Read Matthew 10:1-8, and then discuss the questions below in your table groups.
Filed under Bible study, Body of Christ, Devotion, Healing, Health, Kingdom of God
In your table groups, read through the Scriptures below and then answer the following questions.
o 1 Corinthians 4:7 (what do you have that you did not receive?)
o 1 Corinthians 12:14-26 (not one part, but many)
1. What can we learn from these Scriptures about our different strengths and talents?
2. How should we think about our strengths and weaknesses as a result?
3. How should we think about others’ strengths and weaknesses?
4. Is it true that if one part of the Body suffers, every part suffers with it? Why do you think so?
5. How can we show “equal concern for each other?” (1 Corinthians 12:25)
Filed under Body of Christ, Church, Devotion, diversity, Oneness, Paul, Relationships, team, teambuilding
As a group, read the following Scriptures and make a chart (see example below) of all the women mentioned, the roles that they served in for the early Church and their impact (wherever possible).
o Luke 8:1-3 (women who supported Jesus)
o Luke 24:1-12 (women encounter the risen Lord)
o John 4:28-30, 39-42 (the Samaritan woman)
o John 20:11-18 (Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene)
o Acts 1:12-14, 2:1-4 (all joined together in prayer, Pentecost)
o Acts 2:14-18 (men and women will prophesy)
o Acts 8:1-3 (Saul persecutes both men and women)
o Acts 9:36-42 (Tabitha/Dorcas raised from the dead)
o Acts 16:13-15, 40 (Lydia’s conversion)
o Acts 18:24-26 (Priscilla and Aquila instruct Apollos)
o Acts 21:8-9 (Philip’s daughters)
o Romans 16:1-15 (Greetings to many, including Priscilla and Aquila and several women)
o 1 Corinthians 1:11 (information from Chloe’s household)
o 1 Corinthians 16:19 (Aquila and Priscilla send greetings)
o Philippians 4:2-3 (Paul pleads with Euodia and Synthyche)
o Colossian 4:15 (Paul greets Nympha)
o 2 Timothy 1:5, 3:14-15 (Lois and Eunice, Timothy’s grandmother and mother)
o 2 Timothy 4:19 (Priscilla and Aquila with Timothy)
o 2 John 1-13 (letter to the chosen lady and her children)
| Name | Role | Impact |
1. Are you surprised by any of this information? Why or why not?
2. How do women’s roles compare to men’s roles in New Testament Scripture?
3. What do you think about Scriptures like 1 Corinthians 14:34-35, 1 Timothy 2:11-3:13 and Titus 1:5-9?
4. What do you think all this says about how God sees women? (Also see Galatians 3:28-29.)
5. What does all this mean for the Church today?
Filed under Church, Devotion, leadership, Women
Audience
Youth and adults
Time
45-60 minutes
Description
This lesson uses John’s letter to seven churches in Asia Minor (a.k.a. the book of Revelation) to take a look at the churches of the current day and then to focus on an evaluation of our own church and even our own hearts. The debrief is intended to lead individuals toward repentance.
Scriptures
Materials
Preparation
Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
o “In the book of Revelation in the Bible, John writes a message (really a letter) that comes directly from Jesus to seven churches in Asia Minor (current-day Turkey).”
o “The seven churches are Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.”
o “Chapters 2 and 3 are specifically addressed to each of the seven churches one-by-one.”
o “In these two chapters, Jesus gives an evaluation to the churches and calls several of them to repentance.”
o “Bible scholars typically believe that there are three ways of understanding these two chapters.”
o “The first is historical. These churches actually existed and had the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the letter.”
o “The second is prophetic. These churches can also represent ages in church history from the beginning of the Church in the book of Acts to the present day.”
o “The third way to understand the descriptions of these churches is as types of different churches that typically all exist at any given time somewhere around the world.”
o “This third way of understanding is our focus today.”
o “We are going to use the descriptions of the seven churches to learn more about what can happen to any church depending on how it treats the claims, commands and the Person of Christ.”
o “The church at Ephesus had lost its passion.”
o “The church at Smyrna was under persecution but keeping their faith.”
o “The church at Pergamum was following worldly ways and false teachers.”
o “The church at Thyatira was compromising and tolerating false prophets and immorality related to sex, money and power.”
o “The church of Sardis was spiritually dead.”
o “The church at Philadelphia was small but spiritually alive.”
o “The church at Laodicea was so rich that they had stopped depending on God for anything.”
o “In your table groups, I would like to you to read through Revelation, chapters 2 and 3. You can do it out loud or individually.” (Allow time (5-10 min) for reading through the two chapters. As they do, pass out the handouts of the charts to each table – one per participant.)
o “I have passed out to you a chart that summarizes the descriptions of each of the churches.”
o “It tells what their Strengths and Weaknesses are from Jesus’ perspective.”
o “Then, it tells about Jesus’ Instruction, Warning and Promise to each church.”
o “Read through this chart individually, and underline or highlight anything you want to remember.”
o “Then, when everyone at the table is done reading, work through the questions on the flip chart at the front of the room.” (Reveal the debrief questions. Allow 15-20 minutes for discussion and individual reflection. Then do a large group debrief to capture what they learned.)
o “I want to give you an opportunity now to think about your own church and about your own spiritual condition.”
o “Take some time in quiet, individual reflect to work through these steps.” (Show the flipchart with the Individual Reflection steps, and allow 10-15 minutes for personal reflection. Afterward, give an opportunity for anyone who feels especially led to share something that God put on their heart.)
o “When a church or an individual has unconfessed sin in their life, it drives a wedge between them and God.”
o “It doesn’t mean that they lose their ‘lampstand’ or their personal salvation, but it puts distance in the relationship.”
o “In order to restore the relationship, the individuals in the church or the individual for himself has to confess and repent.”
o “There is no restoration without repentance.”
Debrief Questions
1. Do you feel these descriptions match churches that are in existence today? Why or why not?
2. Give some examples of churches today or from what you know of past churches or ages within the church.
3. How do you know that these churches are like the ones described in Revelation?
4. What do you think needs to be done for these churches (at least the ones that need to repent) to become the types of churches God wants them to be?
5. What do you think will happen if they don’t repent?
Individual Reflection
1. Which of the seven churches is most like your church?
2. Why do you think that is?
3. What needs to be done?
4. Which of the seven churches is most like your heart?
5. Why do you think that is?
6. What needs to be done?
7. Take some time now to talk to God in prayer.
a. Confess any sins of your church or in your personal life that the Holy Spirit has brought to your attention.
b. Repent of these sins, and commit to making changes that will please the Lord.
c. Write down your commitments and put them someplace you will remember to look at them often.
Filed under Church, Evaluation, John the Beloved, Lesson, Revelation
Time
30 minutes
Description
This game teaches the Easter story through the game of Bingo.
Materials
• Copies of the eight different bingo cards (See the filed called, “Easter Story Bingo Cards” on the “Lesson and Material Downloads” page of http://www.teachthem.wordpress.com.) Each card has all the same pictures, but they have different placements. You can choose whether or not you reveal this information to the children.
• Something to act as blotters. You can use coins, torn pieces of paper, poker chips… You will need enough for all the children to use. (I use candy and tell the kids that they get to keep the candy whenever they make a Bingo.)
• Copy of the Easter story at the end of this lesson.
• Optional – Prizes for getting bingos.
Preparation
• Practice the script.
• Print copies of the eight different bingo cards.
• Distribute them randomly to the children so that each child has one.
Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
• “We’re going to play a game to tell the story of Easter.”
• “Each of you has received a ‘Easter Story’ bingo sheet. On it, you will see pictures that represent some of the events from the Easter story.”
• “I’m going to read the Easter story out loud.”
• “You have also received some blotters that you can use to put on the pictures as you hear me mention them in the story.”
• “If you see a picture that represents something I mention in the story, put a blotter on top of that name.”
• “The center space is marked, ‘G.R.A.C.E. Space.’ This one is free – like grace; you can put a blotter on it now. It’s to remind you of God’s grace to us. Grace is something that you get but didn’t earn, and the letters in the word stand for ‘God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.’”
• “You see, we have all the wonderful blessings that God wants us to have, because Jesus paid for them on the cross. We have God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.”
• “So, make sure you have a blotter on that center space, because it is already paid for.”
• “Now, if you get five boxes in a row, in a column or in a diagonal marked, you have a bingo, and you should shout out, ‘BINGO!’”
• “If you get a BINGO, you can keep playing and see how many BINGOs you can make.”
• “Does anyone have any questions about how to play?” (Answer questions.)
• “Okay, let’s play!” (Begin telling the story. Be sure to emphasize the picture words as you reach them. They are emphasized in the text below in bold and enlarged font. Several pictures will be mentioned more than once, so the kids have multiple chances of finding them. All Scriptures are taken from The Message, because it is more lyrical. I’ve skipped some passages in order to shorten the game for children with shorter attention spans. Chapters and verses are noted, and all four Gospels are used in order to give a more complete picture of the story.)
• (Optional Follow-Up: Ask the kids to take their Bingo cards home and to try to retell the story to their parents, siblings or friends using the pictures.)
THE EASTER STORY
Matthew 26
Anointed for Burial
1-2 When Jesus finished saying these things, he told his disciples, “You know that Passover comes in two days. That’s when the Son of Man will be betrayed and handed over for crucifixion.”
3-5 At that very moment, the party of high priests and religious leaders was meeting in the chambers of the Chief Priest named Caiaphas, conspiring to seize Jesus by stealth and kill him. They agreed that it should not be done during Passover Week. “We don’t want a riot on our hands,” they said.
6-9 When Jesus was at Bethany, a guest of Simon the Leper, a woman came up to him as he was eating dinner and anointed him with a bottle of very expensive perfume. When the disciples saw what was happening, they were furious. “That’s criminal! This could have been sold for a lot and the money handed out to the poor.”
10-13 When Jesus realized what was going on, he intervened. “Why are you giving this woman a hard time? She has just done something wonderfully significant for me. You will have the poor with you every day for the rest of your lives, but not me. When she poured this perfume on my body, what she really did was anoint me for burial. You can be sure that wherever in the whole world the Message is preached, what she has just done is going to be remembered and admired.”
14-16 That is when one of the Twelve, the one named Judas Iscariot, went to the cabal of high priests and said, “What will you give me if I hand him over to you?” They settled on thirty silver pieces. He began looking for just the right moment to hand him over.
Luke 22
The Passover Meal
7-8 The Day of Unleavened Bread came, the day the Passover lamb was butchered. Jesus sent Peter and John off, saying, “Go prepare the Passover for us so we can eat it together.”
9 They said, “Where do you want us to do this?”
10-12 He said, “Keep your eyes open as you enter the city. A man carrying a water jug will meet you. Follow him home. Then speak with the owner of the house: The Teacher wants to know, ‘Where is the guest room where I can eat the Passover meal with my disciples?’ He will show you a spacious second-story room, swept and ready. Prepare the meal there.”
13 They left, found everything just as he told them, and prepared the Passover meal.
John 13
Washing His Disciples’ Feet
1-2 Just before the Passover Feast, Jesus knew that the time had come to leave this world to go to the Father. Having loved his dear companions, he continued to love them right to the end. It was suppertime. The Devil by now had Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, firmly in his grip, all set for the betrayal.
3-6 Jesus knew that the Father had put him in complete charge of everything, that he came from God and was on his way back to God. So he got up from the supper table, set aside his robe, and put on an apron. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the feet of the disciples, drying them with his apron. When he got to Simon Peter, Peter said, “Master, you wash my feet?”
7 Jesus answered, “You don’t understand now what I’m doing, but it will be clear enough to you later.”
8 Peter persisted, “You’re not going to wash my feet—ever!”
Jesus said, “If I don’t wash you, you can’t be part of what I’m doing.”
9 “Master!” said Peter. “Not only my feet, then. Wash my hands! Wash my head!”
Luke 22
14-16 When it was time, he sat down, all the apostles with him, and said, “You’ve no idea how much I have looked forward to eating this Passover meal with you before I enter my time of suffering. It’s the last one I’ll eat until we all eat it together in the kingdom of God.”
17-18 Taking the cup, he blessed it, then said, “Take this and pass it among you. As for me, I’ll not drink wine again until the kingdom of God arrives.”
19 Taking bread, he blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, given for you. Eat it in my memory.”
20 He did the same with the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant written in my blood, blood poured out for you.
31-32 “Simon, stay on your toes. Satan has tried his best to separate all of you from me, like chaff from wheat. Simon, I’ve prayed for you in particular that you not give in or give out. When you have come through the time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start.”
33 Peter said, “Master, I’m ready for anything with you. I’d go to jail for you. I’d die for you!”
34 Jesus said, “I’m sorry to have to tell you this, Peter, but before the rooster crows you will have three times denied that you know me.”
A Dark Night
39-40 Leaving there, he went, as he so often did, to Mount Olives. The disciples followed him. When they arrived at the place, he said, “Pray that you don’t give in to temptation.”
41-44 He pulled away from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, “Father, remove this cup from me. But please, not what I want. What do you want?” At once an angel from heaven was at his side, strengthening him. He prayed on all the harder. Sweat, wrung from him like drops of blood, poured off his face.
45-46 He got up from prayer, went back to the disciples and found them asleep, drugged by grief. He said, “What business do you have sleeping? Get up. Pray so you won’t give in to temptation.”
47-48 No sooner were the words out of his mouth than a crowd showed up, Judas, the one from the Twelve, in the lead. He came right up to Jesus to kiss him. Jesus said, “Judas, you would betray the Son of Man with a kiss?”
49-50 When those with him saw what was happening, they said, “Master, shall we fight?” One of them took a swing at the Chief Priest’s servant and cut off his right ear.
51 Jesus said, “Let them be. Even in this.” Then, touching the servant’s ear, he healed him.
A Rooster Crowed
54-56 Arresting Jesus, they marched him off and took him into the house of the Chief Priest. Peter followed, but at a safe distance. In the middle of the courtyard some people had started a fire and were sitting around it, trying to keep warm. One of the serving maids sitting at the fire noticed him, then took a second look and said, “This man was with him!”
57 He denied it, “Woman, I don’t even know him.”
58 A short time later, someone else noticed him and said, “You’re one of them.”
But Peter denied it: “Man, I am not.”
59 About an hour later, someone else spoke up, really adamant: “He’s got to have been with him! He’s got ‘Galilean’ written all over him.”
60-62 Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” At that very moment, the last word hardly off his lips, a rooster crowed. Just then, the Master turned and looked at Peter. Peter remembered what the Master had said to him: “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” He went out and cried and cried and cried.
Mark 15
Standing Before Pilate
1 At dawn’s first light, the high priests, with the religious leaders and scholars, arranged a conference with the entire Jewish Council. After tying Jesus securely, they took him out and presented him to Pilate.
2-3 Pilate asked him, “Are you the ‘King of the Jews’?”
He answered, “If you say so.” The high priests let loose a barrage of accusations.
4-5 Pilate asked again, “Aren’t you going to answer anything? That’s quite a list of accusations.” Still, he said nothing. Pilate was impressed, really impressed.
Luke 23
4 Pilate told the high priests and the accompanying crowd, “I find nothing wrong here. He seems harmless enough to me.”
5 But they were vehement. “He’s stirring up unrest among the people with his teaching, disturbing the peace everywhere, starting in Galilee and now all through Judea. He’s a dangerous man, endangering the peace.”
13-16 Then Pilate called in the high priests, rulers, and the others and said, “You brought this man to me as a disturber of the peace. I examined him in front of all of you and found there was nothing to your charge. It’s clear that he’s done nothing wrong, let alone anything deserving death. I’m going to warn him to watch his step and let him go.”
18-20 At that, the crowd went wild: “Kill him! Give us Barabbas!” (Barabbas had been thrown in prison for starting a riot in the city and for murder.) Pilate still wanted to let Jesus go, and so spoke out again.
21 But they kept shouting back, “Crucify! Crucify him!”
22 He tried a third time. “But for what crime? I’ve found nothing in him deserving death. I’m going to warn him to watch his step and let him go.”
23-25 But they kept at it, a shouting mob, demanding that he be crucified. And finally they shouted him down.
Matthew 27
24 When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere and that a riot was imminent, he took a basin of water and washed his hands in full sight of the crowd, saying, “I’m washing my hands of responsibility for this man’s death. From now on, it’s in your hands. You’re judge and jury.”
25 The crowd answered, “We’ll take the blame, we and our children after us.”
26 Then he pardoned Barabbas. But he had Jesus whipped, and then handed over for crucifixion.
Mark 15
16-20 The soldiers took Jesus into the palace (called Praetorium) and called together the entire brigade. They dressed him up in purple and put a crown plaited from a thornbush on his head. Then they began their mockery: “Bravo, King of the Jews!” They banged on his head with a club, spit on him, and knelt down in mock worship. After they had had their fun, they took off the purple cape and put his own clothes back on him. Then they marched out to nail him to the cross.
The Crucifixion
21 There was a man walking by, coming from work, Simon from Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus. They made him carry Jesus’ cross.
22-24 The soldiers brought Jesus to Golgotha, meaning “Skull Hill.” They offered him a mild painkiller (wine mixed with myrrh), but he wouldn’t take it. And they nailed him to the cross. They divided up his clothes and threw dice to see who would get them.
25-30 They nailed him up at nine o’clock in the morning. The charge against him—the King of the Jews—was printed on a poster. Along with him, they crucified two criminals, one to his right, the other to his left. People passing along the road jeered, shaking their heads in mock lament: “You bragged that you could tear down the Temple and then rebuild it in three days—so show us your stuff! Save yourself! If you’re really God’s Son, come down from that cross!”
Luke 23
34-35 Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them; they don’t know what they’re doing.”
Mark 15
33-34 At noon the sky became extremely dark. The darkness lasted three hours. At three o’clock, Jesus groaned out of the depths, crying loudly, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”
35-36 Some of the bystanders who heard him said, “Listen, he’s calling for Elijah.” Someone ran off, soaked a sponge in sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down.”
37-39 But Jesus, with a loud cry, gave his last breath. At that moment the Temple curtain ripped right down the middle. When the Roman captain standing guard in front of him saw that he had quit breathing, he said, “This has to be the Son of God!”
Luke 23
50-54 There was a man by the name of Joseph, a member of the Jewish High Council, a man of good heart and good character. He had not gone along with the plans and actions of the council. His hometown was the Jewish village of Arimathea. He lived in alert expectation of the kingdom of God. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Taking him down, he wrapped him in a linen shroud and placed him in a tomb chiseled into the rock, a tomb never yet used. It was the day before Sabbath, the Sabbath just about to begin.
Mark 16
The Resurrection
1-3 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so they could embalm him. Very early on Sunday morning, as the sun rose, they went to the tomb. They worried out loud to each other, “Who will roll back the stone from the tomb for us?”
4-5 Then they looked up, saw that it had been rolled back—it was a huge stone—and walked right in. They saw a young man (angel) sitting on the right side, dressed all in white. They were completely taken aback, astonished.
6-7 He said, “Don’t be afraid. I know you’re looking for Jesus the Nazarene, the One they nailed on the cross. He’s been raised up; he’s here no longer. You can see for yourselves that the place is empty. Now—on your way. Tell his disciples and Peter that he is going on ahead of you to Galilee. You’ll see him there, exactly as he said.”
Luke 24
9-11 They left the tomb and broke the news of all this to the Eleven and the rest. Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them kept telling these things to the apostles, but the apostles didn’t believe a word of it, thought they were making it all up.
John 20
19-20 Later on that day, the disciples had gathered together, but, fearful of the Jews, had locked all the doors in the house. Jesus entered, stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.” Then he showed them his hands and side.
20-21 The disciples, seeing the Master with their own eyes, were exuberant. Jesus repeated his greeting: “Peace to you. Just as the Father sent me, I send you.”
22-23 Then he took a deep breath and breathed into them. “Receive the Holy Spirit,” he said. “If you forgive someone’s sins, they’re gone for good. If you don’t forgive sins, what are you going to do with them?”
24-25 But Thomas, sometimes called the Twin, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples told him, “We saw the Master.”
But he said, “Unless I see the nail holes in his hands, put my finger in the nail holes, and stick my hand in his side, I won’t believe it.”
26 Eight days later, his disciples were again in the room. This time Thomas was with them. Jesus came through the locked doors, stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.”
27 Then he focused his attention on Thomas. “Take your finger and examine my hands. Take your hand and stick it in my side. Don’t be unbelieving. Believe.”
28 Thomas said, “My Master! My God!”
29 Jesus said, “So, you believe because you’ve seen with your own eyes. Even better blessings are in store for those who believe without seeing.”
Luke 24
50-51He then led them out of the city over to Bethany. Raising his hands he blessed them, and while blessing them, took his leave, being carried up to heaven.
52-53 And they were on their knees, worshiping him. They returned to Jerusalem bursting with joy. They spent all their time in the Temple praising God. Yes.
Time
20 minutes
Description
This object lesson teaches about the need to protect our hearts and minds from the evil things that might get in them.
Materials
Preparation
·You might need a confederate when you try to tempt the “gate-keepers” to let you into the city.Talk to one of the older children ahead of time, and let them know you want them to let you in the gate after you’ve tempted them some – maybe when you offer the candy.Ask the child to keep this a secret.
·Practice the script.
Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
omusic with bad lyrics
obad scenes in movies
oprofanity
opictures in magazines
ogossip
orumors
othings you might feel jealous about
omean words
othings that might make you feel bad about yourself
odrugs or alcohol (because they make you do things you wouldn’t ordinarily do – like open your ear gates and eye gates to really bad stuff)
oother peoples’ personal things that are not to be shared (like a diary)
oviolent scenes)
o“Aw, c’mon, do it for your friend!We’re friends right?You don’t want to be uncool do you?”
o“Wait until everyone hears what a loser you are!”
o“What if I offered you this candy?Would you open it for me then?”
o“You would be my best friend ever!”
o“Those guys over there let me in all the time.”
o“If you let me in, I’ll give you something really cool!”
o(Add other temptations that you think might work.If no one succumbs to the temptations, use your confederate to get into the city.)
Teach Them 