Explore the Bible adult and student resources follow the same study plan. Our current plan began in 2014 and is the fifth journey through the Bible since the introduction of Explore the Bible in 1978. It ends with the Summer 2023 quarter.
We began preparing for the future several months ago. We started by asking God to direct our steps and to help us approach this process with humility. We looked at the previous study plans and noted the differences between each. We reviewed comments from users about the current study plan. We then developed a set of characteristics and went to work.
The primary characteristics dealt with alternating between the Old and New Testaments. The one exception was the Gospel accounts. Since Explore the Bible is designed for open groups with people joining groups throughout the study plan, we believed it’s important to place the Gospels throughout the plan as opposed to bunching them back to back to back to back.
As we created a plan and secured input, we made adjustments at each step. The last step was to hear from church leaders. The input we received from more than 350 leaders was invaluable, helping us see a couple of holes we needed to cover. We prayed some more as we weighed their comments and any potential changes. Now that the final adjustments have been made, we can announce that the next study plan for Explore the Bible adults and students is ready to be shared.
We still have a couple of years before we finish the current plan, but we know where we will be headed once that cycle is complete.
One of the things that struck us as we looked at previous plans was how God’s timing was seen in the various plans. As we thought about the way world events connected with the Bible books being studied at that time, we recognized that only God could have directed the creation of those study plans. We see that in the current plan. For example, studying Job and Ecclesiastes in the Summer of 2021 is significant as we reflect on what we have experienced the past year or so. And that will be followed in the Fall of 2021 with a focus on the joy of the gospel in Philippians. We look forward to seeing how God’s timing becomes evident in the new plan as well, trusting Him to be God in all things.
View the remaining studies in the current plan.
For the new study plan, what do the numbers 12 and 14 signify that are listed by four of the book listings?
Thank you!
Most quarters include thirteen Sundays, but a few contain twelve or fourteen. We were identifying the quarters that are the exception. We explain in the video included in this blog post why we placed the Bible books in these quarters if you want deeper insight in to that process.