Sunday school: only three more lessons!

F

Flavio

Sunday School is almost over and it was a wonderful experience. The Holy Spirit was always there guiding us and I can't thank God enough for this.

Today the subject was how to pray, it went well and, as always, they loved the game in the end.

I still have, however, three more lessons to prepare. One of them is going to be about Jesus' parables but I still need two more subjects.

Any tips?

One of my students loves drawing, any ideas for art activities?
 
'These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs:
but the time cometh,
when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs,
but I shall shew you plainly of the Father.'
(Joh 16:25)
'His disciples said unto Him,
Lo, now speakest Thou plainly,
and speakest no proverb.'
(Joh 16:29)

Hi @Flavio,

I hope when you do talk about the parables of Jesus, that you will tell them that they were illustrative of the mysteries of the Kingdom, and that it was only the disciples to whom the meaning of them was given, and why? (Matthew 13:10,11)

They are not simply, 'earthly stories with a heavenly meaning', as they are so often described. It is a method of teaching which demands the use of similitude or comparison, but are weighty and wise sayings. The Lord quotes from Psalm 78:2 in relation to His speaking in parables,

'Give ear, O my people, to My law:
Incline your ears to the words of My mouth.
I will open My mouth in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings of old.'

The rest of the Psalm is a rehearsal of the history of Israel from Moses to David, showing the inner reasons of their failure, eg., verses 9,10:-

'The children of Ephraim, armed, carrying bows,
Turned back in the day of battle'
Why?
'They kept not the covenant of God,
And refused to walk in His law.'

From this we may infer that a parable urges us to consider deeply the ways of God with His people, and to look for the hidden causes and workings which are veiled from the eyes of the uninstructed.

All you can do is tell it as it is, from the Word of God, I believe, and leave the Holy Spirit to illuminate the meaning to them, when their minds are receptive to Him, through faith in Christ Jesus. To use these words of our Lord as little stories for children is to do them an injustice.

In Christ Jesus
Chris
 
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Flavio said:
Sunday School is almost over and it was a wonderful experience. The Holy Spirit was always there guiding us and I can't thank God enough for this.

Today the subject was how to pray, it went well and, as always, they loved the game in the end.

I still have, however, three more lessons to prepare. One of them is going to be about Jesus' parables but I still need two more subjects.

Any tips?

One of my students loves drawing, any ideas for art activities?
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Hi @Flavio,

You can do no better than have them colour Bible verses, and illustrate them. At least then their minds are being exposed to the Word of God at the same time.

In Christ Jesus
Our risen and glorified
Saviour, Lord and Head.

Chris
 
Thank you so much for you reply Complete.

I didn't know the wonderful Psalm 78:2, I am definitely going to use it!
 
Maybe a theme of the ways God communicates with you. Touch on dreams that Joseph and Daniel interpreted, Elijah and the still small voice in 1 Kings 19, and Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus in Acts 9.
The main idea being, one does not become a Christian or become saved just because you live with good intentions, but that God calls you, works on your heart in a seemingly indirect way yet undeniably real. Then one must answer the call, knowing the need for God in their life. Be prepared to go into detail on how to accept Christ and the inner peace which comes with the Spirit.
 
Today we talked about the parables of Jesus and I was surprised to find out they knew nothing about the subject. They didn't even know the story of the prodigal son!!!

We worked on 4 parables (prodigal son, good samaritan, barren fig tree, persistent widow) and read the actual Bible, not just some summary of the biblical text. It was a lot of work (these are regular 12 y.o. kids, not theologians) but the kids did a great job. Glory be to God for that, I have no doubt the Holy Spirit was with us all the time.

Still two more lessons and I need all the help I can get, your tips and suggestions are more than welcome.
 
Speaking of the Holy Spirit and the help of God, here's an interesting detail:

I was so exhausted and depressed today because of work that I fell asleep at around 2 p.m. and I miraculously woke up 30 minutes before the start of my lesson - just in time to drive to the local church and arrive there at 6 p.m.

Thank you Lord for your help!
 
Hi @Flavio,

I remember when my children were young, and attending a Bible Club International children's group, one of the series was called, 'Giants', and Big Moose' s entry brought it to mind: obviously David and Goliath featured in the series. :)

www.bcmintl.org

In Christ Jesus
Chris
 
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Thank you so much for your support, you guys are awesome.

I already talked about bullying (the subject was 'Jesus and the Youth') but it's a good idea, thank you for posting it.

I still have two more lessons to prepare and I've already chosen the subjects: the Holy Spirit (May 19) and Christian groups & movements (June 2). May 26 is a national holiday here, I don't have to worry about that one.

The lesson on Christian movements is almost ready, I still need ideas for the lesson on the Holy Spirit.

Thanks in advance! :)
 
Flavio said:
Thank you so much for your support, you guys are awesome.

I already talked about bullying (the subject was 'Jesus and the Youth') but it's a good idea, thank you for posting it.

I still have two more lessons to prepare and I've already chosen the subjects: the Holy Spirit (May 19) and Christian groups & movements (June 2). May 26 is a national holiday here, I don't have to worry about that one.

The lesson on Christian movements is almost ready, I still need ideas for the lesson on the Holy Spirit.

Thanks in advance! :)
Click to expand...

Hi @Flavio,

Jottings only:-

If these young people have already come to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour, then they have the New Nature imparted to them, which is of the Spirit. So teaching concerning the work of the Holy Spirit would be really helpful.

Their very salvation was a work of the Holy Spirit, and their growth is also His work.
The Word of God is the means that He uses to enable us to live God's way, so it is essential that they become acquainted with it, read it for themselves, and learn to rightly divide it (2 Timothy 2:15). To be able to read the address on the envelope, and identify what is not only for their learning, but also what is about them as believers in this dispensation.

The armour that God has provided, which includes the Sword of the Spirit (the Word of God), would be a good place to start.
An awareness of the the new nature also, which is of the Spirit, and by which the Holy Spirit works within us, is also necessary.

The conflict that takes place between the old and new nature is also vital knowledge, for it is the one visible proof we have of the fact that we are indeed children of God. For there would be no conflict if all we had was the nature we were born with, the old nature.

The knowledge also that the Child of God is indeed, in the eyes of God, 'Complete' and 'Accepted in the Beloved', and 'Holy and without blame' in the eyes of God, in Christ, is also good to stress, for they will see their own failure on a daily basis, and they need to know that they have been forgiven for all their sins, and that nothing can separate them from the Love of God, which is in Christ Jesus. That to say that we are without sin is untrue, but that if we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

All of these things are part of the Holy Spirit's work within, for He convicts of sin and of righteousness, and exposes the thoughts and intents of the heart.

The fact is that the work that He has begun in these young people, in Christ, He will continue to do, until the day of Christ. They can have full assurance of that fact.

These are just my thoughts, Flavio, forgive me for making it so long.

May the Lord lead you and direct you, as you prepare your lessons, so that these young people, who know Christ as their Saviour, will be fully equipped for the life of faith they are embarked upon. For those who have yet to know Him as their Saviour, may they be given eyes to see and ears to hear, and hearts to believe and receive the salvation that is offered to them in Christ Jesus.

In Christ Jesus
Chris
 
The Holy Spirit is a difficult topic for this age group. I would look at it from an introduction aspect. Who the Holy Spirit is and the other names such as Holy Ghost, Comforter, Spirit of Truth and so on.
A way to help them understand what a spirit is, is to get some pictures of people with different expressions on their faces and have them describe the expressions. There are spirits of happiness, sadness, anger, etc. Each have power and ability to affect other people and cause things to happen. This gives the students a glimpse of what a spirit is, although not anywhere near the power of the Holy Spirit.
 
Big Moose said:
The Holy Spirit is a difficult topic for this age group. I would look at it from an introduction aspect. Who the Holy Spirit is and the other names such as Holy Ghost, Comforter, Spirit of Truth and so on.
A way to help them understand what a spirit is, is to get some pictures of people with different expressions on their faces and have them describe the expressions. There are spirits of happiness, sadness, anger, etc. Each have power and ability to affect other people and cause things to happen. This gives the students a glimpse of what a spirit is, although not anywhere near the power of the Holy Spirit.
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Yes, @Big Moose,

My points raised require a certain maturity to comprehend.

What are the ages of the young people in your group, @Flavio?

In Christ Jesus
Chris
 
Complete said:
Yes, @Big Moose,

My points raised require a certain maturity to comprehend.

What are the ages of the young people in your group, @Flavio?

In Christ Jesus
Chris
Click to expand...

12 - 14 y.o.

Like I said earlier, we had our lesson today and I don't know what to say.

I know they loved the game in the end and we had lots of fun but did they learn something important today? I honestly don't know. :(

I explained who the HS was and the benefits of invoking Him, I mentioned Pentecost, I showed a realistic image of the apostles and the tongues of fire, we said a prayer to the HS and they consulted an ebook on this subject and answered a series of questions.

We still have one more lesson (June 2) and I can't thank God enough for this experience. Sunday School was wonderful and I learned so much, glory be to God. Thank you Holy Spirit for guiding us - He was the true teacher, not me.
 
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