1. LEADER PREPARATION

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1 APOLOGETICS: CONCLUSION Lesson 1: Where to Go From Here This includes: 1. Leader Preparation 2. Lesson Guide 1. LEADER PREPARATION LESSON OVERVIEW Having a conversation with a person of a different religion or worldview can be difficult. People face many hesitations when thinking about sharing their faith or having a spiritually focused conversation. But we don t have to fear these conversations and once in the conversations, we don t have to go on a rampage. We can do this confidently and compassionately. This stand-alone lesson will offer solid biblical wisdom on effectively and appropriately engaging in conversations with people of other religions and worldviews. LESSON OBJECTIVES 1. WHAT: Learning how to have a spiritually focused conversation effectively and confidently can yield tremendous dividends spiritual ones, in fact. 2. WHY: Teenagers benefit from talking to people of other religions and worldviews without being combative, and while maintaining a Jesus-centered attitude. 3. HOW: Your students will discuss Scriptures that talk about having a right attitude when interacting with people of other religions and worldviews, and they ll consider specific ways to follow this wisdom in their own lives. PRIMARY SCRIPTURE 1 Peter 3:8-17 SECONDARY SCRIPTUREs 1 Corinthians 13:1-7; 2 Corinthians 5:18-20; Colossians 4:5-6; 2 Timothy 2:23-26 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.

2 Read 1 Peter 3:8-17. As we near the end of our look at apologetics, it s important to help your students realize that when they interact with people of different religions or worldviews, they need to be respectful. This doesn t mean that they cave in and change their faith. It doesn t mean that they avoid tough topics or challenging conversations. But it means that as followers of Christ, they need to treat other people with the same measure of respect they want to receive. Being rude won t open people s hearts to the message of Jesus but being polite, respectful, and kind just might. Our teenagers need to remember that they are not the ones who change lives God does that. God will use us to plant seeds of faith in people s lives, or help water seeds that others have planted. But ultimately God makes the seed grow. God is the one who changes hearts, changes minds, changes priorities, and changes worldviews. As you prepare for this lesson, we encourage you to review the earlier lesson in the LIVE Apologetics volume about sharing your faith, part of the overview series. It contains helpful, specific suggestions on how teenagers can share their faith. This conclusion lesson focuses on the tone, attitude, and words things that can get overlooked when interacting with people of other religions and worldviews. 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 Is it tough to share your faith with others? Join us tonight for a great conversation on having the right approach. How do you get ready to talk to people of other religions and worldviews? We ll share some solid advice 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.

3 Dear parents, Our students engaged in a great conversation this week about talking with people of other religions and worldviews. We built our conversation around 1 Peter 3:8-17, along with some other passages of Scripture, and we emphasized the importance of respect and a Jesus-centered attitude in these conversations. This doesn t mean a Christ-following teenager has to cave in and change their faith. It doesn t mean that they avoid tough topics or challenging conversations. But it means that as followers of Christ, they need to treat other people with the same measure of respect they want to receive. Being rude won t open people s hearts to the message of Jesus but being polite, respectful, and kind just might. Here are some questions you might want to ask this week: Do you find it difficult to be respectful toward people who hold different beliefs than you do? Why or why not? Why is it important to live wisely among people who aren t followers of Jesus? What if you don t know the right, best words to say when talking to someone of a different religion or worldview? How can you handle that situation? Thanks for allowing us to partner with you in your teenager s spiritual growth. Have an amazing week!

4 APOLOGETICS: CONCLUSION Lesson 1: Where to Go From Here GETTING THINGS STARTED [optional] 2. LEsson guide Welcome your students and invite them into your meeting area. Open in prayer, and then Think about the last time you were disrespected. Don t share all the details, but how did that make you feel, and why? Why do we all want to be respected? Do you find it difficult to be respectful toward people who hold different beliefs than you do? Why or why not? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: As we near the end of our look at apologetics, it s important to remember that when we interact with people of different religions or worldviews, we need to be respectful. This doesn t mean that we cave in and change our faith. It doesn t mean that we avoid tough topics or challenging conversations. But it means that we treat other people with the same measure of respect we want to receive. Being rude won t open people s hearts to the message of Jesus but being polite, respectful, and kind just might. 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 relationship matters, (2) Your words matter, (3) Your motivation matters, and (4) Your attitude and tone matter. 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 1 Peter 3:8-17 together as a group. Consider dividing verses among your students so everyone has a chance to read.

5 SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Some 2,000 years ago, Jesus gave his disciples a mission that would define the rest of their lives and propel the Christian movement around the world. Jesus wants his followers to share his message of truth. Let s explore this Scripture and other passages from the Bible to see how we can effectively and appropriately share that message with people of other religions and worldviews. 1. Your relationship matters Do you find it easier to talk about spiritual topics with friends or with strangers? Why? What are some differences between how you might approach a conversation with a friend who s an atheist or a Buddhist, or a Muslim and how you d approach that topic with a stranger or acquaintance who follows that worldview? What role do theology, apologetics, and our personal experience with God play in our conversations with people of other religions and worldviews? Which words or phrases from 1 Peter 3 do you find most helpful when thinking about talking with friends who follow other religions or worldviews? Which words or phrases seem most helpful when thinking about those same kinds of conversations with strangers or acquaintances? Why is it significant that Peter included a statement about being ready to explain the hope you have as a Christian in the same passage where he encouraged his readers who were suffering? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Jesus calls us to share his message with everyone friends, strangers, family members, classmates, neighbors, casual acquaintances. He wants us to engage in conversations about spiritual topics, and anyone who isn t a follower of Christ has the same need for Jesus great news. But how we approach those conversations changes based on our connection with that person. Perhaps you can be more honest with a friend but maybe you can have a clearer conversation with a stranger because you are eager to hear all the reasons that person holds certain beliefs. 2. Your words matter Give us a specific example of how poorly chosen words can create problems when talking to people of other religions or worldviews.

6 Look again at our passage from 1 Peter 3. What wisdom about our words do you see in these verses, and how difficult is it to follow that wisdom? From all our conversations about apologetics and worldviews, what idea has stood out most strongly for you, and what words might you use to communicate that idea to another person? Read Colossians 4:5-6. What does it mean to make the most of every opportunity? What does that look like? Is it possible to always have the right response for everyone, as verse 6 says? Why or why not? Why is it important to live wisely among people who aren t followers of Jesus? What if you don t know the right, best words to say when talking to someone of a different religion or worldview? How can you handle that situation? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: During the course of your life, you will interact with lots of people with different views on faith, God, and the world. If you are going to be a strong witness for Jesus, you will need to learn a delicate balance between tactics and details regarding Christianity and other worldviews, philosophies, and religions. Don t tell the other person what to do or even what to believe. Just share your story, explain what you know, and ask them what they believe and why they believe it. Have a conversation with them. Your words matter but you also can ask for God s help to know the right things to say. Be prepared, but also rely on God s Spirit to give you insight, wisdom, words, and courage. 3. Your motivation matters What are some wrong motives for engaging a person in a conversation about their religion or worldview and why are those motives risky? What are some right motives for talking about a person s religion or worldview? What role does prayer play in developing the right motives? What evidence can you look for to determine if you have the right or wrong motives for talking with people about their religion or worldview? Read 1 Corinthians 13:1-7. How have you seen Christians sounding like a noisy gong or clanging cymbal as they talk about their faith? Why are these strategies not effective in sharing with non-christians? How can your attitude reflect verses 4-7 when sharing your faith?

7 SAY SOMETHING LIKE: The Bible says that we need a heart of compassion, gentleness, and humility as we communicate what we believe. This flows from a heart that is fully devoted to Jesus. Yes, we want to see people come to faith in Jesus. Yes, we want to clearly explain what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Yes, we want to help people see the problems with other worldviews. But if we re trying to start a fight or looking to cause trouble, our heart is in the wrong place. That was never Jesus motivation when talking to people about faith. 4. Your attitude and tone matter SAY SOMETHING LIKE: We live in a culture that flows against the truths of the Bible and the truths of Jesus Christ. We can t control how other people will react to the faith we profess, but we can control how we treat them and the attitude we convey when interacting with people of other religions and worldviews. Our attitude and tone really, truly do matter. Read 2 Timothy 2: Which part of this passage do you find easiest to follow and which part is most difficult? Why? According to this passage, how is a person s heart changed? What is our role in that process? Why does our tone matter when talking to people of different faiths? Think of a time the way someone said something to you had a greater impact than the actual words that were spoken. Why was that such a powerful experience? When talking with people of other religions or worldviews, how might a humble tone be more effective than an arrogant or combative tone? SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Remember that you are not the person who changes lives God does that. God will use you to plant seeds of faith in people s lives, or help water seeds that others have planted. But ultimately God makes the seed grow. God is the one who changes hearts, changes minds, changes priorities, and changes worldviews.

8 ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION [optional] Ask students to form groups of two or three for these questions. Read 2 Corinthians 5: What does it mean to be an ambassador? What are some specific places where you can be an ambassador for God? Why does God choose to make his appeal through us? Bring everyone back together, and ask students to share some answers to the previous questions, as time permits. APPLICATION SAY SOMETHING LIKE: Remember to pray and ask God to help you. When you pray, you are acknowledging that you need his leading and wisdom when talking to people about your faith. God loves the people that you share with even more than you do, so always make time to pray! Our focus in this series hasn t been to give you weapons for conversations or debates or conflict; our goal has been to give you a solid foundation to stand strong in your faith. Why is that distinction important? What are some specific things you need to pray about, as you look for ways to talk with people of other religions and worldviews? What difference might it make if you went out each day seeing yourself as God s ambassador? SUMMARY 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. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way (1 Peter 3:15-16).