Knowing and Living Your Faith, a commentary and study guide on the International Community of Mennonite Brethren (ICOMB) Confession of Faith released in June, is a 130-page booklet prepared by 16 international leaders. All global MB churches are encouraged to use the resource for Bible-intensive study between Sept. 2008–Dec. 2009.
An adult Sunday school class recently field tested the study guide materials. “The class responded well to a test-run of the pre-publication material of ICOMB’s, Knowing and Living Your Faith, but I learned a few things,” commented instructor Steve Ewert. Ewert is a former pastor now teaching in the Fresno (Cal.) Unified School District.
Chapters entitled “God’s Redemption Story,” “Learning about the Holy Spirit,” and “People of Reconciliation and Peacemaking” garnered strong interest. However, materials based on summaries drawn from the entire Bible were challenging for some students more accustomed to studying a single Bible passage, Ewert noted.
The following are suggestions for teachers who plan to use the study guide:
- Focus on one or two aspects of the chapter at a time, such as, “What Does The Bible Say?” or “Living With The Belief.”
- Distribute photocopies of either the relevant article or the entire ICOMB Confession of Faith.
- Invite the class, individually or in groups, to rewrite an abbreviated statement of faith on the topic.
- Encourage your pastor to coordinate Sunday morning messages with the Sunday school class discussions.
- Devote at least three months to the study; there’s ample material for up to nine months.
“I enjoyed teaching the Bible using the study guide. I look forward to working with the final product,” said Ewert.
To order your copy of the study guide, please contact Kindred Productions (www.kindredproductions.com).
