Recently I was teaching a mother and her two sons (Grade 7 & 4) through By This Name. Before getting through the first chapter I quickly realized that they knew hardly anything about the Bible. They commented that it was a mystery to them and were excited to know what it said. While they worked hard to keep up in our study, it seemed as though reaching a clear understanding of the message was going to be a monumental task that could take many months, given their availability of only a few hours each week.

After talking to John about this I decided to take one night and use The Lamb to string the Bible basics together. The family welcomed the opportunity to learn the "bigger picture" first and then return to deeper study of By this Name. We read through The Lamb as a group and finished it in a single evening.

Throughout the discussion questions of The Lamb I learned that this family was believing a message, but it was the wrong message. They didn't understand that Jesus was God, they just knew that there was a family relationship. They also believed that to be with God required church attendance and confession.

Reading through the Lamb not only exposed these errors but layered the correct understanding in their minds. By the end of the evening each of them had a clear profession of faith...the message had become clear and they believed it.

Afterwards, they mentioned taking the book and reading it to their little brother who is in grade one. I have since heard they have been sharing with others how excited they are about the Lamb and anxious to pick back up with By this Name. What an opportunity to be an ambassador in God's work.