The Church Divided - Sunday April 25, 2021
Sunday April 25, 2021 (Vol 11, Unit 32, Session 3)
Hi there, and thanks for joining us this week. The following blog is here to be a tool for you to review the previous Sunday’s Children’s church lesson and help your kids grow in their faith. Please feel free to use as much of it as you choose. You know your kids and are the best possible teacher for them. God has given you the power of the Holy Spirit to enable you to do more than you think possible (Eph 3:20). So, let’s have some fun and teach our kids from the scriptures.
Parent Devotional – The Church Divided
1 Corinthians 1-6
In the first century, Corinth was an important destination in the Roman Empire. The city was located on a narrow area of land connecting the southern end of the Greek peninsula with the mainland to the north. When Paul visited Corinth on his missionary journeys, the city was full of people with various cultural and religious backgrounds.
Corinth was a strategic place to plant a church. Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half with Aquila and his wife, Priscilla. On the Sabbath, Paul went to the synagogues to teach God’s message to the people. When the Jews refused to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, Paul preached to the Gentiles. Many Corinthians believed and were baptized. (Acts 18:1-18) Finally, Paul returned to Antioch in Syria.
About six years passed. Paul was in Ephesus when he heard a report that the church in Corinth was struggling. The people in the church were arguing and suing each other. In some ways, they lived just like the people in Corinth who were not believers. So, Paul wrote a letter to the Corinthian church—the Book of First Corinthians—not only to instruct them on how to live but to answer questions they had about the faith.
As you teach kids from 1 Corinthians, focus on church unity: Because of Jesus and what He has done, believers can humbly come together as one body. Emphasize that Paul gave practical instructions so that the believers would know how to live—not as a way to earn God’s favor, but to live in light of their salvation.
Parent Guidance and Instructions
As we begin to explore this week’s lesson, take a moment to pray and remember the verse from Deuteronomy about teaching your children the scriptures. Deuteronomy 6:9 says: “You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” Maybe you do not have time to sit and have an hour of Bible time all at once, or perhaps your children are too young to sit for that long. Consider the key points of the lesson and ask God to give you opportunities to speak them into the hearts of your children throughout the week. Let the Bible become a part of your day-to-day. Be blessed this week, my friends!
Each week we include songs, activity pages, the bible lesson video, memory verses, and possibly a craft or 2. We pray this will help you find ways to engage your kids spiritually. It is written in script form from the K-2nd grade lesson, so you can read directly from it or change it to suit your children. Take some time to look at and print the activity pages and the additional activities and information (found in the links at the bottom of the page) to review the lesson so you can adjust as needed. I have included the Bible and Discussion questions along with a breakdown of the Gospel in the Older Kids Activities pages and loads of activities and crafts on the Preschool Extra Activity Pages. Once you are ready, go ahead and start with these songs if you would like, or pick some of your favorite worship songs and then jump right in! Have fun! And remember, this does not need to be done in one sitting! Feel free to break it up over the week. Please contact me if you have any questions or suggestions. We would love to hear from you!
Opening
“Blessings and Bummers”
Let’s get started. Tell me, what have you seen the Lord doing in your lives this week? What have your greatest blessings been? How about your biggest challenges?
Parents share your blessings and bummers, encourage the kids to do the same.
Prayer
Let’s go to the Lord in prayer: Father God, Thank you. Thank you for providing for our needs. You are so good to us even though we don’t deserve it! Thank you for continuing to bless us, Lord. Thank you for being patient with us. Thank you to our friends as well as our families.
Most importantly, we thank you always for sending Jesus to live a perfect life and die to pay for our sins. Thank you for raising Him from the dead and promising us life with you forever if we believe in Him. Please help us be thankful for all you do for us and look to you in all that we do. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
(Please add to or customize prayer time to fit your family)
Praise the Lord for hearing our prayers!
Let’s chat!
Prompt kids to share about a time they had an argument or disagreement with someone. Who did they argue with, and about what?
Say • Because people are born in sin, we often argue with one another about all sorts of issues. Thankfully, God can bring all of us together in love. Today we will learn about a time Paul wrote to help a church remember the importance of being united by God.
Optional Session Starter Activity
Pick one of two options or do both; this is your party. (You can find these on page 2 of the optional activity pages attached at the bottom of the page.)
Big Picture Question
First, let’s review our big picture question. What is our mission as Christians? Our mission is to make disciples of all nations by the power of the Holy Spirit. We cannot live on mission unless we agree on the mission and are empowered by God to complete it. Making disciples of all nations is a big job, but not too big for God. He uses us not because He needs us, but because it is a blessing to us to be a part of His plans.
Review
We’ve been learning about the ways the early church went about completing the mission. We talked about how God rescued Peter from prison. We also learned how Paul and Barnabas told Jews and Gentiles about Jesus. This week, we will learn about one of the ways the church struggled to fulfill her mission, and about the letter Paul wrote to help fix the problem they faced.
Bible Lesson
The Bible teaches that the church is the body of Christ. Just as a body separated into different pieces couldn’t survive, a local church cannot survive if it is divided. Paul wanted the Corinthian believers to stop arguing over who they followed and realize that the gospel unites all kinds of people in love.
This message is still extremely important today. There are lots of things people disagree about, and we are really good at finding reasons to dislike other people; but the gospel gives us a single, incredible reason to love everyone, even those who are different from us. The gospel teaches us that God loves people from all nations. God doesn’t see some people as better than others.
All of us are sinners who need Jesus. The gospel makes us all equal before God. Those who are found in Christ are given Jesus’ righteousness even though they could never earn it. No matter what differences there are between any groups of people, God’s power and grace to save us though Jesus can overcome those differences to make us into one family. Instead of being prideful, the gospel demands that we show humility and love toward everyone.
Christ Connection
Paul told the believers in the Corinthian church to come together because of the gospel. He reminded them that Jesus saves sinners. Because of Jesus and what He has done, believers can humbly come together as one body.
Bible Time!
Distribute a Bible to each kid. Help kids find 1 Corinthians 1–6. Point out Corinth on the New Testament Mediterranean Map. (D5) Remind the kids that Paul wrote letters to the Corinthians.
Ask the following questions. Lead the group to discuss:
· What did Paul say about divisions in the church? (They should not happen—the church should be united; 1 Cor. 1:10)
· Who did Paul point to as an example that the church should be united? (Jesus, who was not divided; 1 Cor. 1:13)
· What should believers do instead of boasting in their strength or the wisdom of their human leader? (boast in the Lord, 1 Cor. 1:29-31)
· What does it mean to boast in the Lord? Guide the kids to think about God as the source of every good thing they have. All their gifts and talents come from God. Their salvation comes from God. All wisdom comes from God. We cannot boast unless we are boasting in what God is doing.
· Does being united in Christ mean we have to agree on everything? Help the kids think through the difference between something essential—like Jesus’ death and resurrection—and something that’s just a matter of preference—like which worship songs to sing. Remind kids that believers will disagree about some things, but the way in which we disagree ought to still be marked by Jesus’ love.
· How can you show love to someone you have trouble getting along with? Discuss practical steps kids can take to be kinder and more loving toward those they may not get along with. Help them begin to see the world from other people’s perspectives. Remind them that often unkind people act that way because of pain they feel.
Say • The gospel unites all kinds of people in love. When we love Jesus, we must love who He loves: everyone!
Memory Verse
Read the verse together.
The Great Commission explains the mission Jesus has for us as believers. What is our mission as Christians? Our mission is to make disciples of all nations by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Memory Verse Activity:
Write each word or phrase of the key passage on a separate index card. Hide the cards around the room and request volunteers to say the key passage from memory. Thank each kid for her efforts and encourage all the kids to continue working to memorize the key passage. Challenge the kids to search for the cards. Once kids have located all the cards, help them put the cards in order.
Say • Jesus spoke the words of this key passage before returning to heaven. He commanded His followers to make disciples of people from all over the world. Believers today are still working to accomplish that mission. That’s why missions are so important. What is our mission as Christians? Our mission is to make disciples of all nations by the power of the Holy Spirit.
That is all I have for this week. Let’s pray together:
Lord, we praise You for all that You have done and will do. We know that Your mission is to save people from all nations through Jesus. Help us to be united by love for You and for one another. Help us to live on mission. Amen.
Thanks for joining us! I hope to meet you here again next week!
Thank you, Lifeway’s Gospel Project, for allowing us to publish this material.
Additional Activities and Information
