Conversation Starters: One Great Problem
Posted by Karah
CONNECTION POINT: God knew to send the Savior.
THE BIBLE MEETS LIFE: What went wrong? We want trouble-free lives and we might wonder: “If God created all this, why is the world in such a mess?” Life is full of problems—from the minor irritants like slow traffic to life-altering catastrophes. But what’s wrong with our lives does not arise from one of these external issues. Our greatest problem is internal; it’s a sin issue. God created us for something incredible, but we lost it because of our sin.
Concept: One Great Problem
Preschool
Genesis 1:26-31; 2:7, 15-24
LIFE POINT: On the sixth day when God was making the world, He made a man and a woman. He made the first man from the dust of the ground. He called the man Adam. He gave life to Adam by breathing into him. He placed Adam in the garden to work in it and take care of it. God decided Adam should not be alone, so He made a woman. Adam named the woman Eve, and she became Adam’s helper. God made Adam and Eve to take care of the fish in the water, birds in the air, and animals that walk or crawl on land. He gave them the fruit trees and plants to eat. They lived together in the garden. He looked at them and saw that it was very good. Evening came, and the sixth day was done. On the seventh day, God rested. He created everything in six days!
LIVE IT OUT: Help your child make a list of all the things she can do. Comment that God made her special and able to do many things. If you have a younger preschooler, comment as he is learning new things that God made him able to learn.
Kids
Genesis 3
LIFE POINT: God created people and placed them in a garden. They could to eat from any tree except the one in the middle of the garden. The serpent tricked the woman. She chose to disobey God and eat the fruit. Then she gave some to her husband who ate. Immediately they were ashamed. They heard God coming and tried to hide from God. God searched for the man and woman. He asked if they had eaten the fruit He told them not to eat. The man blamed the woman and the woman blamed the serpent. Neither accepted responsibility for his own choice. God loved the man and the woman. But The man and the woman left the garden. He made clothes for them from animal skins. He told them their lives would now be hard. Their names were Adam and Eve.
LIVE IT OUT: Help your child memorize Deuteronomy 5:32, the verse for this session. Discuss the meaning of turning to the right or to the left. Guide your child to write down some choices that reflect that turn away from God.
Students
Romans 3:9-12, 19-20, 23
THE POINT: Without Christ, we are condemned forever.
-What do you see that points to sin as a worldwide problem? What are some ways that we try to explain away God’s judgments?
-When have you felt the weight or consequence of sin in your own life? How will sin keep us from living a life that brings praise to God?
Discuss the following quote:
“As the salt flavors every drop in the Atlantic, so does sin affect every atom of our nature. It is so sadly there, so abundantly there, that if you cannot detect it, you are deceived.”1—
Charles H. Spurgeon
LIVE IT OUT: Encourage your student to take practical steps to take his or her faith and live it out. Here are some ways you can encourage your students to live out their faith with Christ personally, in community, and in their culture:
• CHRIST: Discuss with your student the consequences of unconfessed sin and help him or her to confess any sins that still need to be confessed and then forgiven.
• COMMUNITY: Help your student create a list of people that need to hear the truth of the gospel. Pray with your student for the people on his or her list.
• CULTURE: Discuss ways you and your student can respond to the sin in the world around you. Some starting questions include: Where do you see the brokenness of sin in your life? What ways do we try to
deal with sin apart from Christ?
1. “25 Christian Quotes About Sin,” What Christians Want to Know [online], [accessed 1 February 2016]. Available from the Internet: http://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/25-christian-quotes aboutsin/# ixzz3z1SHd8zO
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