U N I T 1 | S E S S I O N 3
CREATION GLORIFIES GOD
P S A L M 1 9
KEY PASSAGE:
Psalm 19:1
BIG PICTURE QUESTION:
Why did God create everything? God created everything for His glory and our good.
CHRIST CONNECTION:
All of creation displays the glory of God—how great He is—although not perfectly. The perfect revelation of God’s glory is found in Jesus, who came to show us exactly what God is like. Because Jesus is God, He is the perfect display of God’s glory.
BIG TRUTH SESSION
4FQUFNCFS
15-20
MINUTES 15-20
MINUTES THE WEEK
PRIOR 10-15
MINUTES 25-30
MINUTES
PREPARE
PREPARE YOUR HEART TO TEACH; PLAN
THE SESSION
WELCOME
GREET KIDS and OPEN THE SESSION
LEARN
TEACH KIDS THE STORY OF THE GOSPEL
LOVE
LEAD KIDS TO LOVE THE GOD OF THE GOSPEL
LIVE
LEAD KIDS TO LIVE OUT THE MISSION
OF THE GOSPEL
PREPARE
P R I O R T O T E A C H I N G T H E S E S S I O N
LEADER
LEADER Bible Study
In the first two sessions of this unit, we have seen a common thread of God’s glory.
God created everything, including people, to display His glory. In this session, we want to make sure that our kids understand what that means. What is God’s glory?
God’s glory can be thought of as God’s greatness. The Bible often uses the picture of a brilliant white light when it comes to God’s glory. When Moses came down from Mount Sinai after spending time with God, his face shone. When Jesus was transfigured, He shined like a brilliant white light. And when Paul encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus, he saw a blinding light. Such an intense light helps us understand how pure and powerful God’s glory is.
But we don’t just see God’s glory revealed in bright light. In this session, we will look at a Psalm that King David wrote many years after Adam and Eve. David used creation to speak of God’s glory. For David, it was easy to see God’s glory—at least its fingerprints—all around him. If you have ever looked up into the heavens on a clear, dark night, maybe you have sensed it too as you consider all the stars that cannot be counted and think that
just what we can see!
Or maybe you have caught a glimpse of God’s glory as you looked over a stunning mountain range or walked on a beach.
Creation is full of beauty, wonder, and power—all of which hints at the greater beauty, wonder, and power of the Creator who made it all. God is glorious indeed.
But one of the greatest ways we can know of God’s glory is that the Creator who made everything not only made us too, but wants to have a friendship with us. That is why He gave us the Bible—so that we might come to know Him, love Him, and
live for Him.
As you teach, seek to leave your kids in awe of how big and how good and how loving God is.
TERMS TO KNOW Glory: God’s glory is His greatness, love, and perfection. God is worthy of all praise and honor. God’s glory is often described in the Bible as a brilliant white light. Though God’s glory is more than just light, that picture shows how pure and powerful God’s glory really is.
GATHER
GATHER Supplies
Keep a regular supply of the following items available at all times: Bibles, pens or pencils, markers, crayons, colored pencils, scissors, glue or tape, paper.
WELCOME
Activity Page F “The Heavens
Declare” activity page
Session Starter (Option 1) F stopwatch or timer
(optional)
Session Starter (Option 2) F dark blue or black
construction paper, 1 sheet per kid F toothpicks or freshly
sharpened pencils F small, bright
flashlights
LEARN
Introduce the Session F countdown video
Big Picture Question F Big Picture Question
Poster
Review the Timeline F Giant Timeline
Tell the Bible Story F “Creation Glorifies
God” video F Bible Story Picture
Poster
Questions from Kids F “Unit 1, Session 3”
Questions from Kids video
Missions Moment F “Sharing in Mexico”
missions video
Key Passage Activity F Key Passage Poster F index cards
F “The Heavens Declare (Psalm 19:1)” song F other worship songs
(optional)
LOVE
Discussion & Bible Skills F Small Group Timeline
and Map Set (optional)
LIVE
Activity Choice (Option 1) F Printable: “Share in
Spanish”
Reflection and Prayer F Bible Story Coloring
Pages, 1 per kid (optional) PREPARE
P R I O R T O T E A C H I N G T H E S E S S I O N
WELCOME WELCOME Kids
Greet each kid as he or she arrives. Use this time to collect the offering, fill out attendance sheets, ask kids about their week, and help new kids connect to your group.
SAY Have you ever been so amazed by something that you didn’t know what to say? What things amaze you most?
ACTIVITY PAGE (5 minutes)
Invite kids to complete the “The Heavens Declare” activity page.
SAY The Bible teaches that all of creation shows us things about God. When we study creation, it helps us understand that God exists and is all-powerful.
SESSION STARTER (10 minutes)
OPTION 1: BIGGER AND STRONGER
Direct the kids to sit in a circle. Start the game by saying the name of a small, weak animal, such as a kind of insect. Select a kid who will name an animal that is a little bigger and a little stronger. The kid to his left will name an animal that is a bit bigger and stronger than that. Repeat this process until no one can think of a larger or stronger animal.
For added challenge, you may use a stopwatch or timer to limit how long kids have to think of an animal on their turns.
SAY No matter how big or strong the animal you named might be, God is bigger and stronger still. God is the biggest and strongest of all! God created everything. Nothing and no one is more powerful than God. Today, we will learn more about the ways creation helps us understand God’s power.
OPTION 2: NIGHT SKY CRAFT
Provide each kid with a sheet of dark blue or black construction paper. Help the kids use toothpicks or freshly sharpened pencils to poke many small holes in their paper.
Demonstrate how to roll the paper into a cylinder and tape it together on the inside seam.
Dim the lights in your room and allow the kids to take turns using a small, bright flashlight to illuminate their paper cylinders from the inside.
SAY The night sky is beautiful and
amazing. Many people in history have written songs or painted pictures of the beautiful stars. Sometimes we use the word heavens to mean ‘the sky above us.’ Today we will learn about something the Bible says the heavens are trying to tell us. What do you think the heavens would tell us if they could speak?
WELCOME
LEARN
T H E S T O R Y O F T H E G O S P E L
INTRODUCE
INTRODUCE the Bible Story
INTRODUCE THE SESSION (3 minutes)
Show the countdown video as you transition to introduce the Bible story. Set it to end as the session begins.
SAY Hey, friends. Welcome back! I hope you brought your Bibles because we have a very
important session today. [Distribute Bibles to kids who do not have them.] We have been journeying through the Bible from the very beginning of creation. However, today we are going to spend some extra time learning about the doctrine we’ve been focusing on. A doctrine is a special idea we believe because the Bible teaches it is true.
If you have been here the last few weeks, you may realize we have been learning about the doctrine of God’s glory. Today we will discuss what God’s glory is and why it is important.
BIG PICTURE QUESTION (1 minute)
SAY Who remembers the big picture question and answer? [Allow responses.] Let’s say it together. Why did God create everything? God created everything for His glory and our good.
That means God did not need to create the world. He chose to create people so that He could share His goodness with us by showing us His power and love.
Our big picture question helps us understand why God does what He does. Everything God does will glorify Him and bless His creation.
REVIEW THE TIMELINE (1 minute)
Show the giant timeline. Point to individual Bible stories as you review.
SAY We started our journey through scripture in Genesis, the first book of the Bible. Two weeks ago, we learned about the first six days of creation. We learned that God created everything that exists to glorify Himself. Last week we learned that people are created in God’s image, which means we are similar to God is some very special ways. God created us in His image for the same reason—
His glory.
God’s glory played an important role in both previous sessions, and today we are going to learn more about what God’s glory is, how we see it in creation, and where else we can learn about God and His glory. A great place to learn more about God’s glory comes from the Book of Psalms. Psalms is filled with songs written by people who loved God. Psalms has songs of praise and sad songs. It is filled with songs that worship God, ask Him for help, and tell Him about scary situations. Psalm 19 is a song of praise written by King David, who we’ll learn more about in the future. Our story today comes from Psalm 19, and it is called “Creation Glorifies God.
LEARN
T H E S T O R Y O F T H E G O S P E L
LEARN
LEARN the Bible Story
TELL THE BIBLE STORY: VIDEO OR STORYTELLER (10 minutes)
Open your Bible to Psalm 19. Use the Bible storytelling tips to help you tell the story, or show the Bible story video “Creation Glorifies God.” Use the bold text to retell or review the story.
CREATION GLORIFIES GOD
King David loved God. He wrote a psalm, or song, to celebrate how great God is. This is what he wrote:
“The heavens show us the glory of God—how great He is. When we look up into the sky we can see what God created. Every day and every night what we see in the heavens continues to tell us about God. The heavens we see don’t tell us about God with words, but the message that they show us about God is seen by all the people of the world.
“We can see God’s glory in the movement of the sun. It is like an athlete running a course. It rises in the same place every morning and then sets at the end of the day in another place. Everyone and everything can feel its heat.”
David continued:
“The Lord’s instruction is perfect. It renews life. What God says is
trustworthy. The Lord’s instructions make our hearts glad and help us see clearly.
When people respond in awe and love of God, it is pure and lasts forever.
Instructions from the Lord are reliable and righteous. They are more desirable than pure gold and they are sweeter than fresh honey. In addition, God’s instructions warn His servants. When they are kept, there is great reward.
“No one can keep track of all his sins; sometimes we don’t even realize we are sinning when we disobey God! God, clean up our hidden flaws. Keep your servant from choosing to sin too, and don’t let sin be in control. Then, I will be blameless and cleansed from my rebellion against You. I want everything I think or say to be acceptable to You, Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.”
Christ Connection: All of creation displays the glory of God—how great He is—
although not perfectly. The perfect revelation of God’s glory is found in Jesus, who came to show us exactly what God is like. Because Jesus is God, He is the perfect display of God’s glory.
REVIEW THE BIBLE STORY
STORYTELLING TIPS Display art: Hang pictures around the room of God’s creation. Include scenes from nature and photos of people.
Make eye contact: As you read David’s words, make eye contact with kids to draw in listeners.
LEARN
T H E S T O R Y O F T H E G O S P E L
all the stars in the sky, and He is the one who keeps the universe together.
One of the most amazing things about God is His love. He is big, powerful, glorious, and perfect;
Even though He doesn’t need us, He loves us. This is wonderful to think about. As David praised God for His glory, he also began to thank God for His teaching.
God has given us His Word. We can look into creation to learn some things about God, but to begin a relationship with Him, we must also look into His Word to see what He has told us about Himself.
David described God’s Word as more valuable than gold and sweeter than honey. God doesn’t just want us to know about Him; He wants us to know Him and glorify Him.
God created us to glorify Him. Imagine a tool like a hammer. Could you use a hammer to put a screw into wood? Maybe. You might be able to hit it hard enough to push it in. Or maybe you could try to use the claw on the back of a hammer to twist it in. But either way, the hammer wouldn’t do that job very well. Hammers drive nails, not screws. In a similar way, humans are made to glorify God, not ourselves. For us to do our job well, we need to focus on God and know Him. God wants us to be near Him so we can do what He made us to do.
God’s desire to be near us, love us, and be glorified by us, can be easily seen in His plan to rescue us from sin. Although we haven’t talked much yet about sin, it’s obvious when we look at the world around us that nothing in creation is perfect anymore. That’s because sin messed up God’s perfect world. Even so, God sent His Son to die for our sins and rise again. Jesus perfectly showed all the parts of God’s glory, love, and power.
CHRIST CONNECTION
SAY All of creation displays the glory of God—how great He is—although not perfectly. The perfect revelation of God’s glory is found in Jesus, who came to show us exactly what God is like.
Because Jesus is God, He is the perfect display of God’s glory. Jesus died in our place for our sins.
Everyone who puts his faith in Jesus will be forgiven and live forever with God.
(Tip: Use Scripture and the guide provided to explain how to become a Christian. Make sure kids know when and where they can ask questions.)
QUESTIONS FROM KIDS (3 minutes)
Show the “Unit 1, Session 3” questions from kids video. Prompt the kids to discuss:
1. How can looking at creation teach us about God?
2. When was the last time you felt amazed by something in creation?
MISSIONS MOMENT (3 minutes)
Choose a volunteer to locate the country of Colombia on a world map. Display the photos and ask a volunteer to read about the Embera Bead Project in Colombia.
SAY Missionary Beth Burkhalter found a way to help the Embera women make money to take care of their families, but also a way to tell them about Jesus. Now the people have money that they need to live and they know how to have eternal life.
LEARN
T H E S T O R Y O F T H E G O S P E L
Point out that beautiful beads show something about the people who made them—like their creativity and skills. In a similar way, creation shows us about God’s creativity and power. Ask a volunteer to pray for the Embera people and for any missionaries your church supports.
KEY PASSAGE ACTIVITY (10 minutes)
Write each word or phrase of the key passage on a separate index card. For larger groups, you may choose to make more than one set of cards. Mix up the cards and challenge the kids to put them in the correct order. Then, ask volunteers to say the verse from memory. Thank each kid for her effort and encourage all the kids to continue working to memorize the key passage. Show the key passage poster. Lead the boys and girls to read together the passage.
SAY This passage comes from the Bible story we heard today. Psalm 19 teaches us that creation tells us things about God. Even though we can learn true things about God from creation—He is powerful, He is good, He is beautiful—we cannot know God apart from Jesus, who we learn about in the Bible. Creation is enough to show us that God is real, but we need Scripture to have a relationship with Him.
Lead the kids to sing “The Heavens Declare (Psalm 19:1).” You may also choose other worship songs to sing.
PRAY (2 minutes)
Invite kids to pray before transitioning from LEARN to LOVE.
SAY Father, thank You for Your good creations. Help us to see Your glory and give You the praise You deserve. Thank You for giving us Your Word. Help us to value it as David did. We know that life is found only in You. Amen.
Transition from LOVE to LIVE
LOVE
T H E G O D O F T H E G O S P E L
LOVE
LOVE God by Applying the Story
BIBLE SKILLS & REVIEW (10 minutes)
Distribute Bibles. Guide boys and girls to open their Bibles to Psalm 19. Review with the kids how to use the table of contents, large chapter numbers, and small verse numbers to find specific passages. Consider reading the whole Psalm for the kids.
Explain that Psalms is part of the Poetry and Wisdom division of the Old Testament, along with Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. Ask the kids who wrote Psalm 19. (King David) David wrote many of the Psalms, but not all of them.
SAY King David was a good king. He loved God and wanted to glorify God with his life. When he looked out at the sky, he saw the way creation glorifies God. He understood that God’s power and goodness were on display in things like the stars, the sun, and the moon.
David went on to write about God’s goodness in giving us His Word. God’s commands and
instructions, found in His Word, are sweet and valuable, and they bring us joy when we obey them.
God’s creation is good to help us know some things about Him, and His Word helps us fill in the details we need to have a relationship with Him.
GROUP DISCUSSION (10 minutes)
Ask the following questions. Lead the kids to discuss their answers.
SAY How has creation helped you understand more about God?
Guide kids to discuss times they have felt awe while looking at something in creation. Be prepared to discuss your own experiences, such as star-gazing or visiting a natural wonder.
Point out the specific things you have learned about God as a result of observing creation.
Encourage the kids to think about what they have learned about God.
SAY If creation shows things about God, why do we need Scripture?
Remind kids that creation can only show us some things about God. Guide them to see that to learn everything we need to know in order to have a relationship with God through Jesus, we must know what the Bible teaches. Creation can show us God’s power, goodness, and beauty, but creation cannot teach us what Jesus did for us or how to begin a relationship with Him.
SAY What is something you have learned about God from Scripture?
Discuss things you have taught your group in past weeks. Ask kids to think about what they learned from other stories in the Bible. Be prepared to discuss things God has taught you through your personal Bible study time. Encourage kids to read their Bibles daily, and challenge them to write down or draw pictures to help them remember different things they learn as they read God’s Word.
LIVE
T H E M I S S I O N O F T H E G O S P E L
LIVE
LIVE the Mission
ACTIVITY CHOICE (10 minutes)
OPTION 1: SHARE IN SPANISH
Ask kids if they have Spanish-speaking friends or friends who speak a language other than English. If a child in your group speaks Spanish, invite him to help his friends learn a few words.
SAY It’s very important for missionaries who live in other countries to learn the language so that people can understand them.
Display the Spanish phrases from the “Share in Spanish” printable and practice them with the kids. Let kids write them on paper and practice speaking to one another.
Point out that more than 400 languages are spoken in the United States, and about 6,500 languages are spoken worldwide.
Learning a new language can help you tell others about God the Creator and the good news that Jesus died and rose again to save us from sin.
OPTION 2: CIRCLE OF PRAISE
Direct the kids to sit in a circle. Say a letter of the alphabet. Each kid will come up with a word to describe God that begins with that letter. If a kid says a word that has already been said, he must stand, recite the big picture question and answer, then sit and then choose a new letter to start the game again.
SAY God is worthy of all the praise we can give—and more! All of creation glorifies God and helps us understand things about His power and goodness. But creation alone isn’t enough for us to have a relationship with God.
Thankfully, God also gave us His Word.
When we read our Bibles, we are reading God’s loving instructions to people. In the Bible, we learn everything we need to know to love God and have a relationship with Him through Jesus. Then, we can more fully glorify God with our lives.
REFLECTION AND PRAYER (5 minutes)
Distribute a sheet of paper and pencil to each kid. Ask the kids to write about or draw a picture to answer the following questions:
• What does this story teach me about God or the gospel?
• What does this story teach me about myself?
• Who can I tell about this story?
Be sure to send the sheets home with the kids along with the activity pages so parents can continue to discuss the Bible story with their kids.
If time remains, take prayer requests or allow kids to complete the Bible story coloring page. Pray for your group.
