Creative Bible Lessons from the Life of Christ: 12 Ready-to-Use Bible Lessons for Your Youth Group
112
Creative Bible Lessons from the Life of Christ: 12 Ready-to-Use Bible Lessons for Your Youth Group
112Paperback
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Overview
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780310402510 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Zondervan |
| Publication date: | 05/24/1994 |
| Series: | Creative Bible Lessons |
| Pages: | 112 |
| Product dimensions: | 7.50(w) x 9.20(h) x 0.45(d) |
| Age Range: | 18 Years |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
Creative Bible Lessons from the Life of Christ
12 Sightings of the God-Man in the GospelsBy Doug Fields
Zondervan
Copyright © 1994 Youth SpecialtiesAll right reserved.
ISBN: 0-310-40251-4
Chapter One
JESUS AS GOD LESSON 1: JOHN 14:5-11; 20:24-29
OVERVIEW
This lesson is designed to teach students that Jesus was both human and divine. Jesus was God in the flesh. This lesson also shows that many people have questioned Jesus' claim of deity, including his closest followers. It's intended to challenge students to move to a place in their faith where they can say, "Jesus, my Lord and my God."
INTRODUCTION (5 MINUTES)
This section gets students thinking about a few of the different and difficult questions people may have about God.
1) Find a book that has questions or quotes about God from children (such as 101 Questions Children Ask About God by David Veerman, 1990, Tyndale House Publishers, or Children's Letters to God by E. Marshall and S. Hample, 1991, Workman Publishers). If you have a difficult time finding one of these books, you can use the examples from Childish Questions (page 27).
2) Start your lesson by reading the humorous things children say about God.
3) Give students a chance to add their own questions or things they wondered about God as children.
After you read a few of the statements, say,It's normal to have questions about God. There are a lot of things about God that are difficult to understand. One of the difficulties is understanding how Jesus can be God. That's what we're talking about today.
PARTICIPATION (15-20 MINUTES)
This section gets your students thinking about how ridiculous it is to think a human being could be equal with God.
1) Tell the students that for the next few minutes they're to pretend they are God and have the power to do anything. In their role as God, they may change any situation or create anything they want, as long as the effect would be positive. They should come up with as many ideas as they can in 10 minutes. Tell them to focus their ideas and actions in four categories:
personal family school world
Encourage students to be creative and have fun, but also tackle some of the difficult issues in their lives and in the world.
2) Have students write each of their different actions on separate sheets of paper. When they've finished, students may get up and tape their ideas to four different walls that you've marked with the appropriate categories (personal, family, school, and world).
3) After the ideas are taped on the wall, go from wall to wall and encourage the students to explain and discuss the actions they listed.
INSTRUCTION (10-15 MINUTES)
This section helps your students understand that Jesus did claim to be God, yet even some of his closest followers struggled with that claim.
1) Now that your students have pretended to play God, ask them to identify some of the major differences between God and humans. Be prepared to draw out their answers; help them to really think about the differences.
2) After your students have shared some of the differences, ask if they agree or disagree with the following statement:
Since Jesus was human and claimed to be God, it's possible for one of us to also be like God.
3) After soliciting their responses to the previous statement, explain that many people, churches, and religions claim to know the way to God and the truth about God; some people even claim to be God or be like God.
4) Read aloud John 14:5-11. Emphasize that Jesus claimed to be God ("Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father," verse 9).
5) Explain that even those who were closest to Jesus still had a difficult time believing his claim. Read John 20:24-29. Even a disciple, Thomas, had trouble believing Jesus was God.
6) Make the following two observations:
a) Thomas required evidence to believe Jesus was really God. He needed to see that Jesus had risen from the dead. b) Thomas's doubt eventually resulted in belief. He exclaimed, "My Lord and my God!"
7) Reemphasize that Jesus wasn't only human-he was God.
OBSERVATION (5 MINUTES)
This section helps your students begin to grasp the mystery that Jesus was both fully God and fully human, and that he didn't give up his divine nature when he became a human.
1) Say, Many people get frustrated because they can't understand how Jesus could be both human and divine, two distinctively different natures, at the same time. I want to help you understand this difficult truth by showing you how this is true in another area.
2) Hold up a glass of ice and ask students what ice consists of. (Answer: frozen water or water.)
3) Hold up a glass of water and ask students what elements water consists of. (Surprise answer: water!)
4) Your students should observe that ice and water are two manifestations of the same element. Ice and water have different properties, but they come from the same source.
5) Explain that this is similar to Jesus' two natures. Both are different, yet the same. Jesus was clearly human; yet he was truly God as well! Say, Even when we have doubts and questions, the fact remains: Jesus is God!
APPLICATION (10 MINUTES)
This section allows your students the opportunity to express their feelings and questions about God.
1) Explain that God isn't surprised or upset by our questions. It's normal for Christians to have doubts, and a discussion like today's usually generates a lot of questions.
2) Let students know they're going to write a letter to God, expressing their faith as well as their questions, as they begin this series on the person of Jesus.
3) Pass out copies of the Dear Jesus letterhead (page 28) and plain white envelopes to each student.
4) Tell your students to begin writing their letters. Encourage them to be honest with God about the doubts and questions they might have. Challenge them to ask God to show them specific evidence that would help them to respond as Thomas eventually did, "My Lord and my God!"
5) When students have finished, they should seal their letters in their envelopes and write their names on the envelopes. Collect these letters and tell your students they'll get them back at the end of the 12-week series.
CHILDISH QUESTIONS
From the book 101 Questions Children Ask About God by David Veerman.
Does God sleep, or does he just rest?
How does God make the sun and moon go up and down?
Did God make people in outer space?
If God made spiders, why do people squish them?
How can Jesus fit in my heart?
Is there a McDonalds in heaven?
Why doesn't God just zap the bad people?
Here is an example from the book Children's Letters to God by E. Marshall and S. Hample:
Dear God,
Church is all right, but you could sure use better music. I hope this does not hurt your feelings.
DEAR JESUS,
I want to express a few things I know about you. They are ...
I want to express how I feel about you. I feel ...
I want to express some questions I have about you. They are ...
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Creative Bible Lessons from the Life of Christ by Doug Fields Copyright © 1994 by Youth Specialties. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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