Intro Lesson: The Origin of the Bible

Intro Lesson: The Origin of the Bible

By the end of this session, the student will be able to:

1. Know the meaning and purpose of the Bible
2. Know how the bible was written and its origin
3. Know how the bible developed through time
4. Tell how many books are there in the Bible (Old and New Testament)
5. To learn a song about the Bible (e.g. Preschool “B-I-B-L-E” in the tune of bingo; Primary and Intermediate “Ang Biblia ay Salita ng Diyos)

Bible Reference

2 Timothy 3:16
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,”

Joshua 1:8
“Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”

Words to Remeber

1. Origin – the point or place where something begins, arises, or is derived.
2. Writing – is a medium of human communication that represents language and emotion through the inscription or recording of signs and symbols
3. Testament – it is a will, a covenant in writing that goes into force upon the death of a testator.
4. Scripture – A sacred writing or book; any collection of writings considered sacred.

Pre-Session Activity

Greet the children as they arrive. Make certain that you know their names. As they arrive, have each child joins in a circle or around a table. Play a game or give them activity to introduce the new curriculum or lesson. Tell the children that you are going to introduce them to a special book called – The Bible.

• Beginners : (Song) The teacher will teach an action song with the title “B-I-B-L-E” and the children will follow
• Primary : (Game) Pass the message – The teacher will explain how the bible was written by different authors guided by God
• Intermediate: (Game) Memory Test – The children should list down all the books of the Bible that they remember without opening the bible.

Lesson Proper

A. PREPARATION and MOTIVATION

As you tell the story, hold the Bible in your hand. Let the children see, touch and hold the Bible. They will learn that it is a special book, even for them.

Teacher: Today we will be talking about this special book. It is called the Holy Bible. And we will begin with “The Origin of the Bible”.

B. INTRODUCTION

The Bible is known as the Word of God. Do you believe the Bible? Why? Has anyone ever told you that they don’t believe the Bible? Many people unfortunately think the Bible is just another long boring book. But of course the Bible is not just another book; it was given to man from God to reveal Jesus Christ as our Saviour.

The Bible is full of adventure, mystery, and rules that we should all follow. But most importantly, everywhere you look in the Bible, you will find a promise from God.

The Bible was not written by just one person, but was written by many different authors, each one of them guided by God.

The Bible is like a long letter written to us from God. He made sure there were stories that we can learn from, and if we are having a bad day, the Bible can help with that too. He made sure there were plenty of verses to make us feel better, and tons more where He tells us that He loves us.

C. LESSON

• Background
  • The word Bible comes from a Latin form of the Greek word “Biblia” which means “little books.” The Bible refers to the collection of 66 books from different authors compiled to make up what we refer to today as “The Holy Bible”. The Bible was written over a period of 1400 to 1800 years by more than 40 different authors under inspiration of the Holy Spirit.However, before anything in the Bible was written down, people told stories about God and God’s relationship with the people they talked. This stage of passing on stories by word of mouth is known as the “oral tradition.” This stage of relating stories by word of mouth lasted for many years as families passed along the stories of their ancestors to each new generation.It is only at around 1800 B.C., when human societies began to develop form of writings.The many tools and writing materials used throughout history include tablets of stone, clay tablets, wax tablets, vellum, parchment, paper, ink brushes, pencils, pens, and many styles of lithography.

• Forms of Writing
  • A. Writing Materials
    Biblical manuscripts are written on one of these materials:
    • Stones (Tablet of Stones), one of the oldest and most abundant writing materials of the ancient Near East. The famous example of this is the two (2) pieces of stone inscribed with the Ten Commandments when Moses ascended Mount Sinai.
    • Wax and Clay was the most readily available and thus the cheapest material for writing purposes. Man scratches the surface of moist clay tablet with a bronze or bone tool.
    • Papyrus it is known by the name of the aquatic plant which provides the structure – papyrus. It is a form of rush which grows by the Nile. For storage they were rolled to form scrolls. For writing on papyrus scrolls scribes used .
    • Parchment (treated animal skins) was by far the most durable, but also the most expensive and it’s difficult to get large numbers of sheets of the same size and color. Young animals produced the finest parchment and this is often referred to as vellum.
    • Paper was often bound together like modern books. Today paper is the cornerstone of communication throughout the world.

B. Writing Instruments

• Chisel was used to inscribe words into stone
• Metal Stylus, A three-sided instrument with a leveled head, and was used to make incursions into clay and wax tablets.”
• Pen A pointed reed about 6 -16 inches and was used to write on papyrus, vellum, leather, and parchment
• Ink the container and fluid employed in use with the pen; was usually a compound of “charcoal, gum and water.”How Was the Bible Formed
  Absolutely! God has preserved His Word despite the unintentional failings and intentional attacks of human beings. We can have utmost confidence that the Bible we have today is the same Bible that was originally written. The Bible is God’s Word, and we can trust it.The Bible exists in multiple manuscripts, none of them autographs, and multiple canons, none of which completely agree on which books have sufficient authority to be included or their order.

  The two primary divisions are the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament. Even though these books were written at different times and varying circumstances, they harmoniously compliment each other and constitute a whole. All of these books are also divided into chapters and each chapter contains many different verses.

The Bible was written:

• In different places (i.e. – wilderness, dungeon, palaces)
• At different times (i.e. – war, peace)
• In different moods (i.e. – heights of joy, depths of despair)
• On three continents (Asia, Africa and Europe)
• In three languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek)

Translations and Languages

1. Hebrew
2. Aramaic
3. Greek
4. Latin
5. English
6. Filipino (Tagalog)

Memory Verse- 2 Tim 3:16

• Beginners : “All Scripture is breathed out by God,”
• Primary : “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching,
  rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,”
• Intermediate : “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching,
  rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,”

Life Application
           Have the children fold their hands and place them in their lap or on the table in front of them. Let them know that this is a time for them to listen and to think. Ask them to repeat each phrase that you will say: (the teacher may add/share their experiences)

The Bible is a special book.
It tells me of God’s love.
The Bible is a special book with stories I can tell.
The Bible is a book about God’s people.
The Bible will help me know how to be a friend.

• Beginners : (Craft) – to create the cover of the Bible
  • Materials – long brown envelope, printed cut-out letters, coloring
• Primary : (Craft) – to create a box to represent the Bible
  • Materials – boxes and paper/cartolina
• Intermediate : (Craft) – to create a picture Bible “pop-up”
  – Firstly, cover of the Bible

Close in Prayer

Thank you, God for the Holy Bible. Thank you that this special book tells us how much you love us. Help us to learn about You and what you want us to do as we hear the stories from the Bible. AMEN.

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