Hundreds of thousands of people each week have transformative encounters with God through Adult Bible Studies—Bible-based, Christ-focused Sunday school lessons and midweek Bible studies endorsed by the Curriculum Resources Committee of The United Methodist Church. Each week’s Student Book lesson lists background Scripture, features key verses, provides reliable and relevant biblical explanation and application, and more in a readable font size that is accessible to everyone. Additional information about Adult Bible Studies, Fall 2022 Theme: Freedom This fall, our Bible lessons follow the theme of “Freedom.” The lessons explore the concept of salvation and God’s gracious acts in redeeming us. They challenge we who have experienced God’s gracious salvation to work for freedom and justice on behalf of others. They acknowledge that as we do, we will encounter those whose beliefs and values are different from our own, so they encourage us to remain faithful to our beliefs while we act as neighbors to others. Unit 1 Rescue The concept of salvation is broad and inclusive of many divine actions by which we are rescued from the human predicament. The lessons in this unit focus on the freedom to which we are liberated. In the Roman world, the freer you were, the more power you exercised over others. Today, we think of freedom as the ability to do whatever we want without restrictions. In the Bible, freedom is about choosing to whom or what we devote ourselves without restriction. Paul described that choice as servitude to sin or becoming a slave to Christ. Scriptures: Exodus 1:1-2:10; Exodus 15:1-18; Exodus 17:1-16; Deuteronomy 30:15-20 Spiritual Practice: Living With Intentionality Unit 2 Justice In the commandments that God gave in the covenant at Sinai, God repeatedly called the Israelites to extend justice and share their blessings with widows, orphans, and strangers in their midst. This triad represented the most vulnerable people within ancient society. Widows, orphans, and strangers appear frequently throughout the Old and New Testament narratives in ways that illustrate this divine mandate. The measure of justice or righteousness found throughout Scripture is whether one cares for the “widow, the orphan, and the stranger.” The lessons in this unit invite us to ask ourselves, who are the most vulnerable in our society? Who in our community are excluded from the common good? Who has trouble providing for themselves or gaining access to the courts and public services? Scriptures: James 2:14-17, Exodus 22:21-27; 1 Kings 17:8-24, Luke 21:1-4; John 9:1-7, 35-38; Luke 18:1-8; Ezekiel 47:21-23 Spiritual Practice: Awareness Unit 3 Faithful Conversations We increasingly find ourselves living in communities and working with people from diverse backgrounds. While we may not agree with the beliefs of others, we seek peaceable and neighborly relationships. The lessons in this unit explore the models for neighborly conversations with people of various faith traditions. Scriptures: Acts 17:16-31; 2 Kings 5:1-19; Exodus 18:1, 13-27; Romans 14:13-19 Spiritual Practice: Listening Other Adult Bible Study components, sold separately, include: Teacher/Commentary Kit The Kit includes a Teacher Book with additional biblical background, exposition, suggestions for guiding group discussion, and a copy of the quarterly Adult Bible Studies Concise Commentary, designed for readers who seek a solid biblical basis for each session of Adult Bible Studies. DVD/Video Does your group enjoy watching videos to generate conversation around Bible studies? Video sessions directly correspond to the Adult Bible Studies quarter’s theme and content and feature a segment for each Bible lesson. Visit AdultBibleStudies.com and sign up for the weekly newsletter to automatically receive the FREE Current Events Supplement and other information about these resources and more!