RCCG SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS’ MANUAL 28 NOVEMBER 2021

LESSON THIRTEEN (13)
TOPIC: FIRST QUARTER REVIEW: REVISION OF LESSONS 1-12

SUMMARY OF LESSONS 1-12
LESSON ONE (01)
TOPIC: THE ESSENCE OF PRAISE
BIBLE PASSAGE: Psalms 67:3-7

MEMORY VERSE: “I will praise thee, O LORD, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works.” Psalms 9:1

INTRODUCTION: In our day to day dealing with ourselves, thanksgiving and praises are considered very important especially when we receive any help from anyone. This show of appreciation usually acts as impetus to receiving similar assistance or gifts in future.

We as Christians should know that God who is our Father loves us even more than our earthly father does. The only thing we can do in order to show our appreciation is by praising Him no matter the circumstances that come on our way.

We must cultivate the habit of praising God and thanking Him all the days of our lives. The first principle a Christian should learn, should be how to develop the habit of praising God (Ps.105:1-3)

LESSON OUTLINE 1: WHY SHOULD WE
PRAISE GOD?
Question 1: Why Should We Praise God?
Answer: Teacher should highlight the reasons believers should praise God as follows:

1. If we want our lives to be full of miracles and wonders, it is necessary for us to know that the formula is in praising God.

2. The attributes of God are sufficient reasons for us to praise Him.
i. That is one reason the angels praise God continuously (lsa.6:3).
ii. God’s holiness is linked with His glory. He is glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders (Ex. 15:11).

3. When we praise God, we have victories
over our enemies (Ps.18:3).

4. We should praise God for His goodness and His wonderful works (Ps.107:8). If we praise God, He will take note and this will gladden His heart (Ps.22:3).

5. God is righteous and His righteousness demands that we should praise Him.

6. God is a jealous God and His Jealousy demands that we must show His sovereignty over all things by praising Him (Exodus 34:14). He is the only One and demands for Himself alone worship and praises to which He has a right (Ex.20:3-4).

7. Praise is an acceptable sacrifice before God (Heb 13:15).

LESSON OUTLINE 2: ACCEPTABLE PRAISE
Question: What does it take to offer an acceptable praise to God?
Note: Teacher should first allow the students to answer the question in their own words.

Answer: 1. Even though God is universal for all mankind, yet He accepts praise from those who draw near to Him in holiness and repentance (James 4:8; Ps.24:3-5)

2. To offer an acceptable praise to God, it is necessary to be a child of God. We must confess our sins to God and repent from them (1John 1:8-10; 2 Cor.5:17). It is after this that your sacrifice of praise can be acceptable to God.

SUMMARY: It is not enough to praise God; we must ensure that our praise is acceptable to Him

CONCLUSION: Praising God is the only thing we can do for Him. It is an inevitable aspect of worshipping God.

LESSON TWO (02)
TOPIC: BE THANKFUL
BIBLE PASSAGE: Psalms 100:1-5

MEMORY VERSE: “Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms” Psalms 95:2

LESSON INTRODUCTION: To be thankful literally means to be full of thanks or appreciation. It is an expression of gratitude to someone. Thankfulness in this context is an act of thanksgiving or a show of gratitude to God. Though some people are ungrateful for various reasons, we must not be ingrates because of its attendant dangers.

LESSON OUTLINE 1: REASONS AND BENEFITS OF THANKSGIVING
•Question 1: What are the reasons for thanksgiving?
The reasons for thanksgiving are inexhaustible: some of them are;
•Answer:
1. Thanksgiving is a command (1 Chron.16:8)
2. Believer’s requests should start and end with thanksgiving. (Phil.4:6)
3. We thank God for victories over battles of life (John 2:9)
4. It is important to thank God for His mercy and divine provision (Psalm 68:19; Mic 7:18-20)
5. Thanksgiving is offered to God for His miracles and restoration of hope (1 Sam.2:1-5; Ps.126:1-2)
6. The primary reason God created us in His image is for fellowship, thanksgiving, praise and joyful heart (Isa.43:21)

•Question 2: What are the benefits of thanksgiving?
•Answer: If you will cultivate the habit of showing gratitude to God, you will attract overflowing blessings from Him. Here are some of them:
1. Thankful people receive answer to prayers . (John.11:41-44)
2. Thankful people enjoy abundant provisions (Mk.8:6-8)
3. Thankful people experience deliverance from bondage (Acts 16:25-26)
4.Thankful people are peaceful and joyful
(Phil.4:6-7)
5. Thankful people enjoy divine presence
(Ps.95:2; Ps.22:3)
6. Thankful people also experience complete restoration and wholeness
(Lk.17:16-19)
7. Thankful people enjoy victory without a fight (2 Chronicles 20:21-23)

LESSON OUTLINE 2: DANGERS OF INGRATITUDE
•Question 1: Why do some people find it difficult to show gratitude to God?
•Answer. A. Ingratitude is the result of vain imagination and a darkened heart. Sometimes your thanksgiving is senseless to the ordinary person but it is more profitable to be thankful than to grumble or complain (Prov.15:8; Rom.1:12)
B. There are several reasons people are ungrateful to God: some of which include;
1. Sin or spiritual blindness (Eph.4:17-18)
2. Refusal to take account of what God has done (Rom.1:21)
3. Pride (Acts 12:21-23)

•Question 2: What are the dangers of ingratitude?
•Answer: Every act of ingratitude comes with their attendant dangers which are:
1. Risk of losing the existing blessing, salvation and Heaven (Matt. 25:25-25,30)
2. Limiting one’s blessings or answered prayers (Lk.17:12-16,19).
3. It could result in emptiness and sorrow (Proverb 17:22; 15:13) thereby, making restoration practically difficult.

SUMMARY: Every child of God should learn to be thankful so as not to be caught in the web of ungratefulness and its dangers.

CONCLUSION: Showing of gratitude to God ensures continuous divine presence and fellowship.

LESSON THREE (03)
TOPIC: ASSURANCE OF SALVATION
BIBLE PASSAGE: 1 John 5:11-13

MEMORY VERSE: “That if you confess
with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” Romans 10:9.

LESSON INTRODUCTION: Many followers of Jesus Christ look for the assurance of salvation in the wrong places. We tend to seek assurance of salvation in the things God is doing in our lives, in our spiritual growth, in the good works and obedience to God’s Word that is evident in our Christian walk.

While these things can be evidence of salvation, they are not what we should base the assurance of our salvation on. Thus this lesson centers on the confidence we have now that we are saved.

LESSON OUTLINE 1: WHAT IS SALVATION?
1. The following should be noted about
salvation:
i. Salvation is deliverance from danger or
suffering. To save is to deliver or protect. Sometimes, the Bible uses the words saved or salvation to refer to temporal, physical deliverance, such as Paul’s deliverance from prison (Phil.1:1).

ii. The word “salvation” concerns an eternal, spiritual deliverance. Jesus equated being saved with entering the kingdom of God (Matt.19:24-25).

iii. Salvation means to be saved from “wrath”, that it, to be exempted from God’s judgement of sin (Romans 5:9; 1 Thess. 5:9) which is death – eternal separation from God (Romans 6:23). Salvation therefore implies “the removal of one’s sin”.

2. Only God can remove sin and deliver us from its penalty (2Tim.1:9; Titus 3:5). He does this through His son Jesus Christ (John 3:17). Specifically;

i. It was Jesus’ shedding of His blood, His death on the cross and subsequent resurrection that achieved our salvation( Rom.5:10; Eph.1:7).

ii. Scripture is clear that salvation is the gracious, undeserved gift of God (Eph.2:5, 8-9) and is only available through faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12).

iii. Salvation is the deliverance, by the grace of God, from eternal punishment for sin which is granted to those who believe and accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour having repented of their sins John 1:12).

LESSON OUTLINE 2: ASSURANCE OF SALVATION
Teacher should guide the students through to following truths to assure them of their salvation:
1. When a sinner hears the gospel of salvation, repents and forsakes his sins, he goes on to confess his sins to Jesus Christ and asks for salvation, he will saved be (Rom.10:9-15; Acts 2:21).

2. We should not live our Christian lives wondering and worrying each day whether or not we are truly saved. A sinner who has just prayed a prayer of salvation must believe what is written in Romans 10:9-10 “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation”.

3. Believers should trust that they are saved based on the promises God has declared, not because of their subjective experiences or religious activities (Eph.2:8-9).

4. The assurance of our salvation therefore, comes by faith in God’s word (Rom.5:1).

5. The Holy Spirit also bears (inner) witness with our spirit (Rom.8:16).

SUMMARY: Once you confess your sins to God, repent from them, forsake such sins, surrender your lives to Jesus Christ, ask Him to forgive your sins and declare Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour with faith in your heart, you will be saved (Rom. 9-10)

CONCLUSION: Do not doubt your salvation. Build your assurance in Christ through intimacy with the word of God.

LESSON FOUR (04)
TOPIC: SANCTIFICATION
BIBLE PASSAGE: 1 Corinthians 6:9-11

MEMORY VERSE: “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 5:23

LESSON INTRODUCTION: Sanctification simply means to make holy, pure and separated unto God. It is the second work of grace after salvation. It attacks and removes the root of sin. It is a progressive work of God in man that makes him more and more free from sin and like Christ in his actual life (1 Thess.5:23; Rom 8:13). Though often neglected, understanding sanctification is vital for a thriving Christian life

LESSON OUTLINE 1: STAGES OF SANCTIFICATION
There are three stages of sanctification for believers.
1. Positional sanctification: at this moment;
a. Believers through the Holy Spirit are brought out of darkness into the light (1 Peter 2:9; Col.1:13).
b. The believers’ position before God has been changed forever from being an unbeliever to a believer, from Sin to Holiness and from the old life to a new life (1 John 3:9; 1Cor.6:11). Believers are no longer dead in trespasses, but are made alive together with Christ (Romans 6:11; Eph. 2:5)
d. It is an initial moral change, a break from the power and love of sin (Romans 8:2).

2. Progressive sanctification: This increases throughout life.
a. It occurs in the process of daily spiritual renewal
(Rom.12:2; 1Cor.13:5).
b. As we grow in grace, we are gradually but steadily changing to be more like Christ (John.17:17; 2 Cor. 3:18)

3. Ultimate Sanctification: This is completed at death (for our souls) and when the Lord returns (for our bodies).
a. Our sanctification will never be completed in this life because we continue to battle with the flesh (Gal.5:17; Rom.7:15)
b. When we die as saints, our souls are finally free from the indwelling sin and are made perfect (1 Cor.15:52).
c. When the Lord returns to give us our resurrection bodies, then our sanctification will be complete (1Jn.3:2).

LESSON OUTLINE 2: MEANS AND BENEFITS OF SANCTIFICATION
A. Means of sanctification: Sanctification represents a believer’s victory over the flesh (Rom.7:24-25), the world (1 John 5:4) and the devil (James 4:7). Believers are sanctified through the following:
1. God (1 Thess. 5:23).
2. The Word of God. The truth of God’s word taught, sung, preached, studied, and read is one of the surest means by which the Spirit brings about change in our lives (John 17:17).
3. Blood of Jesus (Heb. 9:13-14; 1John 1:7, 9).
4. The Holy Spirit (1Pet.1:2; 2Thess. 2:13).
5. Fellowship with brethren. God brings about our change through the gifts and graces of brothers and sisters in Christ (Prov. 27:17; Heb. 10:25).
6. Suffering and struggle. Though we do not relish it, suffering and struggles work towards our growth to perfection like Christ (Heb.5:8). Difficulties prompt us to rely on God (Rom.5:3-5; Rom.8:28).
7. The Believer’s willingness and readiness to submit to God (Rom.8:13; Phil.2:12-13).

B. The benefits of sanctification are many:
1. A sanctified believer will enjoy the ability to easily resist temptation because there is a renewed hatred for sin and inner lust (1John 3:9).
2. Sanctification fosters intimacy with God, increases spiritual strength and stability (Ps. 15:1-5).
3. It also aids ‘clean record’ for believers i.e. the enemies will not have foothold over such (John 14:30).
4. Sanctification helps believers to be humble and submissive to God and to constituted authorities (Jam. 4:6-7).
Other benefits include:
i. Attraction of God’s favour and man (John 7:38).
ii. Enjoyment of prayer times and increased faith for answered prayers (1 John 5:14-15).
ii. Having right standing before God (Acts 24:16).
iv. Pure intentions of actions and words (Titus 1:15).

SUMMARY: Sanctification is a lifetime experience with great benefits. Every child of God must be willing to have this experience.

CONCLUSION: Sanctification is an integral part of the Christian growth, every child of God must earnestly desire it.

LESSON FIVE (05)
TOPIC: INTEGRITY
BIBLE PASSAGE: Daniel 6:1-5

MEMORY VERSE: “The just man walketh in his integrity: his children are blessed after him.” (Proverbs 20:7)

LESSON INTRODUCTION: The Hebrew word translated “Integrity” means the condition of being without “blemish. It connotes completeness, perfection, sincerity, soundness, uprightness, wholeness”. Integrity is a practise of being honest and showing a consistent and uncompromising adherence to strong moral and ethical principles and values.

It is standing for the truth regardless of its consequences (Job 2:9-10; Dan. 3:16-18). It is also when a person works his talk (1 Sam. 12:2-4). Although integrity comes with diverse challenge challenges, yet, it is so important and highly rewarding.

LESSON OUTLINE 1: IMPORTANCE OF INTEGRITY
Teacher should allow the students to mention some importance of integrity in their daily relationship with people.
A. Integrity should be the core quality of every believer’s life.
i. It is a fundamental proof of one’s belief in the Gospel of our Lord Jesus (2 Cor.5:17; Heb. 4:15)
ii. It is also a proof to others that one is a child of God (Luke 4:1-4)

B. Integrity is a character which makes a person not to waiver (Job 2:9)

C. Through integrity, a person becomes not just confident but also reliable to family members, subordinates and superiors.(1 Sam.12:3-4)

D. Integrity makes a person to be honest in character, honour their words, promises and be committed to responsibilities (Josh. 2:12-14: Josh. 6:22-23)

E. Integrity helps a person to recognise his/her weakness, take responsibilities for actions or inactions (2 Sam.12:13) and take necessary corrective action for failure without minding the cost. (Gen.26:9-11)

F. Integrity makes a person to be consistently truthful (Luke 16:10).

LESSON OUTLINE 2: BIBLICAL INSTANCES AND REWARDS OF INTEGRITY
A. Teacher should allow the students to mention Bible Characters noted for integrity.
Searching through the Bible, we find characters that are classical examples of integrity. Below are some of them;
a. Abimelech, the King of Gerar (Gen.20:3-7)
b. Joseph (Gen.47:14)
c. Prophet Samuel (1 Sam. 12:3-4)
d. King David (1 Kgs.9:4)
e. Job (Job 2:3; 9-10).
f. Apostle Paul (Acts 20:32-33)
g. The Lord Jesus Christ (John 14:30)

B. Teacher should allow the class to mention some rewards of integrity.
Integrity, despite its challenges in the world we live in, has numerous rewards:
i. God will vouch for the person (Gen.18:19; Job 2:3)
ii. God will keep the fellow from falling into sin (Gen.20:5-6)
iii. The fellow will enjoy peace (Psalm 37:37)
iv. He will enjoy divine guidance (Pro. 11:3)
v. A person of integrity will enjoy unprecedented promotion, favour and good success (Gen.41:39-41)
Gen.41:39-41
vi. He will also enjoy divine provisions (Ps.84:11)
vii. God will preserve (Ps.25:21-22; Dan.6:20-22) and give him generational blessings (Prov.20:7).

SUMMARY: It is important for every believer to be known for integrity.

CONCLUSION: It is impossible to have real integrity without Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. Therefore, we must be in Christ to exhibit integrity. It is highly rewarding.

LESSON SIX (06)
TOPIC: BEATITUDES: THE POOR AND THE MOURNER.
BIBLE PASSAGE: Matthew 5:1-4
1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:

2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,

3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

MEMORY VERSE: “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despite”. Psalms 51:17

INTRODUCTION: If you are extraordinarily happy, you might describe what you are feeling as beatitude. The noun, beatitude, refers to a state of great joy. Being Blessed, or at least feeling blessed, is often linked to beatitude. Beatitude is from the latin word ‘beatus’ meaning ‘rich’, ‘happy’ and ‘blessedness’. The corresponding word in the original Greek is ‘makarioi’ with the same meaning.

In the Bible, the beatitudes are a series of eight blessings spoken by Jesus in Matthew 5. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus used the word to more than a superficial happiness. In this context, ‘blessed’ refer to a state of spiritual wellbeing and prosperity. The beatitudes describe the ideal disciple and his rewards, both present and future.

LESSON OUTLINE 1: BLESSED ARE THE POOR IN SPIRIT
‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven’ (Matthew 5:3).

• Question 1: Who are the poor ‘in spirit’?
• Answer: The ‘poor in spirit’ are those who feel a deep sense of spiritual need and understand their emptiness before God (Isaiah 66:2).
i. They are humble and lowly in their own eyes. (Isa. 66:2).
ii. They see their want, bewail their guilt, and thirst after a Redeemer (Psalms 51:17).
iii. There must be emptiness before there can be fullness, and so poverty of spirit precedes riches and Grace in the kingdom of God (John 12:24).
This means:
i. We are to be emptied of our selfish pride, self-reliance, sinful thoughts and actions.
ii. We are to die daily to ourselves and be emptied moment by moment.
iii. Emptying is not the end but rather, the beginning. We are emptied in order to be filled.
Therefore, When Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” He is declaring that, before we can enter God’s kingdom, we must recognise our worthlessness and the inability of our own works to save us.

• Question 2: Why is the kingdom of heaven for ‘the poor in the spirit’?
• Answer: The kingdom of heaven is for ‘the poor in spirit’, because they seek it, and, therefore, find and abide in it.

i. To this virtue is opposed the pride of a Pharisee in (Luke 18:10-14) This caused a certain Pharisee to thank God that he was not as other men, and to despise and reject the kingdom of heaven.

ii. The “Kingdom of heaven” essentially refers to salvation.

iii. The kingdom of heaven is both eternity in heaven with God after death (Romans 6:23) and the eternal quality of life with God before death (John 10:10).

iv. God offers us salvation as a gift, though the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, the the full payment for sin’s penalty.