DiscipleshipCurriculum RaisingDisciples - Flipbook - Page 34
WEEK 5
Vocabulary of Faith
Say, “We have all had the experience of answering questions of a child. Most of us have
probably also had the experience of being asked a question we didn’t quite know how to
answer. As we discuss how to build a child’s vocabulary during this session, we are
encouraged to not only encourage questions, but also ask some as well.”
TIME OF PRAYER
Thank God for His character (see pages 76-77 of Raising Disciples for a list of some of
these attributes).
Pray for the participants in the book study.
Pray for the children represented by the participants in the room.
Ask for wisdom as you enter into the study of God’s Word.
Study God’s Word
Say, “When we come alongside a child to help them build a vocabulary of faith, it isn’t just
so they can use words appropriately or know how to answer questions. Instead, we help
them build a vocabulary of faith so they have language to move into belief in the things they
say.”
Say, “During Jesus’ earthly ministry, we find examples of his followers growing in their belief
as they grew in understanding. For example, Peter confessed that he believed Jesus is the
‘Messiah, the Son of the Living God’ (Matthew 16:16), but then a few verses later Jesus
rebuked Peter because he did not believe Jesus’s statement that he would suffer and die
(Matthew 16:21-23). We discover that Jesus’s followers grew in their belief as they
developed in their understanding of Jesus’s statements.”
BACKGROUND TO THE BIBLICAL TEXT
Most Jewish people at the time of Jesus (with the exception of the sect of the Sadducees)
believed in a bodily resurrection of the dead in the Kingdom of God. They believed that the
immortal soul would be reunited with the resurrected body at the future time when the
Messiah restored all things.
ENGAGE SCRIPTURE
Read John 11:17-27, 39-44
Keeping in mind the preceding background information, as well as the context on pages 8889 of Raising Disciples, guide a conversation to understand these verses with the following
prompts:
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