THE SPREAD OF THE GOSPEL TO ROMAN EMPIRE: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

      THE CHRISTIAN MISSIONARY JOURNEY: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

      THE JOURNEY FROM ANTIOCH TO DERBE: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

      CONTROVERSY IN THE EARLY CHURCH: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

      CONTROVERSY IN THE CORINTH CHURCH

      THE JERUSALEM COUNCIL

      CONFLICT IN THE SOCIETY: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

      FURTHER SPREAD OF THE CHURCH: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

      PAUL’S IMPRISONMENT IN PHILIPPI

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE SPREAD OF THE GOSPEL TO ROMAN EMPIRE: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

TOPIC: THE SPREAD OF THE GOSPEL TO ROMAN EMPIRE

Before Jesus left disciples, his commissioned them and instructed them to spread the gospel. He specifically told them to “Go and make disciples of all nation, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20). Since then, the disciples have been spreading the word of God in and outside Jerusalem to the even the deepest part of the world.

Soon, the early Christians (who were mostly Jews) spread to Roman empire and were converting people. Unfortunately, the Christians were greatly persecuted until the emergence of emperor Constantine. The mother of Constantine, Helena secretly converted to Christianity but was afraid to publicly proclaim her new religion in order that she may not be executed and also so that she will not contribute a problem to her son’s rein. She rather [secretly] persuaded her son to convert to her new Christian religion. But he was was hesitant at first.

Constantine’s mother later made her new religion public. And it so happened that someday while in the battlefield facing a very strong opposition, he saw his mother in a vision, standing beside Jesus Christ. He told Jesus that if he could help him win the war he would convert to Christianity. He won the war and fulfilled his promise. And not did he convert to Christianity, he also converted the entire Roman empire to Christianity. This is because the religion of an emperor automatically became the religion of the entire empire. As the empire became Christianized, Constantine replaced all pagan officials to Christian officials, establishing Christianity in the empire and went as far as Israel to build the church of Nativity in Bethlehem; specifically on Mount Moriah. After the death of Constantine, his son Constantinus, also know as Constantine II took over. He was also a very strong and devout Christian. Through him the Fathers gained control of the empire.

Factors that Assisted the Spread of the Gospel Throughout the Roman Empire

1. The zeal of the early Christians

2. Confidence they had in communicating their faith

3. The miracles that occurred wherever they went

4. The good character of the Christians

5. The unity and the discipline of the local church

EVALUATION

1. Why did Helena refuse to publicly proclaim her religion?

2. What made Constantine to convert to Christianity?

3. After the death of Constantine who took over?

THE CHRISTIAN MISSIONARY JOURNEY: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

JSS3 C.R.K. SECOND TERM

WEEK 2

TOPIC: THE CHRISTIAN MISSIONARY JOURNEY

By the direction of the Holy Spirit, Paul and Barnabas were sent to preach to the Gentiles at Paphos, the capital of Cyprus. And while at Paphos, they met a Jewish sorcerer [magician] called Bar-jesus also known as Elymas. The sorcerer attached himself to the governor, a very intelligent man calld Sergius Paulus. Meanwhile, Sergius Paulus had invited Paul and Barnabas to come and preach to him. And while preached to the governor, the magician tried to discourage the governor from listening to the sermon. And so Paul sternly looked at the sorcerer and said “You son of the devil full of every sort of deceit and fraud and enemy of good! Watch now, the Lord has laid his hand of punishment upon you, and you will be struck blind. You’ll not see the sun for sometime. Immediately the sorcerer became blind, he started begging for someone to hold his hands let him walk. The governor saw this and was marveled, this made him believe instantly the message of Jesus Christ Paul and Barnabas had brought to him.

MORAL LESSONS

1. Just as Bar-jesus was distracting and discouraging the governor from listening that’s how the devil distracts and discourages us too.

2. When two power meets the lesser one bows. God’s power is supreme.

3. When they preached in Antioch in Pisidia they were persecuted but that did not stop nor discourage them.

4. It was in Paphos that the name Paul was officially introduced. Acts 13:9.

EVALUATION

1. What are the two names of the Jewish sorcerer Paul and Barnabas met at Paphos?

2. Why did Paul strike him with blindness?

THE JOURNEY FROM ANTIOCH TO DERBE: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

JSS3 C.R.K. SECOND TERM

WEEK 3

TOPIC: THE JOURNEY FROM ANTIOCH TO DERBE

For his first missionary journey, Paul visited Derbe, a town in Turkey. There, he preached and got many disciples one of whom was Gaius who later accompanied Paul to his missionary journey to Greece. Do note that Paul’s journey to Derbe happened after he was stoned in Iconium.

Paul and Barnabas in Iconium

At Iconium, Paul and Barnabas went to the synagogue as usual. And there they preached elegantly to the crowd, performing signs and wonders. Many people- Jews and Gentiles believed, but the few Jews that didn’t believe poisoned the mind of the Gentiles and stirred them up for violence. The crowd was divided, some for Paul while some against him. They planned to stone them, but Paul and Barnabas found out in time and fled to Lystria and Derbe, and to neighbouring countries where they continued to preach the gospel there. They knew that there would be no giving up in the spreading of the gospel, irrespective of the difficulties and persecutions that they faced.

Paul and Barnabas in Lystria

Paul and Barnabas were preaching in Lystria when they noticed a crippled man who was listening to them attentively. He was born crippled. Paul saw in his heart that he had faith, so Paul called him out with a loud voice, commanding him to “Stand up!” Immediately the man jumped on his feet and started walking. The crowd was amazed. They spoke in their dialects, saying that Paul and Barnabas were gods in human form. They said Barnabas was the Greek god Zeus while Paul was Hermes since he was the speaker. Immediately the priest of the temple of Zeus which was located close by together with the crowd brought bulls and flowers to the town gate to offer sacrifice to the apostles. And when Paul and Barnabas learnt of this, they tore their cloths and ran to them saying “Friends, why are you doing this? We are humans just like you. We have come to bring you goodnews that you should turn from these worthless things and turn to the living God who made heaven and earth and everything…”

Then some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium, won and poisoned the mind of the crowd an finally convincing the people to stone Paul. After he was very well stoned and assumed to be dead, he was dragged out of the town, assumed to be dead. But as other Christians gathered round him and prayed, he got up and went into the town. The next day he went to Derbe with Barnabas.

MORAL LESSONS

1. Opposition to the gospel can’t stop its spread

2. Glory of God shouldn’t be shared with man. Give all the glory to God

3. Be honest and humble, do not feel like a god because you have done great thing

4. Caution people when hey want to give you praise that belongs to God.

EVALUATION

1. Narrate the incident that preceded the stoning of Paul and Barnabas.

CONTROVERSY IN THE EARLY CHURCH: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

JSS3 C.R.K. SECOND TERM

WEEK 4

TOPIC: CONTROVERSY IN THE EARLY CHURCH

Every human community  faces controversies ever so often. It is just an inevitable phenomenon; conflict. And so it proved to be in the early church when the main source of controversy was the discrimination of Jewish Christians against the Gentiles. The Jews thought that those who were not circumcised were not permitted to be Christians. As the Bible recorded, some of the Jewish Christians who held this opinion came from Judea to Antioch preaching to the people that unless they were circumcised according to the custom taught by Moses, they could not be saved.

This conflict caused further conflict between Paul and Barnabas. The two of them then went to Jerusalem to seek advice from the church elders and apostles in order to settle the controversy once and for all. And on their way, they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria and saw how the Gentiles were converted. They told the Jerusalem church how Gentiles had been converted and this made the church happy.

Meanwhile, some of the believers who were in support of the Pharisees stood up and said that all gentile Christians must be circumcised and keep the laws of Moses if they were to be fully accepted into the Christian fold. After discussing this issue with them (elders and apostles), Peter got up and addressed them. He recounted the works God had done among the Gentiles, especially the Holy Spirit pouring down on them which according to him indicated God’s  acknowledgement of them. He explains that God makes no difference between the Jews and Gentiles and concluded by saying both Jews and Gentiles would be saved the same way.

After Peter finished speaking Paul, Barnabas once again recounted the many miracles God had done through them among the Gentiles. James also reinstated what Peter said. He reiterated that the Gentiles should not be about the need for circumcision, but rather that they should be admonished to abstain from things stained by idols, from sexual immorality, from the things strangled and from blood etc.

The Church then sent Paul and Barnabas, Judas (Barsabas), Silas and some others back to the missionary fields. They wrote a letter and handed to Judas and Silas to deliver. The letter simply advised the gentile Church to abstain from from things stained by idols, from sexual immorality, from the things strangled and from blood. This they did because indeed what matters, according to them is not circumcision but obedience to the laws and words of God. What matters is an obedient and ready heart turned to God.

Disagreement Between Paul and Barnabas

Sometime after the settlement of the circumcision controversy, Paul said to Barnabas “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of God and see how they are doing.” But a fresh controversy started when Barnabas wanted to take John (also called Mark) with them and Paul refused. Paul refused because Mark abandoned them in Pamphylia in their previous journey to those places. This led to serious disagreement which made them to part ways. Consequently, Barnabas took John Mark and sailed through Cyprus while Paul chose Silas and sailed through Syria and Cilicia strengthening the churches. The believers were happy and their faith renewed because of the visit and encouragement.

EVALUATION

1. What was the cause of the conflict in the early church?

2. How was it settled?

3. What led to the disagreement between Paul and Barnabas?

CONTROVERSY IN THE CORINTH CHURCH

JSS3 C.R.K. SECOND TERM

WEEK 5

TOPIC: CONTROVERSY IN THE CORINTH CHURCH

While still in Ephesus, Paul heard from “some of Chloe’s people” (1:11) that there were divisions and quarrels in the church at Corinth. Paul also heard that there was a serious case of immorality in the church (5:1), and that some of the Corinthian saints were taking their brothers to court (6:1ff.). In addition, Paul received questions concerning marriage (7:1), virgins (7:25), foods sacrificed to idols (8:1ff.), spiritual gifts (12:1ff.) and more. While still in Ephesus (16:8), Paul wrote this first preserved letter to the Corinthians. It seeks to address some of the major problems in the church.

Elitist Snobbery in the Church

Paul rebukes the Corinthians because there are divisions and quarrels in the church. This is the result of a religious snobbery associated by cliques that produced pride and conflict. Religious snobs want to be a part of a small group who think of themselves as the spiritual elite. They are proud and smug because of their associations, especially with their leader, and they look down upon those who are not in their group. The elitism evident in Corinth was based upon two things: (1) who they followed – who their leader was; and, (2) the message and method of their leader.

The Corinthians were boasting of their close association with certain men, men they considered superior to others. By associating with them, the Corinthians felt superior to those who followed others. Taking pride in mere men was evil. If there was any boasting to be done, Paul reminded his readers that their boasting should be “in the Lord”.

Sexual Improprieties

Paul calls the church’s attention to the man in their midst who is living in an incestuous relationship with his father’s wife. This situation called for separation, for a kind of division. The man carried on his sin publicly, before the church (Did he bring this wife to church?) and before the unsaved in Corinth. The heathen Corinthians were shocked by this kind of conduct, and yet the man did not repent. What is even worse, the saints in the church had apparently not even rebuked him. Somehow, instead of grieving over this terrible sin, they were puffed up with pride about it:

Meat Sacrificed to Idols

For the “liberated” Corinthians, to partake of meats offered to idols was to participate in the heathen ritual – the worship of heathen gods – in which the meat was sacrificed. Paul reminds us that while there may not be other gods, there are demons, and they are very much involved in heathen worship. Christians who sit weekly at the Lord’s Table should have no part in the heathen rituals in which meat is offered to idols. The “liberty” so cleverly reasoned out in chapter 8 is no liberty at all. Eating meats offered to idols is strictly forbidden if it involves participation in the heathen ritual itself.

Conduct in the Church

In the Corinthian church, certain gifts were valued above others. In particular, the gift of tongues seems to have been viewed as the greatest gift, so that all were striving to get it, and those who did not have it felt inferior and useless to the body. Paul turns the tables on those who sought to elevate the gift of tongues above all others by declaring that it was the lesser gifts that were given “more honor” to compensate for their apparent insignificance. In so doing,

Denying the Doctrine of the Resurrection

To deny the resurrection of the dead means that there is no future hope; it also means that there will be no future judgment. If this were the case, one should certainly not live dangerously, as did Paul and the true apostles. To the contrary, one might as well “eat, drink, and be merry” because there may be no tomorrow. If “we only go around once,” as the television commercial used to put it, “then we’d better grab all the gusto we can get.”

Moral Lessons

(1) No teaching, no matter how amazing it may seem, should ever take us outside the boundaries of the Word of God:

(2) Our boasting must never be in men, but only in God.

(3) We should not seek our own glory, but the glory of God.

(4) We should not seek our own good, but the good of others.

(5) Just because something is lawful, does not mean that it is profitable, to me or to others.

EVALUATIONS

1. What are the controversies that the Corinth church was involved in?

THE JERUSALEM COUNCIL

JSS3 C.R.K. SECOND TERM

WEEK 6

TOPIC: THE JERUSALEM COUNCIL 

In the earliest days of the Christian church, the church was comprised predominately of Jews. In Acts chapter 8 the gospel spread to the Samaritans (who were ethnically mixed Jews-Gentiles), and many Samaritans received Jesus Christ as Savior. In Acts chapter 10, the apostle Peter was the first to take the gospel specifically to the Gentiles, and many received Christ as Savior. In Acts chapters 13—14, Paul and Barnabas had a very fruitful ministry among the Gentiles. All of these Gentiles turning to faith in Christ caused concern among the Jewish believers, first expressed in Acts 11:1–18, and the issues that caused concern were ultimately decided upon at the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15). The issues centered on two questions: Do Gentiles first have to become Jews before they can become Christians? Do Gentiles have to observe the Mosaic Law after they become Christians?

The impetus for the Jerusalem Council is given in Acts 15, verses 1 and 5, “But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, ‘Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.’ . . . It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the Law of Moses.” Some Jewish Christians were teaching that Gentiles had to observe the Mosaic Law and Jewish customs in order to be saved. Since this teaching clearly contradicted the fact that salvation was by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone (Acts 15:11), the apostles and church leaders held the first Christian council to settle the issue. In verses 7-11, the apostle Peter spoke of his ministry with the Gentiles, as recorded in Acts chapter 10. Peter focused on the fact that the Holy Spirit was given to uncircumcised Gentiles in precisely the same manner the Holy Spirit was given to the apostles and Jewish believers on the day of Pentecost. This led Peter to the conclusion that there should be no “placing a yoke on the neck of the [Gentile] disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear” (Acts 15:10).

Jesus’ half-brother James, who had become a leader of the church in Jerusalem, agreed with Peter and declared, “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God” (Acts 15:19). The Jerusalem Council then proceeded to give four “rules” that Gentile Christians should live by. These were not rules the Gentiles must follow in order to be saved. Rather, the rules were to build harmony between Jewish and Gentile Christians in the first century. The four rules the Jerusalem Council decided upon were that Gentile Christians should abstain from food polluted by idols, sexual immorality, the meat of strangled animals, and blood. The instructions were not intended to guarantee salvation but to promote peace within the early church.

EVALUATION

1. What was the meaning and importance of the Jerusalem Council?

CONFLICT IN THE SOCIETY: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

JSS3 C.R.K. SECOND TERM

WEEK 7

TOPIC: CONFLICT IN THE SOCIETY

Conflict is a disagreement resulting from actual or perceived differences or incompatibilities. Every conflict is accompanied by misunderstanding which often which usually escalates the conflict. Therefore, inasmuch as we all should do our best to avoid conflict, it should be known that as long as we live on earth, conflict is part of our existence and as such, inevitable.  Do bear in mind that it is not conflict that defines you but how you handle the conflict. If we respond to every conflict negatively we will continually live a distressed, bitter and unproductive life. Do not be perturbed by the possibilities of conflicts because whenever it comes, there are ways of resolving them in churches and schools. Find some of them below-

Procedures used for resolvingg Disputes in Church and Schools

1. Develop the proper attitude- meek (Galatian 6:1); humble (James 4:10); forgiving (Ephesians 4:31-32); patient (James 1:19-20).

2. Recognise and admit your own part in the conflict. Matthew 7:1-5 says remove the log in your eyes first before removing the one in another person’s eyes.

3. Go to the person, not other people and voice your concern. This is done in love, not just to get something off your chest. If you accuse the person you making matters worse. Attack the problem, not the person.

4. If the person rejects your plea for reconciliation, invite a third party who will serve as mediator. Matthew 18:16. Remember your objective is not to win an argument but to win a fellow Christian back. Let the mediator be a well respected person.

Six Steps to Solving Conflicts in School

1. Cool off, don’t speak in anger.

2. Tell what’s bothering you

3. Each person should restate what they heard the other person say

4. Take responsibility: in conflict we all our own part. Don’t shift blame, take responsibility- admit your fault. This will make resolution possible

5. Brainstorm solution: there are many solution to a single problem. Be willing to seek compromise

6. Affirm, forgive or thank: a handshake, hug or kind words give closure to the resolution of conflicts. Forgiveness is the best form of resolving conflict.

EVALUATION

1. Define conflict.

2. What are the best ways to resolve conflict?

FURTHER SPREAD OF THE CHURCH: SECOND TERM JSS3 CRK

JSS3 C.R.K. SECOND TERM

WEEK 8

TOPIC: FURTHER SPREAD OF THE CHURCH

Philippi was a Roman colony and Paul went there for his second missionary journey. While there, he went out one day to look for a place of worship, and once he found one, he began preaching to some women who were gathered. One of them was a woman from Thyatira named Lydia. She was a worshiper of God, and so God had opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. She and her household were then baptized. After the baptism she invited Paul to come stay with them for some time.

Paul and Silas Imprisoned

On their way searching for a place of prayer they met a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned huge amount of money for her masters by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and Silas shouting “These men are servants of the Most High God who are telling you the way to be saved.” She kept saying following them about for days and repeating those words until Paul became angry and rebuked the spirit in her saying “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!”

Instantly, the spirit left the slave girl. But upon realizing that, the slave’s masters were angry that their source income has been spoiled by Paul and Silas. So they seized Paul and Silas and dragged to the market place to face the authorities. They accused them of propagating unlawful customs and as a result, the apostles  were stripped and beaten after which they were thrown to the inner cell with their feet bound in chains.

At midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing to God when suddenly there was a violent earthquake. All prison doors were thrown open and the chains holding them bound were broken. Meanwhile, the jailer standing guard to monitor them thought that they might have escaped. So he wanted to kill himself to prevent the punishment that might have come his way. But Paul prevented him. Still amazed, the jailer asked how he could be saved and Paul said to him to“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved, you and your household”. They preached to him and baptised his entire household. The joyof the jailer thence knew no bound.

Paul at Athens

Paul went to Athens and was not happy the city was filled with idols, he began to discuss with Jews and Greeks about God day by day. Some Epicurean and stoic philosophers began to debate with him. They took him to the meeting of the Areopagus. They requested to hear his preaching. He preached extensively to them and the people that gathered. When he finished he left with many new converts who followed him.

EVALUATION

1. Who is Lydia?

2. Why did God point her out among the crowd of women?

3. Why were Paul and Silas imprisoned?

4. Why was Paul not happy in Ephesus?

PAUL’S IMPRISONMENT IN PHILIPPI

JSS3 C.R.K. SECOND TERM

WEEK 9

TOPIC: PAUL’S IMPRISONMENT IN PHILIPPI

In Philippi a slave girl is being used by her owners as a seer or fortune teller. The young woman is possessed by a demon who quite accurately identifies Paul and Silas as “slaves of the Most High God” who have come to reveal “a way of salvation.” She follows them, crying out “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation”. After a few days of this, Paul is fed up, rebukes the spirit, and casts it out of her in the name of Jesus. As a result, she also lost the ability to foretell the future which created no little anger on the part of her owners.

So they took Paul and Silas and brought them before the magistrates (Philippi was like a “little” Rome), charging that the missionaries were forcing them, as Roman citizens, to follow customs which were unlawful. The result was that Paul and Silas were thrown into prison after being stripped, beaten, and severely flogged (Acts 16:20-24). Around midnight there was an earthquake and all the prison doors flew open. Paul and Silas did not flee, but instead stayed and shared the gospel with the jailer who subsequently—both he and his entire family—came to the Lord (Acts 16:25-34). After Paul had made a point about his Roman citizenship5 to the magistrates who were wishing simply to release them, the missionaries went to the home of Lydia (Acts 16:35-40) and then departed for Apollonia and Thessalonica (Acts 17:1).

EVALUATION

1. Narrate the story of Paul’s encounter with the slave girl at Philippi?