God and You (Romans 1-5)

Ask the average person in the street: “What’s Christianity all about?” or: “What is a Christian?”—and you’ll probably get answers like “Believing in God” or “Someone who tries to live a good life”. Most people assume that Christians live (or claim to live) good lives, following rules taught by Jesus. Most people think becoming a Christian is too difficult or makes you a hypocrite. Most people have missed what real Christianity is…

That’s why God and You has been written. Six discussions introduce people to the heart of the Christian good news, as recorded in the Bible and taught throughout the history of the Christian church. The course (originally called “Scripture Under Scrutiny”) was designed for Australian university students with no church background or Bible knowledge. But it has been developed and expanded for use with people of all ages and backgrounds.

The course looks at part of Paul’s letter to Christians in Rome, where he summarises the Christian message—in fact, the message of the whole Bible. In each session there are Bible passages to read and questions to discuss—these open up the meaning of Paul’s letter, ask how the Bible teaching fits with people’s experience of the world, and get people to reflect on what this could mean for them.

A downloadable Leader’s Guide is available to highlight the issues raised in each discussion, provide target answers for the questions, and help you prepare to take people through the course.

God and You can be used with people who are looking into the Bible for the first time. No previous Bible knowledge is needed. Every passage looked at is printed in the handbook, along with a dictionary feature that explains unfamiliar terms or words used differently in the Bible from everyday life.

We hope that God and You will be a real eye-opener and help many to see that the message of Jesus Christ is truly fantastic good news—for our world, for us, for today.