character traits of god Week 1: God is Holy This includes: 1. Leader Preparation 2. Lesson Guide 1. LEADER PREPARATION LESSON OVERVIEW This is the first lesson in a four-week study on the characteristics of God. This week we focus on God s holiness. Often we read in the Bible that God is holy and we teach about how we worship and serve a holy God, but what does that reveal about God s character and nature? This lesson will help you engage your students with aspects of God s holiness. LESSON OBJECTIVES 1. WHAT: God is holy: perfect, complete, and unlike anything in creation he stands apart. 2. WHY: God s holiness helps us realize our sinfulness and our need for a savior. 3. HOW: Encourage your students to realize we can approach God s holy presence because of the gift of salvation through Jesus. PRIMARY SCRIPTURE Isaiah 6:1-5 SECONDARY SCRIPTURES John 12:25-26; Romans 12:1; and 1 Peter 1:16 TEACHING PREP The short overview below is designed to help you prepare for your lesson. While you may not want to convey this information word-for-word with your teenagers, you ll definitely want to refer to it as you lead your small group lesson. One of the basic fundamentals of the Christian faith is that God is holy. God is a perfect creator who is without sin. God s holiness reveals our brokenness; we are able to admit our sinfulness and our need for a savior. There are no shadows on the surface of the sun, and there can be no sin in the presence of God. However, we can stand in God s presence through the saving work of Jesus.
Read Isaiah 6:1-5. The prophet Isaiah receives a vision of what God looks like. He sees the incredible majesty and splendor of the throne of God. In this passage, we see that even the seraphim were unable to look at God because of his complete holiness. They flew around with their eyes covered. We also see that they were constantly declaring how holy God was. It s as if God s holiness is so consuming, it s all you can think about when you re in God s presence. When Isaiah saw this vision he realized how unworthy he really was in the presence of such a holy God. THE BEFORE & AFTER [optional] Text Message Questions We ve provided a couple of different text message questions to send out to your students prior to your meeting. Feel free to use one or both of the questions below. As with the rest of the curriculum, edit these questions to fit the needs of your ministry. Parent Email Ready to text me back a definition of holiness? We ll talk about it in small group tonight. Can you be holy the way God is holy? Get ready to dig deep tonight at small group. We ve provided you with an email below that you can send to your parents following the lesson. Our hope is to encourage parents to continue the conversation at home. Feel free to edit and customize the email to fit your ministry needs. Dear parents, This week our small groups started a four-week study examining the characteristics of God. We will look at a different attribute during each lesson and see how that specific quality affects our understanding of God. This week we looked at God s holiness and studied Isaiah 6:1-5. We discussed what holiness is and how God who is holy wants a relationship with humanity, even though we have sin in our lives. We talked with our students about how God expects Christians to live holy lives. This doesn t mean being perfect, but allowing God to work in our lives and make us more
like Jesus more complete. Our teenagers also discussed how their lives might be different if they allowed God s holiness to be lived out in their day-to-day actions. Take time this week to talk with your teenager about God s holiness. Here are some questions that could help fuel your dialogue: If you think about holiness as if it means working hard to be perfect, it seems hopeless why would God tell us to do something that seems impossible in our own strength? What are some of the obstacles we face in growing to be more like Jesus? Who s the holiest person you know? Why would you describe that person as holy? I d also encourage you to take time to pray that your teenager will live out God s command from 1 Peter 1:16: You must be holy because I am holy. Have a blessed week!
character traits of god Week 1: God is Holy 2. LEsson guide GETTING THINGS STARTED [optional] Before your small group meets, gather these supplies: A solid piece of chocolate A chocolate-covered candy bar A knife As you begin your small group, welcome your students and invite them into your meeting area. Open in prayer, and then What do you think the word holy means, and why? After your teenagers answer that question, grab your supplies and cut open the solid chocolate and the chocolate-covered candy bar. Then Which one of these is the better illustration for what holiness is all about, and why? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Holiness means that you are without blemish or sin; in other words, you are pure. What you see on the outside is what is on the inside. You are the same all the way through. With the solid piece of chocolate, you can see that it s the same on the inside and the outside. It s complete and whole, all the way through. With the candy bar, you can see that the outside is covered in chocolate, but the inside is something different. When we talk about the holiness of God, we re talking about this solid piece of chocolate: God is the same, complete and whole, all the way through. If you came up with an opening activity, movie clip, or game that worked well with your group, and you d like to share it with other youth workers, please email us at ideas@simplyyouthministry.com.
Teaching Points The goal of the Teaching Points is to help students capture the essence of each lesson with more discussion and less lecture-style teaching. The main points we have chosen here are (1) Acknowledge you need God, (2) Become more like Jesus, and (3) Continue to walk with God. Remember: All throughout these lessons, it s up to you to choose (1) how many questions you use, and (2) the wording of the main points keep ours, or change the wording to make it clearer for your audience. Read Isaiah 6:1-5 together as a group think about reading it two or three times because the imagery is fantastic and unusual. Consider allowing one or more of the teenagers to read the text. SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Let s spend some time talking about the holiness of God. 1. Acknowledge you need God SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Understanding exactly how holy God is might seem scary. But this understanding can create a sense of reverence for God, not a fear that God will strike us down or punish us. Even though we are sinful, we are able to be in God s presence when we acknowledge our need for God and our need for forgiveness. When this happens, the sins that separate us from God are taken away, and we are able to be in God s presence without fear. Why do you think Isaiah said he was doomed after he saw this vision? When have you felt far away from God, and why? When have you felt close to God, and why? 2. Become more like Jesus SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Even though God is perfect and without sin, we are able to overcome things in this life that pull us away from God. As we grow spiritually and become more like Jesus, our thoughts and actions will reflect a holy God not a sinful person.
Think back to the day you became a Christian. What is one way that you ve grown spiritually and become more like Jesus? What impact has this area of growth had on your overall life? What is one area where you want to grow but seem to be struggling to become more like Jesus? Why do you think it s such a struggle? 3. Continue to walk with God SAY SOMETHING LIKE: God wants all humanity to be in heaven for eternity. But God lets us have the choice on becoming a Christian and deciding how we will live our lives. God desires for us to continue walking with Jesus throughout our lives. This means learning to die to self and following God. It means becoming more complete as we mature spiritually. Read John 12:25-26. How might you practice these words from Jesus in your daily life? ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION [optional] Why do you think Isaiah was given the vision of God in heaven? How might seeing such an incredible sight forever impact a person? How do you think it impacted Isaiah? How might it impact you if you had that vision? When you read the verses from Isaiah, do you feel more or less able to actually relate to God? Explain. APPLICATION As a teenager it can be hard to fully understand the concept of holiness not that it s easy for adults to fully grasp, either. Why do you think holiness is one of God s characteristics? What would happen to us if God was not holy?
Read 1 Peter 1:16. Why does God want you to be holy? If you think about holiness as if it means working hard to be perfect, it seems hopeless why would God tell us to do something that seems impossible in our own strength? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: God wants Christians to live holy lives. This doesn t mean being perfect, but allowing God to work in our lives and make us more like Jesus more complete. Pair up with another person in the group for these questions. What are some first steps you can take to make yourself more open to God developing holiness in you? Read Romans 12:1. This verse says there is a connection between living holy and worshiping God. Pause for a moment and meditate silently on this verse. Why is there a connection between holiness and worship? Bring everyone back together to discuss the previous questions, giving your pairs a chance to share some of their answers. How can we work together as a small group to encourage one another to live holy lives? What are some practical steps you can take this week? SUMMARY End your small group lesson here. Provide your teenagers with a quick summary or take-home challenge based on (1) the content of this lesson, (2) the dialogue that took place during the lesson, (3) your understanding of the issues and struggles your teenagers are facing, and (4) the big picture of your youth ministry and what your leadership team wants accomplished with the teaching and discussion time. FOR KEEPS [MEMORY VERSE] Encourage and/or challenge your teenagers to memorize the verse below. They were calling out to each other, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Heaven s Armies! The whole earth is filled with his glory! (Isaiah 6:3).