Tag / Seventh-day Adventist Sabbath School lesson teaching plans

by In Light Of The Cross

3: Controversies-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School class, July 20, 2024.

Main Theme: This week we will look at how Jesus handled some controversial situations and what we can learn from Him.

Read in Class: Mark 2:1-12. Discuss the main ideas in this passage.

Study: What was the paralytic looking for when he was brought to Jesus, and what did he receive?

Apply: In the story in Mark 2:1-12, Jesus is preaching the Gospel. A group of frirends are bringing another friend to Jesus to hear the Gospel. Another group of people are critisizing Jesus and questioning Jesus’ words and methods. Which group to you most closely identify with and why? Which group was doing waht they were supposed to be doing?

Share: Your friend asks how Micah 6:6-8 explains what was happening between Jesus and the leaders. What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 2:13-22. Ask the class to summarize this passage.

Study: Who was Levi, the son of Alphaeus, and why would there be an objection to him becoming a disciple of Jesus?

Apply: Who are those who today might be looked upon as the tax collectors were in Jesus’ day? How do we adjust our thinking regarding them?

Share: Your friend asks you if we should be fasting to today, and if so why and how? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 2:23-28. Discuss the main idea of this passage.

Study: How does Jesus counter the charge brought by the Pharisees?

Apply: In the NLT Mark 2:24 says the pharisees accused the disciples of “harvesting grain on the Sabbath.” Really? All they were doing was plucking a few heads of grain to eat right then. Would you really consider that “harvesting?” Were the pharisees going a little overboard on this accusation? What are some things we sometimes go overbaord on or may be a little too picky about?

Share: Your friend asks you what Mark 3:1-6 teaches about Sabbath keeping. What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 3:20-35. Discuss the main idea of this passage.

Study: What connection do you see between the two stories intertwined in this passage?

Apply: Based on Scripture how would you explain what the unpardonable sin is?

Share: Your friend says she is afraid she has commited the unpardonable sin. What do you tell your friend?

by In Light Of The Cross

7: Your Mercy Reaches Unto the Heavens-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School class, February 17, 2024.

Main Theme: Experiencing God’s mercy encourages us to serve Him alone.

Read in Class: Psalm 136:1-3 and Psalm 51:1-5. Define the common thread of these passages.

Study: What thought predominates in these Psalms? Why does the Psalmist appeal to God’s mercy?

Apply: Read Psalm 51:6-19. How does this help you understand how forgiveness is applied to you? How does this help you understand the goal of forgiveness?

Share: Your friend asks, if God can forgive David for adultery, deception and even murder then could God still forgive those who have committed adultery and even murder today? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Psalm 130:1-8. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: How are the gravity of sin and hope for sinners portrayed?

Apply: Think about the question, “If You, Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?” (Psalm 130:3). What does that mean to you personally? Where would you be if the Lord marked your iniquities?

Share: Your friend asks if “He Shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities” (Psalm 130:8) means that God will give his people victory over every form of sin, no matter how powerful that form of sin is? What do you tell your friend? How might Titus 2:11-14 NLT help you answer that question?

Read in Class: Psalm 113:1-9 and Psalm 123:1-4. How do these two Psalms contrast?

Study: What do we learn from the contrast in these two Psalms?

Apply: Dwell on the Cross and what happened there for you personally. What has Jesus saved you from? Why is it so important to keep the Cross foremost in your mind?

Share: Your friend says, sometimes we are not prisoners of circumstances but rather prisoners of our own thought patterns? In light of Psalm 113 and Psalm 123 what do you think your friend means? Do you agree with the statement?

Read in Class: Psalm 103:1-22. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: How is God’s mercy portrayed here?

Apply: How does God’s love and mercy encourage you to worship and trust God and God alone?

Share: Can you think of someone who may be discouraged and could benefit from hearing about God’s mercy this week? Can you share something from the Psalms with them this week?

by In Light Of The Cross

4: The Lord Hears and Delivers-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

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Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School class, January 27, 2024.

Main Theme: We should remember that the proper response to the Lord’s nearness consists in a life of faith in Him and of obedience to His commandments. Nothing short of this faith and obedience will be acceptable to Him, as the history of Israel often revealed.

Read in Class: Psalm 40:1-3, Psalm 121:1-8. Define the main idea of these passages.

Study:  How is God involved in our daily affairs?

Apply: What are some practical ways that you can better experience the reality of God’s care? How can you better cooperate with God in order to enable Him to work within you and for you?

Share: Tell about a time when God came through for you when all human help failed?

Read in Class: Psalm 17:7-9, Psalm 31:1-3, Psalm 91:2-7. Define the common thread of these passages.

Study: What does the psalmist do in times of trouble?

Apply: How, though, do we deal with the times when calamity strikes, and we can’t seem to see the Lord’s protection? Why do these traumas not mean that the Lord is not there with us?

Share: Your friend asks, if God always hearing our prayers means we always get what we ask for? How do you answer your friend?

Read in Class: Psalm 114:1-8. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: How is the divine deliverance of the people of Israel from Egypt poetically described here?

Apply: What are some of the spiritual dangers we face as believers, and how can we learn to lean on the Lord’s power to protect us from succumbing to these dangers that are as real for us now as they were for the psalmist?

Share: Your friend says that God literally delivered Israel from slavery, but does God literally deliver us from oppression or is it just symbolic of God delivering us from sin and spiritual oppression? How do you reply to your friend?

Read in Class: Psalm 3:4, Psalm 14:7, Psalm 20:1-3. Define the common thread of these passages.

Study:  Where does help come from in these texts?

Apply: Read Hebrews 4:15-16. In what ways does this passage parallel what the psalmist says about the sanctuary?

Share: Can you think of someone who needs to be encouraged by something in this week’s lesson? How can you encourage them this week?

by In Light Of The Cross

12: Esther and Mordecai-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

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Prepared by William Earnhardt for Sabbath School class, December 23, 2023.

Main Theme: The story of Esther shows how God’s people, even in foreign environments, can witness for truth.

Read in Class: Esther 2:5-10. Discuss the main idea of this passage.

Study: What do these verses tell us about the situation of Mordecai and Esther? Why did Mordecai tell Esther not to reveal her Jewish identity?

Apply: What circumstances would it be prudent not to be open about your faith? Or should we never hide who we are? See Why did Jesus tell the Demons not to Tell Everyone He was the Son of God?

Share: Your friend says that Mordecai not wanting people to know who Esther was showed a lack of faith. What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Esther 3:1-15. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What is happening here and why?

Apply: In what ways, even now, might we be tested, like Mordecai? 

Share: Your friend says the it seems like Mordecai was escalating the situation between him and Haman? Why couldn’t Mordecai have been a peace maker and just humbly bowed to Haman to show a little respect? Why did he have to create such a huge confrontation and put the lives of his people in peril? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Esther 4:8-14. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: Why was it considered appropriate at this time for Esther to identify herself as a Jew?

Apply: For the Jews in such a situation as described above, prayer would certainly accompany fasting. That is, though they acted in their own behalf, prayer was central to their response. What obvious lesson can we take from this?

Share: Your friend asks why Mordecai would put Esther in such a dangerous situation? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Esther 9:1-12. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What was the result of Esther’s effort?

Challenge: Pray that God will give you the courage to share something He has done for you with one of the people on your prayer list this week.

Challenge Up: Begin a diary or journal of special little things (or big things) that God does for you. Review it and pray that God will bring these things to your mind at just the right time so you can share them with someone.

by In Light Of The Cross

4: Sharing God’s Mission-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

Prepared by William Earnhardt for Sabbath School, October 28, 2023.

Main Theme: Genesis 18 gives us Abraham as a model of how God can use us in His mission.

Read in Class: Genesis 18:16-33. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: How did Abraham exercise his great quality of love for all people without distinguishing tribe, race, or people?

Apply: Why is intercessory prayer so important in our own prayer life? How can praying for others in need help us grow spiritually and experience more the reality of God’s love for sinners?

Share: Your friend asks what good it does to pray for the salvation of those around us? Isn’t God already doing all He can to save the world? How could our prayers possibly help God when He is already doing everything possible to save us?

Read in Class: Genesis 18:23-32 and James 5:16. Define the common thread in these passages.

Study:  What should this teach us about the power of intercessory prayer?

Apply: Read Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25. What do they tell us about what Jesus does for us, and how might this truth help us understand better our own role as intercessors for others?

Share: Your friend asks how God has answered your prayers regarding the salvation of others? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Genesis 19:1-29. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What was the result of Abraham’s spirit of hospitality, love, and prayer?

Apply: How can we learn not to be discouraged if we are not seeing the kind of results that we want when we do mission? See That’s Why I’m Here.

Share: Your friend asks, “How do we convince such a sinful generation that they need a Savior without making them feel condemned?” What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Genesis 12:1-9. Define the main idead of this passage.

Study:  What do these verses teach about submitting to God’s will, even when the path ahead does not seem clear?

Challenge: Challenge: In our cities, we face obstacles in preaching the gospel appropriately and effectively. We need to plead with God to intervene.

Challenge up:  Find a way to contact someone who is being directly affected by a difficult situation similar to your own. Tell that person you are praying for him or her, and ask God to show you what you can do to help.

by In Light Of The Cross

2: God’s Grand, Christ-Centered Plan-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School Class, July 8, 2023.

Main Theme: The Book of Ephesians tells us what God’s grace has already provided to secure our salvation.

Read in Class: Ephesians 1:7-8. Discuss the main idea of this passage.

Study: “Redemption” is an idea that is used frequently in the New Testament. Compare the uses of the idea in Colossians 1:13, 14; Titus 2:13, 14; and Hebrews 9:15. What themes do these passages share in common with Ephesians 1:7, 8?

Apply: What does it mean to you that through Christ’s atoning sacrifice you are forgiven and redeemed? What if you feel that you are unworthy of it? (Hint: you are unworthy; that’s the whole point of the cross.)

Share: Your friend asks you how God’s grace has already transformed your life? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Ephesians 1:9-10. Discuss the main idea of this passage.

Study: What is God’s “plan for the fullness of time,” and how extensive is its reach?

Apply: How can you acknowledge and celebrate that the redemption you have experienced in Christ Jesus is part of something sweeping and grand, an integral part of God’s studied and ultimate plan to unite all things in Christ?

Share: Your friend asks how heaven and earth are united? What do you tell your friend? See also Why Heaven Needs to be Reconciled.

Read in Class: Ephesians 1:11, 14, 18. Discuss the main idea of this passage.

Study: Compare the uses of the idea of “inheritance” in Ephesians 1:11, 14, 18. Why do you think this idea is important to Paul?

Apply: What is the difference between working to get something and inheriting it instead? How does this idea help us understand what we have been given in Jesus?

Share: Your friend asks if you believe in predestination? What do you tell your friend? See did God predestinate us to be saved or lost?

Read in Class: Ephesians 1:13-14. Discuss the main idea of this passage.

Study: Paul tells in brief the conversion story of his readers. What are the steps in that story?

Apply: How does Paul reveal salvation by faith alone and not by works of the law? 

Share: Can you think of someone who needs to be assured they are included in the plan of salvation? How can you encourage them this week?

by In Light Of The Cross

5: Dealing With Debt-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

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Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School class February 4, 2023.

Main Theme: God can help us out of debt so we can be good stewards.

Read in Class: Deuteronomy 28:1-2, 12. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What is God’s ideal for His children regarding debt? How can they attain this ideal? And though this context is very different from ours, what principles can we take away from this context and apply to our own now?

Apply: Read Matthew 6:24 and 1 Timothy 6:6-9. What is said here that all of us need to heed? What do these words mean to you, and in what ways can you better follow what the Word is teaching us here?

Share: Your friend says she is overwhelmed with debt. She knows she has made mistakes and corrected them, but the debt is too great and she does not believe she will ever be debt free again. How do you respond to your friend? How could 2 Kings 6:1-6 help?

Read in Class: Proverbs 22:7. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study:  In what sense are we under bondage to the lender?

Apply: “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ ” (Heb. 13:5, NKJV). How could applying these words greatly help people avoid getting into debt?

Share: Your friend says that it is impossible to avoid debt. Who can pay cash for a car or brand new home? How do you respond to your friend?

Read in Class: Proverbs 6:1-5, Proverbs 17:18 and Proverbs 22:26. Define the common thread of these passages.

Study: What is the message here?

Apply: Read Proverbs 28:20 and 1 Timothy 6:9-10. How can you avoid being greedy for riches? How are you learning to be content like Paul mentions in 1 Timothy 6:6?

Share: Your friend asks you to cosign for him so he can finally buy a home, as his entire family has been living in a small apartment. How do you respond to your friend?

Read in Class: Deuteronomy 15:1-5. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What did the Lord require of His people as revealed in these verses?

Apply: If you have lent people money, how honest and fair and kind are you in your dealings with them? How would you fare before God when you have to answer for those dealings? (See Eccles. 12:14)

Share: This week can you think of a student who may be behind on his or her tuition or even lunch bill? How can you help them out this week?