Master Teacher: 3rd Quarter 2016

By R.H. Boyd Publishing Corporation

Master Teacher is the teacher’s quarterly to be used with Adult Christian Life and College and Career. Each lesson contains extensive biblical exposition and specific instructions for the teacher. The outline of the lesson is reader-friendly, and includes suggestions for maximizing teacher/student interaction and topics for making the study informative and enriching.

• Language: English
• Publisher: R.H. Boyd Publishing Corporation
• Release date: Apr 23, 2016
• ISBN: 9781681671307

Book preview

LESSON 1 FOR WEEK OF JULY 3, 2016

MATCHING WORDS WITH ACTIONS

UNIFYING TOPIC:

Ignoring God’s Truth Within Us

LESSON TEXT

I. Living What One Teaches About God (Romans 2:17–23)

II. Living So As Not to Defame God’s Name (Romans 2:24–27)

III. Living in the Spirit of God in One’s Heart (Romans 2:28–29)

THE MAIN THOUGHT

For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified. (Romans 2:13, KJV)

UNIFYING PRINCIPLE

Many people talk about appreciating the world around them but do not demonstrate it with their actions. What causes such inconsistency? The psalmist sings praises that the earth is full of the wonders of God’s creation; but Paul insists that, while some people teach others how to obey the Law and live in ways consistent with God’s creation, they do not obey the Law themselves and do not have it written on their hearts.

LESSON AIM

To understand what Paul revealed about the people who claim to follow God’s law, yet failed to obey.

LIFE AIM

To help the participants identify potential hypocrisy in their beliefs and daily actions and find ways to comply with God’s law.

BEFORE YOU TEACH

Consider . . .

Focus for College and Career—To emphasize that living consistently with God’s laws matters for Christians. Its goodness is available to all, and God is about equal opportunity in judgement and praise in their lives.

Focus for Adult Christian Life—To emphasize that Christians practice how to live righteously. Adults can have knowledge of the goodness of principles for living but fail to practice them.

Supplementary Study Materials

For further reference, see today’s lesson from Boyd’s Commentary, New National Baptist Hymnal, 21st Century Edition #198 (NNBH #227), and God’s Promises Bible.

Teacher Helps

For teaching supplements visit http://www.rhboydpublishing.com.

First Step: Introduction. Open the class by reading the passage and then leading the class in prayer.

Second Step: Have the class discuss how the Holy Spirit is able to empower each Christian to guide their hearts to live righteously before God and the world at all times.

Third Step: Have the class discuss what special freedoms Christians have in Jesus as a result of being out from under the penalty of the Law. Then have the class discuss why it is important that even Christians observe and obey the Ten Commandments.

Fourth Step: Have each student briefly write down and then voice their thoughts on the love, justice, and mercy of God. Then have them explain how they personally exhibit these things in their daily living.

Fifth Step: Have a student summarize one or two points that he or she learned from the Sunday school lesson today. Have another student close the class with a prayer.

God’s Word in Life

In the workplace, most good employees want to please their bosses. They do not want to disappoint or make their bosses angry. Now, if a worker wants to please the boss, should not Christians want to make our boss—Jesus Christ, the Chief Shepherd—very happy? In other words, should it not be a priority for all Christians to please God? After all, God expects His people to do His will and for His people to be faithful workers every day in His Kingdom. There is no room for God’s people to be making Him look bad! Workers want to have their boss say, Well done. How much better would it be for workers in the Church to have the Lord say to His people, Well done (Matt. 25:21, NRSV)? In today’s world of business, good bosses give good bonuses to good workers. Consider how much more Jesus will give His good Christians. The value of following Jesus is not material possessions but being admitted into the Kingdom and living with God for eternity. †

— EXPOSITION —

Introduction

It is the job of the United States Secret Service to protect the life of the president and his family. Some people may not know it, but the Secret Service is also tasked with the job of protecting the U.S. currency from counterfeit money. Counterfeit money could potentially ruin the American economy if it was allowed to circulate. This lesson is about being real before God, meaning that a person’s heart and actions are genuine rather than insincere. When it comes to God and His Church, He does not need any counterfeit Christians circulating in His churches. Like the Secret Service, God is determined to protect His Church from those who would devalue it. It was Jesus Christ Himself who condemned phony believers by calling them hypocrites.

When it comes to serving Jesus Christ, the people of God must be honest, faithful, and sincere. God wants people to be transformed from sinful counterfeits into genuine believers. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, believers become genuine inheritors of the Kingdom of God.

I. Living What One Teaches About God

(Romans 2:17–23)

All Christians need the love and peace of God deep in our hearts so that we will not fall into sin. Paul warned what it was like when a person went through the motions of appearing to be a Christian yet did not have God in his or her heart. He said, You, then, that teach others, will you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? You that forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? You that abhor idols, do you rob temples? (Rom. 2:21–22, NRSV). As followers of Jesus, God holds us to a higher standard than the rest of the world expects for people.

Atheists who proudly proclaim their disbelief in God seem to have little trouble practicing their values and telling others about their views. The same can be said for others who are not Christians but still believe in a higher power. Muslims, for instance, are required to pray five times a day, facing Mecca. In the United States, it is not always easy or convenient for a Muslim to stop what they are doing to pray, whereas in the Middle East or India it is routine for society to pause what it is doing to provide time for prayer. Consider the dedication that atheists and Muslims have towards their beliefs. We as Christians should have the same level of conviction, if not even more!

Paul called us on behalf of Jesus to teach others the Word of God, but he also called us to teach ourselves. If we forbid a practice, then we should abstain from it too. Likewise, if we require certain practices for others, such as prayer and studying the Word, then we are not exempt. The only way to do this, however, is to embrace the peace and love of Jesus. God recognizes the challenges in society to place Him above all else just as He recognizes how our sinful nature gets in the way. That’s why He gave us the Word of God and salvation. Jesus does not want His followers to be hypocrites. We are meant to be more than that so that we may share His message with the world and fulfill it in ourselves.

God made this world for the benefit of His people. He expects His people to respect and serve Him in all righteousness. The psalmist said, May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the LORD. Let sinners be consumed from the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD! (Ps. 104:34–35, NRSV). God wants His followers to live as we are taught. Christians are not supposed to teach one way of life in God and then live another way before the world.

For more information about GOD’S LAW visit www.rhboydpublishing.com.

Christians must learn to rely on the peace that is in Jesus as displayed in His Word so that our hearts will resist temptation. Too many people are too willing to give into the many temptations of the devil. There are criminals who rob people of their wealth, security, and dignity. All of these things and more are the result of succumbing to temptation, but the people of God must not fall under the ways of the devil.

It is God’s Word that teaches Christians how to stay out of sin. The psalmist spoke authoritatively to this subject when he wrote, Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble. I hope for your salvation, O LORD, and I fulfill your commandments. My soul keeps your decrees; I love them exceedingly. I keep your precepts and decrees, for all my ways are before you (Ps. 119:165–168, NRSV). Jesus will be present for His followers to help us endure the most trying times of our lives so that we do not have to give in to the sins that surround us.

HYPOCRITE

(Greek: HUPOCRITA)

This Greek word refers to one who is two-faced, meaning he or she looks good from the outside but they are something completely different on the inside. Far from just falling short of high expectations, a hypocrite is a religious actor who can be likened to a jester who acts foolishly in life.

The psalmist wrote, I have been like a portent to many, but you are my strong refuge. My mouth is filled with your praise, and with your glory all day long. Do not cast me off in the time of old age; do not forsake me when my strength is spent (71:7–9, NRSV). God wants His people to be free from the ways of the world and to abide in Him. The people of God are to learn to be able to endure the sufferings of this world by keeping God’s Word in our hearts at all times.

II. Living So As Not To Defame God’s Name

(Romans 2:24–27)

Paul told the Romans, ‘The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you’ (v.