ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL PARTICIPATION

What does the Bible says about Sunday School?

Ephesians 6:4
Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in
the training and instruction of the Lord.

2 Timothy 3:16
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking,
correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God
may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Deuteronomy 6:4-7
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your
God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
strength.6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on
your hearts.7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when
you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie
down and when you get up.

Deuteronomy 4:10
Remember the day you stood before the Lord your God at
Horeb, when he said to me, Assemble the people before me to hear
my words so that they may learn to revere me as long as they live in
the land and may teach them to their children.

Deuteronomy 11:19
You shall teach them to your sons, talking of them when you sit in
your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie
down and when you rise up.

Sunday school Origin

We need to remember that in the early years of the church,

believers met in homes or caves or areas where they would not be
discovered due to persecution. The teaching of Gods truth to

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children was the job of the parents and was done in the home. Sadly,
this practice is no longer a priority in the homes of many believers,
and many leave the instruction in Gods Word to the church and what
we now call the Sunday school. But what is taught in Sunday school
should only be a supplement to what is taught at home. The ideal
situation is when the church and family work together to educate
children in the faith.

In the mid-1700s, Sunday schools began popping up in Britain

as a place where poor children could learn to read. During this time,
children worked day and night in the factories with little to no
educational opportunities. Robert Raikes (1725-1811) and other
Christian leaders wanted to provide this opportunity. Since the
children worked all week, the classes were held on Sunday.

Others began to ask what is this Sunday school movement I

keep hearing about, and before long, this cross-denominational
movement spread to America. By 1785, some 250,000 children were
attending Sunday school. Over time, some of the different
denominations set up their own Sunday schools, and by the mid-19th
century, Sunday school was a central part of childrens lives giving
the working-class family a way to educate their children.

The Bible became the childrens textbook. They learned to

read from the passages and learned to write by copying favorite
verses. The children also learned a basic catechism, spiritual
disciplines (e.g., prayer, hymn singing, etc.), and Christian moral
virtues. As state schools were established in the 1870s, the Sunday
school curriculum focused more on religious education.

What is Sunday school Today?

It is one of the best ways for your church to fulfill the Great
Commission. In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus gives us a clear and
concise teaching goal:

Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them . . . and

teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.

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Why Sunday school is so Important?

Why teach Sunday school when so many other ministries need

volunteers?

Gods perspective (priority God places on you as a teacher),

1. God will work through you to mature those within your

church,
2. How Bible lessons can still be impacting lives a hundred
years from now,
3. How Sunday school can transform lives as well as educate
minds,
4. How it is fulfilling the Great Commission (Matthew 28:1920)
when you teach

Go therefore and make disciples of all the

nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the
Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I
commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the
end of the age.

Your teaching ministry is Gods gift to you, committing to it is your

gift to God.

Sunday schools Unique Opportunity

Jesus says, make disciples teaching them to obey. As a result,

he makes life-altering transformation (not simply information or
education) our primary teaching goal.

So, what is Sunday school? It is an ideal setting for fulfilling the

Great Commission by helping our listeners obey all that Jesus
commanded us.

Sunday school is an opportunity to fulfill the Great Commission!

All teachers agree we must clearly teach biblical truths and

principles, but the most effective teachers know how to help

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listeners integrate this information in their lives. For them, teaching
Sunday school includes: interpretation, contemplation, explanation,
application, and finally, transformation.

Matthew 28:20 calls us to be Transformational Teachers, not simply

Informational Teachers. It is a calling to transform the heart, not
simply inform the mind.

Transformation is the goal of teaching Sunday School.

Why the need to Participate in Sunday school?

1. To study (2 Tim. 2:15)

My faith
My Bible
My responsibilities

2. To strengthen (Eph 4:7-16)

Myself in the Faith
My friends in the faith
My church
3. To share (Heb. 10:25)
My faith with others
My Bible insight with others
My problems for solutions

4. To shine (Matt. 5:16)

For Jesus
For the church
For others to follow

General suggestions toward a Profitable Sunday School

Participation

A. Individuals Roles and Responsibilities

1. Pray for:
Your teacher
Your classmates
Your prospects/those you want to invite

2. Prepare:
Your memory verse

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 Your lessons
Your notes and questions

3. Promote:
Your attendance by visiting prospects
Your class carry-over activities
Your prompt attendance

4. Participate in:

Your class discussions

Your class activities
Your note-taking

5. Practice by:
Committing to memorize all memory verses
Completing all carry-over activities
Conducting ones self as an example to others

B. Teaching Method

B.1 Organization of the Sunday school Ministry

B.2 Personal and Group Study Format

- anchored on the format/methods that will be prepared by

those called by the Lord to take the lead in the Sunday school
Ministry.

- the Home preparation notes and class instruction and sharing

formats will be a good reference.

NEW MEMBERS CLASS

Usually taught by the pastor or another staff member

Go over basic beliefs of Christianity and doctrines of the
church

Salvation
Holy Spirit

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 Baptism
Communion
Body of Christ (the Church)
Gospel (or the Good News about Jesus)
Evangelism Reaching Out to Others and telling them about
Jesus
Spiritual Disciplines
Prayer, Reading the Bible, Giving (tithing)

help them understand the Gospel message and how to tell

others about it

o Read Bible verses, sing praise songs, encourage one another

o Talk about how God is working in your lives
o Pray for each other, for you pastor, and for others in church
and community
o Show love to others

References:

1. http://www.gotquestions.org/Sunday-School.html
2. https://www.m2820.com/teaching-adult-sunday-school

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 CHILDRENS SUNDAY SCHOOL

Guidelines:

1. Sunday School Purpose, Plan, Structure and Path

What is the purpose for your ministry? What are you trying to
accomplish?

What need you are trying to fill?

Are you trying to spread the Good News of the Gospel?
Are you trying to disciple people who are already
believers?
Are you trying to provide child care, so that other adults
can do other
ministry?

What is PURPOSE?

Purpose is about WHAT you do and WHY you do it. It answers

questions like, What is Sunday School for? and Why do we have it
in the first place?

A Purpose Statement for Sunday School Ministry

To lead others toward a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ

and to provide a loving, learning environment in which to
grow.

The Great Commission

Matthew 28:18-20 Then Jesus came to them and said, All

authority in heaven and on earth has been
given to me. Therefore go and make disciples
of all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I
have commanded you. And surely I am with
you always, to the very end of the age.

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 Exactly HOW you go about that will depend on your church,
your beliefs, your culture, and your resources. Once you have
determined your Purpose, then you need to make a PLAN

Priorities What do you need to do first? What is the most

important thing?
What must happen, and in what order, to provide for this most
important thing?
What needs to happen next? And so forth

Plan An outline of how you will accomplish your purpose and

fulfill your priorities
o Think about the following questions to help you figure out
your plan.
Who will be your students?
Who will be the teachers and administrators?
What kind of ministry do you hope to provide?
What kinds of things do you want to study?
When and where will you meet?
How do you plan to pay for any expenses which may
occur?

Pastor In each church body there is a hierarchy of people in

authority
Discuss your ideas and your answers to the questions in
this outline
with your pastor and/or with other appropriate church
leaders
To whom will you be responsible in your new ministry
role?
For whom will you be responsible in your new ministry
role?

Path What do your students need? What will you study?

Are your students adults, teens, or children?
Are they already believers?
What do they know about God already?
How much do they already know about the Bible?

2. Choosing a Sunday School Teacher

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 A candidate for a Sunday School teacher position should be
evaluated on the following criteria:
Christian
Good Heart (Pure Intentions)
Gift of Teaching (And of Working with Children)
Maturity necessary to maintain a safe and orderly
classroom, without
being heavy-handed
Bright and insightful enough to stay one step ahead of
the class

3. Sunday School Curriculum

Be Age Appropriate (taking into account developmental

abilities for children)

Non-readers or Pre-Readers (4-7)

Listen to Bible Story

Respond to story verbally (ask and answer questions)
Respond to story through planned activities such as
worksheets,
coloring, drawing, singing songs, or playing games
Readers (7 and older)
Incorporate reading of the Bible (Bible stories)
Bible verse memorization
Writing, puzzles, age appropriate games
Learn to look through the Bible for answers to
questions

Primary concerns:

It must be Bible-based and Christ-honoring.

It must encourage students to come closer to God
It must take students from where they are and move them
forward

Or, to sum up, a good curriculum points you towards Jesus,

gets you into the Bible more, and moves you forward in your
spiritual walk.

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 In addition, the teaching of the curriculum must agree
with the general belief systems of your church. (Always check
with your pastor before using any new curriculum.)

Secondary considerations:

The curriculum should have some reasonable, overall approach

to covering the material you wish to study. And, while the
whole set of lessons should gradually build upon one another,
the individual lessons should be short, informative, and able to
stand on their own. The curriculum should not just teach Bible
lessons, but also new skills and disciplines. It needs to be able
to expand and contract a little to fit with a particular group
and the amount of time allotted.

Some examples might include:

o Bible verse memorization,
o Learning to look up things in the Bible,
o Prayer
o Witnessing to others
o Service to others

Reference:

http://www.sunday-school-center.com/support-files/tt101-
teacher-training-101-full-manual.pdf

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