The Biblical Path of Life

Tag: Disobedience

  • The Door

    Something has happened in my lifetime. When I was a young person growing up in church, everything was about Jesus. Jesus loved me. Jesus died on the cross for my sin.

    Sin?

    What sin?

    I learned that disobedience to any of God’s commands was sin. And that sin separated me from God. In church, I learned that that separation from God could be restored – but only by Jesus’ death on the cross to pay the penalty for my sin. Once I heard this, I wanted to have that relationship restored. I didn’t want to be separated from God for eternity. Once I recognized that I had sinned, and wanted God to forgive me of that sin, I trusted Jesus was the only One who could take that sin away (see John 14:6).

    But something has happened in most churches. What Jesus did on the cross to take away sin is only mentioned once in a blue moon. Now the focus has turned to the thought that God loves everyone. He wants us to love everyone. The way to show the world that we love them is to bring them into the church, just as they are, and the church will minister to them. The church shows love by meeting any physical or emotional need they may have. Meeting those needs is a wonderful way to show the love of God – but only if one has first showed them that Jesus is that love of God. Remember “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). God’s love is revealed in the death of Jesus on the cross to pay the penalty for individual’s sin in order to restore that broken relationship. By not making this the primary message in the churches today, many churches have in essence pushed Jesus out of the door and closed it. It’s almost as if many churches have made their own door (good works, meeting people’s needs) and replacing Jesus as the Door of the sheep. That is the condition of the church in the final church age, portrayed in Revelation 3:14-22.  They are doing so well, doing works, that they don’t even realize they are in need. Because the churches as a whole are so busy doing good works, they have forgotten to share the message of Jesus and His death to take away individual people’s sin as the Only Way to truly help anyone. Remember what Paul wrote: “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God” (Romans 10:3). Remember that the “righteousness of God” is Jesus. This is a picture of what is happening.

    But as we see in Revelation 3:20, Jesus is still available to any one who will open the Door (for Jesus is the Door, see John 10:7) to allow Jesus inside. He will come inside, and there can be sweet fellowship. “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me” (Revelation 3:20).

    Are you someone who has allowed Jesus to be pushed out, forgetting why He came?

    Will you be willing to open the door and let Him back in?

    Make sure that you find a church that still faithfully presents the Gospel message of Jesus, the only way to be saved. Make sure that He is the primary focus of your life.

    “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches” (Revelation 3:22).

  • Lesson 8 (Lesson 34): I Samuel 16-31: David Coming to the Kingdom

    Key Verse

    “When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.”  Proverbs 16:7

     Read the Key Verse with your students.  It is very self explanatory.  But be sure that they understand – God is with those who please Him, and He will take care of His people.  We will see this in David’s life as we study our lesson for today.

    Summary After learning of Eli, Samuel, and Saul, we come to the final main character of I Samuel, David.  Last week we saw that the people had rejected God as their king and desired a man to rule over them.  God gave them Saul – physically, everything a people could want in a king.  He was good looking, and he stood head and shoulders taller than anyone else.  But we found he chose to please man over God.  Remember Saul’s disobedience that caused God to remove the kingdom not only from him, but his family.  Today we see that God chooses a “man after his own heart.”  We see God take a man the world might see as one of low esteem (a shepherd boy), but one whom He raised up to serve Him.  When God chose David, he removed his spirit from Saul and allowed an “evil spirit” to trouble him.  Watch today and notice the conflict between these two men.  Notice that even though Saul sought to destroy David, when David walked with God, Saul could not destroy him.

    Encourage your students to bring their Bibles and use them!

    Emphasis:  As we see God turn from Saul (for his disobedience) to David, Saul then became David’s enemy, after him at every turn.  We read that David continually sought God, and that even Saul recognized God was with David.  When David had opportunity to kill Saul, and would not, Saul promised David peace.

     

    Optional Worksheets to be downloaded:

    Lesson 34 – Volume 1 Children’s Worksheet 1

    Lesson 34 – Volume 1 Children’s Reinforcement Worksheet 1

    Lesson 34 – Volume 1 Children’s Reinforcement Worksheet 2

     

    Ideas for children:

    Stickers always work well with children. Often times I watch Wal-Mart or Oriental Trading Company for specials or deals on things I can use for crafts for Sunday School (i.e. foam sheets, Bible Story scene stickers, crowns, stick on jewels, construction paper, etc.).  I keep a stash and when I need something, I go search in my stash!  Pinterest always has great ideas!

    You could have a coloring sheet that goes with the lesson.

    One idea for today’s lesson:  (See picture below).  For today’s we made a coloring book for each child.  Because David was a shepherd boy God chose to be the future king of Israel, there were many choices of coloring pages (some of the most famous are pictures of David fighting Goliath).  I chose some that told the story of David.  I had a book of construction paper cut and stapled together for them to glue the different pictures into in the correct order.  We colored some of the pictures in them with the time we had left.  They were then able to take their books home to color the rest of the pictures as they had time, helping them remember what we had learned in class that day.

     

    Mural idea:

    Refer to the wall in your classroom that has become a mural.

    By now your class should be in a groove as to the direction and areas in which they need to focus and work on to improve their Christian lives.  Use this knowledge to help you address specific areas in each lesson that your class can discuss and share as you add new things to your mural.  Continue to watch as your class grows in their knowledge of not only God’s Word, but areas in their lives that can be corrected, drawing them closer to the Lord.

    Have them each add anything else they may have brought to add to the wall.  Encourage everyone to participate.