6th - 10th Lesson 2: God Is Not Hiding

From: Carl & Anita

First, I have given you the key thought and then a brief synopsis of the lesson. Then some suggestions for conversation will be provided. It is our prayer that God will greatly enrich these conversations that you have with your teens. I hope you are having a great week!

Summary for The Gospel Project, Week 2

Creation teaches about His existence, His character and His motives.

I. Creation teaches about His existence

Have you ever been so moved by something you’ve seen in nature, like a sunrise or a mountainous landscape, that creation itself seemed as if it was telling you something?  Psalms 19:1-6 tell us that day and night the heavens are communicating that God exists.  God’s creation is always proclaiming to God, “Glory, glory, glory, glory, glory, glory, glory! “ (Ask your 9^th/10^th grader how Mrs. Couch depicted this concept J. What I do to get a point across!) (Jog their memory:  BIG foam fingers…)    

II. Creation also exhibits God’s character.

Romans 1: 20 tells us that creation demonstrates   His “eternal power and His divine nature.” His power is seen in the vastness of space and the unfathomable depths of the ocean. It is seen in a volcanic eruption or in the strength of a tsunami.  Have you ever wondered why our universe is SO huge?  Do you know how far stars are from each other in space? Consider this:   it would take the whole universe to even begin to allow God to display His greatness. Now that’s some power!!!

III. Creation reveals God’s motives.

There are so many beautiful, breathtaking moments to be had  in this world, yet even creation has been effected by sin as well (Romans 8:22) God offered Himself as THE sacrifice to end all sacrifices in order to buy back (redeem) all that He had made, including us!!! God would have rather died than to ever live without us. His love is so amazing. This Story will culminate with a grand crescendo when the Prince returns to get His bride! Even creation awaits that glorious day.
“With eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay.” (Romans 8:21)

     One Conversation

Use the following thoughts and questions to have one spiritual conversation. You can pick and choose, use them all or just allow the statement to be your guide. The emphasis shouldn’t be about having all the answers, but simply having a conversation!

1.      Thought From the Study

God intends for the happiness we experience in sports, relationships, and His other good gifts to point us back to Him. The gifts everyone enjoys in this life lead to the Giver. Yet not everyone has eyes to see. While we can’t receive the gospel message in general revelation, we can certainly see its echoes.

              How can the things we enjoy point back to Christ?

  
Discuss ways the world around us points us to Christ. Acknowledge everyone has been exposed to this “general knowledge” of God through nature; this is called general revelation. Even though this revelation does not tell us everything we need to know in order to receive salvation, enough is communicated to lead a person to at least acknowledge

     2.    DISCUSS:

            ‘it would take the whole universe to even begin to allow God to display His greatness!"

Use these questions to begin thinking through and applying the lessons to your family life:

1. What are some things we can do together to experience God’s created world more often?

2. What do we learn about God’s motives through creation and what might that mean for our family?
3. What is the difference between being acknowledged and being known?

         The Reformers thought of the world as a “grand theater in which God showcases His glory!”