NASHVILLE (BP) — This weekly Bible study appears in Baptist Press in a partnership with LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Through its Leadership and Adult Publishing team, Lifeway publishes Sunday School curricula and additional resources for all age groups.
This week’s Bible study is adapted from the Bible Studies For Life curriculum.
Bible Passage: Romans 10:9-10
Discussion Questions:
- Where do you turn for trustworthy information?
- Why do you think it is challenging to share the Gospel with others?
- What is it about the Gospel that you’d like to communicate with others?
Food for Thought:
Developing relationships and friendships online has become commonplace, but what happens if one of those “friends” refuses to meet in person? A documentary television series investigates online-only relationships. Suspicions arise that the person refusing to meet isn’t who he (or she) pretends to be, and the show’s investigators seek to discover the truth. Unfortunately, most cases are heartbreaking because the person being deceived has no idea he’s (she’s) not in the relationship he (she) perceived.
We long to connect with others who will accept and love us authentically. Many who feel they have no success in relationships turn to the internet as a way to connect with someone else. This documentary reveals some people’s desperate need to trust someone who will value and honor them.
Trust is a major issue in our society. The documentary is indicative of a culture severely lacking in truthfulness and trust, but fortunately there’s an answer. His name is Jesus. A relationship with Him provides the promise of an eternal future with the One who can always be trusted.
In Romans 10:9-10, trusting Jesus for salvation is as near as our mouths and our hearts. What we do with our mouths and hearts is seen in two simultaneous actions:
- Believe in your heart. “Faith” is believing and trusting in something or someone. “Trust” is our assured reliance on the character, ability, strength or truth of the thing or person in which we place our trust. To “believe in your heart” is to place our total trust and reliance on what we believe. Through faith and trust in Jesus, we believe and receive Him as our Savior.
- Confess with your mouth. We confirm our belief in the Gospel and the lordship of Christ by confessing it with our mouth. To confess Jesus as Lord is to set Him apart from anyone or anything else. There is no other God; only Jesus is Lord.
Our inward belief and outward confession go hand in hand; they are two sides of the same coin. The result of believing and confessing is salvation.
Bible Studies for Life
Bible Studies for Life connects the Bible to life for adults, students and kids. Bible Studies for Life helps individuals and groups know God’s Word through trustworthy content, creates biblical community through engaging and conversational group studies, and helps people engage the culture missionally by unpacking what the Bible says about real-life issues. More information can be found on the internet at biblestudiesforlife.com.
