Faith & Worship
We hear much about a Climate Crisis and Global Warming, perhaps less about this world, together with its creatures and plants being placed into our care by God, not to mention all who live on it and our responsibilities to each other.
So, it seemed a good idea to look at what the Bible had to say about all this, and the result is a growing number of Bible studies which look at aspects of our relationships with God the Creator, the world, its plants and animals, and the many millions who are our neighbours.
They studies are PDF files which most PCs and devices can easily open, and are written to be easily copied and distributed to group members - and economical to purchase at £2.99 ($3.99 US)!
When we start looking at the world upon which we live, it's more than simply thinking about how we might better look after it (that's another study entirely!) but also thinking about such questions as 'What was God's purpose in creating the earth?', 'Where did we all go wrong?', 'Where do we find hope?' and 'Just what are our responsibilities?'
I'm not saying this set of Bible studies answers all the theological questions that those questions pose (!) but at least it might get you thinking a bit more about them, and generate a bit of discussion in small groups that might be fruitful!
As with all these studies there is plenty of opportunity for engaging with the Bible, with starter discussion, pictures and questions. Studies are easy to distribute, or print where necessary. Only one needed per group
For more information and sample, click this link
Just a few years after Darwin published ‘On the Origins of Species’, in another book called ‘Man and Nature’ which was first published in 1864, the scholar George Perkins Marsh challenged the general belief that human impact on nature was generally benign or negligible, and insisted that ancient civilizations of the Mediterranean had brought about their own collapse by their abuse of the environment. By deforesting their hillsides and eroding their soils, they had destroyed the natural fertility that sustained their well-being.
We are quite a few years on from that time, and yet the discussion does not appear to have moved on very far. As Christians we begin our scriptures with a picture of God’s creation and the place of humankind and the various creatures that live above us, alongside or beneath us in the soil or oceans.
As with all these studies there is plenty of opportunity for engaging with the Bible, with starter discussion, pictures and questions. Studies are easy to distribute, or print where necessary. Only one needed per group
For more information and sample, click this link
Genesis tells us, ‘Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.’ (Genesis 1:2)
These studies are slightly different to others I have written, in that they begin with looking at our world, in particular the water we rely on for life and livelihoods. We look at where the water we drink originates, how it is stored both naturally and with the aid of human activity, and the impact that we as individuals, alongside industry and governments have on that supply. We also take into account changes due to a warming climate.
From looking at the earth and water, we then look at how it features both physically and symbolically within Scripture, and what insights we can gain that might assist us in our own relationship with what is, the Bible tells us, God's gift to us.
As with all these studies there is plenty of opportunity for engaging with the Bible, with starter discussion, pictures and questions. Studies are easy to distribute, or print where necessary. Only one needed per group
For more information and sample, click this link
‘Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.’ (Genesis 1:29)
Food is an integral part of the relationship between humankind and God, from the very first pages of the Bible. Whether it be the laws laid down as to which foods may, or may not, be eaten, to the ritual of sacrificial offerings and feasts, the importance of hospitality, the struggle to find enough to eat, sowing and reaping, leaving the gleanings for the poor to gather, or Jesus picking up on the daily work of fishing, sowing, owning a vineyard or laying on a banquet.
As with all these studies there is plenty of opportunity for engaging with the Bible, with starter discussion, pictures and questions. Studies are easy to distribute, or print where necessary. Only one needed per group
For more information and sample, click this link
It is good now and then to stand back from the small world that we as individuals inhabit and think about the relationship that we have with God, the world and each other – and then ask that strange question, what is ‘being human’ all about?
Genesis 1 tells us God created human beings in His own image, and the following chapter has them formed from the dust of the ground, and God giving them breath. To be formed ‘In God’s image’ has in the past been a claim of kings.
The United Nations declaration of Human Rights does not define a human being, and the secular world looks at us through the eyes of the biologist, describing us based upon our evolution from other species, after gaining advantages, strengths, and talents along the long evolutionary road our ancient ancestors travelled.
Over these four studies, we look at a range of passages from the Bible that speak into ‘being human’ from a Christian viewpoint.
For more information and sample, click this link
Poverty is not simply an economic problem, and those living with little or no income may experience many other deprivations that compound their daily struggles to make ends meet.
The United Nations (UN) lists dangerous working conditions, unsafe housing, inadequate nutrition, unequal access to justice, lack of political power and limited access to health care. The charity World Vision (with a focus on children) extends the list by adding increased risk of child mortality, lack of adequate education, poor sanitation, poor access to clean drinking water, electricity, and cooking fuel.
However, rather than getting depressed or angry at the current situation in the world, there’s a different way of looking at this, and that’s asking ourselves, ‘What does it actually mean to live a rich life?’ It’s a question that shifts our viewpoint away from money toward lifestyle, and attitude toward God and others.
For more information and sample, click this link
The parable of the Good Samaritan has been understood in many ways. Augustine interpreted it allegorically, with the Samaritan representing Jesus Christ, who saves the sinful soul, which seems to rather miss the point of Jesus’s own response. Artistically, Jesus is often depicted as the Good Samaritan.
John Calvin suggests that people are not born merely for themselves, but rather “mankind is knit together with a holy knot ... we must not live for ourselves, but for our neighbours.”
However we interpret Jesus’s parable, it is a fact that the title ‘Good Samaritan’ is still used today to describe a charitable person, especially one who, like the man in the parable, rescues or helps out a needy stranger. Several charitable organisations also used the word ‘Samaritan’ within their titles or aims. Through these studies we look at aspects of the story as it progresses and, together with other passages of Scripture, look at questions that it poses for Christians today.
For more information and sample, click this link
©John Birch · Prayers written by the author may be copied freely for worship. If reproduced elsewhere please acknowledge author/website
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