God's Sheep Decorations: Sheep on the Walls

When we did this theme six years ago, we printed out a lot of black-and-white sheep images, cut them out, and laminated them before sticking them on the walls. Being laminated, they're well preserved, so this year we just got them out and stuck them up again.

In the hallway, we put up a green plastic tablecloth, to represent grass, and stuck a bunch of sheep to that. (It's all just stuck to the wall using Sticky Tack or BlueTack or Handi-Tack or some such -- I get the different brands confused; we typically just buy whichever brand the store we're at happens to have.) In other locations, we just put the sheep directly on the wall, in some cases with paper grass for added effect. We put some in the main room...

Some in the preschool room...

Some in the teen room...

By the stairs...

Here and there...

Sheep everywhere...

(Yes, that green metal cabinet is probably exactly as old as its color makes you think it is.) Oh, and while the mural on the nursery wall wasn't done specifically for Bible School, it does have sheep in it, plus a shepherd, so I'm counting it.

Incidentally, the mural was created by the same person who has been doing our lesson visuals, and we do have visuals for four of the God's Sheep lessons. I'm planning to post those, or at least thumbnails of them, probably some time next week.

God's Sheep Decorations: Comic Strip for Teen Room Walls

I think I've previously explained how we, who do not have the artistic talent to free-hand draw everything, get things onto posterboard: we trace line drawings (from coloring books or the internet) onto overhead transparencies, using wet erase markers. Then we use an overhead to project the drawing onto a bulletin board, where the posterboard is stuck up with thumbtacks. We use pencil to trace the projected lines onto the posterboard, then we take them down and lay them on tables and paint them with poster paints. People with all levels of artistic skill starting from try to color mostly inside the lines can participate. Once the paint dries we take black magic markers and draw in the outlines, which helps to cover up the sloppy edges and also makes everything look better.

For the teen room walls, we did up this series of five comic strips, one of which goes with each day's lesson.

A Shepherd's Priorities: Teen Discussion Questions for Missions Lesson, Day Five, God's Sheep

Friday:	A Shepherd's Priorities
Bible Lesson:	Shepherded Sheep (Leading and Following)
Missions Concepts:	Missionaries must teach the Bible, not cultural norms.
Missions Examples:	Craig and Sara Noyes
Bible Passages:	Acts 20:27-32; 2nd Timothy 2:2; Galatians 1:6-9, 2:1-5; Proverbs 30:5-6; Deuteronomy 12:32

1. Can you think of some things people traditionally think missionaries should do?
   Which of these things are really important?
2. What are some practical things Craig and Sara will need to do at first when they arrive on the mission field?
3. Why is it important for people to have copies of the Bible in their own language?
4. Once the Bible is translated into a people's language, isn't that enough?
   Why can't they figure everything out for themselves from that point on?
5. We tend to take our own cultural background for granted and assume that it's normal. How can missionaries tell the difference between necessary things that the people need to be taught and unnecessary American cultural baggage that would just weigh them down?
6. What would be the harm in having people in other countries do church the way we do it here? Why shouldn't we go ahead and teach them to install stained glass and steeples and pianos?
   If it works for us, wouldn't it work just as well for them?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

Unwatched Flocks: Teen Discussion Questions for Missions Lesson, Day Four, God's Sheep

Thursday:	Unwatched Flocks
Bible Lesson:	Sheep Security (The Good Shepherd)
Missions Concepts:	Missionaries train local pastors.
Missions Examples:	India: Orissa
Bible Passages:	2nd Timothy 2:2, 1st Timothy 3:1-7, Titus 1:5-9

1. Can you think of some specific dangers that a church would suffer if they don't have a pastor?
2. What kinds of things does a man need to learn before he can be a pastor?
3. Are there other requirements? Can just anyone be a pastor, if they study the right things?
4. If there are already a number of new churches without pastors, and not enough men training to be pastors for all of them, should missionaries stop evangelizing new areas for a while? Why or why not?
5. Does the Bible actually tell us to train pastors?
6. Where did our pastor receive his training? How can we know if it was good enough?
7. Why don't men from India just come to America and attend school here to train to be pastors?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

Lost Sheep of Israel: Discussion Questions for Teen Missions Lessons, Day Three, God's Sheep

Wednesday:	Lost Sheep of Israel
Bible Lesson:	Stolen Sheep: Saul and the Spoils
Missions Concepts:	Missionaries can and should take the Good News to anyone.
Missions Examples:	Jeff Kran
Bible Passages:	Matthew 15:21-28, Romans 9-11 (especially 9:8, 15, 27, and 32; 10:1-3 and 8-15; 11:1-6, 13-14, 19-21, 23, and 25-27), Galatians 2:11-5:12, Acts 1:8, Acts 15, Romans 3

1. What did Jesus mean when he said he was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel (Mat. 15:24)? Does this mean Gentiles cannot be saved?
2. Why does the Bible compare people to sheep? What is similar about them?
3. How does a missionary find people who need to know about Jesus? How can he tell which people need to hear the good news?
4. In the early days of the church, most of the people in the church were Jews. Today, most of the people in the church are Gentiles. How and why do you suppose this could have changed?
5. What kind of impact can a people's cultural background have on how a missionary might need to present the good news to them?
6. One of the ten commandments is to keep the Sabbath day holy. Why doesn't the Christian church observe this?
7. If they still need to hear the good news, does knowledge of the Old Testament give the Jews any advantage at all?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

Where the People Are: Discussion Questions for Teen Missions Lesson, Day Two, God's Sheep

Tuesday:	Where the People Are
Bible Lesson:	Lamb of God (Isaac and the Ram)
Missions Concepts:	A missionary goes wherever there are people who need to hear the good news.
Missions Examples:	Craig and Sara Noyes
Bible Passages:	John 10, Acts 16:6-15, Matthew 28:18-20, Isaiah 52, Romans 10:8-15

1. Why don't we need foreign missionaries to come to Galion from other countries and minister to us?
2. Why aren't there any full-time missionaries at the research stations in Antarctica?
3. Why is it important for people to have copies of the Bible in their own language?
4. Why is it important for every local church to have a pastor from their own language and culture?
5. What are some things you would need to do before you could translate the Bible into a language that doesn't already have a Bible translation?
6. Sometimes missionaries say that they feel lead by the Holy Spirit to go to a certain place.
   Is there any support in the Bible for this?
7. Do missionaries really need to be sent out by churches? Can't they just go on their own? Why?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

Feeding the Sheep: Discussion Questions for Teen Missions Lesson, Day One, God's Sheep

Monday:	Feeding the Sheep
Bible Lesson:	Straying Sheep: Everyone has sinned, and sin has a penalty.
Missions Concepts:	A missionary must teach God's word.
Missions Examples:	India: Paul Rajan
Bible Passages:	Psalm 23; John 21:15-18; Numbers 27:12-21; Jeremiah 23, Matthew 2:6, 9:16; Psalm 100; Isaiah 40:9-11; Jeremiah 3:15; 2nd Samuel 5:2; Acts 20:27-31; Jude:12

1. How is the teaching of God's word similar to feeding? What do these two activities, one physical and one spiritual, have in common?
2. What is the difference between a pastor and a missionary?
3. Why would Paul Rajan ask a group of people if anyone had ever come to tell them about God?
4. Why do people need someone to teach them about God?
5. Is it better for the people to have a foreign missionary teach them, or a local pastor who is one of them? Why?
6. How does God feel about shepherds who don't take proper care of the flock? What about pastors who teach people the wrong things?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

A Shepherd's Priorities (God's Sheep Missions 2013, Day Five)

Friday:	A Shepherd's Priorities
Bible Lesson:	Shepherded Sheep: The church needs leaders. We must follow Jesus, and we must follow our leaders.
Memory Verse:	Ephesians 2:10
Missions Concepts:	Missionaries must teach the Bible, not cultural norms.
Missions Examples:	Craig and Sara Noyes
Bible Passages:	1st Corinthians 2:1-16

Introduction: Sheep

What's the most important thing for a shepherd to do? Dye the sheep's wool? Tie ribbons and bows around their necks? What about teaching the sheep to bark? [No.]

The most important thing is making sure the sheep have enough grass to eat.

Main Point: Teaching the Right Stuff

It's like that for missionaries too. Some people think missionaries need to help the people all build nice houses, build them a big beautiful church building with a steeple and stained glass, teach people in other countries to be more like Americans, and all kinds of other things. Some of those things might actually be good things to do, sometimes – but they're never as important as the main thing missionaries are supposed to do: they have to feed the sheep.

Missionaries have to teach the Bible. That's the most important thing.

Example: Craig and Sara Noyes

We said on Monday that Pastor Craig and Sara Noyes are going to training to learn how to do missions work among people who have never heard about Jesus before. When they finish their training and arrive where they're going, they'll have a lot of things to do. They will need to find a place to live, learn the language, get to know the people and understand how they do things there, find food to eat, ... They'll be busy. But they will have to always remember why they are there: to tell the people about Jesus and how they can have their sins forgiven. That's the most important thing.

They'll probably do other stuff too. They might teach some of the people to read, so that when they get the Bible translated, the people will be able to read the Bible for themselves. But teaching people to read, by itself, isn't missions, and it's not why Craig and Sara are going. The main point is to teach the people about God.

Counter-example: Early American Indian Missions

When missionaries from Europe came to the American Indians, sometimes they forgot why they were here, and they taught the people the wrong things. They taught them to speak English, and told them not to speak their own language any more. They made some of them cut their hair the European way, instead of the way they were used to. They made them wear boots instead of moccasins. Then, when the Indians looked the way the missionaries wanted them to look, they finally remembered to teach them a few Bible verses. Was that the right way to do missions? [No.]

If they had remembered what missions is all about, they wouldn't have bothered with boots and special haircuts at all. Those things aren't important.

Instead, good missionaries would have worked mostly on teaching the people what the Bible says – especially the good news about how Jesus died for them so their sins could be forgiven. That is what missions is supposed to be all about.

Conclusion: Good Missions

That's what Craig and Sara Noyes will do. They won't care what color of clothes the people wear, how they cook their food and do their laundry, or what time of day they meet together to pray, or what day of the week. They just want to teach them the Bible and see them become God's sheep.

Invitation: Missions

Invite any children who want to do missions work to stay after the lesson and discuss it further.

Unwatched Flocks (God's Sheep Missions 2013, Day Four)

Thursday:	Title
Bible Lesson:	Sheep Security: Jesus is the good shepherd and always looks after his sheep. (The Good Shepherd)
Memory Verse:	John 10:28
Missions Concepts:	Missionaries train local pastors.
Missions Examples:	Orissa
Bible Passages:	2nd Timothy 2:2

Introduction: Sheep

We've been talking this week about sheep and shepherds. The shepherd is the person who takes care of the sheep, leads them to good grass and to water, protects them from wild animals and other dangers, and so on.

What would happen to a group of sheep if they didn't have a shepherd? They might get hungry. They might get lost. Some of the sheep might be hurt, or even killed. A wolf or a lion might eat some of the poor sheep.

Main Point: The Need for Pastors

It's bad for a church not to have any pastor to look out for them. How can the people learn the Bible if nobody teaches it to them? They can try to study on their own, but there are all kinds of things that can go wrong. Without a pastor, there's nobody to make sure the people are getting good teaching, nobody to protect them from false teachers who would tell them wrong things about God, nobody to bring them back into the fold if they wander off.

Every flock of sheep needs a shepherd, and every church needs a pastor.

Example: Orissa

In India, there are Christian believers with no local pastor in their town. Missionaries from other cities came and told them a little about Jesus, and then the people who they told went to their friends and neighbors and told more people, so now there's a group of believers, but they need a pastor. The missionaries can't stay in all the different towns, because there aren't enough of the missionaries to go around. They need more shepherds.

Some of the new Christians in India want to be pastors, but they don't know how. They need to know more of the Bible. They need to know how to study the Bible. They need to know how to lead and protect a church.

So now the missionaries are teaching men how to be pastors. They teach them how to study the Bible, how to teach it, and how to look out for a church – all the things a pastor needs to do.

Conclusion:

When missionaries first go to an area, like Craig and Sara Noyes are planning to do, they have to be the shepherd themselves – they have to teach the people, and lead people to Christ, and start churches.

But the job isn't done as soon as they have sheep. The sheep need shepherds. A missionary's job isn't finished until there are local pastors who can lead the new churches. Part of missionaries' job is to train these local pastors, so they can shepherd the new flock. Only then do the missionaries move on to another place.

Invitation: Missions

Invite any children who are interested in doing missions work someday to stay after the lesson and discuss it further.

Lost Sheep of Israel (God's Sheep Missions 2013, Day Three)

Wednesday:	Lost Sheep of Israel
Bible Lesson:	Stolen Sheep: We should obey God's instruction. (Saul and the Spoils)
Memory Verse:	1st Samuel 15:22
Missions Concepts:	Missionaries can and should take the Good News to anyone.
Missions Examples:	Jeff Kran
Bible Passages:	Romans 9-11 (especially 9:8, 15, 27, and 32; 10:1-3 and 8-15; 11:1-6, 13-14, 19-21, 23, and 25-27), Galatians 2:11-5:12, Acts 1:8

Introduction: Sheep

This week, we've been talking about sheep and shepherds. Did you know that there are different kinds of sheep? There are black sheep, white sheep, bighorn sheep, sheep with different kinds of wool, ... all different kinds of sheep. But they're all sheep, and they all need to eat, and they all need a shepherd to look after them and lead them to grass.

The Bible compares people to sheep. Just like sheep, there are all kinds of people. People come from different places, speak different languages, look different, and know different things. Some of the people are God's sheep, who believe in Jesus and follow him, and some are not his sheep; but all the people need Jesus, the good shepherd, and they all need someone who will teach them about Jesus and lead them to follow God.

Main Point: The Good News is for Jews and Gentiles

The Bible says that the good news about Jesus is for Jews and Gentiles. A Jew is a person who comes from Jacob's family – Israel. A Gentile is someone who does not come from Jacob's family. Most of us here are Gentiles, and we need a shepherd. (Fortunately, we have one. We said on Sunday night that Pastor Jeff is our shepherd here.) But we Gentiles aren't the only ones. Jews need a shepherd too. They also need someone to teach them about Jesus.

Example: Jeff Kran

Pastor Jeff Kran is a missionary to the Jewish people. He leads Bible studies, and he teaches in churches, but mostly he just goes to places where there are Jews who need to hear about Jesus, and he talks to them. Sometimes he gets a chance to tell them about Jesus right away. Sometimes he talks about other things and gets to know them, hoping to tell them about Jesus later.

Many times Pastor Kran goes to places where he knows there are Jews who do not know that Jesus paid for their sins. Jews already know that they have sinned (that everyone has sinned) because they have the Hebrew Bible – the part of the Bible that we call the Old Testament. Their Bible tells them many things that God wants people to do, and it tells them that if they don't do it, if they mess up even one little time, God will be angry with them and punish them. Jews know about their sin and God's punishment, but they need to know about God's forgiveness: that Jesus died on the cross for them, to take their punishment, so they can be forgiven. Jeff Kran wants to tell the Jews that if they follow Jesus, he can forgive them, and they can live forever with him in heaven.

Conclusion: The Gospel is for Everyone

Everyone needs to hear this good news. Jews, Gentiles, tall people, short people, old, young, black, white, Asian, American, ... Everybody needs Jesus to forgive their sin. So everybody needs someone to tell them. Everybody needs a shepherd.

Invitation: Missions

Invite any children who want to do missions work to stay after the lesson and discuss it further.

Where the People Are (God's Sheep Missions 2013, Day Two)

Tuesday:	Where the People Are
Bible Lesson:	Lamb of God: Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins, so that we don't have to. (Isaac and the Ram)
Memory Verse:	Romans 4:25
Missions Concepts:	A missionary goes wherever there are people who need to hear the good news.
Missions Examples:	Craig and Sara Noyes
Bible Passages:	John 10, Acts 16:6-15, Matthew 28:18-20, Isaiah 52, Romans 10:8-15

Introduction: Sheep

We said yesterday that a shepherd is a person who takes care of sheep. So what would a shepherd be if he didn't have any sheep? [Nothing. No shepherd at all.] A person who wants to be a shepherd has to have sheep. You can't just make sheep, out of fluff and paper mache. You have to go where there are some sheep. You can start with just a few, but if you aren't around any sheep at all, you can't be a shepherd.

Review:

Yesterday, when we talked about pastors and missionaries, we said that people are like sheep, and the shepherds have to teach them God's word, which is like feeding them.

Main Point: Where the People Are

But where do they find sheep? Wherever there are people who need to hear about God, that's where missionaries have to go, because that's where they will find their sheep.

Do we have foreign missionaries here in Galion? Do we need missionaries to come from far away and teach us about God? [No.] We have churches and pastors here, and many Christians. There are, of course, other people here who need to hear about God and need to follow Jesus, but we don't need foreign missionaries to come and tell them, because we have people here who can tell them. We can tell them. We can tell our own friends about Jesus, and we can invite them to Bible School and to church, so that they can hear more. So we don't need foreign missionaries.

But some places don't already have Christians. They speak another language, and they don't have the Bible in their own language yet. They don't have local pastors. So who is going to tell them about Jesus? They need missionaries to come and tell them.

Example: Craig and Sara Noyes

Pastor Craig Noyes and his wife Sara want to go someplace where there are people who have never heard about Jesus at all, people who can't even get the Bible in their own language, because nobody has translated the Bible's words over into their language yet.

Here, we speak English. Can you get the Bible in English? Sure, no problem. The Bible was translated into English hundreds of years ago. You can get the Bible in English, Spanish, French, lots of different languages – but not quite all of them.

Pastor Craig Noyes and his wife Sara want to go where the people have never had a copy of the Bible in their language, to people who have never had missionaries come and teach them about God. They want to go to people who have never had a shepherd.

Conclusion:

If you wanted to go, would you know how? Would you know what you'd need to take, how to learn their language, how to translate the Bible for them, and how to teach them about Jesus? Pastor Craig has already studied the Bible. He could teach us, if we needed a pastor here. But he still needs to learn how to do the missions work in places where there is no electricity, no restaurant, and no internet, where he doesn't know the language and there's no Bible in that language.

This fall, when you go back to school, Craig and Sara Noyes will go to the Missionary Training Center. They're going to take classes there for a year and a half to learn all about how to do the missions work they want to do. They need to learn how they can go where the people are – the people who have never heard about Jesus, because there's no one to tell them, people who can't read the Bible for themselves because there isn't a Bible in their language.

Invitation: Missions

Invite any children who are interested in doing missions work to stay after the lesson and discuss it further.

Feeding the Sheep (God's Sheep Missions 2013, Day One)

Monday:	Feeding the Sheep
Bible Lesson:	Straying Sheep: Everyone has sinned. Sin has a penalty. (Moses and the Rock)
Memory Verse:	Isaiah 53:6
Missions Concepts:	A missionary must teach God's word.
Missions Examples:	India: Paul Rajan
Bible Passages:	Psalm 23; John 21:15-18; Numbers 27:12-21; Jeremiah 23, Matthew 2:6, 9:16; Psalm 100; Isaiah 40:9-11; Jeremiah 3:15; 2nd Samuel 5:2; Acts 20:27-28; Jude:12

Introduction: Sheep

All week at Bible School we're going to be talking about sheep. Who knows what you call a person who takes care of sheep? [A shepherd.] One of the things a shepherd has to do to take good care of his sheep is to make sure they have enough to eat. If the shepherd keeps his sheep in one place, they eat up all the grass there, and then what? They need new grass every day. The shepherd has to lead the sheep to more grass.

Main Point: Teaching the Bible

The Bible says that people need a shepherd, just like sheep do. Except, our shepherds don't find us grass to eat. Yuck. We can find our own food anyway. But our shepherds have to feed us in a different way: they feed us God's word. We call these shepherds pastors and missionaries. They teach us the Bible. We can feed our own bodies, but our shepherds help feed our souls.

Pastor Jeff is our shepherd here in this church, in Galion; but people in other places need to hear God's teaching too.

Example: India

For example, there are people in India who need to hear God's message. That's why we have pastors and missionaries in India, to teach people there about God.

One group of people in India lives in houses built for them by the government. They used to live in the mountains. When Paul Rajan, a pastor and missionary in India, asked one of them if anyone had ever come to talk to his people about God. He said No. These people need someone to tell them the truth about the only true God.

Pastor Rajan would like to teach them about God, but he has his own church to look out for, in Coimbatore, and there are also many other places in India where people need Bible teachers. There are 327 adults and 161 children in a place called Golamunda, where some men Pastor Paul knows are trying to start a church. There are 103 adults and 24 children in an area called Semala, where a man named Nehemiah lives, and there are 53 adults and 36 children in a place called Umarcot, where a man named Joseph is starting a church. All of these people need someone to teach them the Bible. The missionaries in India have a lot of work to do, teaching the Bible to all those people!

Conclusion: Shepherds Must Feed Their Sheep

If God's people are like sheep, and the people who teach them are like shepherds, and the Bible is like food for their souls, then teaching the Bible is just as important as a shepherd leading his flock of sheep to good grass. It's the most important thing pastors and missionaries do.

Invitation: Missions

Invite any children who want to do missions work to stay after the lesson and discuss it further.

Teen Discussion Questions: Shepherded Sheep (Leading and Following) (Updated, 2013)

Friday:	Shepherded Sheep (Leading and Following)
Story Passages:	John 21
Other Passages:	Psalm 23, Matthew 7:15-23, Acts 20:28-30
Objectives:	The church needs leaders. We must follow Jesus, and we must follow our leaders.
Memory Verse:	Ephesians 2:10

1. Acts 20:30 tells us that false teachers will arise from within the church itself. In Matthew 7, Jesus compares them to wolves who disguise themselves as sheep. How can the church protect itself from such people?
2. If Satan is like a roaring lion, how can a shepherd protect the flock from him?
3. David says in Psalm 23:4 that the Lord's rod and staff are a comfort to him. What might the psalmist mean by this?
4. Why was Peter hurt when Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?"
   Why do you suppose Jesus asked him three times?
5. What are some things young people can do in the church (besides just attending)?
6. What is the barrier or dividing wall in Ephesians 2:14? Why is it important that this wall was destroyed? How does this affect us today?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

Teen Discussion Questions: Sheep Security (The Good Shepherd) (Updated, 2013)

Thursday:	Sheep Security (The Good Shepherd)
Story Passages:	Luke 15:3-7, 1st Samuel 17:32-37
Other Passages:	John 10:1-30, Romans 8:28-39
Objectives:	Jesus is the good shepherd and always looks after his sheep.
Memory Verse:	John 10:28

1. Why was David willing to fight the bear?
2. Jesus says that his sheep know his voice and will not follow a stranger. Since he returned to heaven, we don't hear his physical voice much – how do we tell good leaders from bad ones today?
3. What does Jesus mean when he calls himself the gate for the sheep?
4. Jesus says he has other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. Who are these? When he says, I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock and one shepherd, what is he talking about?
5. Jesus speaks of a hired hand who will abandon the sheep. Who is he talking about? How is the hired hand different from the thief, yet also different from the shepherd?
6. When the disciples asked Jesus (right before he ascended) whether the kingdom was coming to Israel right away, we now know that the answer was no – it was going to be two thousand years or more. Why didn't he tell them that? Why did he instead tell them to wait for the Spirit?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

Teen Discussion Questions: Stolen Sheep (Saul and the Spoils) (Updated, 2013)

Wednesday:	Stolen Sheep (Saul and the Spoils)
Story Passages:	1st Samuel 15:1-23
Other Passages:	1st 9:15-19, 10:1, 10:24, 15:26-28, 15:35-16:1, James 1:22, Exodus 17:8-16
Objectives:	We should obey God's instruction.
Memory Verse:	1st Samuel 15:22

1. Why did God want the Amalekites and their possessions totally destroyed?
2. Saul said that the soldiers spared the best sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord. Was that their real reason?
3. Do we today ever say that we did something for a reason that sounds pretty good, when we really had another reason entirely? How did God react when Saul did this?
4. Why were Saul and his soldiers willing to destroy everything that was despised and weak but unwilling to destroy the good things of the Amalekites?
5. In our memory verse, what does it mean by to heed is better than the fat of rams?
6. Did God make a mistake when he chose Saul? Why did he choose him as king?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

Teen Discussion Questions: Lamb of God (Isaac and the Ram) (Updated, 2013)

Tuesday:	Lamb of God (Isaac and the Ram)
Story Passages:	Genesis 22
Other Passages:	Hebrews 11:19
Objectives:	Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins, so that we don't have to.
Memory Verse:	Romans 4:25

1. Why did God ask the Israelites to perform animal sacrifices?
2. God clearly knew about Ishmael (Gen 17:17-21), so why did he call Isaac your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love (Genesis 22:2)? What is God talking about? What is so unique about Isaac?
3. Hebrews tells us that Abraham believed God could raise Isaac from the dead. How could he have reached that conclusion?
4. Isaac himself carried the wood. (Does this remind you of anything?) How old must Isaac have been?
5. Abraham was an old man, but he was able to bind Isaac and lay him on the altar. What must their relationship have been like?
6. Why is it important that Jesus not only died but also rose from the dead?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

Teen Discussion Questions: Going Astray (Moses and the Rock) (Updated, 2013)

Monday:	Going Astray: Moses and the Rock
Story Passages:	Numbers 20:1-13
Other Passages:	Isaiah 53, Romans 3:23, 6:23, Exodus 17:1-7
Objectives:	Everyone has sinned. Sin has a penalty.
Memory Verse:	Isaiah 53:6

1. What was wrong with the people's reaction? After all, it was true that there was no water for the community. People do need water to live, so what was the problem with their attitude?
2. Why did God give Moses different instructions this time than the first time?
3. The memory verse is from Isaiah 53. Who is this passage talking about?
4. Moses mostly did what God said. Why was the punishment for his deviation so severe, when much greater sins have been forgiven others?
5. Moses was a uniquely great man of God. (See Numbers 12:4-8) Yet, even he went astray. What hope is there for us? How can we hope to follow God if Moses failed?
6. How does the church protect against false teaching? How does it help to bring us back when we wander astray?

If you need hints to answer some of the questions, look up the listed scripture passages.

Snacks for God's Sheep, Improved: Day Five

Friday:	Snack
Elementary Bible Lesson:	Shepherded Sheep (Leading and Following)
Memory Verse:	Ephesians 2:10
Preschool Bible Lesson:	God Loves Us (The 99 and the 1)

Key Item: Salad

The salad should be made of stuff that both human children and sheep will willingly eat: lettuce, carrot, maybe cucumber, ...

Explain to the children that while sheep mostly eat grass, they can also eat other vegetables, like lettuce or carrots – whatever the shepherd finds for them. If we are God's sheep, we need to be fed too. What does it mean to feed God's sheep? That's what tonight's lesson is about.

Snack Lesson:

Real sheep mostly eat grass, but they can also eat salad (lettuce, carrots, etc.) – whatever the shepherd finds for them.

If we are God's sheep, we need to be fed too. That's what our Bible lesson tonight is about.

Additional Snack Items:

To make the snack more substantial, we served macaroni and cheese and ice cream floats, alongside the salad. We also provided Kool-Aid to drink.

Snacks for God's Sheep, Improved: Day Four

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Thursday:	Snack
Elementary Bible Lesson:	Sheep Security: The Good Shepherd
Memory Verse:	John 10:28
Preschool Bible Lesson:	Jesus Loves Children (Let the Children Come)

Key Item: Jello-O Jigglers

Serve thick, jiggly gelatin dessert (recipe available from Kraft) in the shape of shepherd crooks (like a candy-cane shape) and sheep. The shepherd's crook should remind the children that Jesus is the good shepherd who takes care of his sheep.

Snack Lesson:

What's our theme this week? [Hold up a shepherd's crook Jiggler.] What does this shape remind us of? What does that have to do with sheep? How might a shepherd use something like this?

In our Bible lesson we're going to learn about the Good Shepherd, who always takes care of his sheep.

Additional Snack Items:

To make the snack more substantial, we served pizza and cupcakes, alongside the Jell-O. We also provided Kool-Aid to drink.

Snacks for God's Sheep, Improved: Day Three

Wednesday:	Snack
Elementary Bible Lesson:	Stolen Sheep (Saul and the Spoils) (See also: skit.)
Memory Verse:	1st Samuel 15:22
Preschool Bible Lesson:	Baa, baa, baa! (Saul and the Sheep)

Key Item: Donuts

Serve traditional O-shaped donuts. Tell the children that the O stands for Obey, because we should obey God's instruction. Today's Bible lesson is about a time when King Saul didn't obey – and that didn't turn out so well for him.

Snack Lesson:

Donuts are shaped like an O. Do you know any words that start with O?

I know an important word that starts with O, that has to do with our Bible lesson tonight. The O stands for Obey. We are supposed to obey God.

Tonight we're going to learn about a King named Saul who didn't obey God, and we'll find out how that worked out for him.

Additional Snack Items:

To make the snack more substantial, we served hot dogs and fruit alongside the donuts. We also provided Kool-Aid to drink.