Revitalize your bible study simply by asking a whole different type of questions. Take the story of The Man with the Withered Hand: what did it feel like for the disabled man (who has lived in one small village his whole life) to have all his friends and neighbors give a thumbs-down to his healing? In an Honor/Shame culture, what did it mean for him to get dissed in that way? And consider this: we often think Jesus knows everything before it happens. But if that is so, why did Jesus invite the guy up front knowing he'd get totally embarrassed! Did this situation  turn out in a way Jesus wasn't expecting? And what does that tell us about Jesus' humanity?

How to Read the Bible Like a Human Being is about engaging scripture with the emotional brain instead of the rational, and trying to grasp what Jesus experiencedinstead of what he taught. The product of three years of research into first-century life and culture, these studies focus on visualizing scenes in the bible and grasping what the characters are thinking and feeling. Volume Three covers Mark 2:14 - 3:15, and includes participant materials for twelve weeks of in-depth study on four passages:

• The Call of Levi: He had extorted from the disciples’ families for years. Then things get even more awkward when he invites the rabbi‘s team to a party with his riff-raff friends.
• Harvesting Grain on the Sabbath: You’d have to be really famished to make a meal of raw wheat berries. So how often did Jesus’ disciples go hungry?
• The Man with the Withered Hand: Jesus healed this man on the Sabbath without breaking any of the Pharisee’s regulations. But why was he so careful?
• Crowds Follow and Twelve Are Chosen: After a chaotic and exhausting day, Jesus decides doing this alone isn’t working. So, he chooses twelve teammates to help shoulder the load.

These small-group studies are completely discussion-based, using incisive questions developed by a master coach who has taught asking skills to thousands of professional coaches for 25 years. Along with the companion Leader's Guide, each of the four studies in this Workbook provide:

• Setting Videos: Shot on location in Israel, these short videos help you picture where it happened (accessed from the Leader's Guide).
• Background Information: Learn about fascinating cultural details from Jesus’ day that influence how you read the story.
• Free Texting App: You'll get one short text each weekday with one cool fact about the passage to help you keep your head in the game during the week.
• Questions for Jesus about the passage you can ask during your devotions that week.
• Research Links you can follow to explore the background of the passage on your own.

About the Author
Tony Stoltzfus has decades of ministry experiences, including 25 years training professional Christian coaches on how to ask great questions like the one's these materials are based on. He's the author of 20 books, has founded several leadership- and missions organizations, and coached hundreds of pastors and para-church leaders. He and his wife Kathy have been married for 35 years and have two adult children.