1. LEADER PREPARATION

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1 apologetics: An Overview Lesson 1: You and Your Worldview This includes: 1. Leader Preparation 2. Lesson Guide 1. LEADER PREPARATION LESSON OVERVIEW Each of us has a lens through which we see the world. Our lens is created through our experiences and relationships, and it has the ability to enhance or hinder how we see God and our role in God s purposes and plans. For many people, their worldview has been developed unintentionally, but we don t have to follow that same path. This study will give your students a solid understanding of what a worldview is and how they can develop a strong, Jesus-centered worldview that will give them a foundation for a Godinspired life. LESSON OBJECTIVES 1. WHAT: As followers of Christ, it s important for us to learn what a worldview is and how to develop a Jesus-centered worldview. 2. WHY: Simply knowing facts about Jesus or Christianity does not lead us to a life that honors God being transformed by God leads us a life that honors him. 3. HOW: Your students will examine what a worldview is, how to determine truth on which they can base their lives, and how to allow God to shape or reshape their worldview. PRIMARY SCRIPTURE John 18:33-38 SECONDARY SCRIPTUREs Jeremiah 9:23-24; Romans 12:1-2; Ephesians 4:17-24; Philippians 1:1-6, 20-26; 2 Timothy 3:14-17; 1 Peter 1:13-16

2 TEACHING PREP The overview below is designed to help you prepare for your lesson. We have included lots of content to help you prepare for the discussion on apologetics. 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 and some of the content can help with further conversations with students. Read John 18: Whether we willingly admit it or not, each of us longs for truth. Some of us search aggressively. Others of us search periodically or halfheartedly. And some of us wait passively, hoping truth will walk past and make itself obvious. That search for truth, for meaning, for understanding is shaped by our worldview. Everyone has tendencies and thoughts that they tend to lean toward. Some of the most fundamental questions in life are shaped by what we believe and how we see the world: Who is God? What is reality? How do we know what is true? Why does evil exist? A fundamental mistake people make regarding Christianity is to perceive Christianity as a collection of theological facts to be believed or debated. Unfortunately, this robs Christianity of its power in our lives. We need to understand that following Jesus is designed to impact our worldview and can shape the way we see this world. A vast number of people reject Christianity because their personal worldview includes beliefs that are contrary to a Jesus-centered worldview. A person s worldview must change if he or she is to live a life that honors God. With so many claims of truth and conflicting worldviews in our culture, it is easy for our students to feel overwhelmed and confused. How do they judge between the claims of different worldviews? How can they test whether or not something is actually true and worthy of belief? This lesson will help your group look at truth, why it is important, and how you can test different truths to conclude which one to develop your worldview from.

3 Before helping students establish a worldview and discover how to determine truth, let s talk about reasons people test whether or not something is true. Think about this list and see if you sense any of your students basing their worldview on any of these: Instinct It seems true Response: Why? What is guiding your instinct to judge between competing truth-claims? Feelings I like the feeling I get Response: Can feelings be wrong? Wish fulfillment I want God to be a certain way Response: Can we base truth on what we wish were true? (I wish I had $1 million, but that doesn t mean I do.) Custom My family and culture have always believed this Response: Can they be mistaken? What if family or culture was from a violent or oppressive background? Popularity contest Everyone believes it Response: Can everyone be wrong? Everyone thought the world was flat. Pragmatism It works for me, therefore it must be true Response: Almost anything can work for a period time. But truth always works. All of those reasons for believing something to be true seem innocent enough but fall short in determining whether a worldview is really true. Let s look at three criteria for testing truth-claims that offer us the best chance of determining true beliefs. These will also be beneficial as you facilitate this study on developing a Christian worldview. Is it logical? Does a belief make sense? Some claims are self-defeating and cannot be true. The statement there is no absolute truth is selfdefeating because the statement itself is an absolute statement. Is it factual? Does the claim correspond to the real world? An accurate worldview must give an explanation to questions like the origin of the universe, free will, and the existence of our minds, as well as give explanation to moral questions that center around the problem of evil. Is it livable? Basically, does the truth-claim work in real-life situations? A spiritualist may believe that the world is simply an illusion but would

4 still use a parachute when skydiving and would look both ways before crossing the street. 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 What s hardest about living a Jesus-centered life in this culture? Share your thoughts tonight with the group! What s a significant event in your past that has shaped who you are today? Let s talk about it when the group meets. We ve provided you with an below that you can send to parents following the lesson. Our hope is to encourage parents to continue the conversation at home. Feel free to edit and customize the to fit your ministry needs. Dear parents, This week we launched a study on apologetics. The purpose of this study is to help our students think critically about why they believe what they believe about God and to learn how to stand firm in their faith amid a culture that will pull them in all directions. Our first lesson examined what it means to have a worldview. We challenged our students to think about themselves, what they think, and what foundation they desire to base their life upon. Each of us has a worldview that has been shaped by our upbringing, the environment we grew up in, and our family unit. Here are some questions that could help fuel great dialogue at home: What are some good, appropriate ways for Christ-followers to respond to our culture s attitude toward absolute truth? How can Paul s story of transformation in the Bible encourage you as you

5 interact with people who aren t followers of Jesus? When do you find it most difficult to follow a Jesus-centered worldview, and why? We look forward to partnering with you as together we prepare our teenagers for the journey ahead of them by equipping them with the tools necessary to develop a strong, Jesus-centered worldview. Have a wonderful week!

6 apologetics: AN OVERVIEW Lesson 1: You and Your Worldview GETTING THINGS STARTED [optional] 2. LEsson guide Welcome your students and invite them into your meeting area. Open in prayer, and then lead students in this activity: Have your students form groups of three or four. Ask one student to pull out a smartphone and search for a picture a sunset, a group of friends, or anything else that s memorable or enjoyable. It could be a picture the student took, or it could be one online. Have the student with the smartphone change and adjust the picture using filters in an app. After a few minutes, bring everyone back together and have groups present their finished images. What are some specific ways the filters distorted or enhanced your picture? How would you define or explain the word worldview? And if you don t know, take an educated guess what do you think that word means? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: We live in a world filled with reminders of the wonder and glory of God. However, similar to filters on a smartphone, our worldview becomes a filter through which we either see or miss God s presence, beauty, and work in every aspect of our lives. Our worldview impacts every thought, decision, and relationship we have. That s why it s so important we understand what a worldview is and how we can establish a worldview that is centered on Jesus. 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 are (1) Your worldview shapes how you define truth, (2) Your worldview reveals what you believe, and (3) You can develop and display a Jesus-centered worldview.

7 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 John 18:33-38 together as a group. Consider dividing verses among your students so everyone has a chance to read. SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Every religion, philosophy, or worldview makes claims about truth. The issue isn t finding a truth to base your life upon the issue is developing a keen awareness of knowing what truth is verifiably accurate. When you talk with another person, he or she will attempt to offer truth-claims or explanations for our experience as humans. Although there certainly are some common-ground beliefs shared by all worldviews, you will find some pretty significant disagreements on what is claimed to be true. The disagreements on conflicting worldviews are typically about weighty maters such as the existence and nature of God, the human condition, sin, the explanation of evil, the goal of human life, and what happens to us when we die. So let s take time to look at what a worldview is and how our worldview can affect our lives. 1. Your worldview shapes how you define truth As a whole, does our culture teach that truth is absolute or that truth is relative? Explain your perspective. Do you find yourself drawn to or pushed away from the idea of absolute truth? Why? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: The word truth is often avoided in our culture. Many people say there is no such thing as ultimate or absolute truth. When it comes to God, the basic motto of our culture is Whatever! You can believe whatever you want and what works for you. What are some good, appropriate ways for Christ-followers to respond to our culture s attitude toward absolute truth? What is the significance of Pilate s question to Jesus in verse 38? What are some specific truths Jesus declared in this passage? Which of those truths do you find most powerful or meaningful and why?

8 What are the consequences of developing a worldview based on what Jesus says in verses 36-38? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: At Jesus trial, Pilate asked some significant questions. We can t read Pilate s mind, but the way he phrased things could mean he already had his mind made up about Jesus before he started asking the questions in this passage. Jesus responses turned attention toward the attitude and motivation we have when searching for truth. Jesus was essentially saying that the condition of our heart whether pure or corrupt is revealed by our response to who he is. Jesus was and is truth, so how we respond to him reveals more about us than about him. 2. Your worldview reveals what you believe Think back to some of the most life-shaping moments from your childhood or from your teen years so far. Talk about one specific moment what it was, how it affected you, and how it continues to shape the way you see the world. SAY SOMETHING LIKE: A worldview is a framework by which we perceive truth and the world we live in. Every person has some type of worldview. Your worldview is a combination of all you have experienced, and what you believe to be true. What you believe becomes the driving force behind every emotion, decision, and action. Therefore, it affects how you respond to situations in your life. It shapes how you perceive science, theology, economics, and politics. And it informs what you believe about God. Consider the following quote from Christian thinker and writer A.W. Tozer: What you think about God is the most important thing about you. How does what you think about God impact the decisions you make? What would be the consequences of believing that God is not all-powerful? Why is it important to know God for who he truly is, rather than what our culture believes he is? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: The Bible tells us about the Apostle Paul, who experienced a dramatic change in his worldview. He was a Roman citizen and a leader within the Jewish religious community. He was head and shoulders above many other Jews and was personally responsible for much of the persecution of Jesus followers during

9 the early days of the Christian church. We first meet him in the book of Acts, when he was still known as Saul. But in Acts 9, he experienced a powerful conversion and transformation and instead of persecuting Christians, he begins to spread the message of Jesus. Read Philippians 1:1-6. Understanding Paul s old way of living persecuting and even killing followers of Jesus why are the opening words of this letter so significant? What does this passage reveal about Paul s worldview? The worldview that Paul previously claimed says that to get into heaven, people must strive to follow the Law of Moses. Judaism teaches that strict adherence to the Law is required for anyone wanting to spend eternity with God. How do Paul s words in this passage show that his worldview had changed? Read Philippians 1: What does this passage speak to you about Paul s worldview? How had Jesus impacted Paul s worldview? How do you think Paul s changed worldview might have affected his ministry? How can Paul s story of transformation encourage you as you interact with people who aren t followers of Jesus? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: A lot of things shape our worldview: the family we were born into, the environment and culture we were brought up in, and the spiritual climate surrounding our lives. Many people change their worldview through the course of their lives. Like Paul, in many cases the actual change is triggered by a significant event often a crisis of some kind. Helping people see the importance of their worldview and leading them to recognize the logic and truth in the Christian worldview is one of the chief objectives of apologetics the big theme for this series. And seeing the transformation in Paul s life can offer us encouragement as we talk to people with other beliefs people can change. 3. You can develop and display a Jesus-centered worldview SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Knowledge is essential in making decisions. We don t simply hope that a brain surgeon knows how to operate on someone s brain; we trust that a brain surgeon can perform such a behavior. We don t rely on our hunch about whether we will need to wear a coat; we turn to a meteorologist who has studied the weather patterns and makes an educated prediction. The same is true in our faith. As we mentioned earlier, the most important thing is how we perceive God it

10 shapes the critical decisions we make. To develop a strong worldview, we must come to understand some things as true not merely trust a hunch or believe by hearsay. Developing a Jesus-centered worldview will move you past just understanding facts about Jesus, and lead you into encountering Jesus in a vivid way on a daily basis. Have students form groups of two or three for these questions. Read Ephesians 4: What does this passage speak most strongly to you? What are possible results of living with a worldview that is contrary to God? Look at verse 22 what does this practically look like for you? Look at verse 23 why are renewed thoughts and attitudes essential to following a Jesus-centered worldview? Read 1 Peter 1: What is the connection between a Jesus-centered worldview and not slipping back into old, destructive ways of living? Is a Jesus-centered worldview more about internal change or outward behavior? Why? Bring everyone back together, and ask for volunteers to share answers to the previous questions, as time permits. SAY SOMETHING LIKE: The way we think impacts our heart, our heart informs our actions, and our actions have the ability to honor or dishonor God. A Jesuscentered worldview is not based upon smoke and mirrors, or illusions, scams, and deception. The Christian worldview means viewing the world, people, problems, culture, governments, issues, and solutions from God s perspective, through God s Word. A biblical worldview requires us to critically consider who God is, what Jesus has done for us, and how we live out our Christian experience. To develop an accurate worldview, we must commit ourselves to learning God s truth in his Word, experiencing him in our lives, and obeying all we know to be true. ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION [optional] Read Romans 12:1-2. This passage is all about developing a Christian worldview. When we have a Christian worldview, our lives will be lived to honor God. How does a Christian worldview lead you to a life of worship?

11 Verse 2 tells us to allow God to transform us by changing the way we think. How does God do this how does he change your way of thinking? Read 2 Timothy 3: What do the Scriptures have the potential to give you? How does God use the Bible to change your worldview, and how does this prepare and equip you to do good work? Read Jeremiah 9: Paraphrase what Jeremiah was telling the people of Israel. What is a person s worldview like if it s based on wisdom, power, or riches? APPLICATION When do you find it most difficult to follow a Jesus-centered worldview, and why? SUMMARY How might your perception of people who aren t Christians change when you see them through a Jesus-centered worldview? How can your worldview impact the way you see people in need in our world? End your 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. Don t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect (Romans 12:2).