Four Kinds of “Questionable” Discussion Questions — and How to Avoid Them

Writing discussion questions at the end of a book chapter, or as part of a Bible study or curriculum, is far more complex than most authors seem to realize. First of all, there is the range of knowledge in your potential audience. You need to write questions that are simple and straightforward enough to be understood by newer believers, but challenging enough to cause a seasoned student of the Bible to think. Second, you need to have a mix of question styles — ones that directly address the specific content of a Scripture passage or the book’s chapter, and others that ask how a particular truth applies to the reader’s life.

With these issues to navigate, you can see that making good discussion questions has its challenges. But you should do fine if you avoid certain “questionable” questions. Let me describe a few of them:

Questions that don’t breed discussion. A question that can be answered yes or no, or invites a one-word response, shuts down a group discussion, rather than stimulating it. (This why it is referred to as a “closed” question.) For instance, “Who betrayed Jesus in the garden?” is both a simplistic and a dead-end question. It might be okay if you are writing curriculum for the primary class, but it is unlikely to lead to a lively debate in an adult Bible study. You might ask a closed question if it is a challenge — a question that may (gently) call for confession, like “Do you have trouble maintaining a regular habit of prayer?” But then follow it up with some analysis of the problem: “What changes in your life might improve your prayer time?” Needless to say, challenge questions need to be few and far between, and sprinkled with grace. Frequent and heavy-handed discussion questions can make the group wonder if they’ve stumbled into a police interrogation!“Altar call” questions — the kind a preacher makes just before he asks his audience to “walk the sawdust trail.” You know what I mean: a question that presses for a decision, an immediate response, such as, “Will you resolve to love God more fully?” It’s a great thing to ask at the end of a sermon, but not as a discussion starter! (Besides, the question demands a yes; what if the person wants to say no?) Most importantly, though, an “altar call” question it doesn’t invite the reader to deep reflection. Better to ask a question like, “If you resolved to love God more fully, how would it affect your daily routine?” Subjective questions about objective truths. A subjective question is fine if it refers to personal feelings or actions, such as “What would you have done in Paul’s situation?” Such questions have limited value, though they help the reader relate to the passage being read. But questions like “What does this passage mean to you?” are dangerous, inviting a private interpretation of Scripture. When faced with this very question in a Bible study, a well-known Christian teacher responded, “I don’t care what it means ‘to me,’ or to anyone else, for that matter. We should be asking what the Holy Spirit, speaking through the biblical author, intended it to mean.” Amen! I would only add that the question may have simply been poorly worded, and its intent should have been, “How does this passage apply to your life?” — a perfectly legitimate thing to ask!Ambiguous questions. Are you asking things like, “What are the three most important points of this topic?” It may be obvious to you what three points you are referring to, but possibly not to the reader! Asking, “How does Jesus reveal God’s glory?” is a question that could have a million answers, and the group may struggle to understand your point. It might help in this case to provide a biblical definition of the word “glory,” and then ask a more specific question: “What are some of the things Jesus did on earth that revealed God’s glory?”

Even if you are watching for these four kinds of “questionable” questions, they can often sneak in under your radar. it helps to have others read your questions, or better yet, try to have a group hold a discussion with your questions. After I started writing a study guide for a published book, a local church did an adult Sunday school class based on the book. The teacher graciously agreed to use my study guide, and gave me feedback on the class response to various questions. It was invaluable! Don’t ever be afraid to put your discussion questions to a real-life test.