GAMES

The games below make use of one or more of the Gospel summary charts shown at the bottom of the page.

Simple Roll & Share

The six numbers on an ordinary die can represent the four Gospels: Matthew as one, Mark as two, Luke as three, and John as four. In addition, five can represent the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), and six can represent all four Gospels.
    The simplest game is for players to take turns rolling a die and sharing from the appropriate Gospel(s) using the summary charts to find passages to share. For instance, if someone were to roll a five, he or she would earn five points and be required to speak briefly about something in one or perhaps in all three of the Synoptics (Matthew, Mark, and Luke). If the group members are all adults, scoring is, of course, optional.

For a more advance version of this roll and share game, players drop two or more dice on top of a Four Gospel Summary prints placed flat on a table. Points are earned when an appropriate die number rests on top of one of the Gospels on the print. For Matthew, appropriate values would be 1 (for the first Gospel), 5 (for Matthew being one of the Synoptic Gospels), or 6 (which points to any of the Gospels). For Mark, points would be earned for 2, 5, or 6. For Luke the numbers should be 3, 5, or 6. For John, only 4 or 6 would be winning numbers.
    Again sharing is be included, with players saying something like, "I like Matthew / Mark / Luke / John because..."

High Scoring Roll & Share

A die with 28 or 30 sides can be purchased and used. These can point to chapter numbers in the four Gospels. So if a player were to roll a TWO with an ordinary die and a TEN on the larger special die, this would point to Mark (the second Gospel) chapter ten and could be worth ten points. If the ordinary die roll had resulted in a six, however, chapter ten of all four Gospels would be in play, and the total score for that turn would be 40 (4X10). Of course, if a 30 were rolled, there would be no chapter indicated, since the highest chapter count is Matthew chapter 28. Thus the score for that turn would be zero. The awarding of points, again, is optional since learning to use the summary charts and sharing is more important.

What chapter is this (in)?

Individual players try to guess which chapter contains a verse that is read by the game leader. For instance, if Luke 15:17 -- which is about the prodigal son's repentance -- is read many will immediately recognize the story, but they may not know where it is located in the Gospels. Three points are awarded for the correct answer (Luke chapter 15) on the first reading, before a Four Gospel Summary Charts may be used. Two points are earned for getting the chapter correct on the second reading when the summary charts should be used, and one point is awarded for the correct answer on the third reading when additional hints are given.

Rather than loudly shouting out the chapter and quickly ending the game for everyone, each participant is to write down his or her answer after each reading. At the end of each round, after the third reading and various hints have been given, the leader: 1.) allows participants to share their answers and thoughts, 2.) gives the correct answer, and 3.) most importantly, teaches some key biblical truths based on the verse that was read and its context.

In an alternative form of this game, individual players take turns choosing a chapter in the four Gospels and others try to guess which chapter it is. Rather than the individual giving hints, however, the other players ask Yes / No questions to narrow down the possibilities. One point is earned for each question asked. This is somewhat like Four Gospels Golf below.

Four Gospels Golf

Participants are divided up into teams and everyone is given one of the Gospel summary charts. In each round one member of the team is given a chapter in one of the Gospels that the other member or members of his or her team are to guess. As in golf, the winning team after several rounds will be the one with the smallest number of hints given and wrong guesses made. After each hint, at least one guess must be made.

For instance, the leader may give a team's hint giver Luke chapter 21. A good first hint for this chapter would be, "I'm about the end times." A team member then might wrongly guess Matthew chapter 24. Next the hint giver probably should say, "I'm in Luke's Gospel." Then team members could easily guess that the right answer is Luke chapter 21. This round would resulted in four points, much like four golf strokes.

The game leaders should pick chapters about which he or she is prepared to speak after the right answer is given. Also, usually the chapters that are to be guessed should not be too easy. For instance, John chapter 15 is easy to guess since it is the only one which is about Jesus as the True Vine. It would be like a par two hole in golf. Mark chapter six is more difficult, however, since Jesus' walking on water is in three different Gospels and chapters. So it would be like a par four hole.

Each hint is like a single stroke in golf and may not contain two pieces of information. For instance the following sentence --"This chapter is about a great catch and the call of Matthew." -- contains two bits of information which would make guessing Luke chapter five too easy. It would be like hitting the ball twice rather than just once.

Find and Read from the Passage(s)

Each participant is given a copy of a summary chart and after the leader explains some basics about the Gospels the game might begin with the leader shouting out, "the raising of Lazarus." The first member to stand and begin reading a fitting verse would earn three points.

If there is a great diversity of Bible knowledge in the group, the leader can even things up with hints such as by saying, "It's in John's Gospel." So beginners would have a good chance of winning or coming in second or third and earning points.

CAUTION: A wise leader will be careful to not spend more than five to ten minutes lecturing about the content of the Gospels before beginning the game. He or she should instead be prepared to teach about the Gospels while the game is being played, here a little, there a little. Also rules regarding the use of smart phones and tablets must be established before the game begins!