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Bible Study: April 28, 2019


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 Explore the Bible curriculum.

Bible Passage: Mark 10:35-45

Discussion Questions:
— If you were asked to do something and were told you could never tell anyone that you did it, would you still do it? Why or why not?
— How can we make sure our reasons for helping someone or for volunteering are pure?

Food for thought:

Susan Bennett may not mean much to you, but she has addressed many of us. In 2005, she was contracted to record a series of sentences and phrases for a secret project. The company who hired her took those recordings and organized the words and sounds for a voice recognition project. This project would become what we know as Siri.

In 2011 when we were introduced to Siri, news agencies around the world began to search for the person behind the voice. That search eventually led them to Susan Bennett, who is a voice professional. It would have been naïve to think the identity would remain a secret. Most of us would let everyone know if we were the voice behind Siri as well.

In Mark 10, we find two of Jesus’ disciples approaching Him and requesting the right to sit in the seats of honor. James and John were not shy about the request and went so far as to proclaim that they had what was required to occupy those chairs. We are told that their request upset the other disciples when they became aware of the request. Jesus stepped in and reminded all of them that it was not about position but about serving others with pure motives.

Jesus pointed to Himself as the example, explaining that His purpose in coming to earth was to serve humanity by giving His life to provide for humanity’s freedom from sin.

We like to be recognized for our accomplishments and especially for going the extra mile. But when the goal is the recognition, the act becomes tarnished. We have to look in the mirror and ask if we would be willing to do what we did even if no one ever knew we did it. As followers of Jesus, we must not let the credits at the end of the movie get in the way of us representing Christ in this world. He is the only One worthy of being listed in the credits at the end anyway!

Explore the Bible
Explore the Bible is an ongoing Bible study curriculum that helps groups dig into the key truths of each Bible book, while keeping the group on pace to study through the Bible books in a systematic way. More information can be found at LifeWay.com/ExploreTheBible.

Other ongoing Bible study options for all ages offered by LifeWay can be found at LifeWay.com/SundaySchool or ordered at LifeWay Christian Stores.

    About the Author

  • Staff/Lifeway Christian Resources