Lesson 8a: Paul’s Letters (Part 1 – Romans to Colossians)

Lesson 8: Paul’s Letters (Part 1 – Romans to Colossians)

Specific Objectives

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

Name the third division of the New Testament
Tell the books of the second third division of the New Testament
Understand the major message of Paul in each book
Recite the memory verse

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 Remember

Paul – formerly known as Saul , persecuted the early church. When Jesus showed to him, it changed his life and he became a great missionary who wrote most of the books in the New Testament.
Epistles – another term for letter
Pharisees – group of Jews who thought that they kept all God’s rules. They did not like the things that Jesus taught. They thought that they did not do any wrong things. So, they thought that they were very important and clever.

Pre-Session Activity

Begin with a prayer. Encourage the kids to lead in prayer. 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.

Beginners – Coloring activity ,Make your own letter
Primary – Spot the difference
Intermediate – Word search

LESSON PROPER

PREPARATION and MOTIVATION
Teacher, review the students on what they have learned so far about the Bible.
(Make sure that all students will be able to answer all the questions correctly)

What are the two primary divisions of the Bible? (Old & New Testament)
How many books the Bible consists of? (66 books)
How many books the Old Testament consists of? (39 books)
How many books the New Testament consists of? (27 books)
What is the first division of the New Testament? (Gospel Books)
Name the Gospel Books (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John)
How many of the Gospel Books detail the birth of Jesus? (Four)
Tell how Jesus was presented in each Gospel Books
Matthew – Jesus is the Messiah
Mark – Jesus is the Servant of God
Luke – Jesus is the Son of Man
John – Jesus is the Son of God
Who wrote the book of Acts? (Luke)
The book of Acts is about? (Church History)
Teacher : Last time, we have learned about the book of Acts. We have learned about the history of the early church. For today, we are going to learn about the Letters of Paul to the early church. There will be two parts of this lesson. We will study the first part today and we will study the second part next week. We will be talking about Paul’s Letters to the Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians.

INTRODUCTION
Teacher: Have you ever written a letter? Have you ever received a letter?
*wait for them to respond*

Teacher: We don’t use letters that much today because we have a lot of our gadgets to send our messages to our loved ones far away from us. But, Kids, during the early church, letters were used by the Lord to give the early believers His message. He used a man named Paul to send letters to the early churches.Kids, do you know who is Paul?

Paul was known as Saul before. Saul was a Jew from the tribe of Benjamin. He is also a Pharisee. The Pharisees are group of people who follows all the rules but they are self-righteous. The obey all of the rules but they do not obey the Lord’s rules. Saul persecuted the church. He hated all of the early believers. But one day, Jesus spoke to him. His name was changed to Paul. He also became a great missionary who wrote most of the books in the New Testament. He encouraged the believers of the early churches and even our church today.

LESSON
*Show them a map of Paul’s ministry work*

Teacher: Paul wrote letters to many churches. Each of these letters teach them and also us important things about being a believer of Christ. Epistle is simply a word that means a “written message” or a “letter.” Some of the epistles were written from jail cells; some are addressed to individuals; and some are addressed to congregations. Let’s look into them one by one.

ROMANS
The Epistle to the Romans was written to Christians residing in the city of Rome. Rome was the center of the Empire and was ethnically diverse. He wrote it to give them a concrete theological foundation on which to construct their faith and to live for and serve God effectively. The book of Romans reveals the answers to important questions and supplies information on many topics, such as salvation, the sovereignty of God, judgment, spiritual growth, and the righteousness of God.

1 CORINTHIANS
Paul’s purpose in writing this letter to the church in Corinth was to address and correct the immorality and divisions that had arisen among them. He corrects difficult doctrines that had caused divisions. Some of these differences were the role of women in worship, the use of spiritual gifts, and observing the Lord’s Supper.

2 CORINTHIANS
Paul wrote this letter to the church in Corinth to defend and protect his Apostleship, and to teach and warn against false teachers who were spreading heresy. Paul describes the characteristics of an Apostle. He explained that his ministry was to preach Jesus Christ alone and not himself. Paul declares that if anyone preaches a different Gospel or a different Jesus, other than what Paul and the Apostles were preaching, they are false teachers and deceitful workers and should not be accepted.

GALATIANS
Paul writes this book to deal with the problem of circumcision and Jewish legalism toward Gentile believers. Paul’s gives his testimony about how he had received the authentic Gospel message. Paul begins by declaring that salvation is through faith and trust in Jesus Christ “Alone”, and cannot be obtained through the keeping of the Law. He teaches the Fruits of the Spirit and tells us to “walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh” (5:16). Good works does not save, but a Christian must have the desire to produce good fruit, obey God’s Law and live a holy and righteous life in the eyes of God. Christians should live this redeemed life.

EPHESIANS
The book of Ephesians is a Prison Epistle (letter written while in prison). It was written to encourage believers to walk as fruitful followers of Christ and to serve in unity and love in the midst of persecution. Paul encourages the believer to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling”. Every believer has a responsibility to live as servants of Jesus Christ. Paul instructs believers how to prepare for spiritual battle by dressing in the “full armor of God” (6:11). Prayer is the key weapon of the Christian soldier. He emphasizes his principle with the repeated statement “stand firm”.

PHILIPPIANS
The book of Philippians is a Prison Epistle (letter written while in prison). Paul wrote it about 62 A.D. as he anticipated his release from prison. It was written to show his appreciation and love to the Philippians in a thank-you letter for their continued help and support, and also to encourage their growth. Paul writes about his sufferings and that through his imprisonment the Kingdom was increased. Paul explains the benefits of believers in unity with the “mind of Christ”. Paul expounds on the joys of a Christian and encourages the church to press forward with the Gospel. It is important for the believer to be well grounded in prayer and thanksgiving.

COLOSSIANS
The book of Colossians is a Prison Epistle (letter written while in prison). Paul wrote it circa 60-62 A.D. It was written to counter and respond to heretical teachings and encourage believers to serve with fervor and passion. Paul sends words of thanks to the faithful believers. Paul encourages the church to focus on God, and keep their eyes on the goal, “set your mind on the things above” (3:2). He teaches believers how to live at home, how to manage family matters, and how to get along with other believers in Christ.

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,”

Questions to Ponder

What are the Epistles of Paul? (Romans , Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians)
In what book can we find the fruits of the Holy Spirit? (Galatians)
In what book can we find out about the armor of God? (Ephesians)

Life Application

We have learned about Paul’s letters. Those letters were written for early believers long time ago. The early churches were having problems and they were needed to be reminded of what to do. Paul gives them an advice on how to live their lives as followers of Christ. The letters of Paul still applies to us today even if we lived in a new generation. It is important to study his letters and apply what we can learn from this letters. He was really guided by the Holy Spirit because what he wrote in his letters were in accordance to what the Lord want us to do.

Activity

Beginners – Make postcards
Primary – Make a chain connecting all of Paul’s letters
Intermediate – Make an accordion

Close in Prayer

Lord, thank you for today. Thank you because you always tell us how to be a good Christian through the letters of Paul. May we always be guided by your word in every decision we make. In Jesus name, Amen.

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