Causes of Disunity – Teaching Plan
Key Thought: The examples of Scripture reveal that faithful obedience to God’s will promotes unity and harmony among God’s people. Disobedience and personal inclinations can foster disunity.
1. Have a volunteer read Jeremiah 3:14-18.
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a. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important point in this text is.
b. What can we learn about God’s love and patience for His people?
c. Personal Application: What has the difference between obedience and disobedience meant in your life? Share your thoughts.
d. Case Study: One of your relatives states: “How can we tell the difference between our own desires and inclinations and God’s will for us? If we choose thw wrong path, He will still be there for us, won’t He? But are we making His plan for us more difficult sometimes by our choices? ” How would you respond to your relative?
2. Have a volunteer read Judges 19:6, Judges 21:25.
a. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the most important point is in this passage.
b. How does someone doing what’s right in his own eyes cause problems among God’s people?
c. Personal Application: How do our actions as members of the church impact those around us? Share your thoughts.
d. Case Study: One of your friends states, “Everybody has a free will. We don’t have to follow the rules if we don’t agree with them or feel they are not right. We have the freedom to go against church or Bible teaching as long as we believe in Jesus. These nitpicky rules are just church organizational control.?” How would you reply to your friend?
3. Have a volunteer read I Corinthians 1:10-17.
a. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is.
b. What was the cause of the Corinthian divisions, quarrels, and disunity? .
c. Personal Application: Have you “joined yourself” to a charismatic preacher or pastor before? What are some dangers involved? Share your thoughts
d. Case Study: One of your neighbors states, “What does it mean for everyone to speak the same thing and have no divisions? Does this include diet, dress, ornamentation, the trinity, and other such teachings of the church?” How would you respond to your neighbor?
4. Have a volunteer read Acts 20:25-31.
a. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is.
b. What did Paul warn the Ephesian elders about?
c. Personal Application: How can we protect ourselves from people who could bring divisions through false teachings? Share your thoughts.
d. Case Study: Think of one person who needs to hear a message from this week’s lesson. Tell the class what you plan to do this week to share with them.
(Truth that is not lived, that is not imparted, loses its life-giving power, its healing virtue. Its blessings can be retained only as it is shared.”Ministry of Healing, p. 148).
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