Browse the Bible studies from any major Christian publisher and you'll immediately notice they are categorized demographically: teens, senior adults, children, women, men. Often they are found in the small group resource category as well.

While separating people according to their age, gender or interests may help make religious instruction more relevant, many churches are discovering how bringing the entire congregation together for discipleship can make religious instruction life changing — and church changing.

They are intense studies. They involve a short-term commitment. Everyone is involved. Church-wide Bible studies not only strengthen believers, they build the community of the congregation and clarify its purpose as a body.

While the pulpit has traditionally been the point at which all members of a congregation come together to hear the same message, churches are increasingly discovering the value of discipleship training aimed at the whole congregation at once.

No other movement has showcased the healthy changes possible in churches through corporate study programs better than Purpose Driven.

Church-wide discipleship

Since 2002 more than 20,000 churches of all denominations and sizes have experienced Pastor Rick Warren and Saddleback Church's Purpose Driven training. And there's no denying that congregations that undertake the 40 Days of Purpose intensive short-term discipleship tool change. They become healthier, more balanced churches, fully equipped and enthused to disciple others and to change lives.

“40 Days of Purpose will help your congregation focus on the Kingdom of God,” Warren says, “showing each member how to join God in his work throughout the world.” He has called Purpose Driven a holy movement and is confident in the study's effectiveness in any church.

The training unifies congregations first through prayer and then through unified focus. “It's amazing what happens when your church concentrates on the same truth at the same time,” Warren says.

Instead of women's Bible study, men's Bible study, children's chapel, teen groups and a myriad of other striations of discipleship in the local body, entire congregations are centered on one teaching. This unity creates community connections. And the program centers on Jesus' summation of the law, to love God and love others.

Church-wide fellowship (with food)

Loving God and loving others is also the basis for a new church-wide study from Group Publishing called Friendship First.

“Friendship First helps you and your church grow in friendship with each other and with Jesus,” says Thom Schultz, president of Group and co-author the study with his wife, Joani.

The study includes kits for adults, youth, children and a church leader. And it takes the church recipe book to a new level, offering recipes and ideas to use food as a springboard for conversation. Thirteen planned get-togethers include a meal or snack.

There are also multimedia helps for related sermons. “So your whole church can be on the same page,” Thom says. Not only does that bring the church together as a Christian community, it brings Christian families together.

“Children and parents have new opportunities to talk about their faith,” says Joani. “Unity and community can grow exponentially.”

And that is the point at which the church-wide program extends into the community and the church becomes a magnet for others seeking friendships and a group where they can belong.

Church-wide edification

With an emphasis on edification, every January, Lifeway Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention offers churches a way to begin a new year in unity with January Bible Study. Thousands of congregations across the country participate.

“These annual short-term studies are a great way to get your entire church interested in sharing and studying the Bible together,” according to Lifeway. Resources for preschoolers through senior adults are included. And Lifeway recommends the four-session study anytime in the calendar year if January won't work. But for many churches, the January Bible Study is a tradition.

The JBS 2006 Planning and Promotional Pack includes an administrative guide, promotional posters and sampler learner guides. The 2006 focus is the book of Nehemiah.

Denomination-wide study

In a way, church-wide studies for independent churches emulate the liturgical calendar followed by many mainline protestant denominations and Catholic churches because they keep an entire congregation focused on the same passages of Scripture or the same biblical teachings at the same time. Congregants pray together, study together and grow closer as a body even as they grow closer to God.

Some groups have gone even further, providing denominational curriculum. The Presbyterian Church USA publishes the We Believe curriculum, including an all-church component for the summer of 2005 based on the basics of the Christian faith.

Lessons build upon how modern-day individuals are spreading God's Word and love. Students aged four through adult learn together in mixed-age groups. They participate in active learning experiences designed around six Bible studies that examine the ways Christians can be God's disciples in the world and learn from one another. The series, entitled, God's Call: Our Vocation and based on 1 Corinthians 12:4–7, provides another opportunity to unify around study.