The Bible was central to John Wesley’s faith and the Christian movement he founded. In Scripture and the Wesleyan Way , you will discover a Wesleyan approach to the Bible and the Christian life through a Bible study using Wesley’s own words. In this study, authors Scott and Arthur Jones use John Wesley’s sermons to illuminate the Bible passages at the heart of Wesley’s understanding of what it means to be a real Christian. Each chapter explores a key Scripture text and one of Wesley’s sermons on it. Through their insightful and engaging study, Bishop Jones and his son Arthur show how the teachings of Wesley address questions that many of us in the twenty-first century still struggle with today. The Leader Guide contains everything needed to guide a group through the eight-week study including session plans, activities, and discussion questions, as well as multiple format options. A Bible study with John Wesley. Arthur Jones is the senior associate pastor and preaching pastor at St. Andrew United Methodist Church in Plano, Texas. His passions involve preaching a real and practical faith, engaging people with the Bible and current issues that affect day-to-day life, and providing leadership and vision for the next phases of church life. Arthur is a fifth-generation Methodist preacher who grew up in churches across North Texas. He is a graduate of the University of Kansas and Duke Divinity School, and the co-author of Ask: Faith Questions in a Skeptical Age. Arthur is married to Becky (a Houston native), and they have recently had their first child Sam. Scott J. Jones is the Resident Bishop of the Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church and served as Bishop of the Great Plains area of The United Methodist Church. He was formerly the McCreless Associate Professor of Evangelism at Perkins School of Theology, where he taught courses in evangelism and Wesley studies. Previous books include The Wesleyan Way, The Evangelistic Love of God & Neighbor, Staying at the Table, and Wesley and the Quadrilateral, all published by Abingdon Press. of the United Methodist Church and served as Bishop of the Great Plains area of The United Methodist Church. Scripture and the Wesleyan Way Leader Guide A Bible Study on Real Christianity By Scott J. Jones, Arthur D. Jones Abingdon Press Copyright © 2018 Abingdon Press All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-5018-6795-8 Contents To the Group Leader, Chapter 1. What Is the Bible's Message?, Chapter 2. How Can I Be Saved?, Chapter 3. Am I a Real Christian?, Chapter 4. Do I Have to Obey the Law?, Chapter 5. Am I a Sinner?, Chapter 6. How Can I Connect with God?, Chapter 7. Why Is the Christian Life So Hard?, Chapter 8. What About My Money?, Sermons of John Wesley, CHAPTER 1 Session 1 What Is the Bible's Message? Session Summary In the introduction to Scripture and the Wesleyan Way, the authors express their conviction that John Wesley's approach to Scripture can help us read the Bible faithfully and renew the church. In each of the chapters of this book, the authors present a spiritual question and explore its importance for us today. They look at biblical texts related to these questions and at a sermon by John Wesley in which he did the same thing. Chapter 1 focuses on the question "What is the Bible's message?" Scott and Arthur Jones present two truths about the Bible — that it is important and that it is complicated — and explore four Wesleyan principles for acknowledging these truths and discerning the Bible's message. The authors propose that one of the most important messages in the Bible is about the kingdom of God. Wesley's sermon "The Way to the Kingdom" provides us with a vision of what that kingdom is and isn't and affirms the ways the individual believer can experience a true "religion of the heart" through trusting God's life-changing love revealed in Jesus Christ. Charles Wesley's famous hymn "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" describes how that love can change our hearts. Before Class • On a large sheet of paper, write the following incomplete sentence: "The Bible's primary message is ..." Place the sheet in a prominent location in the meeting area that is accessible to participants. Alternatively, write these words on a portion of a whiteboard. • On another large sheet of paper (or another section of the whiteboard) write the words of Romans 14:17 in the translation used in the book (KJV): "The kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." • Post another large sheet of paper (or reserve a third section of whiteboard) for the exercise titled "Understanding the Religion of the Heart." • Have Bibles available for group members who may not bring their own. • Provide markers of varied colors, pencils, pens, and blank paper for use during the session. • Since this is the first session, have name tags available if the participants do not know one another. Welcome As persons e