Creative Bible Lessons in Genesis

by Hoon Kim

Overview

Creative Bible Lessons in Genesis follows the work previously done with other studies in the series. What makes this volume different is that it is sensitive to the influence of postmodernism on today’s culture and values, it complements the widespread use of multimedia, and is experiential in approach. With a desire to be relevant, it does not scan Scripture, but intends to be scripturally thorough and accurate, with an understanding that the power of the studies is ultimately found in the biblical text. Because much of what is understood to be "truth" today is arrived to by subjective interpretation, there is a strong but subtle element in the studies that highlights the Imago Dei (image of God) in man. The blueprint of the Trinitarian God in man is, perhaps, the sturdiest bridge between postmodern "experiencisms" and ultimate truth and reality. In order to emphasize these elements, Bible studies include projection games, helps, and visuals. Also, many of the studies are highlighted by a participation which attempts to be close to the text account. There are small group and large group elements that have been developed with the technologically savvy student in mind. Creative Bible Lessons in Genesis follows the lives of various individuals in Genesis. In a world where communication is less face-to-face and more screen to screen, family breakdowns are the norm rather than the exception, and role models often communicate debatable values, an anchor for life can only be found in the God, who does not change. Human nature can only be satisfactorily understood through the image of God in man, and that all behavior, desires, and actions people take are ultimate acts of worship, and desire for God. The return to the Imago Dei in man is the clearest way to present absolute truth to a relative society in that it is able to posit a valid argument for God and faith from an intellectual and logic platform, as well as from a subjective/emotional/experiential platform.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780310270935
Publisher:	Zondervan
Publication date:	12/24/2006
Series:	Creative Bible Lessons
Pages:	178
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Hoon Kim has been doing youth ministry for over twelve years and is currently serving as the student ministries pastor of United Youth at the Korean United Church of Philadelphia. A Westminster Seminary graduate, he was born in Korea, raised in Italy, and educated in the United States. He has a heart for multicultural ministry and is a popular speaker at youth events. Him and his wife Shelly live in Philadelphia.

Read an Excerpt

Creative Bible Lessons in Genesis

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By Hoon Kim

Zondervan

Copyright © 2007 Hoon Kim
All right reserved.
ISBN: 0-310-27093-6

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Chapter One

SESSION 1 CREATOR GOD

YOU'LL NEED

Bibles

pens/pencils

colored clay

copies of Quiz of Astronomical Proportions (page 18)

Milky Way(r) chocolate bars

"Galaxy video from highwayvideo. com

contemplative background music

projection equipment and multimedia person

copies of The Creation Narration (page 20)

copies of Massive If-Then Statements (page 21)

BIG IDEA

What does it mean that God is Creator? What does creation itself reveal about God? This lesson will teach students the general narrative of the creation account of Genesis 1 and basic implications about what that means for us today.

Note: Although evolution versus creation is one of the most debated topics in modern times, this lesson presupposes that God created everything. For a good overview of the discussion, begin with The Case for a Creator by Lee Strobel (also available in a student edition).

OPENER (OPTION 1: IMPROV CREATORS)

This section is meant to get your students talking and developing intimacy as a community and to simultaneously get them thinking about the concept of creation.

As your students gather, place colored clay in front of them. Initially, do not discuss what the clay is for nor what they are to make with it; simplylet them know it is available for them to use as they wish. As students start molding the clay into shapes, have them share what their weeks were like. Additionally, you can ask the students to describe their emotions about the week through clay figures.

After about 10 minutes of sharing, ask the students to describe what their creations are by saying things like-

Let's go around and describe what we created.

How does what you made reflect you or perhaps your emotions?

How is your creation different than when God created the universe?

OPENER (OPTION 2: QUIZ OF ASTRONOMICAL PROPORTIONS)

Pass out copies of Quiz of Astronomical Proportions (page 18) and give kids about five minutes to complete them. Pass out Milky Way(r) chocolate bars to the students with the highest scores.

The answers to the quiz are as follows:

(1. a, 2. a, 3. a, 4. a, 5. b, 6. d, 7. a, 8. a, 9. c, 10. b)

After awarding the prize, review the astronomical facts by saying something like,

Imagine this data for a moment. In one second light can travel seven times around the earth. In one year the distance light travels is about 9.46 x [10.sup.12] kilometers-one light-year. Our Milky Way galaxy is about 100,000 light years in diameter, and there are possibly about 100 million galaxies in the universe, with each galaxy containing about 100 billion stars. The distance to the observable edge of the universe is 15 billion light years. Psalm 8:3 says God created the whole universe by a simple work of his fingers.

Now ask something like,

How does this knowledge affect your relationship with God?

Then say,

This same creator God became a human baby, lived 33 years, and was sacrificed for our sins. This all-powerful God was willing to die out of love for you. He has ushered us all into his presence today to discover him. Why don't we start with a word of prayer?

Invite some students to pray for the Bible study in light of the opener.

OPENER (OPTION 3: VIDEO INTRODUCTION)

Show a video that illustrates the sovereignty of God over creation and nature. (Highway Video has an excellent clip, sound included, titled "Galaxy." It is available for download from highwayvideo.com.) Simultaneously, play some contemplative background music that highlights the work of creation. Some options are "God of Wonders" by Third Day or "Wonderful Maker" by Chris Tomlin/Matt Redman.

Transition into the Bible study by inviting students to an interactive call and response. For a sample script see Video Introduction: Call and Response (page 19). As you or another leader closes the prayer of invocation, have students sit down and break into small groups, depending on the size of your group and the type of meeting you're holding.

DISCUSSION (OPTION 1: THE CREATION NARRATION)

Distribute copies of The Creation Narration (page 20). Allow the youth enough time to complete all the answers. Once the students are finished, regroup and go over the handout.

Then ask the following questions and have students include verses that support their answers.

1. By what action did God create all things? (Speaking.)

2. How many times does the author of Genesis say that God's creation was good? What do you think God may have meant? (Six times. The created things were perfect as God made them.)

3. When the Bible says that God rested on the seventh day, what do you think that means? Was God tired? (No, he was not tired. He used the day to admire all that he made.)

4. When did God say it was not good? Why do you think he said that? (As man was made in the image of a Trinitarian God, a God involved in eternal fellowship with himself (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), we ourselves were made for community. God therefore created us to be relational, but no one of Adam's kind was available.)

5. If God is the Creator, what must be true about him? (Possible answer: He must be eternal, without beginning or end. He must be powerful, since he created all things by the power of his words. He must be creative, since he made all the different objects of creation. He must be wise and knowledgeable, since he must have also invented the physical laws (of science, math, etc.) behind all these. He is the owner of all of creation and all things come from him.)

DISCUSSION (OPTION 2: CREATION DRAMA)

If your group of students is particularly bold and artistic, divide them into two to four groups and have them act out the creation account. Let the students know that they will not be using speech, except for one designated narrator. Give them enough time and freedom to use props and creative special effects. Tell students to act out animals and vegetation as well as light and darkness. Assign the following segments as you see fit and limit their planning to about 15 minutes.

Act 1: Genesis 1:1-13 Act 3: Genesis 2:4-9 Act 2: Genesis 1:14-2:3 Act 4: Genesis 2:15-25

TRANSITION

Say something like,

This last exercise gave us a general overview of what happened on each day of creation and how God noted that everything, up until the discovery of Adam's loneliness, was good. On the seventh day God rested. Now let's go a little deeper and discover what it means that God is Creator. The fact that God is Creator and created everything in the universe has huge implications for our everyday lives that maybe we don't often think about.

MASSIVE IF-THEN STATEMENTS

Ask students to turn to the New Testament, to the book of Colossians. Lead the group in reading Colossians 1:15-20 in unison. Now hand out copies of Massive If-Then Statements (page 21).

Say something like,

Let's go over some of the implications of this passage with some logical if-then statements. For example, IF God created and sustains everything, as Colossians 1:17 says, THEN he must also know everything. Catch that? He must know everything that goes on in creation, from where a dingo is hiding in Australia to what a barracuda is eating right now off the coast of Jamaica to whatever you have been going through this past week. In the space provided write down some things that God must know about what's going on in your life.

Give kids about 20 minutes to think through the remainder of the if-then statements and reassure them that if they can't think of too many, you'll brainstorm more as a group. Once the allotted time is up, regroup and collect what each student has come up with on a writing board or large sheet of paper so all can see.

Possible answers are-

(If God made everything good, he is by nature good and has good things stored up for me. If God made everything out of nothing, he is powerful and able to do all the things that seem impossible to me. If God designed everything, he knows how things work, like physics, and why we should obey his laws. If God made everything, he owns everything, including our gifts, bank accounts, and time.)

Throughout this exercise encourage discussion and making the implications as personal as possible. Close this exercise by asking each student to write on the bottom of Massive If-Then Statements a summary of what this idea of God as Creator means to them.

TRANSITION

Prepare to close the lesson by saying something like,

We will study later on that although God created everything to be good, sin came into the world and caused the brokenness that we sometimes experience. But God wasn't defeated. God sent Jesus, his Son, to absorb the brokenness of creation and make those who believe in him new creations. In the same way that God made order out of what was formless and empty, Jesus brings healing and new life into what is broken by sin.

CLOSING (OPTION 1: SONG MEDITATION)

Ask students to close their eyes and meditate as they listen to "You Do All Things Well" by Chris Tomlin. If you choose, find and hand out the lyrics to the song.

CLOSING (OPTION 2: SONG MEDITATION WITH CLAY)

As the students listen to "You Do All Things Well" by Chris Tomlin, ask the students to reshape the clay they used at the beginning of the lesson as a response to the study.

CLOSING (OPTION 3: PARTNER PRAYERS)

Use this option if several kids shared some real-life struggles. As the students listen to "You Do All Things Well" by Chris Tomlin, encourage them to pray with each other in response to Massive If-Then Statements. Encourage your students to contact each other during the week to pray for the same topics over the phone.

QUIZ OF ASTRONOMICAL PROPORTIONS

1. The speed at which light travels is about

a) 186,000 miles/second b) 18,600 miles/hour c) 186,000 kilometers/second d) 55 miles/hour

2. In one second light can travel

a) seven times around the earth b) from the sun to earth c) from the moon to earth d) from New York City to Los Angeles

3. The 1995 blockbuster space movie starring Tom Hanks was called

a) Apollo 13 b) Apollo Ono c) Apollo 15 d) Apollo Creed

4. One light-year is

a) a distance of about 9.46 x 1012 kilometers b) how much a photon ages in a year c) equivalent to 9.8 human years d) a year with not much to do

5. The Milky Way galaxy

a) is filled with chocolate malt-flavored nougat and milk chocolate b) is 100,000 light-years in diameter c) is shaped like a four-pronged ninja star d) contains one central black hole

6. Which of the following is not a star?

a) a supernova b) Alpha Centauri c) the sun d) Ben Affleck

7. The average galaxy contains

a) 100 billion stars b) 10 million earth-like planets c) 10 billion stars d) 1 trillion solar systems

8. The universe (possibly)

a) contains 100 million galaxies b) is in the shape of a ring c) is collapsing d) travels east to west

9. To reduce travel time Obi-Wan Kenobi would use

a) warp speed b) fantastic speed c) light speed d) the fast-forward button

10. The distance to the observable edge of the universe is

a) unknown b) about 15 billion light-years c) unclear due to astro-fog d) about 150 billion miles away

VIDEO INTRODUCTION: CALL AND RESPONSE

Before your meeting have someone familiar with multimedia prepare the following script for projection. Edit as you see fit. Make sure each line is on a different page and that you use an overall dark background, so that the yellow and white are visibly different. Use a heavy font such as Impact and make sure you don't rush through the verses. Also, make sure there is some high-energy background music.

In the presence of our Creator God let's gather our voices and praise him.

If the following text is in white, the guys will read it all together.

If the following text is in yellow, the girls will read it all together.

If the text is in any other color, don't read it aloud.

[other color] Ready for a test?

[white] Knock, Knock.

[yellow] Who's There?

[white] God.

[yellow] God Who?

[white] There is only one God. Who do you think this is?

[other color] That wasn't a joke.

[other color] Good job. Here we go again....

[white] O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.

[yellow] From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.

[white] When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,

[yellow] what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?

[white] You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.

[yellow] You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet:

[white] All flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field,

[yellow] The birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.

[white] O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

[yellow] O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

[other color] -Psalm 8

[other color] Let's bow our hearts and knees in prayer. [or if you have people who can't kneel] let's close our eyes in prayer.

Have a leader say a prayer of invocation, calling to God for blessing over the meeting.

(Continues...)

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Excerpted from Creative Bible Lessons in Genesis by Hoon Kim Copyright © 2007 by Hoon Kim. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Table of Contents

Introduction: Unchanging Truths in Changing Times     9
Creator God     13
Imago Dei     23
Created for Relationship     35
Faith and Brokenness     45
Noah and the Bow     57
From Babel to Blessing     69
The Call of Abraham     77
Abraham Sacrifices Isaac     87
Lentils: Far too Easily Pleased     97
Wrestling with God     109
Joseph and Sex     121
The Sovereignty of God     131
Bibliography