Different Faiths (4 week series)

For 8th grade cell groups

Goal: The goal of this study is 3 part

  1. To educate/inform student of other belief systems
  2. Show them how the gospel is a bridge for people with different beliefs
  3. To help students develop compassion for lost people

We don’t want student to develop a judgmental mentality towards people of other beliefs and to scoff at them. Each week before the study please review these principles and passages about caring for the poor and treating other peoples view with respect.

Before each study, please review these principles.

1)Paul’s example in Athens

  1. In Acts 17 Paul took careful time to “examine” and “study” the other god in Athens, and he was deeply move.
  2. Through this careful inquire, he found a bridge to the gospel. (i.e.- The unknown god they already worshiped)
  3. If we look carefully we can find a bridge to the gospel
  4. We should look for common ground (thing we agree about) with people

2)Paul’s effort to persuade and debate

  1. Acts 18:4- When Paul was persuading and debating, he was giving people good reasons to believe in the gospel (like prophecy)

3)Seasoning our words with grace

  1. Colossians 4:5-6. If we speak kindly and sensitively toward others in love, we will “know how to respond”.

4)Adorning the gospel with love and good works

  1. Titus 2:6-8- We need to have good works to back up the truth. People will see the truth of the gospel largely in part to the witness of love in the BOC.

5)Have Jesus heart for the lost

  1. Mark 6:34- Jesus felt compassion for lost people.

1. Naturalism (i.e. Atheism, Agnosticism)

  • See these resources
  • Go on the Jr. High website Teaching Examples there is a teaching PowerPoint called Science and Bible.
  • Go to on the Jr. High website curriculum under 7th grade, there is a Reasons to Believe 6 week series. Week 1 and 2 are good outlines for this subject (teleological and moral arguments)
  • Main point: There is good evidence for belief in a creator.
  • Define Atheism-
  • The idea that there is no God. All that exists is material. There is no soul or spiritual dimension; there is no life after death.
  • All life (even though it is complex) must be explained by natural causes
  • Biblical Prophecy validates the bible.
  • Genesis can be harmonized with modern science.
  • Antithesis:
  • Science vs. The bible-
  • This is a “false dichotomy”. We don’t have to pick science or the bible, we can believe in both, and use both.
  • Science could never disprove God or the bible, and the bible does not try to disprove science.
  • Love. Freedom. Morality.The atheistic belief system cannot now account for these concepts. If you are truly a product of nature and your brain is purely chemical reactions, is love really possible?
  • Interesting parallels and bridges to the gospel
  • Big Bang Theory- The universe has a beginning point, where a condensed form of matter and energy exploded and formed our universe.
  • For years atheistic scientist’s opposed the Big Bang Theory because it pointed to the universe having a beginning.
  • The first words of the bible are “In the beginning”
  • Where did everything come from?
  • Ancient philosophers called this the “Unmoved mover” or the “Uncaused cause”
  • If God does not exist, would it make more sense that there would be nothing as opposed to something.
  • “The walking contradiction” (presupposition argument)
  • Under atheist thinking morality, justice, and free will are “social constructs”
  • Saying this is one thing, acting consistently is another.
  • Application
  • God is real and there is good evidence
  • Usually Atheist have beef with God, and they use “it can’t be proven” as a reason not to believe
  • Keep emphasizing how good God and the gospel
  • Don’t let contender pit God/Bible against Science.

2. Pantheism (ex: Buddhism, Hinduism)

  • Main point: God is personal. (Personal: A thinking, feeling, and communicating Being). We can really know God.
  • Antithesis: Pantheism teaches that God is impersonal (Impersonal: An IT. An entity that has no mind or will, like a force (magnetism or electricity). Something, but not someone)
  • Problems with this view of God
  • How can an IT create?
  • In Buddhism, the material world is an illusion. God did not create. We are an eternal manifestation of God.
  • Science and the Bible teach that the Universe had a beginning (Big Bang)
  • Why does anything exist, even if it’s an illusion?
  • Pantheism doesn’t attempt to answer these questions.
  • Good and evil are ultimately an illusion (under pantheism)
  • The most evil act (ex: 911 tragedy) is just as much a part of God as an act of charity.
  • Everything that happens is all a part of God in Buddhism. (Whereas in Christianity, the “fallen world” is separated from God. Also, humans have free will, and do evil against God’s will)
  • There is no ultimate consequences for immoral actions (individuals do not get judged for wrong doing), because everyone is reincarnated and eventually becomes a part of God.
  • Interesting parallels and bridges to the gospel
  • Enlightenment through meditation (where do we find inner peace?)
  • We agree that people are in a state of suffering, confusion, and inner turmoil, and that we need to find peace.
  • Meditation is only a temporary state of mind
  • God offers eternal peace through faith in Jesus
  • (Buddhism) 3rd Noble truths states that “suffering is cause by craving”
  • The goal in Buddhism is to try not to “crave” by entering states of mind through meditation. Also, to end all desire is true Enlightenment
  • Christianity agrees that “craving” is central cause to our unhappiness, , but the solution is not to end all desire, but to fulfill our legitimate desires. (through knowing God and learning to love) (James 4:1-6). The “craving” comes from our sinful nature.
  • The bibles solution is to be reconciled to God
  • The goal is not to avoid craving (impossible), but to have God fill our emptiness.
  • God will eventually give us new bodies vs. We will cease to exist as ourselves in the afterlife.
  • Application
  • God is personal and it’s amazing that we can truly know him and speak directly to him.
  • God has the power to change our desires and fulfill us, so that we are not slaves to our cravings.
  • Young people in our culture will claim to be Buddhist, but often they know very little about it, and don’t think through all of the implication of those beliefs. Sometime people don’t look at the big picture (creation, man, salvation, afterlife) when they dabble in other religions. Use the worldview chart.
  • With a few clicks on the internet you can learn more about Pantheist religions to help understand their worldview better.

3. Theism (Judaism, Christianity, Islam)

  • Main point: Grace is what makes Christianity unique.
  • Apologetic: All theistic religion (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) is rooted in one beginning: Father Abraham from the OT.
  • What about Judaism? Christianity began as a sect of Judaism, but God’s people as a whole did not continue with his plan (Jesus). Continuity between OT and NT.
  • Jews rejected Jesus as Messiah. They have failed to distinguish the two separate comings of the Messiah. First as a suffering servant (Isaiah 53), then as a conquering King (Isaiah 9:5ff).
  • What about Islam?
  • Written over 500 years after the NT was written.
  • They claim to believe that scripture NT and OT has been distorted.
  • Is God unable to keep his word preserved?
  • They say Jesus was a prophet, but the Koran teaches his divine birth. Many are unfamiliar with these passages in the Torah.
  • Legalist righteousness- Justification by works vs. Grace
  • Grace is unique to Christianity.
  • Antithesis: Legalism- Works based relationship to God
  • Islam and (Rabbinic) Judaism teach justification by works. (5 pillars for Islam, OT commandments for Jews)
  • Illustration- Relationship to the IRS. You are not friends, they don’t send you Christmas cards, they don’t ask you nicely to pay taxes. The IRS is a judging distant authority.
  • Living under law is like being in trouble with the IRS. You are just waiting for the hammer to come down.
  • Illustration- Judgment day. Have the students stand up and form a line. Pretend its judgment day. The student on the one end is the “worst sinner” who sinned 6 million times. The guy on the other end sinned the least, 1,000 times. Pretend this line be all humans in history, and the two in the middle standing next to each other are only one sin apart. Where does God draw the line? Would that be fair?
  • Point out that wherever God draws the line would be his new moral standard, and God would no longer be a perfectly good God, because he would be agreeing that certain sin is basically okay.
  • Point out that God’s standard is perfection. Jesus lived that perfection for us, and paid our judgment we deserve.
  • Application
  • Teach Grace and personal relationship with God.
  • Learn OT prophecies and how to explain them to Jews and Muslims

4. Polytheism

  • Main point: There is only one God. Worship him and flee from idols!
  • Romans 1 is key
  • If we don’t worship God, we will worship something else. (even if its self)
  • Antithesis: Worship a false God.
  • Greek Polytheism
  • Egyptian Polytheism
  • Problems with Polytheistic thinking
  • Origins? Where did the gods come from
  • Infinite Eternal God vs. Finite temporal gods
  • Anthropomorphizing- Giving God human qualities
  • Explanations for nature
  • Ancient people “created” gods for processes in nature and things they could not explain
  • Ex: Dionysus- Greek god of wine
  • Osiris- Egyptian god of fertility
  • Interesting parallels and bridges to the gospel
  • What is the root of idol worship?
  • Jeremiah 2 (all the chapter, specifically verse 13)
  • Trying to get our needs met apart from God.
  • Seeking materialism, sexuality, pride (the gods were rooted in these selfish desires)
  • God wants to give us protection and provision, but we seek the world system.
  • We are beings of worship, and we are always worshiping something
  • If we are not worshipping God, we are worshipping something else?
  • What is the idol in your heart? Will it really make you happy if you get it?
  • Ezekiel 14:3- “Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their hearts and have put right before their faces the stumbling block of their iniquity. Should I be consulted by them at all?
  • Application
  • Discussion: what do you look to for happiness? What do you spend the most time thinking about, wanting? What always on your heart and mind?
  • Do you have an idol before the Lord?
  • Repent and place God in number 1

*five (5) worldviews

REALITY / MAN / TRUTH / VALUES
Naturalism
Atheism
Agnosticism
Existentialism / The material universe is all that exists. Reality is "one-dimensional." There is no such thing as a soul or a spirit. Everything can be explained on the basis of natural law. / Man is the chance product of a biological process of evolution. Man is entirely material. The human species will, one day, pass out of existence. / Truth is usually understood as scientific proof. Only that which can be observed with the five senses is accepted as real or true. / No objective values or morals exist. Morals are individual preferences or socially useful behaviors. Even social morals are subject to evolution and change.
Pantheism
Hinduism
Taoism
Buddhism
New Age / Only the spiritual dimension exists. All else is illusion, maya. Spiritual reality, Brahman, is eternal, impersonal, and unknowable. It is possible to say that everything is a part of God, or that God is in everything and everyone. / Man is one with ultimate reality. Thus man is spiritual, eternal, and impersonal. Man’s belief that he is an individual is illusion. / Truth is an experience of unity with "the oneness" of the universe. Truth is beyond all rational description. Rational thought, as it is understood in the West, cannot show us reality. / Because ultimate reality is impersonal, many pantheistic thinkers believe that there is no real distinction between good and evil. Instead, "unenlightened" behavior is that which fails to understand essential unity.
Theism
Christianity
Islam
Judaism / An infinite, personal God exists. He created a finite, material world. Reality is both material and spiritual. The universe as we know it had a beginning and will have an end. / Humankind is the unique creation of God. People were created "in the image of God," which means that we are personal, eternal, spiritual, and biological. / Truth about God is known through revelation. Truth about the material world is gained via revelation and the five senses in conjunction with rational thought. / Moral values are the objective expression of an absolute moral being.
Spiritism and
Polytheism
Thousands of
Religions / The world is populated by spirit beings that govern what goes on. Gods and demons are the real reason behind "natural" events. Material things are real, but they have spirits associated with them and, therefore, can be interpreted spiritually. / Man is a creation of the gods like the rest of the creatures on earth. Often, tribes or races have a special relationship with some gods who protect them and can punish them. / Truth about the natural world is discovered through the shaman figure who has visions telling him what the gods and demons are doing and how they feel. / Moral values take the form of taboos, which are things that irritate or anger various spirits. These taboos are different from the idea of "good and evil" because it is just as important to avoid irritating evil spirits as it is good ones.
Postmodernism / Reality must be interpreted through our language and cultural "paradigm." Therefore, reality is "socially constructed." / Humans are nodes in a cultural reality – they are a product of their social setting. The idea that people are autonomous and free is a myth. / Truths are mental constructs meaningful to individuals within a particular cultural paradigm. They do not apply to other paradigms. Truth is relative to one’s culture. Values are part of our social paradigms as well. / Tolerance, freedom of expression, inclusion, and refusal to claim to have the answers are the only universal values.