Dealing with Your Emotions - Anger Sunday School Lesson

Sunday School Lesson

Date: August 11

Length: 1 hour

Audience: Adults

Lesson: Matthew 21:12-17

 

Opening Prayer

Introduction                                                                                                                       15 Minutes

Have the students read the short story below. After reading, have them answer the question at the end of the story.

It’s Friday!! It’s payday and I’m on cloud 9. It’s going to be a great day. Traffic is light; there are no slow people out driving.  Wait, what was that sound? Oh no, I think I popped a tire. I don’t have time for this. I’m going to be late. What’s that sound? Who’s calling me? Oh no; it’s the boss. Why is he calling me?

Hello.  Hey boss. No, I’m on the way. No, the file is on my desk. It’s  not? Wait, it’s in the car. I took it home to make some final corrections. I’m sorry; I’m on the way.

Well thank God; I’m here, and only an hour late. What else could go wrong? Spoke too soon; here comes “head down Helen.” She is always looking for someone to pick her up. Well, today is not my day. In fact, I’m going to take the stairs.

Did I do something  wrong?

(Allow for open discussion for about 5 minutes)

Answer: I should never allow my anger to interfere with a chance to witness for Christ.

Answer: I should not allow anger to define or consume me.

Ask the class to comment on a time when they made someone angry.

Specifically:

How soon did they apologize?

How fast did they want you to forgive them?

 

 

The title of this Sunday School lesson is: Dealing With Your Emotions.

The lesson will be divided into 2 parts:

(At the end of each section, allow time for questions.)

 

Is there ever a right time to be angry? (12-13)                                                                    15 Minutes

Jesus was upset for a number of reasons:

·         Poor people were being forced to buy defiled animals

·         Those guilty of the crime were the spiritual and well off

·         The crime took place in the temple

Jesus was angry; but never allowed His anger to take control. Too often, we allow the anger to be more important than the reason we got angry. For us, we cannot and should not let this happen to us.

 

Prolonged anger can interfere with your ministry (14-17)                                              15 Minutes

No sooner than He was done cleansing the temple; Jesus was faced with society’s most vulnerable people; the disabled and the children. He could have very easily informed both that He had no time right now.  He could have told the lame to quit feeling sorry for themselves. He could have told the children that this was adult business, and He has no time right now. Instead, He stopped and made time for both.

If we are not careful, the spiritually vulnerable will be at our door right after a heated discussion with your spouse or after you’ve found out that you were not chosen for a promotion. What will you do?

Scriptures that will help you deal with your anger:

·         Ephesians 4:26-27

·         Matthew 18:21-22

Summary                                                                                                                                             15 Minutes

• Anger should never see the sunset.
• When angry; be on the lookout for an opportunity to minister to someone.
• Jesus did not allow His anger to conflict with your salvation.

Closing prayer

Author: Stephen Thomas

chicagocareertransitions@yahoo.com

Image courtesy of epSos.de

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It’s Not Okay - Sunday School Lesson

Sunday School Lesson

Length: 1 hour

Audience: Adults

Lesson: 1 Corinthian 10:12-22

Prayer

Introduction                                                                                                                       15 Minutes

Have the students read the short story below. After reading, have them answer the question at the end of the story.

Friday was Bob’s last day. I was in charge of planning the event. Bob had been a great friend and mentor, and I wanted to send him out in style. I walked through the office making a list of all the people that planned on attending. It was going to be a first class; Christian affair.  We even planned to have prayer for Bob at the end of the party.

I asked Mary if she planned on attending. Mary was recently saved, and I wanted her to feel a part of the Christian family at work. Mary was not convinced. She was a recovering alcoholic, and didn’t think it wise to attend. I told Mary that alcohol does not save or condemn. I encouraged her to come, because the safest place on earth was around believers. Mary nodded, and agreed to stop by.

1 hour and 11 drinks later; Mary was drunk. She made a complete fool of herself, and totally ruined the party. She looked at me with tears in her eyes and said: “I shouldn’t have listened to you.”

I felt bad. I only wanted her to be with us, and have a good time.

Was what I did wrong?

 

(Allow for open discussion for about 5 minutes)

Answer: I should have respected the needs of the babe in Christ, and not tempted her into sin. As a Christian, I should have been more sensitive to Mary, and not put her in that position.

(Ask the class to share a time when either they encouraged someone to do something they could not handle.)

The title of the lesson is: It’s not okay! In it, we can and will measure ourselves against ourselves, and get a sense of where we are in our Christian walk. We will divide the lesson into 3 parts:

(At the end of each section, allow time for questions.)

Understanding your strengths (12-13)                                                                           10 Minutes

Even strong Christians will face serious temptation. Those that are strong are sometimes more likely to fall because they let their spiritual guard down. As a Christian, it is never okay to fall; or to make excuses for falling. God does not give you more than you can handle.

Understanding idolatry (14-19)                                                                                      10 Minutes

Flee means run! Sometimes, in order to avoid sin, you have to run. In the 23 Psalms, David proclaimed that he sometimes had to walk through the valley of the shadow of death. David also said that God prepared a table before him in the presence of his enemies. God does not remove - He guides.

About Idols:

·         They are not real.

·         The 10 Commandments warns against graven images.

·         Taking Holy Communion unifies our bodies with Christ; idol worship unifies us with the devil.

·         God cannot share space with evil.

Understanding God’s wishes (20-21)                                                                              10 Minutes

The Bible is full of examples of how the Israelites provoked God by doing wrong in His eyes.

Read Numbers 25:9:  Mention how Israel fell due to idolatry.

Summary                                                                                                                            10 Minutes

The strong can sin by doing something that causes the weak to stumble.

God is bigger than what you are going through.

Closing prayer

Author: Stephen Thomas

chicagocareertransitions@yahoo.com

*Image courtesy of Kevin Probst.
 

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