles’ teachings feel most uncomfortable when you take them in the plain, obvious way? If early Christians read those commands without today’s debates, how do you think they would have responded?

The chapter argues that chapter/verse divisions and headings are human influences that shape interpretation, using 1 Corinthians 11 head coverings as an example; how might reading whole epistles “in one sitting” and ignoring headings expose places where you’ve been guided more by editorial structure or tradition than by context, and what one New Testament book or section (e.g., Sermon on the Mount; John 13–17) will you commit to read as a unified message this week? JumpstartAnother way to ask: How might reading a whole New Testament letter straight through, without headings, change what you think it means? What one book or section will you read all at once this week as one connected message?