Hebrews: The Word of God
HEBREWS 4:12
Scripture verse: “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
Objectives:
- Students should memorize the first half of the verse, and know its context and meaning.
- Students should understand that nothing is hidden from God; He cannot be fooled.
Background on the book:
Hebrews is very different from the other New Testament books in that we have no idea who wrote it. The Council at Carthage, which organized the canon of Scripture, attributed the letter to Paul; others suggest Barnabas or Apollos. It was written to Jewish believers probably from Rome before AD 70, before the destruction of Jerusalem.
Possible Lesson Plan:
- Open with prayer.
- Review the background of the book. This is the first letter we have studied possibly not written by the apostle Paul. As you look through the book, what is different in emphasis or style from the other epistles?
- Scripture lesson: Hebrews 4: 11-13, 16. Read it aloud and memorize the first half of this week’s verse. Read also Luke 8:16-17. Recite the verse a few times; this verse is quoted frequently, and the reference to the "two-edged sword" is found in literature. Take your beach ball and toss it around, with each student adding a word as he receives the ball. Be sure all have learned this important verse.
- Do Christians “mess up”? Of course. Can you think of several Bible people who also “messed up”? (Adam, Lot, David, Jonah, Peter, more?; write them on the blackboard or on a large sheet of paper, with 4 columns: name, sin, immediate result, result after repentance) Did they try to hide their sin from God? What was the result in each case? Did God find out? Can we hide from God our? Can we fool him? Should we try? As Christians, what should we do when we sin? (See verse 16) If we tell God the truth and confess our sins, how will he respond? What was the end-result in each of the cases listed? Was God faithful when they “drew near”?
|
Name |
Sin |
Immediate result |
End result |
|
Adam |
Eating from tree of knowledge of good and evil |
Thrown out of Garden of Eden |
Father of the entire human race |
|
Lot (nephew of Abraham) |
Insisting his uncle give him the best land |
Living in Sodom and Gomorrah; incest and rape |
Miraculous escape just before the destruction came |
|
David |
Stealing his friend’s wife, Bathsheba |
Death of his son, Absalom |
Birth of Solomon, who built the first Temple |
|
Jonah |
Wouldn’t go to Ninevah |
Swallowed by great fish |
City of Ninevah was saved |
|
Peter |
Denied Jesus 3 times |
Wept bitterly |
Became the rock on which the Church was built |
- How does God speak to us? Brainstorm some ways that God can speak to us “like a 2-edged sword”?
Scripture
Liturgy
Prophecy
Confession
Prayer
How should we respond when he does?
- Play hide and seek: Have everyone hide in the dark. Is it hard for “it” to find them? Turn on the lights. Now how hard is it? Let the students draw their own conclusion after a few rounds. Can we hide from God’s Word – the “Light of the world”?
- Make a "What Would Jesus Do" bracelet or necklace. Wear it!
8. Close with prayer.
