What is taught must be in accordance with the locally agreed syllabus; (If your school is outside of Cambridgeshire: the S.C.A.A Model 2 syllabus has been included to help in matching this lesson plan with your local Agreed Syllabus).
Cambs Agreed Syllabus:
WR (Writings)
Enable pupils to:
explore how the Bible can be used in different ways by Christians, and know about its use to help shape Christian life and belief, including belief about God, part 2
Pupils should consider this:
If you could write one message to the world, what would it be?
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S.C.A.A. Model syllabuses:
KEY TEACHINGS / FOCUS:
JESUS
- teaching about the Kingdom of God in parables & acts of healing.
AT1 Talk about & discuss the meaning of stories that Jesus told & stories about His life, eg the Lost Son, the Good Samaritan,
AT2 Consider feelings of being lost & found, talk about feelings of being accepted.
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RESOURCES:
Optional: 2 maps.
STARTER:
Q. Have you ever got lost? Describe it.
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(Teachers note: It could be getting separated from a parent in a busy shopping centre when very young, or travelling in a car & not being able to find the bed & breakfast, etc.)
One way of getting ourselves out of this situation is to ask someone who knows the area to direct you, or you are able to find a landmark on a map.
For a Christian, the 'Person who knows the area' is God, & 'the map' is the Bible. So when someone is struggling in their life & they really don't know which way to turn, they can trust that God will guide them through it. And by looking at the Bible, their 'map', they can learn more about life, find solutions to problems, & discover what God expects, so that they can have confidence in the route that they decide to take.
For example, a Christian could be struggling to do what is right, but all around him are people who are doing bad things & yet they are prospering. Then when he reads the Bible, he sees:
"Don't envy those who do wrong,
but always realise that you live your life in front of God.
Remember that there is a great reward for you,
& that it won't be taken from you." (Proverbs 23:17-18)
In reading this the Christian will be encouraged to carry on doing good & to please God.
MAIN TEACHING:
Sometimes people may not know that they are lost, because they think that they are at a certain place & they are not!
For example, walking from one village to another you think that you know where you are, but you have strayed off course & you suddenly find that you have walked onto an army firing range! There are live shells exploding around you!
So let's do something to illustrate what the Bible means by being lost:
An illustration:
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Imagine you are going on a 10 mile charity walk from school to .................(a village 10 miles away).
(Teachers note: Draw a rough map on a board with the school in the centre & the finishing place at the edge. Show at progressive times throughout the day where some walkers have got to - several people will be heading towards the finish line, some near, some not so near, but some others are not even heading in the right direction).
We'll ask these people how they are getting on.
(Teachers note: Get some volunteers to be these different people:
1) Nearly finished. Heading in the correct direction, they know where they are, they know where the finish line is.
2) Some distance still to go. Heading in the correct direction, they know where they are, they know where the finish line is.
3) Totally the wrong side of the school walking aimlessly. They know about the charity walk & they wanted to take part, but they don't know when it is, & they don't know where the finish line is.)
1) & 2) These walkers know where they are going, where they have come from & what roads they need to travel on to get to the finishing line.
3) But these walkers are walking aimlessly, they haven't got a destination in their mind, they are just filling in a bit of time by going out for a stroll. They wanted to go on the charity walk, but they didn't find out the details. Therefore, as far as the charity walk organisers are concerned they are 'lost'.
Q. So what is the difference between these that have nearly finished & these that are 'lost'?
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It's basically what they are aiming for.
One group, as far as the charity walk is concerned, weren't aiming for that finishing line. The other groups were aiming for the finishing line.
The Bible tells us that the finishing line is heaven & that everyone needs to have that as their aim, otherwise they are lost.
Jesus told a story of someone who wasn't aiming for the right finishing line in his life: (Luke 15:11)
This story is known as the 'Prodigal son':
There was a man who had two sons & the youngest one, whose aim in life was to have a good time, cheekily asked his father for his share of his father's wealth now - rather than wait for it. Amazingly his father gave him a huge bundle of money!
So within a few days this younger son had set off to explore the world & to find fun & excitement. He got to a far away country which was well out of his boring father's view, & he began to live very wildly. He made lots of friends because of all the money he was throwing around & whatever he wanted he got.
But then his money ran out & suddenly he found that he had got no real friends, & everyone left him. At that time the country he was in experienced massive crop failures & so there was no food, & the shops were empty. He was desperate, so he got a job looking after pigs which was a very smelly & dirty job. This job had such a low wage that he had no money left to pay for food after he had paid his bills . He became so hungry he ended up eating the same horrible food that was given to the pigs!
After a while he thought 'this is madness, none of the people who work for my father are ever hungry & here I am dying of hunger! This is what I will do, I'll go & ask my father to forgive me & I will work for him because I am not worthy to be called his son anymore!' So he set off on the long journey back.
As usual his father was looking down the road, to see if his youngest son would return, & suddenly he saw him right off in the distance. The fathers heart went out to him & he started to run towards his son. When they met each other, the father embraced him in a giant hug! The son was feeling very guilty & so he said: "Father, I have behaved terribly towards you & I have offended God. I am no longer worthy to be called your son!"
But the father said, "No you are my son, you have returned home to me! You could have been dead, but you are alive! You were lost but now you are found!"
Q. What had this youngest son been aiming for in his life?
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Living a life that is focused on getting pleasure for oneself at the expense of other people is destructive, it's selfish, & it is wrong. Some people choose to put themselves first & they trample on others so that they can pamper themselves.
They think that by doing this they are totally 'free'.
But the Bible says when someone is like that they are actually a slave to their pleasures & desires. (Titus 3:3)
Q. Why can someone become a slave to their pleasures & desires?
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The urge to please themselves becomes stronger than what their real needs are For example, a 'shopaholic' has such a powerful urge to buy more things, it overrules their sensible mind. They think 'I don't need anything else', but the urge pushes them into buying more stuff.
James in the Bible tells us:
"You must love and help your neighbors just as much as you love and take care of yourself."
(James 2:8 The Living Bible)
We take care of ourselves, we try to protect our feelings & our bodies from any harm.
But the Bible is saying here: 'Don't stop at that, but have those sort of thoughts for other people as well.'
"You must love and help your neighbors just as much as you love and take care of yourself."
Q. What do you think loving your neighbour means?
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The word 'love' in the English language means lots of different things. Whereas in the Bible (& in some other languages) love has a different word for each of it's different meanings.
For example there is a different word for:
a) A friendship sort of love. You love your best friend because of their qualities, & you are able to trust them.
b) A romantic sort of love. You are attracted sexually to someone else.
& c) God's love which continues to love, regardless of whether that person deserves to be loved or not.
Q. So which sort of love do you think it means in the Bible verse: "You must love and help your neighbors...."?
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Love them with God's love, even though they may be unlovely.
Q. Who do you think 'your neighbour' is in that verse?
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It is more than just the people who live in the houses near you.
Jesus told a story (a parable) called 'The Good Samaritan' to explain who our 'neighbours' are. See if you can work out who was a good neighbour: (Luke 10:31-37)
A Jewish man started out on a lonely journey from Jerusalem to Jericho. It was a walk of about 15 to 20 miles through the rough countryside where no one lived. Suddenly a gang of robbers jumped on him. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead!
A Jewish priest happened to be walking along the same track, so when he saw the man lying on the ground bleeding & groaning, he anxiously looked around him to see if the robbers were still around. Then he quickly stepped round the man & carried on walking hoping that the robbers weren't still in the area.
Later in the day a spiritual Jewish man also walked along the track, & he saw this pitiful sight of the man lying on the ground. Perhaps he thought he had better not get involved & helping the man would make him late for his appointment. So he too passed round the injured man.
Later a Samaritan man came along the track & saw the beaten man on the ground. He took pity on him even though Samaritan's & Jew's were normally hostile towards each other. For centuries the two nations had looked down at each other.
But this Samaritan only wanted to see an injured man that he could help. So he tore some of his clothes that he was wearing & made bandages out of them. After he had given this first aid to the man, he lifted him up & put him on his own donkey. Then he went to find an inn where the man could be given a bed so that he could rest & get over his injuries.
The next day the Samaritan gave the innkeeper enough money to keep him there for several days, & he said; 'Look after him, & when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'
That was the end of Jesus' story, so He then asked them a question.
What is your answer to this question:
Q. "Which of these three do you think was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"
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Q. How difficult would it have been for a Samaritan to have helped a Jew? (Both enemies)
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After the crowd had given Jesus their answer He said: "Go and do the same."
Q. If you have got an 'enemy' how difficult would it be for you to help them when they got into a difficult situation?
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PLENARY:
The Bible contains many 'messages' to this world, like loving your neighbour.
Q. If you could write one message to the world, what would it be?
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Consider feelings of being lost & found, & talk about the feelings of being accepted. (For example the youngest son who spent all of his money on wild living, & then his father accepted his apology & accepted him back into the family)
Q. How important is it to feel accepted by God?
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Either take a short time to discuss this question, or leave it with them.
(Teachers note: There is a worksheet to accompany this lesson plan).