SUNDAY SCHOOL HYMN

1. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,

O how I love Thee well,

I am happy, it makes me glad

To rejoice at Thy birth.

2. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,

Thy friendship suits me well,

Both young and old will sing Thy song,

We long for Sunday School.

3. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,

Christ was Thy first teacher,

The Holy Spirit, great teacher,

Does manifest in thee.

4. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,

This testimony is sure,

That God, the Father Almighty,

Poured His blessing on Thee

5. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,

Though the sun be so bright,

Or if the clouds be black with rain,

I’ll be in Sunday School.

6. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day

I rejoice to see Thee,

Will thou pass over me today?

Without my being blest?

BIBLE PASSAGE: Matthew 7:21-23 (NKJV)

[21]“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.

[22]Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’

[23]And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ Build on the Rock

MEMORY VERSE: “And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.” Acts 11:26 (NKJV).

INTRODUCTION: The Christian faith is the experience of daily living in a dynamic and new personal relationship with God (Romans 10:9-10; John 1:11-13). The very term “Christian” was coined in the city of Antioch as a way to identify the first followers of Christ (Acts 11:26). The first disciples were so much like Jesus that they were called little Christs by their detractors. It is unfortunate that nowadays, some people have made Christianity represent an ideology or a social class rather than a lifestyle of obedience to God. Today, there are two shades of Christianity: Cultural Christianity and Biblical Christianity.

OUTLINES:

1. Cultural Christianity Described

2. Identification Marks

1. CULTURAL CHRISTIANITY DESCRIBED

Cultural Christians are nominal believers who superficially identify themselves as “Christians” but do not truly adhere to the tenets of the Christian faith (Matthew 15:8). They wear the label “Christian” without personal conviction that Jesus is Lord (2 Timothy 3:5).

Cultural Christianity is more social than spiritual (1 Corinthians 2:14-15). A cultural Christian identifies with certain aspects of Christianity, such as the good works of Jesus (John 6:26-27),but rejects the spiritual aspects required to be a biblically defined Christian (Romans 8:5). Some people consider themselves Christians because of family background, charity giving, place of residence, Christian name or title, churchgoing or social environment. Others identify as Christians as a way of declaring a religious affiliation. Cultural Christianity is not true Christianity. There was no such thing as cultural Christianity in the days of the early church.

CLASS ACTIVITY 1: According to the text of the lesson (Mathew 7:21-23) what will be Jesus’ justification for labelling some ‘‘Christians’’ workers of iniquity on the last day?

2. IDENTIFICATION MARKS

The following are some identifying marks of cultural Christians:

1. They deny the inspiration of Scripture or parts of Scripture (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21).

2. They ignore or downplay true repentance as the first step toward knowing God (Matthew 4:17; Acts 2:38).

3. They focus on Jesus’ love and acceptance to the exclusion of His teaching on hell, obedience, and self-sacrifice (Mark 9:43; Luke 12:5).

4. They tolerate or even celebrate ongoing sin while claiming to know God (1 Corinthians 5:1-2).

5. They redefine scriptural truths to accommodate culture (Numbers 23:19).

6. Claiming God’s promises while ignoring the requirements included with them (Psalm 50:16).

7. They deny or minimise Jesus’ claim that He is the only way to God (John 14:6).

8. They perform enough religious activity to gain a sense of well-being without a true devotion to Jesus (Romans 8:9).

9. They see protection and blessing as goals to be achieved, rather than by-products of a love relationship with God (Mark 12:30).

10. They are lukewarm and choose the church to attend based on any or all of the above (Revelation 3:15-17).

CLASS ACTIVITY 2: Students should examine themselves in the face of the aforementioned identification marks, and share with the class, the biblically acceptable option they would embrace going forward.

CONCLUSION: Jesus’ warning in Matthew 7:21-23 should be a wake-up call to cultural Christians.

QUESTIONS:

* Describe cultural Christians in two sentences.

* Mention four ways to identify a cultural Christian.

FURTHER READING: SUN: 1Cor.5:1-2; MON: Rev.3:15-17; TUE: Jn.3:15-18; WED: Jn.1:11-13; THUR: 1Jn.3:9-10; FRI: Deut.11:13-17; SAT: Gal.5:16-17.

ASSIGNMENT: Write five (5) differences between a true Christian and a cultural Christian. (2X5=10 Marks).