Walkers-Kindergarten Track 2, Series 1, Lesson 1
Theme for the 2 year Track: A Disciple is someone who trusts Jesus (and the Father, and the Holy Spirit). This is where everything begins, and ends, for a disciple. This is the core of who we are. Theme Verse: Proverbs 3:5-6: Trust in the LORD with all your heart. (you can stop here for Walkers-2’s) Do not depend on your own understanding. (you can stop here for 3’s) In all your ways remember him. (you can stop here for 4’s) Then he will make your paths smooth and straight. (you can stop here for 5’s-K)
Anatomy of a Disciple Big Idea: “Because He knows everything, I can trust Him.” Focus for the Week: “God knows everything about everything.” Thoughts on the lesson:
http://www.mediafire.com/watch/ye48neth6rylldu/W-K_211_Leaders.m4v To prepare for this week, read 1 John 3:20, with an emphasis on the second half of the verse: ‘But God is greater than our hearts. He knows everything.’ Throughout the lessons and activities this week help guide the kids to the truth that God is the One who knows all things, and because of that we can trust Him. As the kids tell you about the things that they know a lot about, remind them it is God that created everything and that he knows everything. This is something that we can praise God for and thank Him. “Oh wow, you know so much about ____, I’m so happy that God has blessed you with the knowledge and desire for you to know all that.” God has given us some knowledge, but only God knows everything.
This Series Passage
1 John 3:20 But God is greater than our hearts. He knows everything.
About the Walkers-Kindergarten Track (TRUST JESUS) This track had been developed for Walkers up through Kindergarteners. There are various optional activities for reinforcement and evaluation that can be tailored to meet any of the age groups in this category. Just choose the options that will best fit your specific group and skip over those that don’t. You can also incorporate a “snack-time” in between group activities listed below, or have fun incorporating it in the activity (i.e. part of “Follow the Leader” or “Trust and Obey”, or as a “reward” for everyone after they finish an activity, etc.)
Life Group Time There are ten different options given each week for Life Group Time. As we have already written, choose activities that fit your group from week to week, and leave out the ones that don’t fit. We provide activities that can be repeated each week, yet are able to be applied to just about any topic of discussion, providing a mixture of familiarity and variation.
Circle up. Have everyone stand or sit in a circle and have a ball that is rolled or tossed to different people and when each person gets the ball, they finish a sentence. For younger children, you can finish the sentence and have the children repeat the sentence when they get the ball. For example you say, “Trust Jesus!” and then roll the ball to a child and guide them to repeat, “Trust Jesus!” This week finish the sentence: “I know a lot about….” Tell Me More. One child gets to ask you one question about yourself and then one question about God. If you know the answer to the question about God share it with the children. If you don’t know the answer, or you want the answer to come in a more creative way, you can “ask Mr. Smarty Pants”. You will write down the one question your group (student) decides on and give it to your coordinator to give PJ, who will provide the answer for you to share with the group the following week. If you are with younger children who may not know how to ask questions, you can instead ask all the children one question about themselves. Make sure to answer the same question that you give them so the children can get to know you too! Some examples of questions are: What is your favorite color? Do you have brothers and sisters? Show and Tell. Show your class the picture of the smart kid. Whereas this kid knows a lot about math, ask them if there is something that they know a lot about. Share with them the truth of the verse in 1 John 3:20 that God is greater and that he knows everything. God is greater than our hearts, so He knows more than I know. He knows everything about everything. (Please make sure that the picture gets back into the Show & Tell Folder.) Find the Treasure. This week, the objects are connected to the passage for the six-week series. The objects are: Toy Brain. When found, ask them what it is and what it is used for. Ask the kids if they know how they can help themselves gain knowledge, to be smarter about a subject. Lead them to understand that although there are ways to gain knowledge, ultimately it is Christ that knows all things and by His grace He gives us knowledge. Bible. When they find the Bible ask them what it is and what we use it for. Talk to the kids about the Bible and that it is a collection of books written from God to us. If you feel comfortable, let the kids know what sort impact reading and believing the Bible has had on your life. Graduation Owl. When they find the owl asked them if they know what he is dressed up for and if they don’t know bring them up to speed. Let them know that some day in the future they will stand on a stage somewhere wearing the same square hat on and receive an award, a diploma, for everything they’ve learned in school. Talk to the kids about how learning about God and reading his word is something that we should do for the rest of our lives, and contrast that with how they will only be in school for a certain number before they “graduate”. Motion Commotion. Guide the children to help make up the motions for the verse and everyone learn it together with whatever motions your group has chosen—have fun and be creative! You can do the track verse (Proverbs 3:5-6), which is the same verse for this series. As an example you can have the kids point to the sky for ‘Trust in the Lord’ then point to their heart for ‘with all your heart’. For ‘remember Him’, they can point to their head then the sky, then they can jet a hand out for ‘paths smooth and straight’. (Some fun ways to repeat the verse together are: loudly, quietly, while you wiggle, with your eyes closed, etc.) Stack It. You can use this to help the kids learn the verse for this series. Use the blocks to represent that (1) God knows more than me, (2) God knows everything, (3) I can trust Him. Ask for, or give, examples of each as you stack together. If you are asking questions, stack a block after a student gives an example of the characteristic you ask for. Your goal is to have the students remember these characteristics as we continue learning them throughout this series.
Follow the Leader. Play the classic game, follow the leader. You can incorporate some of the motions from Motion Commotion from the track and series verse Proverbs 3:5-6, as you weave your way through the room around different obstacles like tables and chairs. Trust and Obey. This week, you can incorporate a few motions similar to the “Motion Commotion” and “Follow the Leader”, but have fun playing the classic “Simon Says” game. Once the game is over, tell the kids that just as they followed your directions, so to should they follow the directions of God from his word to trust and have faith in Jesus to trust and have faith in Jesus. Toss it. This week, have three containers represent: (1) God knows more than me, (2) God knows everything, and (3) I can trust Him. If a student throws a bag in the “God knows more than me” container, everyone on the team yells, “God knows more than me.” If they throw it into the “I can trust Him” container they yell, “I can trust Him”, and so on and so forth. At the end of the game, ask students to tell you the three things they learned about God— God knows more than me, God knows everything, and I can trust Him! Color it, Make it, or Mold it. This week, have them color, make or mold I trust Jesus because He is the one that knows everything. You can give more guidance to students as you wish, and for younger students who need more concrete direction, you can have them make one of the objects from “Find the Treasure” (whether you did that activity or not). For whatever they are making, either talk about or ask questions about what they made and what it means. Try to give as much freedom as you can as this is a great way to see what students are actually thinking on their own, and for you to evaluate where they are and what they might need to learn further.
1st & 2nd Grade Track 2, Series 1, Lesson 1
Theme for the 2 year Track: A Disciple is someone who trusts Jesus and follows God’s Word. Theme Verse: 2 Timothy 3:16: “God has breathed life into all of Scripture. It is useful for teaching us what is true. It is useful for correcting our mistakes. It is useful for making our lives whole again. It is useful for training us to do what is right.”
Anatomy of a Disciple Big Idea: “We can trust what God does and what God says” Focus for the Week: “I can trust what God does and says. Thoughts on the lesson: http://www.mediafire.com/watch/mau5z95m8po5vk9/1-2_211_Leaders.m4v ** To prepare for this week: Read Proverbs 3:5-6 and memorize it if you can. This is a key verse for the “trust” part of the Anatomy of a Disciple. This passage tells us how we should trust God and the benefits of trusting Him. We are to trust Him with “all our heart” and “in all your ways”. What does it mean to “trust the LORD with all your heart”? We are to trust Him with everything we are and in every area of our lives. We shouldn’t just trust God part of the time or with part of our lives. Trusting God means we don’t “depend on our own understanding”. Who do you think has more understanding (knowledge or wisdom), God or us? Why? Human insight will never surpass God’s understanding. Man can have varying degrees of wisdom, but only God is perfectly wise. God’s wants us to lean on His understanding. Verse 6 says that in everything we do we should remember Him. This means we should acknowledge or seek God in every area of our lives, “then he will make your paths smooth and straight.” God is the perfect guide for your life. In ancient times there were not many roads and the paths were often bumpy and filled with obstacles. This verse is telling us that God is not only our guide, but He goes before us and removes those obstacles that could trip us up (make your path smooth). This does not mean that life will always be easy, but rather that when we trust God and follow His Word we can avoid the obstacles of sin. We can trust God to lead us.
This Series Passage: 2 Samuel 7:28 - Lord and King, you are God! Your words can be trusted. You have promised many good things to me.
This Weeks Passage: Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart. Do not depend on your own understanding. In all your ways remember him. Then he will make your paths smooth and straight.
About the 1st - 2nd Grade Track (FOLLOW GOD’S WORD)
This track has been developed with the First and Second Graders in mind, as well as with the “core” of a disciple in mind, one who trusts Jesus and therefore follows God’s Word. These are the years that we especially want children to see the importance of reading, understanding, and following God’s Word because we trust Jesus. With that in mind, we will provide various activities that will help you reinforce and evaluate how the Word of God is part of the child’s life. There are also activities that are meant for the student to get to know the leader and the leader to get to know the students. Just choose the options that best fit your age group and group’s dynamic and skip over those options that don’t. The overall goal, no matter what the 6-week series, is to show the student the important role the Word of God plays in our lives.
Life Group Time
There are ten different options given each week for Life Group Time. As we have already written, choose activities that fit your group from week to week, and leave out the ones that don’t fit. We provide activities that can be repeated each week, yet are able to be applied to just about any topic of discussion, providing a mixture of familiarity and variation.
Share and Share Alike. This is a time for you and your students to share what you are reading from the Bible. Take some time to share one thing you read this past week, whether it goes with the lesson or not. Encourage children to share something they have read too! Remember, this is a very tangible example of discipling! Ask Mr. Smarty Pants. One student gets to ask you one question about yourself and then one question about the Bible. If you know the answer to the question about the Bible, share it with the students. If you don’t know the answer, or you want the answer to come in a more creative way, you can “ask Mr. Smarty Pants”. You will write down the one question your group (student) decides on and give it to your leader, who will provide the answer for you to share with the group the following week. Secret Word of the Day. The Word of the Day is “TRUST”. Whenever a Leader or Helper says the secret word, everyone yells “YEAH!” I Spy. Simply play I Spy with the students (remember to begin with “spying” something using very general clues, then slowly going to more specific “hints”, like going from “I spy something smaller than an elephant” to “I spy something you read”). You get the idea. This week students will be looking for different types of people that the students usually trust and different items that represent how we can trust God. As the students are finding the items you can have them start guessing about what the items mean. Each item represents a way that we can follow God. A compass: After found, ask students what it is, what it is used for, if anyone has a compass or has used a compass before. Guide students to the idea that God’s Word is like a compass that we can trust to guide us to all truth. Our problem is that we are lost. “Salvation is found in no one else. There is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) God has revealed himself through His Word. We can trust what God’s says. Eye Glasses: After found, ask students what it is, what they are used for, if anyone owns or knows someone who owns glasses, etc. Guide students to the idea that we must look into God’s Word to know what God’s says. We trust our prescription eye glasses will help us see clearly. How does God’s word help us see things more clearly? You may want to wait on discussing the items until they are all found, and then bring them together to see if students can figure out what they represent. Have fun with them guessing and then slowly guide them into what the items mean. Now go over this week’s passage (Proverbs 3:5-6) and explain that God wants us to trust him. How does God want us to trust Him? (with all our hearts and in all our ways.) Show the kids where in the verse God explains how we can trust him. NOTE: If your room is set so “I spy” does not work well, you might try something like “I’m thinking of something that is…” and keep saying things until students guess what it is and then reveal the object OR you could hide the objects and tell the students to find the objects and they look for them. Check the Mail. Let the kids know that the flag is up and there is mail. This week the letter says: Dear Kids, I am glad that you have been able to learn how to trust me. There will be times in your life where you may feel stuck and not sure what to do, just remember that I will always be here for you. I ask that you trust me just how I explained it in the Bible. Don’t depend on what you think is right. Depend on what I say is right. Remember me throughout your day and remember that I can be trusted in every area of your life. You can trust that I will do what is best in your life. ~God After the letter is read, ask questions like: What does this letter mean? How does God want us to trust him? Did God only want us to trust him sometimes? How can you trust God in your life? Show the students Prov 3:5-6 as the place where the words of this letter came from. As time goes on, students will see that God has been writing about how much he loves us from the beginning and it is all written in the Bible. Write a letter back to God with your students if you would like.
Hangman. Remember, you can do this with teams and competition. Here are some words/phrase you can use. After a word/phrase is discovered, take some time to talk about what the word/phrase means and how it ties in with the topic today. (Thoughts on getting the discussion started are below). Trust God God understands Remember the Lord Smooth and Straight paths Memory Mania. This is a time to learn a Bible passage in a fun way. This week, continue to go over the verse for the series… 2 Samuel 7:28 Lord and King, you are God! Your words can be trusted. You have promised many good things to me. This week have the verse written on a whiteboard and read the verse together. One at a time a student comes up and erases any word (or two or three words) of their choosing, but then they have to say the verse again. Then, the next student does the same thing. You can make this a competition with teams until someone can’t say the verse, and then you start over, writing the entire verse again for the next round until someone can say the verse without any words left for some kind of bonus points. (You can do this as a group together.) Afterward, ask or talk about what the verse means to make sure students understand that God is our Lord and King, and He can be trusted. This means we can trust what He does (because He is Lord and King), and we can trust what He says (what is written in the Bible). God always wants what is best for us even if it doesn’t seem like it sometimes. Pray for a Following. Go back and read the passage of the week (Proverbs 3:5-6) and pray about how we can make trusting God a priority in our lives. You can encourage the students to give examples of how to trust God before they pray so that they know what to pray for. Ask questions like: What are some ways that we can trust God? Where can we go to learn how to trust God? Is there something in your life that makes it hard to trust God? Then, come up with different ways to pray each week and do it! (i.e. you pray for them, one of the students pray, they pair up and pray, each one writes what they pray, or draws what it looks like to follow God’s Word this week and then have them pray they do it, etc.) Draw It, Mold it, Make it. This week, the students draw, mold or make something that will remind them of the different ways that they can trust God. They can make a heart showing they trust God with all their heart. They can make a smooth and straight path, showing what God does with our lives as we trust Him. A ‘maze’ Me. This week’s puzzle is a crossword puzzle (It might be better to do this at the end as a review. Also, the answers are on the puzzle to make it easier for them to come up with the answers. You can block the answers to make it harder if you like). The words in the puzzle are: Heart: Trust in the Lord with all your __________. Understanding: Do not depend on your own __________. Remember: In all your ways _____________ Him. Straight: He will make your paths smooth and _________. Bible: We can trust what God says in the _________. Do this as a competition between everyone, groups, or do it together as an entire group. After the students are done, talk about the answers again and remind them or ask questions about what the answers are about.
3rd & 4th Grade Track 2, Series 1, Lesson 1
Theme for the 2 year Track: A Disciple is someone who trusts Jesus and follows God’s Word in order to give, live, and love like Jesus. Theme Verse: 1 John 2:6: “Those who claim to belong to him must live just as Jesus did.”
Anatomy of a Disciple Big Idea “Being a Disciple of Jesus” Focus for the Week: “What is a Disciple?” Thoughts on the lesson: http://www.mediafire.com/watch/92t2zifz6xzei41/3-4_211_Leaders.m4v
Series Verse: John 12:26 - 26Anyone who serves me must follow me. And where I am, my servant will also be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. **Take notice of the definition of a disciple for the 2 year track: “A Disciple is someone who trusts Jesus and follows God’s Word in order to give, live and love like Jesus.” Another way of saying this is that the purpose of a disciple is to become like the rabbi, or teacher. In this case, a disciple is “someone who follows and learns from Jesus in order to become like Jesus.” Take time to go over this definition and memorize it as a group as you go through this series.**
This Weeks Passage: Acts 11:26 - 26He found him there. Then he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church. They taught large numbers of people. At Antioch the disciples were called Christians for the first time. (Note: the NIrV says “believers” but it is actually the word “disciples”)
About the 3rd - 4th grade Track (GIVE/LIVE/LOVE LIKE JESUS) This track has been developed with the Third and Fourth Graders in mind, and with the third “ring” of the anatomy of a disciple in mind, one who trusts Jesus and follows God’s Word so that we would end up giving, living and loving like Jesus, so we would become like Him. These are the years that we will especially want the student to see that being a Christian or a Disciple of Jesus means that we want to, and are meant to, become like Him. With that in mind, we will provide various optional activities that will help you reinforce and evaluate how the student is becoming more like Jesus. There are also activities that are meant for the student to get to know the leader and the leader to get to know the students. Just choose the options that best fit the age group and skip over those options that don’t. The overall goal, no matter what the 6-week series, is to show the student that the reason they are trusting Jesus and following God’s Word is so that they become like Him.
Life Group Time There are ten different options given each week for Life Group Time. As we have already written, choose activities that fit your group from week to week, and leave out the ones that don’t fit. We provide activities that can be repeated each week, yet are able to be applied to just about any topic of discussion, providing a mixture of familiarity and variation.
S.O.D. (Server of the Day). Choose the S.O.D., and maybe they get to wear something special. This person is a “student helper” for the day, and helps you, the leader, with setting up different activities, handing out resources, etc. Spin In. Take some time to ask students what they did this last week to give, live, or love like Jesus (depending on what the “Spin Out” result was last week) and you share too! By the way, if it was hard for you to give, live, or love like Jesus, be honest, and encourage the students to be honest too. This could be a great discipleship moment. One Plus One. A student asks one question about you and they ask one question about Jesus. The goal is that the students will get to know the one they are becoming like more and more. This is a time for the students to get to know you, AND a time to spend each week getting to know Jesus (or finding out how much you know Jesus). Get ready to answer a question about yourself and one about Jesus! Better than you telling you what you think, show them the answer about Jesus in the Bible. If you don’t know the answer, write it down and give to your coordinator to help you find the answer. Don’t make something up! Have fun! Guys vs. Girls. Play a game where students try to guess the definition of some weird words. Say or write the following words on a whiteboard and then give them four multiple choice definitions of the word. Students all guess at the real definition and get a point for their team for everyone who is correct. You can come up with your own “fake” definitions or use the suggestions below: aberuncators: a. long tool for pruning tall branches b. magical stones c. hooded cloaks worn by monks d. fish net repairers calathus: a. meat eating rodent b. device for lowering a boat c. a ten-line poem d. fruit basket carried on the head eellogofusciouhipoppokunious: a. tall b. evil c. short d. good gilderoy: a. proud person b. humble person c. lazy person d. busy person izard: a. a small lizard b. a goat-like antelope c. a steep, sandy beach d. a spotted beetle keeve: a. a loose overcoat b. a white robe c. a large tub d. a marshy wetland mammorthrept: a. a tiny mammal b. a spoiled child c. someone who stutters d. someone who eats too much Afterward, tell students that we will be looking at the definition of a word we hear a lot... “disciple” to begin your time together. You can ask students to write out what they think the definition of a disciple is, or you can wait until to do so
in the “Well Versed” activity. One way to define disciple is “someone who follows and learns from someone to become like them.” Picture It. This week, the pictures are: Jesus calling the first disciples: Ask questions like, What is this a picture of? What are all the things/people you see? What do you think the picture is trying to show us? What do you think each person is thinking in this picture? Guide students to think about Jesus when he called his first disciples. He just asked them to follow him. But think about what that must have meant for them to say “okay”. It was a change in their lives (from fishermen to something else). Jesus asked these guys to change their lives to trust Him. Jesus was going to show these men what it really meant to follow him, to be his disciples. We are going to find that out too in this series. Disciples following Jesus: Ask questions like, What is this a picture of? What does this picture make you think about? What do you think this picture is trying to show us? What does it mean to follow someone else? What do you think it means to follow Jesus as a disciple? Guide students to a definition of disciple: someone who follows someone else in order to become like the one they are following. Ask students what they think it means to follow Jesus. Ask them what it looks like to become more like Jesus. Ask students if they believe they are disciples or not. Why or why not? Share with students something about what you personally have learned about what it means to follow Jesus as a disciple. Well Versed. This is a time to learn a Bible passage in a fun way. Ask students to write out their definition of a “disciple”, if you haven’t already done so in this lesson. After everyone is done, let them read their answers. Then, go through the passage this week with them (Acts 11:26). Make sure students understand that in the Bible, all followers of Jesus were disciples. Today, we use the term Christians and sometimes we use the word disciple to mean something else. But the Bible doesn’t do that. Anyone who places their faith in Jesus is a disciple of Jesus. The word “Christian” was a term describing someone who was acting more and more like Christ. Make sure all the students understand the definition of a disciple as defined in this lesson. Have the students write out the definition (“someone who follows and learns from Jesus in order to become like Jesus.”) and memorize it together. Also introduce the series verse, John 12:26, with the students. Lastly, go over the track verse, 1 John 2:6. Use these two verses to help with your definition of a disciple. Think Tank. Have students do the word search, and then have a discussion on what the series verse means (that someone who follows Jesus will serve Jesus, and vice versa) and what a disciple of Jesus really is and does. Challenge students to memorize the verse, and maybe practice saying the verse to end this activity. Speak Up. Ask students what they are learning today. If you need to spur the conversation on, go over the passages again and ask some questions about their lives. You could also ask if they have ever made the decision to place their faith in Jesus to become a disciple of Jesus. Have students share when they decided to follow Jesus. Then ask them what they think they need to talk to God about when it comes to what you are learning today. Pray together, or in groups, or have them write out a prayer and share, etc. Draw/Make/Write. Students have three options to draw, make or write something connected to the lesson. This week the students are to draw, make, or write something about What a Disciple is. Remind them of the series verse or weekly passage as they do this activity…. If appropriate, have students explain what they did with the rest of the group. It’s Not About Me. Have the students do the “Draw/Make/Write” Activity to encourage someone else in the group. You can have the students choose someone, you can pair up students purposely or randomly, you can draw names out of a hat, etc. Spin Out. Have students spin the wheel and depending on the color they land on, challenge the students to do one thing this week based on giving, living, or loving like Jesus. You can have one thing for each area in mind beforehand, or you can have your students suggest something, or you can let each student pick for themselves. For one color, come up with a way to give like Jesus this week (like share something we value with a brother/sister). For another color, come up with a way to live like Jesus this week (like choosing to tell the truth when tempted to lie). For another color, then a way to love like Jesus this week (like eating with a lonely kid at lunch). For the last color, you can tell students they get to pick whichever category they’d like (give/live/love). Tell students that next week, they will share what they did during “Spin In” time. And you can do this and share with them too! (You could do this activity for each child individually or as a group and everyone does the same one.)
The Gospel Track Track 2, Series 1, Lesson 1 Verse for Series (and track): Matthew 5:16 Subject: Knowing, Believing, Being, and Sharing the Gospel Bottom Line: “Introduction to the power of the Gospel Life” Passage(s) for the Week: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 Thoughts on the lesson: http://www.mediafire.com/watch/o4g696aol47a6m1/516_211_Leaders.m4v
Life Group Outline Opening Question: (Go around the group and have everyone finish the sentence, or have people so this in smaller groups): “My favorite sandwich is…” God Connecting to Us: A closer look at 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 (passages below are in the NIrV): Read 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 together and go through the following questions/comments to have a good discussion on what God is talking about. 18The message of the cross seems foolish to those who are lost and dying. But it is God’s power to us who are being saved. 19It is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of those who are wise. I will do away with the cleverness of those who think they are so smart.” (Isaiah 29:14) 20Where is the wise person? Where is the educated person? Where are the great thinkers of this world? Hasn’t God made the wisdom of the world foolish? 21God wisely planned that the world would not know him through its own wisdom. It pleased God to use the foolish things we preach to save those who believe. 22Jews require miraculous signs. Greeks look for wisdom. 23But we preach about Christ and his death on the cross. That is very hard for Jews to accept. And everyone else thinks it’s foolish. 24But there are those God has chosen, both Jews and others. To them Christ is God’s power and God’s wisdom. 25The foolish things of God are wiser than human wisdom. The weakness of God is stronger than human strength. 26Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when God chose you. Not many of you were considered wise by human standards. Not many of you were powerful. Not many of you belonged to important families. 27But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. He chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28God chose the things of this world that are common and looked down on. He chose what is not considered to be important to do away with what is considered to be important. 29So no one can brag to God. 30Because of what God has done, you belong to Christ Jesus. He has become God’s wisdom for us. He makes us right with God. He makes us holy and sets us free. 31It is written, “The one who brags should brag about what the Lord has done.” (Jeremiah 9:24) In verse 18, what is “the message of the cross”? [the good news (gospel) that Jesus saved us by dying for us for our sins on a cross. We are helpless and hopeless on our own and completely dependent on what Jesus has done for us on the cross to save us] How do unbelievers tend to see this message? [it seems foolish] How do believers see the gospel? [it is God’s power] Why do you think there is such a difference in how people see the message of the cross? [allow students to respond... let’s read on...]
Tip! Open-ended questions are the best. Sometimes yes or no questions can kill conversation, so don’t be afraid to ask participants to expand on their answer. “Why” is a great follow-up question!
Tip!
Sometimes it takes people a little while to formulate the words they want to say. Don’t be afraid to let people sit in silence.
In verse 19-20, Paul quotes Isaiah 29:14. What does this mean? [The message of the cross (the way we are saved) shows that even the wisest person on earth isn’t smart enough to save themselves. Our wisdom will get us nowhere. In the end, our intelligence can’t solve our real problem... sin] In verse 21, what is Paul saying here? [God made it so that the world would be able to see that it could not save itself. The simple message of salvation seems almost to easy to be true. God did all the work. We just believe in Jesus. But God made this message so simple so that anyone can share it and anyone can understand it. We don’t have to have a certain amount of intelligence in order to be saved] In verse 22-23, what does Paul say these two groups of people are looking for when it comes to salvation? [Jews look for miracles, and Greeks look for wisdom. Some think that there needs to be some miraculous sign every time someone gets saved. Others think that being saved must be very complicated] So, why is the real message, the gospel, so hard for some people to accept? [it’s actually too easy! Someone just believes... no miraculous sign. We don’t have to do some miracle in order to be saved. Jesus died on the cross for our sins... a simple message. We don’t have to have some high intelligence in order to be saved] In verse 24-25, what do you think Paul is saying here? [that even though it might seem stupid to some people, anyone who accepts the gospel is saved. We understand that it’s not about how much power we have (we don’t have to do any miracles) or how much wisdom we have. It’s all about the power and wisdom of God that saves us. This can be very humbling though. We have to accept that no amount of power or intelligence we have can get us even close to God’s power and intelligence] In verse 26, what kind of people were accepting the gospel? [unwise, powerless people who didn’t even come from prominent families. They were nobodies] What does this tell us about the gospel? [anyone can benefit from it] In verse 27-29, what does the salvation of the “nobodies” prove to the world? [That it’s not about become something or somebody and then we are saved. God saves us just as we are. We don’t and we can’t bring anything to the table. God does it all. No one can brag about being smart enough to be saved, or about being powerful enough to be saved, because the good news shows us that it doesn’t matter how intelligent or powerful you are. Actually, we need God’s good news because we can never be powerful enough to save ourselves. We need to depend on His gospel to save us] In verse 30-31, it’s because of whom that we can be saved? [God and Jesus] What does Paul say we should brag about? [anyone who does brag should just brag about all that God and Jesus has done] What does the gospel do that none of us can do on our own? [it makes us right with God. It sets us free from sin. It makes us holy]
Have Kids answer a few questions alone (or in pairs), and then come together to share and discuss. Have fun asking follow-up questions, sharing the answers in your own life (be vulnerable), and getting to know the kids and families in your group. Have kids take their papers home to share with their family.
Life Group Questions
Bottom Line: “Introduction to the power of the Gospel Life” Passage(s) for the Week: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 1. 1. What are you learning from the truths in these verses? What is one thing you think God is trying to tell you?
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2. This passage talks about people who think they are okay because they have a lot of power or wisdom. What do people count on today to save them if they aren’t counting on the gospel (example: going to church, being good, etc.)?
3. How does it make you feel to know that there is absolutely nothing you can do to save yourself? Why is this hard for some people?
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4. In your own words, why do you need God to step in and do something to save you?
Carry on the conversation at home with your family. Ask your parents these questions and talk about all your answers. Parents, For Next Week: Talk as a family about the statement below. Find out what everyone in your family thinks it means. Then find out why everyone in your family either agrees or disagrees with the statement. Have fun! “It is important to know what the gospel is.”
