By Debra Beachy
An international Bible Study project
One of Jesus’ most well-known messages in the Bible, the Sermon on the Mount, has recently been a source of excitement and fun for young people in Brunstad Christian Church (BCC), an international, non-denominational church based in Norway. In January of this year, BCC launched an online bible-study project centered around the Sermon on the Mount message, which can be found in the book of Matthew, chapters 5, 6 and 7. Aimed at reaching children and adults aged 12 to 36, this project is intended to make this important message interesting and easy to understand for young Christians all around the world, since it has been translated into 13 different languages.
In the past, BCC has launched similar online projects, focusing on various messages and parts of the Bible, as well as the history of our church and its founders.
How does it work?
The Sermon on the Mount project will run from January to the end of March, and culminate around Easter time with a grand finale streamed from the Easter Camp. The Easter Camp is an international event at BCC’s international conference center in Norway which provides youth from around the world with various activities and edification the week before Easter.
Aimed at reaching children and adults aged 12 to 36, this project is intended to make this important message interesting and easy to understand for young Christians all around the world…
Every weekday, a new video is available to watch, accompanied by various tasks, such as quizzes or watching bonus videos. Each video focuses on a couple of verses from the Sermon on the Mount, and follows the conversation between two of Jesus’ twelve disciples, Peter and Matthew, in the time after Jesus rose to heaven, but before the Holy Spirit came down on Pentecost. They are reminiscing about what Jesus said when he spoke to them on the mountain, and discuss the deeper meaning behind his words. Often, the videos will pause to repeat and underline especially important or thought-provoking sentences to help make sure they stick. Additional related articles and reading materials are also provided with each episode to give further understanding and insight into each topic.
Jesus’ life-changing message: A focus on the inward
In one of the videos, titled “I actually need a miracle,” Matthew and Peter talk about how different and life-changing Jesus’ words were, specifically when he says “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:3).
“And when he taught us, Jesus was pointing us in the completely opposite direction – away from all this focus on how things look on the outside and over to how things are in our minds and hearts.”
Peter says, “I was shocked. Matthew, it was like he was saying, ‘Israel has been waiting for the kingdom of heaven for all these hundreds of years, but I will give it to you here and now if you will listen and do just as I say.’” Matthew expresses that he hadn’t heard it that way, and they continue discussing. Matthew mentions that the Sadducees and Pharisees who study the Scriptures day and night, often would argue with each other about who knew them better – they wanted some sort of bragging rights. The Sadducees even challenged Jesus himself. Peter then points us back to the intention behind Jesus’ message on the mountain: “And when he taught us, Jesus was pointing us in the completely opposite direction – away from all this focus on how things look on the outside and over to how things are in our minds and hearts.”
I ask Christian (34), a mentor working closely with the Sermon on the Mount Project if he has gotten anything out of the project personally. Touching on the topic of being poor in spirit, he tells me, “I think what’s stuck out to me is if Jesus’ words are going to accomplish anything in me, then I have to be poor in spirit; I have to be able to be taught. I can’t manage anything on my own. I need Jesus to teach me.”
Engaging activities
A fun aspect of this bible-study project are the challenges and competition. There will be a raffle for a fun trip at the end, for everyone internationally who watched all the videos and completed all the associated tasks. Another perk of being up-to-date for the younger crowd is getting added to exclusive group chats with their local youth groups every week. Each local church then has the freedom to make challenges and games tailored to their youth group.
In Delaware, USA, these group chats have been extremely successful in creating a fun atmosphere around the project, especially for the younger ones. When I ask Katie (16) what her favorite part of the project was, she says, “The chats we get added to after watching the videos and doing the tasks. There are a lot of fun competitions and conversations that go on in them that make it exciting… The challenges and activities that we do are extremely fun and get the whole youth group along in competing. This gives me extra motivation to watch the videos and stay on track so that I can participate in all of the fun.” For everyone who makes it into the exclusive group chats, there have been group chat quizzes (with prizes, of course), treasure hunts, and other exciting activities. With everyone participating either glued to their screen eagerly awaiting the next question, furiously typing, or sprinting across rooms and diving over chairs for clues, it is not hard to tell that the energy and enthusiasm levels surrounding the Sermon on the Mount project are high.
“The project is extremely easy to follow along with and the way the different verses are explained and talked about in the videos makes it very easy to understand… That makes it even easier to see how I can use it in my own life.”
Relevant examples
One thing that makes this bible study project a bit different from what one might traditionally think of are the simple visuals and explanations, along with the down-to-earth conversations between Peter and Matthew, and situations they face and work through.
It can be easy to feel alienated from the stories and Jesus’ words written in the Bible because they happened so long ago, but even such incredible people like Jesus’ disciples… experienced similar situations and temptations, and had to humble themselves to live out the message Jesus came with, just like us today.
In one of the videos (“Judging others = bad deal”), Peter and Matthew are walking through town, joking around and swapping stories. They go to buy fish from a fishmonger who Peter is well acquainted with from his time as a fisherman. Peter is friendly with him, but the fishmonger responds in a curt and cold manner. Confused, Peter and Matthew walk away, pondering the interaction. Peter becomes irritated, ranting about how someone must have spread rumors about him, specifically a previous coworker who he calls “two-faced.” Matthew stops him and urges him to think about what Jesus said about not judging others: He calms Peter down, and helps him to see that his immediate reaction was to judge others. Peter quickly realizes this, humbles himself, and chooses to judge his own thoughts and reactions instead.
Though fictitious, the scenario played out in this video is an example of a real interaction the disciples could have had, and it really paints a picture of a situation that most people can relate to – even in the present. Both the cold interaction and the reaction to accuse others of spreading rumors are very much present in the 21st century. It can be easy to feel alienated from the stories and Jesus’ words written in the Bible because they happened so long ago, but even such incredible people like Jesus’ disciples were only human. They experienced similar situations and temptations, and had to humble themselves to live out the message Jesus came with, just like us today.
An accessible and applicable message
“The project is extremely easy to follow along with and the way the different verses are explained and talked about in the videos makes it very easy to understand,” Katie shares. “That makes it even easier to see how I can use it in my own life.”
The amount of effort that has gone into this bible study project both locally and worldwide is astonishing. It’s been incredible to see how Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount have been embraced by so many the past several weeks, and it will certainly be interesting to see what the rest of the project has in store!
