Truth or Dare (Part 2)
Lesson 3: The Truth About Authority
Lesson Workbook - Click Here for NIV Click Here for KJV
Who's Leading Who? (Game) Click Here
LESSON OBJECTIVES
Goals
1) To expose students to the Scriptural truth about authority
2) To help the students understand why authority should be respected—because it comes from God
3) To give them practical insight into respecting authority
Topics
Guidance, Grumbling, Leadership, Respect, Submission, Truthfulness
OPENING PRAYER (5 to 10 minutes)
GROUP BUILDING (15 minutes)
Who's Leading Who? (Game) Click Here
GETTING STARTED (10 minutes)
• How many of you like being told what to do or having someone over you in authority?
• Why is it that we don’t like authority figures?
• What are some examples of authority figures that you find hard to get along with?
• How is having people over you in authority kind of like our game of "Who's Leading Who?"
It can sometimes be hard to accept that someone has authority over you. Sometimes it feels like they are just piling on, and it can be hard to stand. But no one is exempt. Even the President of the United States answers to Congress, the American people, and the Supreme Court. You have parents, teachers, coaches, and grown ups at church that are in authority over you.
God is the ultimate authority, and he has plenty to say about respecting authority.
DIGGING IN (25 minutes)
Discussion Questions:
1. Do you think people your age have a hard time respecting authority? Why/why not?
2. What does it take for you to respect authority?
Sometimes we demand respect from someone before we’ll respect them. While this is common and easy to understand, it’s not necessarily the right thing to do. You may have parents who are not good parents (or at least you might feel that way)—but the Bible still says to respect them.
Our government might not be “Christian,” but we are still supposed to respect laws that don’t cause us to deny Christ.
Respect isn’t something you wait to give until someone proves themselves…it’s something you’re commanded by God to give certain people.
A. RESPECT GOVERNMENT
One of the things the Bible is clear on is respecting our government.
Read Romans 13:1 and 1 Peter 2:13
Discussion Questions:
1. Do you think people respect government very much?
2. Do you think part of respecting government is following it’s rules?
3. Should you just obey the laws you like or all of them if you’re going to respect the law?
4. Do you have to agree with a government to respect it?
5. Where do these passages say that the government’s authority comes from?
6. What do you think respecting the government looks like for a teenager?
B. RESPECT PARENTS
That’s right, we’re supposed to respect our parents.
Read Ephesians 6:1-2 and 2 Timothy 3:2
Discussion Questions:
1. What do these passages say about respecting/honoring your parents?
2. Why is hard sometimes to respect them?
3. Do you think you should respect your parents if they ask you to disobey God? Should you obey them?
We can joke around about the trials of a teenager, but for some of you there’s no joke. Some of your parents are abusive. Some have abandon you. For some of you, respect is the hardest thing you can feel toward them. But the command is for you, too.
C. RESPECT CHURCH LEADERS
Read Hebrews 13:17
Discussion Questions:
1. What kind of leaders is this passage talking about?
2. Do you respect your church leaders (ministers, elders, adult volunteers)?
3. Why do you think it would be important to respect these people?
4. How could not respecting them be a burden to them?
5. What would be the impact if you do not submitt to them.
6. What does this look like practically? What does it mean to respect your youth minister, a volunteer, or other leaders at your church?
Respect is a hard thing to come by. People have a hard time accepting the fact that people have authority over them. But, as you can see, the Bible is clear that respecting authority is important—it’s demanded of us by God as the right thing to do.
MAKING IT REAL (15 minutes)
Some of you are more disrespectful than others. But the challenge for all of us is the same—we need to respect those in authority over us. Some of you need to repent of your disrespectfulness first
To complete this lesson, have the class quietly complete the following workbook activity.
Workbook ActivityHow Much Respect? Please answer the following questions according to where you are at right now. • How respectful do you think you are, on a scale from one to ten? 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 |
SCRIPTURE MEMORIZATION (5 to 10 minutes)
"Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. " Hebrews 13:17a (NIV)
CLOSING PRAYER (2 minutes)
Let's get into smaller groups, and confess to one another our struggles with regards to respect. Then, as a grup pray that we can all be more respectful as God wants us to be.