Teaching Sunday School is a daunting task. There is not enough time and there is so much material to cover. Our basic text is the Bible, sixty-six individual books written by many different authors over centuries of time and containing a variety of literature

It is helpful to remember the main themes of the Bible as we teach our classes. The Bible is like a musical symphony in which a theme gets repeated over and over. For those with ears to hear, that theme is always in the background, sometimes very clearly and at other times more subtly stated. At times it seems that the composer has forgotten the theme altogether but then it reappears and brings you back to the essence of the piece.

It is possible to identify the main topics of the Bible. And once that is done we can learn to keep them always in the background of our teaching just as with themes of a great symphony. Some parts of the Bible will stress a certain main point; in other places the primary strains will be difficult to hear. But it doesn't matter; the Bible's central concerns will always reappear.

How can we list the main ideas, the central teachings of the Bible? There are many ways to do it. We could choose key words or phrases. We could use lines from the historic creeds of the church. We could select specific verses of scripture. I have chosen to arrange the material under three basic questions.

I do this with the belief that the scriptures anticipate our most fundamental questions and set out to provide us with the answers. Now I must tell you something that is very important. That is, not all of our children have learned how to articulate their questions. So we must not move too quickly. There is no use providing answers if the questions aren't being asked. An important aspect of teaching is the nurturing of inquisitiveness. But in the give and take of classroom discussion, in the sharing of real life experiences, and with the help of the Holy Spirit we will make progress toward our goal.
 

HERE ARE THE THREE QUESTIONS:

WHO IS GOD?
WHO AM I?
WHAT IS THE CHURCH?

Does that seem too simple? Actually, the major themes of the Bible are sounded in response to these fundamental questions. You may be surprised as to how comprehensive that response is. So I will say something about each of these questions, offer the response of scripture, and attempt to spell out what this means for our lives as Christians.

WHO IS GOD?

God is the Creator of the universe and the author of all goodness, beauty, truth and love. God's nature is love. I John 4:8 says that God is love. (We do not know how God created the universe and the Bible does not specify an answer to this question, so we do not set up unnecessary tensions between science and faith.) God gifts the world with abundance (Genesis 1) and seeks the wellfare of all his creation. This lovingly creative and recreative nature of God is seen in such things as his compassion on the slaves in Egypt (Exodus) and in stories like the one Jesus told about the prodigal son (Luke 15.) The Bible teaches us that God is unequivocally for us and not against us. In all of this God takes the initiative; God makes the first overture of love toward us (prevenient grace).

God is also our saviour and Lord. In Jesus the Christ we see the depth of God's love (John 3:16-17; I John 4:9.) In Jesus we can glimpse the human face of God. That is, Jesus shows us the way of love; he shows us that love is to be the dominant force in our lives. He saves us from our self-centeredness (sin) and renews our lives by centering us in God (II Corinthians 5:17-18.) This is our ultimate salvation.

Finally, God is a presence in our lives through the Holy Spirit. God is with us to guide us in our decisions, to comfort us in our troubles, and to strengthen us along the way.

NOW WHAT MEANING DOES THIS HOLD FOR US?

through Jesus we can have a personal relationship with God  God is like the most caring and loving parent we could ever imagine; we need not fear God  we can come to God in prayer; we can be completely open and honest with God about our sins, our troubles, our fears, our hopes, our weaknesses  we can be co-creators with God in his universe through our work, through art in all its forms, and through our care of all creation (stewardship)  no matter how we may feel, we are never alone

WHO AM I?

The Bible tells us that we are born in the image of God (Genesis 1:27.) As to all that is meant by that phrase we may not be sure. But the Psalmist helps us when he says that man/woman is made "a little less than God" and is crowned "with glory and honor" (Psalm 8:5.) In spite of how we sometimes behave, humanity is the crowning glory of creation. God has made each one of us special. In the Gospel of John, Jesus referred to himself as the good shepherd and implied that he knows all of his sheep "by name" and is willing to lay down his life for them (John 10.)

What we understand from this is that we are all children of one God and that we are bound to each other as members of one global family. There is an inherent dignity attached to our humanity because we are made in God's image.

For Christians there is a further dimension to this question of identity. Christians are not only one with the whole human family, they are also bound together in Christ. They are sons and daughters, brothers and sisters of the Christian family. And as such they might respond to the question of identity by saying, "I am one who is baptized into the family of God through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."

NOW WHAT MEANING FOLLOWS THIS BELIEF?

WHAT IS THE CHURCH?

In answering this question it is helpful to use two images of the church: one is the church gathered and the other is the church scattered.

Each time the church gathers it is a family reunion. We gather to claim our identity; to remind ourselves of who and whose we are. We do this in music, prayer, scripture, preaching and sacrament. But when we get together like this we also do so in order to share in each other's lives. This is reflected in our prayers for each other and in our conversations over a cup of coffee before and after the services. In other words, the church gathers for worship and fellowship. We do it on Sunday because that is the day of our Lord's resurrection.

The weekly gathering of the church serves to renew our lives as Christians. And we need this renewal because for most of the time we are the scattered church. We scatter out into the world, to our places of work, to school, to our homes, all those places where we live our lives for most of the week. But wherever we go we are still the church and we are called to live as followers of our Lord. In this way the church becomes the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matthew 5:13-14.)

Whether gathered or scattered, the church lives under a mandate to service. Jesus gave the church its marching orders in what is called the Great Commission: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations (people), baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age" (Matthew 28:18-20.)

The nature of this service to the world is also contained in words from the prophet Isaiah which Jesus read at a synagogue in Nazareth: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord" (Luke 4:18-19.)

NOW WHAT CONCLUSIONS FOLLOW FROM THIS UNDERSTANDING OF THE CHURCH?

• worship is central to the life of the church
• the church is a place where Christians come together for mutual support and sharing
• service to others is an essential part of the life of the Christian
• the church must welcome all people into its life

what we say in Sunday worship must be practiced during the other six days of the week
Finally, it must be said that learning in any field is a lifelong journey. We never arrive but along the way we learn how to travel. The material which has been gathered under the three questions is at least a start and we pray that it will provide some signposts along the way as you fulfill your calling as a teacher in Sunday School or as a parent and as a fellow traveler.

God's response to our deepest questions through these themes:

Christian Living Covenant Faith Grace Love Prayer Worship Stewardship Ministry