The Sunday School

[Amisk]

"Why do men, when they want to characterize something as particularly feeble, always use a Sunday-school as a comparison when they ought to know that the Sunday-school is one of the strongest, most powerful influences in our civilization in the country to-day?"
Charles Sheldon                    In His Steps         Published by Books Inc.

[ibTina]

Because "foolish men" think that God and His teachings  are "foolish". And that righteous upbringing from learning in a Sunday School class is futile!

[nChrist]

Hello Amisk,

This is a great question, and I don't know the answer. I have heard the analogy before with the use of "Sunday School". I would say that learning about the things of the LORD is more important than eating food for our physical bodies. I've also heard the term more correctly used with someone trying to use an area of the Bible that they didn't have a clue about. The cases I immediately think about is folks coming here to make fun of Christians and trying to use the Bible to do it.

BUT, now that I think about this, it might be good for all of us to visit Sunday School from time to time. Maybe it would be good for us to be reminded of the basics again and see childlike faith from the participants. It couldn't hurt any of us, and we might even find out why many Sunday School teachers say that they enjoy this work so much. Our children can teach us things that we know GOD likes. JESUS had reasons for talking about children in Matthew. YES - I want to visit Sunday School.   

Love In Christ,
Tom

Matthew 4:4 NASB  But He answered and said, "It is written, 'MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.'"

[Amisk]

Perhaps the biggest blow at the Sunday School was when Churches decided that Sunday School was just for kids and decided to replace it with Jr. Church.

One thing I note is that in spite of all the Christian T.V. programs, the thousands of Christian books and one service church programs, there is a drought in Biblical knowledge in our churches.

[Soldier4Christ]

Yes, there is indeed a drought of Biblical knowledge. The change that has been made in Sunday Schools is just a small portion of that. People behind the pulpit that are preaching against the teachings of the Bible. The Bible and prayer being removed from the public schools. Parents that are not upholding the responsibilities that God has given them in insuring that their children are brought up in the ways of the Lord. Christians that are find more interests in the ways of the world than they do in the ways of God. All of this has played a major portion in the lack of knowledge of God's word.

[nChrist]

Brothers,

Sadly, this is all completely true. Many people rarely study the Bible, even those calling themselves Christians. It just isn't a priority for very many people these days, and that's very sad. Maybe this is one reason why this world is in such a mess, and our part of the world is headed down the same path.

[Faithin1]

Some of my fondest childhood memories involve Sunday School and Vacation Bible School.  It was something I really looked forward to.  For me personally, it gave me a deeper understanding of Jesus and what it means to be a Christian.  I felt a connection, I can only describe as Spiritual.  Lessons learned in Sunday School have remained with me throughout my life, and I am very thankful to my mother for those experiences, and a foundation in the Lord.

Prv 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

[nChrist]

Amen Faithin1!

I have the same thoughts. I give thanks every day that I had Godly parents who did bring me up in the things of the LORD, and it was every day. Nothing is forgotten, and those lessons do come back to help you in all aspects of your life many years later.

I am convinced that teaching your children the ways of the LORD is one of the highest expressions of love that you can give your children. One begins before they can even talk, and it should never stop. There might be periods of rebellion, but the ways, morals, and values are still there. One or two hours a week isn't enough, and the same is true for adults. A person does not become strong in the LORD reserving only one or two hours a week for our LORD. The LORD will give us spiritual riches when we give HIM HIS rightful place in our lives - AND that would be the CORE and CENTRAL FOCUS of our lives.

Let's get serious a moment and tell things the way that they are today. Many people calling themselves Christians today don't know about the Power and Joy of the LORD because they just experiment with the LORD an hour here and an hour there. They are either weak and remain babes in Christs, OR they aren't saved at all. SO, there are a large number of people who are easy prey for the devil and all kinds of false teaching. If we tell ourselves the truth, where is JESUS CHRIST on our priority list? A good start might be listing the time spent for eating and watching television every day, and then start listing everything else.

It might be shocking to find out where JESUS CHRIST is on our priority list. It then becomes a matter of what you decide to do about it.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Philippians 1:21-22 NASB  For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.  But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose.

[def]

When you are in Christ there is no more you your all God.just the tent is there every thing turn to  God even my madness

[Brother Jerry]

Let me chime in with a few things.

I am proud to say that Sunday School is pushed more than our service is at the church I attend.  We do not invite people out to service, we invite them to Sunday School.  What many people do not realize is that if you get someone to Sunday School then 95% or more of the time they will stay for the service as well.  But the other way around if you get them to service you are only about 50% of the time going to get them to Sunday School.  And as mentioned Sunday School is more important than the service, they get to hear preaching in service, but they get to study the Word of God in Sunday School.

Let me post a lesson I was going to do this Sunday for my class. This lesson is not so much on the importance of Sunday School but of what is written.

1 John 2:1 "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not"

• Words are repeated for additional emphasis throughout the Bible
• • The base of the word 'write'
    
  • Write appears 42 times in the OT and 47 times in the NT
  • Writing appears 31 times in the OT and 5 times in the NT
  • Written appears 141 times in the OT and 127 times in the NT
• We should not that in 1 John 2:1 it says that it is only through the things that were written that we sin not.  Meaning that in order for us to not sin (or keep sin from our controlling our lives) we must read what is written in the  Bible.
• Throughout the Bible we see the authors stating that they are writing for purposes
  
• 1 Corinthians 4:14 I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you
  
  • We see that writing was used to warn us.  God often is shown to warn us in His writings.
    
  • Jeremiah 6:10 To whom shall I speak, and give warning, that they may hear?
  • Ezekiel 3:17 Son of Man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore heare the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me
  • Matthew 2:12 And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod
  • Matthew 3:7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducee's come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of Vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
• 1 Corinthians 14:37 if any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of Lord.
  
• • Here we see that if anyman claims to be speaking for God then hold up what he is saying to that which is in the Bible as a test.  If it goes against scripture then it is not from God.  This is a failing of many of the cults of the world today.
• 1 John 2:7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning.  The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.
  
• • We are given the understanding to compare scripture with scripture for our studies.  Nothing in the NT is truly new, it is only the fulfillment of that which was in the OT.  Even Daniel from the OT is early Revelations.
    
• Matthew 4,7,10 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God / Jesus said unto him, it is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God / Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and HIm only shalt thou serve
  
• • The only defense that Jesus used against Satan during the temptations was the written Word of God.  Our knowledge and understanding should reflect that in everything we do and decision that we make.  Jesus had some decisions to make when Satan was tempting Him, and the written Word of God saw Him through it.
• Romans 4:23-24 Now it was not written for His sake alone, that it was imputed to Him; but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed (speaking of righteousness), if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;
  
• • We see a purpose for all that is written and it was not written for Jesus sake alone but for all of us that believe so that God may impute righteousness to us through our knowledge and understanding of the Word of God.
• Romans 14:11 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
  
• • One example to show that things are written to show a promise.  When God promises something it is written to remind all generations of the promises of God.
• Romans 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scripture might have hope.
  
• • We see that it is through reading and learning the scripture by taking our time to learn it that we may find hope in our lives
• 1 John 2:21 I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth.
  
• • We are shown that what is written is for those that know the truth.  A tool to be used to build the faith and understanding of the believer.  Those that are not saved will not understand all that is written and why it is written.
• 1 John 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
  
• • What is written again is for those that already believe.  To assure them of their salvation.  Based on previous notes this is done by teaching us to follow God's will, and to understand what God wants of us, and how to listen to God and learn His will, and to provide us hope and reassurance of an eternal life with God.[/li
    
  These verse and more show the importance of reading the Bible and studying the Bible to understand it.  We do not get this study from our pastor during our Sunday services.  We get this study from our Sunday School classes.
  

[Faithin1]

AMEN, Brother Tom!  If I hadn't given my son a good foundation in the Lord, I would not consider myself to be a good mother.  I totally agree, the highest expression of a parent's love is to teach their children the Word of God, and to live one's life accordingly.  I have no doubt that my son's loving and gentle spirit is a direct result of his relationship with Jesus.  Of course, as a teenager, he has his periods of rebellion.  However, they are always brief, and nothing that would be considered serious. 

BTW, my son received an award yesterday at school for the 'Best Christian Character.'  This was quite an honor, due to the fact that both the students and teachers vote.  I am so thankful the Lord has enabled me to send my son to a Christian school since kindergarten, and he will enter the 10th grade in September.  His school is very expensive, and even during periods when money has been tight, the Lord has always made a way. 

It is also imperative to make the Lord a priority, and not simply an after thought.  I thank the Lord for the small things in life, as well as major blessings.  It's just a normal aspect of my life.  Almost as automatic as breathing.  I find the more I acknowledge Him, the more He makes His presence known to me.  In spite of my faults, God is faithful. 


Brother Jerry,

Thank you for sharing your wonderful Sunday School lesson.  Your students are truly blessed to have you.  The written Word of God is indeed critical to our Christian walk.  It is the food for our spirit.  If the average Christian fed their spirit with the Word of God, with the same passion and frequency as they feed their physical body, this world would be full of true warriors for Christ.  Unfortunately, many Christians receive a spiritual meal only once or twice per week.  As you mentioned, if we do not know the truth, we are susceptible to false teachings and Satan's deception.  The written word, equips us with the ammunition to fight the enemy, as well as, the ability to discern what is of God, and what is of the devil. 

I have also found a positive correlation between attending Sunday School and the service.  Under normal circumstances, I can't imagine attending Sunday School and then leaving without attending the service.  Sunday School is the appetizer, and the service is the meal.  However, unlike physical food, our spiritual appetizer will never make us too full to enjoy the main course.   Our spiritual appetite is insatiable.  The more we receive, the more we want.   We can never receive too much of the magnificent Word of God.

I thank all of you, my Brothers & Sisters in Christ.  It's so nice to fellowship with true believers in the One and Only God.   

[nChrist]

Brothers and Sisters,

I was just reading portions of this thread again and enjoying Brother Jerry's lesson. I was reminded of something - one can study the same portion of Scripture many times, and there is always something new and different to learn from it. This is the richness and depth of the Bible. One can also follow a different set of references and cross references for a single issue, topic, or word in that portion of Scripture. We soon find out that the Bible is woven together with an untold number of strands that tie the Bible together.

Brother Jerry's lesson is a wonderful reminder about the awesome Power of GOD'S WORD. Thousands of years have passed, but the messages and applications of the Holy Bible are just as accurate and helpful as they were 2,000 years ago. The longer the investigation, the stronger the proof - The Holy Bible is GOD'S WORD recorded and given to us. The evidence is there that GOD is talking to us from these HOLY PAGES, and HIS WORD will remain forever. Brother Jerry, these are just a few things I would be thinking about if I got to hear your lesson. GOD is still instructing us today, guiding us, and warning us of dangers we are sure to face in this short life. Thanks for sharing this with us Brother Jerry.

The Holy Bible is still the ultimate source to use in testing for TRUTH. Just thinking about this one FACT should be enough to make all of us want to explore for countless treasures awaiting us in GOD'S WORD.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 111:7-8 NASB  The works of His hands are truth and justice; All His precepts are sure.  They are upheld forever and ever; They are performed in truth and uprightness.