The folks at LifeWay and Crossway are grateful for a new partnership that will now allow adults, students, and kids to access The Gospel Project (curriculum from Lifeway) with the English Standard Version (Bible translation from Crossway).
The two publishers have partnered together to give away 15 Group Starter Kits (worth $100), which include:
Here’s a short description of The Gospel Project:
The Gospel Project is a Bible study resource that invites Adults, Students, and Kids of all ages to dive deeply into God’s story of redemption through Jesus Christ. In every lesson, participants are immersed in the gospel and learn how when the gospel works on them, they become a part of the story, too, the very hands and feet in God’s gospel project. The Gospel Project is designed to unify an entire church under a single Christ-centered curriculum. Separate study plans for adults, students, and kids ensure the proper focus and depth for each age group.
Trevin Wax (PhD cand., Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary) is the managing editor of the Gospel Project, and Dane Ortlund (PhD, Wheaton Graduate School) is senior vice president for Bible publishing at Crossway and the managing editor of the ESV Gospel Transformation Bible. They were both kind enough to answer some questions about the partnership and their respective projects
What have you enjoyed most about working on each project?
Trevin on TGP: Two things stand out for me. The first is the sheer privilege it is to labor over the Word of God and grow in my own understanding as I help fashion tools for leaders and teachers to expound God’s Word to others. I love being in God’s Word, so much of my enjoyment comes from spending so much time in the text.
The other aspect that I’ve enjoyed is getting to work with so many gifted people. From my fellow Gospel Project team members, to the writers we’ve brought in, to the pastors and leaders who love the material. . . . I’ve met many amazing people in the past two years.
Dane on the ESV: There is no greater earthly treasure than the Bible. I get up in the morning and travel four blocks to get to my Crossway office to spend the day helping people around the world have the Bible and theologically responsible, gospel-rich resources on the Bible. All working from a translation that is both accurate and elegant. You kidding me? What privilege.
How has the Church responded to the work?
Trevin on TGP: We’ve been blessed by the response. We launched last fall with almost 500,000 participants. We believe we’ll surpass that mark this fall as more and more churches begin using the curriculum. When I talk with people using The Gospel Project, I generally hear two things: “Thank you” (they are grateful for Bible study for all ages that intentionally focuses our attention on Christ) and “This is rich” (they enjoy the depth of discussion prompted by the questions).
Dane on the ESV: It is nothing short of remarkable to see the growth of interest in the ESV around the world in the short 12 years it has been in existence. Awana, Child Evangelism Fellowship, and the Gideons have recently adapted the ESV. The ESV Bible is the number one annotated resource on Amazon—that includes not just Bible, and not just Christian books, but all books, period. We at Crossway sit back stunned at what God has done with this faithful, readable translation.
What are some thoughts on The Gospel Project now being available with ESV?
Trevin: I have been a reader of the ESV since it first came out. I appreciate the translation philosophy, the literary aspect of working from within the King James tradition, and the multiple formats the text is available in. It is a terrific translation. For this reason, as LifeWay has multiplied translation options in recent months, I was particularly excited to know that churches using The Gospel Project would now have the option of adopting the ESV as their translation of choice.
Dane: I love LifeWay. I love The Gospel Project. It is therefore a joy to partner with LifeWay by providing the ESV for this important curriculum. I believe strongly not only in the broader mission of LifeWay, but also in The Gospel Project specifically. In a publishing world that is happily seeing an abundance of gospel-rich resources, this is among the best.
How would churches, small groups, individuals benefit from this partnership?
Trevin: Church leaders recognize the value of having people use the same translation of Scripture. If a pastor preaches from the ESV every week, it will be a help to his congregation if their small group curriculum also uses the ESV as its main translation. I pray that pastors and churches will benefit from using the same translation in the pulpit and in the small group every week.
Dane: By having The Gospel Project available in the ESV, believers who use the ESV in daily life don’t need to be switching back and forth between different versions as they now work through The Gospel Project. This partnership therefore helps the church by allowing for continuity between the Bible they read and hear preached on the one hand and the Bible they study through The Gospel Project on the other hand.
