Cre ation The Fa ll Abraham E xodus Judges DavidT h e Prophets The Exile Return 400

BIBLE STUDY

2 Timothy 3:10-17

“Uniquely Inspired”

BIBLE TRUTH

The Bible is a one-of-a-kindbook because it is God-breathed.

LESSON GOALS

To help preteens . . .

� Know that the Bible is theinspired Word of God

� Apply God’s Word to life’ssituations

� Begin to learn how to use aconcordance and a Bibledictionary

VERSE-A-MONTH CLUB

“Do not merely listen to theword, and so deceiveyourselves. Do what it says.”

James 1:22

1The Only God-Breathed BookSeptember 6, 2015Unit 1: The Bible Reflect on the Word

In his novel The Gift of Asher Lev, Chaim Potok describes a joyous scene in a synagoguewhen Hasidic Jews are dancing with the Torah. As the scroll is passed from man to man,they twirl and dance in praise to God for giving them the Law of Moses. During the joyfulcelebration, the main character wonders, “Do Christians ever dance with their Bibles?”I have never seen anyone actually twirl with a Bible, but I have seen other manifestations of

love and respect for the Scriptures. Some people make sure the Bible is on the top of any stackof books. In some worship settings the Bible is carried into the sanctuary at the beginning ofthe service. I even had a Sunday School teacher who told me I should wash my hands beforetouching a Bible. (She probably just knew how dirty an eight-year-old’s hands can be.)Why do we show such respect to this Book? Why is it so special that we even capitalize

its name in sentences? For two millennia Christians have staked their very lives on itspromises. Why? This section of Paul’s letter to Timothy can give us some reasons.

The Scriptures point to Jesus Christ. It is interesting that the Scriptures Paul commends toTimothy are what we call the Old Testament—the Law, the Psalms, and the Prophets. TheNew Testament was either not yet written or not yet canonized (agreed on as Scripture)when Paul wrote to Timothy. Yet, Paul says that those Scriptures reveal salvation “faith inChrist Jesus.” God’s plan of salvation has been revealed and available in every age.

The Scriptures are an inspired and inspiring Book. We say that God “breathed life” intothe Scriptures (the literal meaning of “inspired”). John Wesley reminded us that God’sinspiration continues. “The Spirit of God not only once inspired those who wrote [theBible], but continually inspires, supernaturally assists, those that read it with earnestprayer” (Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament [London: Epworth Press, 1966], 794).

The Bible helps us live as Christians. Paul uses four words in verse 16 to describe the use-fulness of Scripture. “Teaching” helps us learn about things necessary to life and salvation.“Rebuking” is something the Bible can do on its own as we read it. The gap between whereGod desires us to be and where we are becomes apparent. “Correcting” is looking at stan-dards set in Scripture and adjusting our lives accordingly to meet those standards. And“training” is learning to do what is necessary to grow as Christians, not only for our owngood but also for the benefit of others.Why would Christians be tempted to dance joyfully with the Scriptures? No other book

is so alive and active or able to lead us to saving faith as the Bible.

Personal Reflections� How does the Bible make you feel more secure as a Christian and more will-ing to endure hardship?

� Recall a time when reading Scripture inspired you. How did you feel? Howdid the insight help you? How did you respond to God’s leading?

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SEPT. 6

Y ears of SilenceB irth of Chris t Ministry of Jesus Easter Early Churc h Letters Last T h ings

ORD CTIONinThe

Activity-specific teaching tips

Foundational words of the faith

Spiritual formation tips

Important biblical and theological insights

TIPS & TOOLS

General teacher training tips

SEE HEAR & SAY SING DO SOLVE READ & WRITE

ABC

L E S S O N P L A N N E R

Checkto Use A C T I V I T I E S

C U R R I C U L U MR E S O U R C E S

O T H E RM A T E R I A L S * *

LessonXpress*

ACTIVITYFOCUS

ATTENTIO

N GETTERS

BIB

LE EXPLORATIO

NS

CONNECTIO

NS TO LIFE

*Lesson Xpress—If your class time is short, consider choosing these activities.**In addition to materials listed in this chart, you need Basic Classroom Supplies. See the inside back cover and the activities in this lesson.

Connect with Your KidsPreteens hear many voices calling for their allegiance. In the confusion, they need a

sure sense of direction. In this lesson, preteens will discover a unique book. The HolyBible holds God’s message, carefully written by inspired followers of God. Christiansthroughout history have found the Bible to be a trustworthy guide. Preteens can discoverthat its message is fresh and relevant to them today.Studying the Bible will help preteens know more about God and His love for them. As

they realize the importance of the Bible, they will see the relevance of the message of Godfor their own lives.Meaningful Bible study takes skill. Without adequate study skills, the Bible can be frus-

trating to read and use. This lesson will review skills in finding Bible verses. Preteens willalso be encouraged to use their Bibles regularly. You can help by sharing what God isteaching you in your own Bible study.

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SEPT. 6

Connections, p. 1

Resources, Item 1

Connections,pp. 2-3

Connections, p. 4

balloons

concordances, Bible dictionaries

bowl or basket, opt.

zipper plastic bags

�� Fact or Fiction—Draw real and fictional people to discuss credibility.

� Mystery Word Game—Guess the letters of a word that means “God-breathed.”

�� Message in a Balloon—Send a message in a balloon to a partner.

�� Uniquely Inspired: The Story of the Bible—Read about and discuss how we got our Bible.

� Search the Word—Learn how to use both a concordance and a Bible dictionary.

�� Yesterday’s Book, Today’s Message—Put Bible verses in your own words.

� Do What It Says—Discuss and begin learning James 1:22, Verse-a-Month Club verse.

� Bible Scramble—Talk about why the Bible is so important.

Choose from these activities to help focus your preteens’ attention andprepare them to learn today’s Bible Truth.

Fact or Fiction Direct your students’ attention to Connections, page 1.

Give them time to draw both the real and fictional charac-ters. When they are finished, let them answer the questions,“Is this character someone you admire?” and “How does knowing whether or not thischaracter is real affect whether or not you might believe something he or she said?”Next, have the students look at the statement at the bottom of the page: God inspired

real people to write the Bible. Real people wrote it about real people and for real people. Askyour students to tell what this statement suggests to them about the Bible. (Possibly that itis trustworthy)

TRANSITION: Say, In Sunday School, we study the Bible. As we begin a year of Biblestudy, it’s important for us to know what kind of a book it is and how trustworthy it is.The Bible has been described as a one-of-a-kind book. Today, we will find out why.

Mystery Word Game On a board, draw a line for each letter in the word inspira-

tion. Let the students take turns guessing the letters in themystery word. When they guess the word, ask the class for adefinition. Now post on the wall Resources, Item 1, Inspiration.

TRANSITION: Say, This is a picture of Paul writing his letters in prison. In the Greeklanguage, “inspiration” means “God-breathed.” The messages in the Bible were “breathedout” by God through the authors. Today, we’re going to learn a little more about what thatmeans.

Message in a Balloon Before class, gather enough balloons so each student will

have one. The balloons need to be different sizes, shapes, orcolors.

In class, have each student choose a partner. Give each student a balloon, a small pieceof paper, and a pen or pencil. Tell them they need to write a message to their partner onthe piece of paper. Then they are to roll it up, put it inside the balloon, blow up the bal-loon, tie it, and send the balloon to their partner.How the students send their balloons is totally up to them. They can throw it back-

ward, kick it, snap it, roll it on the floor, or just hand it to the partner. Then the partnercan pop the balloon and read the message inside.After each student has read the message the partner sent, say, After you wrote the message,

you put it into a balloon to send it to your partner. Did putting it in a balloon change themessage? What about the way you gave your partner the balloon? Was the message different

• Connections, p. 1• Pens, pencils, or markers

Here’s a fun way for you and your pre-teens to get better acquainted. Have thepreteens give their names and tell some-thing that makes them unique. As thestudents speak, record each student’sname on one side of the note card. Onthe other side, write the statement thestudent gave. At the beginning of nextweek’s class, read aloud the unique qual-ity of each student. Have the students tryto guess which preteen possesses thatquality.

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ATTENTION GETTERS

• Resources, Item 1• Chalkboard and chalk

• Balloons• Paper• Pens or pencils

See Teacher Connections for a wayto use this poster for a bulletin board.

BIBLE EXPLORATIONS

depending on if you kicked it or threw it? Did your partner get the message you meant tosend?

TRANSITION: Today we’re going to talk about one way God sent a message to youand me. He inspired the writers of the Bible with the messages He wanted to send to us.The writers are like the balloons. Though they were all different, each one carried a truemessage from God to you.

Choose from these activities to help preteens study the Bible passage.

Uniquely Inspired: The Story of the Bible Have your students find and mark Exodus 32:15-16, 2

Timothy 3:16, and 2 Peter 1:20-21 in their Bibles. Ask, How do most books get written?After students answer, explain that like other books, the Bible had human authors. How-ever, the way the Bible came to be is a little different from other books. Say, Today wewill learn how the Bible came to be. Have your preteens follow along on Connections,pages 2 and 3, while you read aloud to them “The Story of the Bible.” When you come toeach verse, let a volunteer stand and read it aloud while the others follow along in theirBibles.At the conclusion of the story, read 2 Timothy 3:10-17. Use the information from

Reflect on the Word to help preteens understand the four key words in verse 16.If your class did the Fact or Fiction, discuss that activity in light of what they learned in

“The Story of the Bible.” Ask, How do we know that we can trust what the Bible tells us?Explain that the biblical writers really lived and experienced God at work in this world.They were eyewitnesses to God’s revelation. In addition, God told them to write His mes-sages and guided their minds and hearts as they wrote. Through biblical writers, the HolySpirit revealed how people can live in a loving relationship with God. Ask, How do weknow God is at work in the real world? (The Holy Spirit helps us experience Him. TheBible gives examples about how God has worked in the past—that helps us recognize Hiswork in the world today.)Close this activity by having volunteers finish this sentence: The Bible is a one-of-a-

kind book because . . . (God inspired people to write it, there were many writers who wroteover a long period; it teaches us how to have a loving relationship with God.)

Option. Hand out Passport papers and direct your students’ attention to this week’s“Voyage to the Past.” Let them know that for the rest of the unit, each “Voyage to the Past”will feature something about the Bible. You can use these as part of an activity, or just calltheir attention to the articles and let them read them outside of class.

Search the Word Make sure each student has a Bible with a concordance to

use for this activity. Show samples of concordances to thestudents. Say, This is the alphabetical listing of major words found in verses. If you canremember part of a verse and want to know the rest of it, you can find the reference forthe verse and look for it. For instance, you remember “God so loved the world.” Then

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• Bibles• Connections, pp. 2 and 3

For Search the Word, you could havethe students write their responses on largepieces of paper or poster board. Attach theposter with their responses on the class-room wall after they finish.

• Bibles• Concordances• Bible dictionaries

The transition statement is to helpyou go from the Attention Getters intothe Bible study section of the lesson. Ifyou choose to do more than one activity,use the transition statement followingthe last Attention Getter to move easilyinto the Bible study.

you cannot remember the rest of the verse. What words would you look for in the con-cordance? You could look for “God,” “loved,” and “world.” Let students estimate howmany entries there are under each of these words in your concordance.As an example, have students look in the concordance in the back of their Bible for the

word love and find the reference for Deuteronomy 7:9. (They will have to do this nextweek, so it will be good practice.) Point out the abbreviations used for the books of theBible. Help students understand that love is not spelled out, but the first letter is used. Andthat letter is in italics.A concordance can help your preteens study the Bible through topical (word) studies.

It will also help preteens find verses when they are not certain of the reference.Divide the class into three groups and have each group look up one of the following

verses: Exodus 32:15-16, 2 Timothy 3:16, and 2 Peter 1:20-21. Instruct each group to findthree key words in the assigned verse and then use these key words and a concordance tofind three other Bible verses. Next they should find a definition for one of the words byusing a Bible dictionary (used like a regular dictionary). Afterward, bring the groupstogether and discuss how important these skills are to studying the Bible. If possible, useexamples from your own experience.

Yesterday’s Book, Today’s Message Say, The Bible is not a book of history. God gave us the Bible to help us know about

Him, know Him personally, and live for Him. The message of the Bible is for ustoday. Let’s look at some things the Bible tells us.Make sure each student has a Bible. Begin this activity by reviewing the way we

find verses in the Bible. Explain that the “reference” tells usthe book name, chapter number, and verse number of anypassage we want to find.Use Acts 1:8 as an example. Show the preteens the table of

contents in a Bible so they can find the page where Acts starts. Let them turn to that pageand then find chapter 1 and verse 8.Now let the students practice looking up the following New Testament verses. Have

them tell in their own words how each verse applies to preteens today. An example is givenfor each one.

� Colossians 3:12-13—Be compassionate, kind, humble, gentle, patient, and forgiving.

� 2 Corinthians 9:7—Don’t give because you have to, give because you want to.

� Romans 6:23—Sin leads to death, but God gives us eternal life.

� Ephesians 4:29—Be kind to others when you talk, and build people up with yourwords.

� Galatians 6:10—Do good things for everybody, especially other Christians.

� Philippians 2:14—Don’t argue or complain.

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CONNECTIONS TO LIFE

Choose from these activities to help preteens connect the Bible Truth to life.

• Bibles• Slips of paper, opt.• Pen or pencil, opt.• Bowl or basket, opt.

Here is information you can share withyour students: A Bible dictionary givesinformation about important people,places, and things found in the Bible. (Forexample, Zarephath: a coastal city nearSidon where Elijah performed miraclesfor a widow and her son.) A concor-dance lists every word in the Bible (witha few exceptions, such as a, and, and the)and gives every reference that includeseach word (for example, the word gnashis found in Psalms 37:12, 112:10, andLamentations 2:16).

It is good when teachers can makesure every student in the class has aBible. Find out if your preteens have themor are in need of them. Some organiza-tions provide low-cost Bibles if they arepurchased in bulk. One such organizationis the American Bible Society<www.americanbible.org>.

� 1 Thessalonians 5:15—Don’t get even with people when they do unkind things toyou—be nice.

Ask, What have you learned “about” the Bible or “from” the Bible through this activ-ity? Let volunteers answer.

Option. If your preteens are fairly self-confident looking up scripture, try this: Printthe scripture references on slips of paper and put them in a bowl or basket. Begin by tak-ing a reference slip and reading it. Hand a Bible to one preteen to look up the verse. Afterhe or she reads the verse, this preteen reads the next reference strip and gives the Bible tosomeone else. Continue until you use all the references.

Do What It Says Print James 1:22 on the chalkboard, leaving out the words

in parentheses and providing a blank line instead.Do (not) merely (listen) to the (word), and so (deceive)

yourselves. (Do) what it (says).Have preteens look up the verse and take turns filling in any one of the missing words.

Then ask these questions:

� What does the phrase “the word” refer to? (God’s Word, the Bible)

� Is it enough just to read the Bible or hear people talk about it? (No)

� What does God want us to do with His Word? (Obey it—“do what it says.”)

� If we read but don’t obey the Bible, what are we really doing? (Deceiving ourselves)

� How are we deceiving ourselves if we read but don’t obey the Bible? (We may feellike we are being good and we may enjoy it—but the Bible doesn’t help us if we don’t obey.)

Let preteens take turns erasing one of the key words of the verse. Say the verse as agroup each time. Continue until you have erased all the underlined words.Close the time with prayer. Pray that your students will begin learning more about

God’s Word and live according to its truth.

Bible Scramble Ask if anyone in your class does not have a Bible. If

someone doesn’t, provide one for him or her to takehome, if possible. Ask these questions:

� Why is the Bible important? (It is one of the primaryways we find out what God’s message is to us. He lets usknow how to live for Him.)

� What makes the Bible different from other books? (Make sure the preteens under-stand that this book is inspired. The messages in the Bible are from God.)

Have the students turn to Connections, page 4, which contains cards with the names ofthe books of the Bible. Give each preteen scissors and a zipper plastic bag. Students maycut the cards apart and put them in the bag to take home. Tell them to save the instructionstrip too.Encourage the students to use the cards as described to learn the books of the Bible. If

some students do not have Bibles and there are none available to give them, provide themwith a list of the books of the Bible in order.If you have Preteen Resources, Items 2A and 2B, say, Next week we’re going to divide

into two teams and compete to put the books of the Bible in order the fastest. Your Con-nections game is your chance to practice so your team can win next week!

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• Bibles• Connections, p. 4• Scissors• Zipper plastic bags• Poster board, opt.• Glue, opt.

• Bibles• Chalkboard and chalk• Chalkboard eraser

To make the game more durable,have your preteens glue page 4 to posterboard and then cut apart the cards.

If you have new students, explainto them what the Verse-a-Month Club is.See the Helping Hand on page 36. James1:22 is the verse for this month.

Spend some time thinking aboutthis month’s verse, “Do not

merely listen to the word, and sodeceive yourselves. Do what it says.”

As you begin to understand this bet-ter, start cultivating this attitude inyour preteens. In the following fourlessons, they will discover many factsabout the Bible, but they should alsobe putting God’s Word into practice intheir daily lives. Affirm your studentsas you see this happen.