Today we are looking at the final piece in the armor of God and it is the only offensive weapon that Paul lists in the whole thing. We have talked about shields, helmets and all kinds of armor to defend us from spiritual attacks but our main weapon to attack on our own is according to Ephesians 17 the “,sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
If you were here last week, in groups we looked at Jesus in the wilderness. If you missed it Jesus goes out into the wilderness to fast for 40 days. As he is fasting and praying, satan shows up and tries to tempt him. He throws a bunch of lies and temptations at him and Jesus’ response every time was to use the Word of God. Everything the devil had to throw at him was fought back with the Bible.
Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
This is why it’s so important for us to know the word of God. It is our strongest weapon. It’s not just some old history book that we read because we think we have to. It is powerful. We are constantly learning and growing because of the Word of God. Isaiah says that God’s Word never comes back void. That means when we read it, there is always something to get out of it. Sometimes you will read it and be amazed by what you learn in God’s Word and sometimes you read it and don’t feel like you are getting much out of it. But even on those days where it feels like there isn’t much to it. It is still working. It is always doing something in our hearts and minds and transforming us to be more like Christ.
Not only is it a weapon against the enemy. It is also a guide for our lives.
Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”
And 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
God inspired human authors to write every word in the Bible so we can use it to learn about who God is, grow to become more like Christ and fight our enemy with it. It is so important that we know and understand the Bible.
Here’s the problem. A lot of us know how important reading the Bible is. I bet everyone in this room wants to read the Bible actively. But we don’t do it because we don’t know how. If you don’t know where to start or what to do it can be very difficult to read and understand the Bible. You open it up and there’s hundreds of pages and you have no idea where to start. When you finally do pick a place to start, you have no idea how to actually get anything out of it. So you get overwhelmed and give up. I have gone through that cycle so many times, that’s why over the next 6 weeks we are going to learn together how to read the bible.
Signs
Needs: Have each student in your small group come up with a unique sign which is a movement or motion such as touching their nose, brushing their hair, giving two thumbs up, etc.Set- Up: Seat all students in a circle and have them all show off the sign that they have created.Directions:
*Start your group by passing out journals and pens to each of your group members and explain to them that over the next 6 weeks as a group you will be studying the Bible and taking notes together. So, every week they need to have that journal at small group. It is essential that everyone has it. As a leader it would be helpful to send reminders to your group every week before your next small group meeting. We will also have extra new testament bibles for anyone in your group that doesn’t have one. But it would be wise to encourage your group to bring their own next time.*
1. Not only are we going to be reading together in groups but we have been challenged this year to read through the new testament in a year on our own. *Show everyone how to find the new testament bible challenge on the sagebrush app*
2. Do you have a consistent habit of reading the Bible and spending quiet time with God?
3. What gets in your way of reading the Bible?
4. Two of the biggest obstacles to reading God’s Word are 1. Not enough time and 2. Not knowing where to start. Let’s combat those together by prioritizing our small group time to read together over the next few weeks. Today we are going to talk about how and next week we are going to get started.
5. Everyone open your journals to the first page. At the top left write an S. Then a few lines below write an O, a few lines below write an A, then towards the bottom of the page write a P. *show an example of what it should look like at the bottom of the page.*
6, These letters stand for scripture, observation, application, and prayer. That is the method we are going to use to study together. Step 1, let's read our scripture. Today we will just read one verse. 2 Timothy 3:16-17. Everyone open your bibles and read it for yourself. *give about 5 minutes to quietly read the verse over a few times
7. Now that we have read the verse, we are going to write an observation about it. The easiest way to do that is answering a few questions.
a. What is happening in this verse? b. What is God doing or saying in this verse? c. What can I learn from this verse?
8. Let’s spend some time quietly writing an observation in our journals. *give about 5-7 minutes to write their observations*
9.Now we are going to write the application. The easiest way to do it is answer this question
a. What should I do based on what I just read?
10. Let’s take 5 minutes to write our answers. Make sure to really think about it and even pray about it. Don’t just rush to write an answer.
11. Now finally we will write our prayer. Pray and ask God to help you understand His Word and do the thing you wrote down. Thank Him for giving us His Word to know Him better. *give about 5 minutes to write prayers*
Now that we have read and taken some notes, let’s share with each other what we learned from this verse. *start by sharing your notes and take about 5-10 minutes to share people’s observations and applications. Be prepared to gently guide and correct any misunderstandings of the verse. Give time for any questions students may have about studying God’s Word. Pray and remind everyone to bring their bibles and journals next week. *Remind your group to start the new testament bible study challenge and check in on it every week*
S: Write the verse that stuck out to you from what you read
2 Timothy 3:16-17
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.
O: Write an observation about the verse that stuck out to you most here.
A: Write an application for your life here. What should I do based on what I just read?
P: Pray about what you just read.
©2026 Sagebrush Church
