Today we are kicking off a new message series as we prepare to read The Story. Just as we read through the New Testament last year, over the next five months we will read through the entire narrative of the Old Testament. And while we know that reading the Bible can be intimidating, it is made easier by reading just a small portion of it each week. But it is also made easier when you remember that, in the end, you are just being asked to read a single story. That’s right… I just want you to read this one story with me… and then let’s talk about it.

Jeremiah 31:31-34

31 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. 33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put My law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”

For Adult Homes and Groups

1. Grab a pen and paper and, within your group, ask everyone to say the first things that come to mind when they think of the Old Testament. Don’t think about it, just say whatever comes to mind. Create a list of at least 10 - 12 words/phrases.

2. Now do the same thing but about the New Testament.

3. Looking at the two lists, discuss the following:

a. What do the lists have in common?

b. What are the primary differences between the two lists?

c. How would you summarize a description of each based on what was said?

d. What truths and misconceptions are represented in the lists/summaries?

4. What are the truths/misconceptions that people outside of the Church might have about the Bible?

5. Close by praying for an opportunity to share just one truth from God’s Word this week.