James 1:22

Tuesday:	James 1:22
Bible Lesson:	Do What It Says: We should study God's word and obey it. (Nehemiah, Ezra, and the Feast of Booths)
Memory Verse:	Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22

Introduction:

[needed]

Explanation: James 1:22

[Show the verse and read it aloud.]

The word merely means something like only. So when it says Do not merely listen to the word, it means you don't just listen, you also do what it says. You listen, and then you obey.

Then it says, Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. To deceive someone is to trick or fool them. So if you're deceiving yourself, you're tricking or fooling yourself. This verse tells us that if we only listen to the word and we don't obey it, we're fooling ourselves. We think we're listening to the word, but if we don't obey, are were really listening?

If your mom tells you to clean up your room, you hear the words, but did you listen to her, if you didn't actually clean your room? It's the same thing with God's word. We don't want to deceive ourselves. We want to do what God says.

Game: Chipmunk Voices

Announce that you will be having a contest between groups to see which group can say the verse better. Practice reading the verse off the posterboard together (in normal voices) two or three times first, to get everyone familiar with the wording.

Divide the children into approximately equal groups, as many as you have leaders for (preferably at least three). Give the groups no more than two minutes to practice within their group, saying the verse in chimpunk voices. After the two minutes, call everyone back together. Have each group in turn stand in front and say the verse in their chipmunk voices. If there's enough time left, say you aren't sure which group was best and have them all do it again. Give everyone a big round of applause.

Announcement: Verse Points

Tomorrow, when you come to Bible School, if you can say your memory verse without looking, you can earn points for your team's score. Each person who can say the verse can earn 200 points. So, if you want to help your team win more points, go home and practice your verse a few times. Don't forget the reference! On your way out the door tonight, you will be given a slip of paper with your verse on it. Don't lose it, because if you learn your verse, your team gets 200 more points!

You can say your verse for points tomorrow when you check in at the registration table.

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.