Because Christ lived a perfect life of obedience, we too can walk in wisdom, truth, love, and faith. “Walk in Wisdom,” (the first of four lessons in this series) will teach children the difference between earthly wisdom and spiritual wisdom. In addition, they will learn practical ways to incorporate wisdom into their lives through prayer, humility, obedience, and a reverent fear of God.
TARGET AGES: 10-14
OBJECTIVE: To learn the definition for spiritual wisdom and be able choose wise decisions that reflect our relationships to Jesus Christ.
MAIN IDEA: There is a wise (good) decision and unwise (bad) decision for every situation. Walking in wisdom requires humility and constant reliance on God.
SCRIPTURE PASSAGES: 1 Corinthians 10:23-24, 1 Corinthians 3:18-20, James 1:5, Proverbs 11:2, Psalm 111:10, Proverbs 11:2
MATERIAL(S): card stock paper, scissors
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Introduction (10 minutes)
OPENING PRAYER: “Lord, we want to be wise according to your standards. Give us the desire and strength to walk in wisdom so others may be drawn to you. Amen.”
MATCHING GAME: “Good Idea or Bad Idea?” (download here)
Print two sets of the game cards on card stock paper. Cut out the cards, separate them into sets, and then shuffle each deck. Divide the children into two teams and have them work together to find the “good” idea and the “bad” idea that match. The team who correctly matches all twelve pairs first is the winning team (consider bringing small prizes)! This game will help the children understand that there is a right (wise) decision for every wrong (unwise) decision. Briefly explain each pair and the potential consequences for the “bad” ideas.
Lesson (20 minutes)
- Tell the class that this is the first lesson of the “Walk in…” series. Say, “Over the next five weeks we will learn how to walk in wisdom, truth, love, and faith of Jesus’ saving grace.”
- Ask, “What does it mean to be wise (having good judgment and knowing when a decision or activity isn’t beneficial)? The game we just played showed us that having wisdom requires making right decisions.” Read 1 Corinthians 10:23-24. Emphasize to the class that true wisdom involves considering how our actions affect others. Say, “A truly wise person will not intentionally harm or take advantage of someone – that’s the world’s definition of wisdom.” Read 1 Corinthians 3:18-20. Ask the children to identify what God thinks about worldly, selfish wisdom (it’s foolish).
- Comment, “Let’s see what God says we should do to gain and walk in wisdom.” Write the word “Wisdom” on the board and list qualities as they are discussed with each scripture. Read James 1:5 and Proverbs 11:2. Ask for a volunteer to state the actions from each verse that will give wisdom (asking for it and being humble) and write the correct responses on the board. Emphasize that humility is the opposite of selfishness. Say, “Asking God for wisdom isn’t necessarily hard, but living a humble life that reflects the wisdom we asked for requires complete reliance on God to help us with our words and actions.” Read Psalm 111:10 and Proverbs 2:6. Have the class identify the additional qualities that help us walk in wisdom (fearing the Lord, obeying his word, and knowing his word) and write the qualities on the board.
- When the list is complete, ask the students to vote for the quality they feel is the most challenging. Encourage them and say, “No one can perfectly walk in wisdom, but because Jesus perfectly walked in wisdom, we can trust that obeying God will increase our wisdom.”
Memory Verse Activity: (10 minutes)
Remind the class that a way to be wise is to know God’s word. Say, “We are going to practice saying James 1:5 so we can memorize the verse and remember to ask God for wisdom.” Have each child choose a partner and read the verse out loud together. Then the children will repeat the phrases of the verse after one another, slowly adding more words to each phrase until the entire verse is complete. Encourage the class to continue working on memorizing the verse and consider bringing small prizes for the children who can say it from memory next week.
Conclusion (5 minutes)
RECAP: We can’t be selfish or self-seeking if want to walk in wisdom. We must consider the results of our decisions and the impact they have on our own lives, the lives of others, and our belief in Jesus Christ.
CLOSING PRAYER: “God, help us chose wisdom over sin. We want to show others that we are different because we know you. Amen.”