Video Transcript: Lesson 4 Section 2

Teaching is a high calling, and one of the spiritual gifts talked about in the Bible. The teacher  plays an important role in communicating truth and shaping a student's response to that  truth. The main task in teaching is to figure out what God is doing in our lives, and then pass  on that knowledge to others. To accomplish this, the teacher must become a student  themselves. Before we get into practical ways to craft a lesson plan, we should start with an  awareness of the critical role of the Holy Spirit in the teaching process. The Holy Spirit works  through the teacher to produce lasting change in the lives of students. There are three  important ways this happens. First, the mind of the student is opened as they gain knowledge through their personal study of God's Word. The Holy Spirit is involved in this process of  revealing truth. The teacher also engages the emotions of the student, so they are motivated  to change their beliefs and behavior. Finally, the teacher challenges the students will by  calling for action and repentance in response to Scripture. It is through the surrender that the  Holy Spirit works in the student to bring about life transformation. A good analogy and  understanding the role of a teacher is to consider the process of baking a cake. For it to taste  good, and be nutritious. You must begin with quality ingredients. eggs, fresh milk, flour, sugar, and whatever else the recipe calls for. Using spoiled milk or cheap chemical substitutes will  not produce something delicious. In the same way, a Bible study depends on insights from the teachers own study of God's word. It is essential that teachers are searching scripture for new insights to share with others. It's like having fresh ingredients for a cake. simply repeating  someone else's insights or trying to apply scripture with little personal reflection is less than  helpful for your students. A second thing we can learn from our example of baking a cake is  that quality ingredients are not enough on their own. They must also be presented well. In  order to be a delicious and beautiful product. A teacher must determine how to present the  insights gained from their own study of the Bible. The best way to do this is to prepare well  and make a lesson plan. Your lesson plan should be based on the spiritual needs of your  audience. An effective lesson plan will enable students to receive and reflect on new  knowledge and begin to live out these truths in their daily lives. To do this, you must first take  some time to understand the spiritual needs of those who will be teaching. Start by asking  who is going to be there? Name some of the students and picture their faces? What issues are they wrestling with? Where they are in their journey to know God? Pray over them before they even show up for the Bible study. Next, consider the culture of your ministry. What is the  learning environment? Like? What are the things that are helping teens experience life  transformation or hindering them? Think of the students church community? Can you name  five areas that people tend to struggle with? Finally, consider the outside influences that  shape your spiritual community. Who are these teens interacting with outside church? What  do those people say about the Bible or faith? Reflecting on your answers to these questions  will make you more sensitive to the spiritual needs of your students. It will help you better  understand the context you are teaching in so you can focus the purpose of your Bible study.  Once you have identified the spiritual needs of your audience, the next step is to consider  your students learning limitations. Faith development in your students requires healthy  intellectual and emotional development so that they can make sense of their faith decision  within their worldview. a teenager's mental and emotional level of development will impact  his or her ability to learn and apply principles from the Bible. We must understand how God  made our brains so we can teach and disciple teenagers effectively. It is sometime between  ages 11 and 13 for girls, and after age 14 For boys that the brain finishes developing. It is at  this stage that abstract thinking, emotional intelligence, and risk assessment is now possible.  Keeping this in mind when teaching God's word it is crucial to take abstract concepts from  Scripture and make them relatable to the issues teenagers are facing every day. Teenagers  can reflect upon a truth and its implications in Bible study. Then apply the lesson when they  face a challenge in their daily lives. In this way, God's word comes to bear on God's world.  One way to help students with this integration is to develop a teaching plan that rotates  between studying books of the Bible, and discussing practical life issues. For example, you  could read the Gospel of John over a period of a few weeks, and then have a topical study of  challenges that face families. older teenagers will need to be introduced to a systematic  analysis of theology. Helping students develop a language to express their beliefs will move 

their faith into maturity. It is important that these doctrines are in agreement with your  church's theology. So discuss with your church leaders what the topics should be, and how to  approach them. Now that we have considered the spiritual needs of our students and thought  about their learning limitations, there was one more step before you're ready to begin  teaching your Bible study. And it's an important step studying the Bible passage you will be  teaching on. There were two great approaches to understanding scripture. First, develop a  passage outline, then develop a truth outline. Let's look at both of these then try them out  together. A passage outline helps you identify God's intended eternal message. By  understand what is happening in the story. Divide the passage into natural sections based on  plot or theme. Then write a short summary of each section. Let's try crafting a passage  outline for the narrative in Daniel chapter one. Pause this video and read the chapter. Look for natural breaks in the story that make good sections. Write a one sentence summary of the  events in each section. Once you have this written down, resume this video let's see how your passage outline turned out. Here is a possible outline of Daniel chapter one. Verses one to two introduce us to the historical setting for the crisis. verses three to seven show the changes  the exiled young men are facing. verses eight to 14 show Daniel taking a stand for what he  believes he must obey. In verses 15 to 21 we see God honoring Daniel and his friends for their faithfulness. Your passage outline might have turned out a little differently from this one and  that's okay. There is no one way to do this. Now that you have a working passage outline, the  next step is to craft the truth outline of the passage. A truth outline requires you to take the  statements of the passage outline and consider how each relates to the overarching truth of  the story. This forms your basic outline for teaching the passage. The truth outline addresses  the spiritual needs of your students and the transformation you desire to see in their lives. So  keep in mind that your truth outline for the same passage may need to change depending on  your audience. Let's try it out. Pause the video and develop a truth outline from the passage  outline you created for Daniel chapter one. Write a statement for each section that expresses  an eternal biblical truth. Write each one in a way that is relatable to your target audience.  After you have created the truth outline, resume the video. Here is one possible truth outline  for Daniel chapter one. verses one and two show that God allows crisis to happen in our lives.  versus three to seven show the crisis may tempt us to change our beliefs and behavior.  verses eight to 14 teach that we must live by God's truth, regardless of the consequences.  Verses 15 to 21. Show that we should expect God to work in all situations. Again, this is just  one example and could look very different depending on the age and faith maturity of the  students you are teaching. Take the time to develop both the passage outline and the truth  outline. This is an important two step process that will not only help you understand Scripture  better, it will reveal new truths to share with your students and build your own spiritual life.  Once you have outlined the passage and know how you want to teach it, you are ready for the final step of crafting your lesson plan. The last point of preparation is to identify the possible  applications of the biblical truth in the lives of your students. Ask yourself What do I want my  audience to do about this truth? The process of faith development starts with new knowledge  of God's truth shaping our motivations and values. Changing beliefs should result in a change  of behavior. Studying the Bible doesn't just help us know what is right, but to act on what is  right as well. When identifying application points for your students consider the following.  How should these action steps be different based on the spiritual maturity of the student?  What would you suggest for someone just beginning to ask questions about God and faith  versus a teenager who has been a Christian for some years? Another helpful thing to consider is how existing relationships can help. What support does a student need from their family,  friends, peers at school, church or community. spiritual support is extremely important for  healthy growth and a faith that lasts. This is a lot of information to take in. But these steps  and questions can help you be an effective teacher of God's Word. Remember, it is our role  not just to inform, but to help students transform as they learn and apply scripture to their  daily lives.