▶ What does it mean to edify someone? ▷ To edify means to build others up in the faith; it means to
▶ How can you know whether or not your belief is based
help someone grow closer to Christ. See the online Insights.* ▶ Does what I’m doing draw people to God?
D
on Scriptural principles or convictions—or if it is a conditioned cultural response? ▷ Write this rule of thumb on the board: When in doubt, don’t. Discuss the principle of the statement.
m I fully convinced my choice A is right?
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WRAP IT UP Review the lyrics to the song “Grey” by BarlowGirl
▷ Read Romans 14:5,23. See Activity E. (Another Journal Entry, Word Records, 2006) on page ▶ What did Paul mean when he said, “each one should be fully 26 in the KNOWN student book. Note that the lyrics make convinced in his own mind?”
an exaggerated point; the main point of the lyrics is having
not from faith is sin.” See the online Insights.*
decisions we make. See Activity F. ▷ Instruct students to think of an individual gray area with which they’ve wrestled. Instruct them to use the questions listed to walk through the process of determining whether or not an action is right or wrong related to that gray area. ▷ Make the final point that our lives are to be lived to draw people to Christ.
▷ Discuss what Paul meant when he wrote, “everything that is God’s passion to get beyond the lies of justifying the gray area ▷ Help students understand this principle by reading the Contemporary English Version (CEV) translation of Romans 14:23, “But if you do have doubts about what you eat, you are going against your beliefs. And you know that is wrong, because anything you do against your beliefs is sin.”
Activity B
Activity C
THE QUESTION
What do I do when the issue of right and wrong is not clear?
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2
Activity D
Decide not to put a stumbling block or pitfall in your brother’s way... By what you eat, do not destroy that one for whom Christ died. Romans 14:12-15,20-22
Will my choice be a hindrance to others?
What do you think? Base your response on Romans 14:12-15,20-22.
Will my choice honor and glorify the Lord? For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. Romans 14:6-8
What do you think? Base your response on the principle in Romans 14:6-8.
Activity E
3 CHOICE Will my
build others up? So then, we must pursue what promotes peace and what builds up one another. Romans 14:19
Grey by BarlowGirl
Grey’s my favorite color Black and white has never been my thing I’ll take my drink lukewarm now Hot and cold is not the thing for me Absolutes are hidden I’ve buried my convictions I cannot be blind no more Numb to what I’m living for Help me stop this compromise that justifies these lies I need Your passion in this life
What do you think? Base your response on Romans 14:12-15,20-22.
[Another Journal Entry, 2006]
WRONG? ▷
Eating Meat
Steroids
Cutting
Tattoos
Copying MP3s
Exaggeration
Murder
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Am I fully convinced my choice
IS RIGHT? Each one must be fully convinced in his own mind. Romans 14:5 Whoever doubts stands condemned... everything that is not from faith is sin. Romans 14:23 What do you think? Base your response on Romans 14:5,23.
When in doubt,
DON’T THE POINT
Even when the Bible is not clear on an issue, we can still make good choices. Cheating
Lying
Shoplifting
Sometimes it is easy to know what is wrong; sometimes it can be difficult to know. Look at the issues across the bottom of these pages. What do you think would pass God’s test as wrong? 0 2 7
0 2 6 KNOWN 00
Activity A
Activity F
*Insights are available for free online at www.lifeway.com/known. You can order the KNOWN student book at www.lifeway.com/known. 0 19