BIBLE CLASS LESSONS
YEAR 2
LESSONS 21 – 40
Lesson 23 – Missionscene is about the Church’s work in Southern America. For up-to-date information, contact the Secretary to the Mission Board well in advance of the lessons.
She can be contacted at Free Church Offices, The Mound, Edinburgh, EH1 2LS.
Phone: 0131 226 5286
Lesson 38 – Missionscene is based on the work of London City Mission. For information, as above, or contact London City Mission directly.
THE COMING OF THE LORD JESUS
Optional Christmaslesson / The coming of the promised Messiah / Luke 2:1-20
Aim: / To see Jesus as the coming Messiah, to examine the facts about his birth and to challenge the young people about their own personal standing with God.
Materials: / Bible, pens/pencils, worksheets plus an extra sheet of paper each. A dice and counters (buttons or coins would be fine) for the game.
Introduction: Talk about Christmas and what it means to people: parties, holidays, presents, family times, special food, spending, over-spending and debt.
1 The introduction reminds the students what the coming of Jesus means to the world around us today. But what did it mean to those who were actually there when he was born, and what does it mean to God’s people today? Remind them that Jesus is the promised Messiah for whom the Jewish people have waited for hundreds of years. How were they meant to recognise him when he came? Ask one student to read Micah 5:2 and another to read Isaiah 9:6. Remind them that, although these two prophecies go back hundreds of years, the earliest mention of the One who was to come was right back in Genesis 3:15. You could read and explain this verse if the young people are not familiar with it.
2 Ask your students to close their eyes and try to imagine that they are actually part of the story you are reading. Read Luke 2:1-20. Try to express the fear, awe, anticipation and excitement in the reading and then encourage the young people to identify the emotions the shepherds experienced in order that they engage with the reality of the coming of Jesus.
3 The class could then complete the first side of the worksheet.
4 Remind the students that the Bible is God’s Word. It is true because God cannot tell lies. The facts surrounding the birth of Christ are absolutely true and to be relied upon. This is not a Christian myth on which an annual religious festival is based.
5 Give out paper and pencils and ask the young people to do some detective work on the birth of Jesus. Ask them to find 16 hard facts in Luke 2:1-20. Remind them that many Bible facts, including the census mentioned in verse 1-3, are verified by historical documents written at the time.
6 Point out that God arranged for his Son to be born exactly as he had promised. Remind the class of Micah 5:2 and show how the census took Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem in order that Jesus should be born there.
7 The class could then enter their facts on the game grid on the back of their worksheets.
8 Say that you are going to examine other facts about the coming of Jesus. Ask a member of the class to read John 3:16 and find the facts in that verse – 1) God loves the world he has made and those in it. 2) He gave his one and only Son. 3) The reason he gave his Son is that those who believe in him can have life. 4) The life that God offers lasts throughout all eternity. 5) Those who believe in Jesus will not / cannot perish as perishing would take away their life and the life they have is eternal.
9 Suggest that there is one more fact that everyone in the class, you included, has to consider. Do they, do you, believe in Jesus Christ? Remind them what God gives to all who believe (eternal life). You know your class and you will know who to encourage in their young faith and who to challenge with the gospel.
10 You could very briefly tell them how you came to faith if they don’t already know that.
Activities: The young people could then play the games they have created.
LESSON 21 IS A REVISION LESSON, USING NOTES FROM LESSONS 15 to 20
TIME TO TALK
Lesson 22 / Time to Talk / Scriptures for lessons 7 - 11Aim: / To encourage the young people to discuss the subjects they have studied and to apply them to their own lives.
Materials: / Bible and worksheets
Introduction: Look at some recent news items that reflect the state of our society and also about recent medical and scientific developments. Take note of any other relevant subjects that have been on the television news or in the newspaper, especially anything relevant locally.
Use the subjects raised by the worksheet as the basis of class discussion.
It might be helpful to ask three young people to read the front page comments and then to act the part of the one they have read in the discussion that follows.
MISSIONSCENE
Lesson 23 / South AmericaAim: / To look at the vast size and challenge of South America. To remember the Free Church’s historical links there and to consider the work the Church is engaged in today in South America. Perhaps also to look at the work of other missionary agencies.
Materials: / Bible, pens/pencils, worksheets
Introduction: Discuss what languages the young people are learning at school. Note the difficulties in mission regarding learning foreign languages. See from the worksheet statistics how many millions of people in South America speak Spanish and Portuguese. Do any of the students speak Spanish?
1. Go through the boxes on the front of the worksheet and look at each or individually.
2. Countries – ask the young people what they know about the various countries – eg Argentinean football!
3. Population – note the missionary opportunities with such vast numbers.
4. Size – talk about the difficulties of making any impact at all in a city of Sao Paulo. But making a difference to just one person makes a difference.
5. People groups – historically so much damage was done when Western Christianity was transplanted into other cultures. Talk about taking Christianity rather than our culture to different people groups.
6. Languages – in some parts of the world hundreds of languages would have to be learned to reach people in an area the size of South America. There only Spanish and Portuguese reach over 99.99% of the population.
7. Religion – explain how Roman Catholicism came to have such a vast influence and discuss the need for true Biblical Christianity.
8. Free Church – note how long the Free Church has been working in South America and use the Monthly Prayer Notes to show what work needs our prayers today.
PIETY IN THE BOOK OF PSALMS
Lesson 24 / The Blessed Man / Psalm 1Aim: / To emphasise the importance of individual choice of lifestyle with inevitable consequences.
Materials: / Bible, pens/pencils, worksheets
Introduction: Ask where people look for happiness today. The media is full of people searching for happiness, usually through what money can buy.
1. According to Derek Kidner in his Tyndale Old Testament Commentary on the Psalms, “It seems likely that this psalm was specially composed as an introduction to the whole Psalter.” He notes that the word “blessed” in verse 1 could be better translated by “happy”. It focuses on the choice between the way of happiness and the way of evil – a choice that runs through the whole Bible.
2. The way of happiness is first dealt with in a negative manner. In v1 the words “counsel”, “way” and “seat” emphasise that the godly man adopts a lifestyle based on choices and ending with a firm commitment. One who chooses to walk in the way of the wicked will not stop with mere hanging around with sinners but will end up adopting the outlook of the scoffer, the one who is further than anyone from repentance. Note that this is not saying we must never have any dealings with the ungodly. We live in this world and cannot avoid contact with those who do not love God. It is a matter of being in this world but not of it.
3. Positively the Psalmist underlines in v2 the importance of paying attention to the teaching of God’s law. What we believe will determine how we live. We choose to immerse ourselves in the counsel of the wicked or to delight in the law of God. That choice decides how we behave and will eventually harden into a position of outright opposition to or glad acceptance of the law of God. By law we should understand God’s revealed will for our lives. It is the teaching of the scriptures that is effective when we read it prayerfully and joyfully, with our hearts genuinely seeking God’s will. The psalmist talked of “meditating day and night.”
4. It is worth asking what importance in practice we give to getting to know the Bible and keeping its teaching fresh in our minds. The Psalmist in v3 gives us a beautiful, but simple, picture to drive home the value of persistent Bible study. The seeker after God is like a tree planted by a river, its roots continually drawing from the life giving water. True prosperity and happiness that will last to all eternity flows from such continual drawing from the fountain of living water of God’s Word.
5. The Psalmist follows the biblical pattern of dividing men into two groups, and two groups only – the godly and the wicked. Those who do not delight in God are called “the wicked” In v 4 they are described neatly as chaff driven by the wind, as in ancient winnowing practices. They think they are in control of their own destinies, keeping God at arms length least he cramp their style and limit their freedom. In reality they have no substance and are at the mercy of the ever changing fashions of human thought.
6. Psalmist closes his meditation with a quick glance at the final end of the godly and the wicked. All must stand before the Judge of all the earth. The ungodly will be found to have no place with the godly. They had no time for God in this life and he will not recognise them as his own at the end. We are reminded here of Christ’s parables: the sheep and the goats, the wise and the foolish virgins etc. The good shepherd knows his sheep. Those who have continually rejected his call to come to him in repentance will find they are rejected by him at the end.
7. This is a particularly beautiful psalm, laying out succinctly and clearly the main truths we will come to again and again throughout the Psalter. It calls us all to reflect on how we live, and particularly how we relate to God. It calls us to think about whom we like to relate to and what that says about our relationship with God. It reminds us of the consequences of our chosen lifestyle.
Activities: Complete the worksheet. Try to encourage the young people to see the importance of regular, faithful Bible reading and prayer.
PIETY IN THE BOOK OF PSALMS
Lesson 25 / Where God Leads / Psalm 23Aim: / To focus on God’s care and provision for his people.
Materials: / Bible, pens/pencils, worksheets
Introduction: Use visual material where possible to introduce the theme of sheep and shepherd.
1. This is the best known psalm. In a few verses it scales the heights of God’s love for his people and plumbs the depths of their experiences in this life. The metaphor of shepherd and sheep is a departure from the more common portrayal of God as king and fortress. It is immediately more intimate and gives special significance to the juxtaposition of “The Lord is …” and “I shall …”. There is a personal relationship between God and his created and redeemed people. Jesus adopts this picture as his own and adds much more detail to the picture as he shows the lengths to which the Good Shepherd will go for his sheep. (John 10)
2. Provision In v2 we are reminded that the Shepherd knows his sheep and will provide for all their needs, with attention paid to every detail. The answer to the prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread” is pictured here in leading the sheep to the pasture they need, even the plenty of an oasis in the otherwise dry and dusty world.
3. The New Testament picks up this theme. Jesus reminded us we are worth more than the lilies of the field or the sparrows who also benefit from God’s careful provision for His creation. Peter encourages us to cast “all our cares on Him because He cares for us.” Paul exhorts the Philippians “in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” In the epistle to the Romans, with breathtaking logic, he argues, “He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how shall He not also with him graciously give us all things.”
4. In v3 we move from daily provision to restoring the wayward. The lost sheep is brought back and established in the right way. In God’s people that requires a profound inner change. It is restoration with a purpose – that we should walk in His ways, kept and directed by his Spirit within us. He does this “for his own name’s sake.” Having called a people to a special relationship with Himself God’s honour is at stake when they stray. Moses argued this powerfully when God was angry with Israel after the incident of the golden calf. He restores us because He loves us. He restores us because He will not leave a job half done. He restores us so that His name will be glorified.
5. Peace In v4 the importance of God’s presence is more urgently illustrated with reference to the “valley of the shadow of death”, the near death experiences that may come several times in the life of a believer. Jesus promised, “My peace I leave with you.” And “I will never leave you…”. He also promised there would be persecution in this world – for some, martyrdom – yet His grace would always be sufficient for all our needs.
6. Prosperity The metaphor changes in vv 5,6 to that of a banquet and an eternal home. God is never stingy in His provision. The cup that is brim full and the oil of joy on the head is a great picture of the riches that are ours in Christ Jesus. This includes provision for our current needs in this world; but the “for ever” with which the psalm ends is a reminder that not even death will separate us from the Good Shepherd and His care for us. Perhaps there is a hint of the Messianic banquet in these verses. Certainly there is a clear note of vindication. The banquet will be in the presence of our foes. Those who ridiculed and persecuted the people of God will one day see their error. In this God, Himself, will be fully vindicated and glorified. “Every knee shall bow …” He has brought his people home against all opposition and at great cost.
Activities: Complete the worksheet.
PIETY IN THE BOOK OF PSALMS