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discoverE Apr–June 2014 INSIDE: Life with Jesus, Numbers: Counting on God, Easter, Acts, Romans
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Find a place where you can be quiet and think
Get your Bible and a pencil or pen
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Find a time when you can read the Bible each day
Ask God to help you understand what you read
Pray about what you have read and learned
We want to...
Discover stands for...
• Explain the Bible clearly to you • Help you enjoy your Bible • Encourage you to turn to Jesus • Help Christians follow Jesus
Martin Cole
Kirsty McAllister
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Read today’s Discover page and Bible bit
Team Discover Alison Mitchell
• Total commitment to God’s Word, the Bible • Total commitment to getting its message over to you
André Parker
Anne Woodcock
Discover is published four times a year by The Good Book Company, Blenheim House, 1 Blenheim Rd, Epsom, Surrey, KT19 9AP, UK. Tel: 0333 123 0880; Email: discover@thegoodbook.co.uk UK Website: www.thegoodbook.co.uk North America: www.thegoodbook.com Australia: www.thegoodbook.com.au NZ: www.thegoodbook.co.nz
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How to use Discover Here at Discover, we want you at home to get the most out of reading the Bible. It’s how God speaks to us today. And He’s got loads of top things to say. We use the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible. You’ll find that the NIV and New King James Version are best for doing the puzzles in Discover. The Bible has 66 different books in it. So if the notes say...
Read Luke 10 v 25-28 ...turn to the contents page of your Bible and look down the list of books to see what page Luke begins on. Turn to that page.
“Luke 10 v 25-28” means you need to go to chapter 10 of Luke, and then find verse 25 of chapter 10 (the verse numbers are the tiny ones). Then jump in and read it!
It’s easy!
Here are some other symbols you might come across...
weird words Sesquipedalian These boxes explain baffling words or phrases we come across in the Bible.
think!
This box usually has a tricky personal question on what you’ve been reading about.
action!
Challenges you to put what you’ve read into action.
wow!
This box contains a mindbending fact that sums up what we’ve been reading about.
pray! Gives you ideas for prayer. Prayer is talking to God. Don’t be embarrassed! You can pray in your head if you want to. God still hears you! Even if there isn’t a PRAY! symbol, it’s a good idea to pray about what you’ve read anyway.
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1 Luke 10 v 25-28 April 1 Tues
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Luke: Life with Jesus An expert in the Old Testament put Jesus to the test with a tricky question.
Read Luke 10 v 25 What was his question?
So how do we get eternal life with God?
Read verses 27-28 Complete the sentence by filling in the right pics and words.
To inherit eternal life you must love the Lord with all your Want to know how to get to heaven? And how to pray?
with all your _________ In other words: ‘“How can I earn eternal life?”
Read verse 26 And how to live for God? Then it’s time to learn from Jesus!
weird words The Law
Jesus asked him what God’s law (the Old Testament) says the answer is.
action!
Something on your mind? Not sure what the answer is? The first place to look is always the Bible. Maybe you know someone who can show you exactly where to look.
and with all your ________ and with all your ________. Great answer but he was asking the wrong question. No one can earn eternal life because no one can actually live a perfect life.
wow!
We can’t EARN eternal life, but we can get it! It’s a GIFT from God. He sent Jesus to die in our place. We can only have eternal life by trusting Jesus to forgive our sins.
Old Testament
Eternal life Living with God forever!
Neighbour Anyone you meet
pray! Thank God for His awesome gift of eternal life. And ask Him to help you love Him even more!
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2 Luke 10 v 29-37 April 2 Wed
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Neighbourhood watch So the man came up with another tricky teaser. Who is my neighbour? Check out Jesus’ amazing answer.
Read Luke 10 v 29-35 Fill in how the 3 men reacted.
A Bible expert asked Jesus how he could get eternal life. Jesus told him that he had to love God and love his neighbour. The man knew he hadn’t done this. He needed an excuse.
weird words
The Priest (chosen to serve God)
The Levite (a helper in God’s temple)
The Samaritan (from Samaria, so an enemy of God’s people)
Justify himself Prove he knew what he was talking about
Inn
Read verses 36-37 Jesus is saying that even a hated Samaritan is this man’s neighbour. Anyone, even the people we least expect, can love God and live His way. And anyone can be part of God’s kingdom.
wow!
The man asked who his neighbour was. Jesus says that EVERYONE is our neighbour, whether we like them or not. So we should go out of our way to show God’s love to them.
think & pray! So who was a friend to the injured man?
Place to stay
Who do you need to show God’s love to and how will you do it? ______________ ______________________
Mercy
______________________
Undeserved kindness
______________________ The one they least expected.
Ask God to help you!
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3 Luke 10 v 38-42 April 3 Thurs
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Lord or supper? But there’s an even bigger choice we have to make:
What’s the most important thing in your life? Read Luke 10 v 38-42 These two sisters were very different. To work out how they were different, cross out all the Ks, Ms and Qs.
Life is full of choices.
Shall I wear my new jeans or not? What school subjects shall I choose? Big Mac or Whopper?
K D I S M Q T R M AC Q Q T E D M K B Y TQ M H E F K KO O M D Q P R E Q Q PA R M K AT I M KO N Q S Martha was _______________ ________________________ ________________________
LIMSTKQENM MTKOWQMHAMT JEKKSUSQSAIMD Mary chose to _____________ ________________________ ________________________
weird words Disciples Men who travelled with Jesus, learning from Him
Who did Jesus say had made the right choice? Mary Martha Both of them loved the Lord, but one had allowed other things to distract her from being with Him. The food could have waited; a simpler meal would have been fine. But she was just too busy. The most important thing was learning from Jesus It’s easy to let things in our lives grow so important that they distract us from the most important thing: knowing Jesus.
think!
What distracts YOU from spending time with Jesus? ______________________ ______________________ ______________________ _____________________
pray! Ask God to help you to choose Jesus and put Him first in your life.
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Pray as you learn
Luke 11 v 1-4 April 4 Fri
Dear God, please help me with my homework, and please stop Andrew bullying me, and please get rid of my spots and... Sometimes we might pray like this guy. Only praying for ourselves. Compare it with Jesus’ great example...
The disciples heard Jesus praying. They wanted Him to teach them the best way to pray.
Read Luke 11 v 1-4 Number the prayer blocks in the order they appear in verses 2-4.
1
Ask Him to forgive you for the wrong stuff you’ve done. Just as we should forgive other people.
John John the Baptist
Hallowed Holy and deserving loads of praise from us
About God
About us
Praise God for how holy (hallowed) and amazing He is.
So He did...
weird words
Now put the numbers in the correct column below...
Ask for people you know to turn to God so that they become a part of His kingdom.
Ask for what you really need.
Ask God to help you not to be tempted to do wrong.
The first 2 are about God. The last 3 are about us. So who should come FIRST, God or us? __________
think!
When you pray, how much time do you spend on numbers 1 and 2? And how much on your own needs (numbers 3-5)?
pray! Now talk to God, using the 5 steps we’ve learned today.
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Keep it up! Read Luke 11 v 5-8 then fill in the gaps in the speech bubbles. Give me three ______________________
wow!
What a brilliant promise from God! Ask, ask and keep asking. Never give up. God will answer your prayers!
because a _____________ has come to visit.
Yesterday, Jesus gave us a great example of how to pray. Read it again if you need a reminder. Today we’re going to find out how God answers our prayers.
Get lost! It’s late and
Shameless audacity Boldness
Your dad will give you...
I’m in __________.
not
Go on, I really need it!
not Oh alright then, since you won’t give up!
God is a much better friend than this man. God will answer our prayers, but in His own time and own way.
think!
weird words
Read verses 11-13
Have you been asking God for something important, like a friend or relative becoming a Christian? It’s easy to give up if you don’t get an immediate answer...
But read verses 9-10
God is far better than that. To people who ask Him, God gives good gifts. Like what? H_______ S___________ (v13) God gives us His Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us live for God, helps us know we’re forgiven, helps us forgive others, helps us fight temptation. And loads more too!
pray! So what are you waiting for? Got anything important to say to God? Don’t give up until you get an answer!
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6 Luke 11 v 14-28 April 6 Sun
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Speak of the devil Read Luke 11 v 14-16 Jesus got rid of an evil spirit so that a mute man could now speak. Yet people still thought Jesus was evil! Crazy. Jesus must get his power from the devil!
wow!
Later Jesus died on the cross and rose again. By doing that He beat the devil and evil for ever! If we trust in Jesus to rescue us from evil, then we can be safe with Him forever.
Jesus put them straight. Today’s Bible bit is heavy stuff, so switch your brain on before we start!
weird words Mute Unable to talk
Beelzebub/ Satan Different names for the devil
Finger of God God’s power
Spoils/plunder The things he stole
Arid Dry and deserted
Blessed God is pleased with them
Read verses 17-20 If I’m working for the devil, why would I be kicking out evil spirits that come from the devil??! Your own people also drive out demons. So they would have to be from the devil too! But if I drive out demons by GOD’S POWER, then recognise that I am God’s chosen King!
Read verses 21-22 Jesus is saying that the devil is strong. But Jesus is much stronger! The people had seen Jesus defeat evil powers.
Read verse 23 Jesus is against the devil. So anyone who doesn’t follow Jesus (even if they just ignore Him) is on the devil’s side.
Read verses 24-28 There’s no point in just cleaning up your life by trying to be good. People who seem good are far more useful to the devil than bad ones. You need Jesus in your life.
pray! Do you know anyone who tries to be good but isn’t really a Christian? Maybe yourself? _____________________ _____________________ _____________________ _____________________ Ask Jesus to transform their lives so they listen to Him and live for Him.
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Follow the light Read Luke 11 v 29-32 Why did Jesus call these people wicked? they only wanted to see magic they wanted more proof that Jesus was God
So what should the Jews listening to Jesus do? ______________________ ______________________ ______________________
they wouldn’t trust Jesus All 3 are probably true. But why is Jesus talking about Jonah? Some people wouldn’t believe that Jesus was sent by God.
weird words Ninevites People from the town of Nineveh
Son of Man
Queen of Sheba, who visited Solomon when she heard God had given him great wisdom
The judgment When Jesus will judge everyone
Repented Turned away from sin
______________________ ______________________
Jonah told the people of Nineveh that God would punish them if they didn’t turn to Him. The people of Nineveh turned away from their sins and started living God’s way. But the people Jesus was talking to refused to turn from their sinful ways and live God’s way.
Jesus
Queen of the South
And what should we do?
The Queen of Sheba recognised that Solomon was God’s special king. But these people refused to believe that Jesus was the special King who God had sent to rescue them.
______________________
Read verse 33 Jesus is the light. He has the truth. He is the only way to eternal life. He’s the one we should follow.
Read verses 34-36 We all need to see clearly. We need to follow the light (Jesus) and live as He did. We need to believe Him and trust Him to rescue us from sin.
action!
What can you do to show that you have the light (Jesus) in your life? ______________________ ______________________ ______________________
______________________ Now ask God to help you do it!
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Sin side out What we’re like on the outside and what we’re like inside can be very different.
Read Luke 11 v 37-38 Pharisees had loads of rules about what Jews should and shouldn’t do. They reckoned that they became dirty and sinful when they met non-Jews. Draw or describe what you look like...
So washing before a meal supposedly made them clean enough for God. Jesus said that was nonsense.
What did Jesus say? Read the verses and fill in the blanks by going forward one letter (A=B, B=C, C=D etc).
Read verses 39-40
weird words Pharisee Very strict Jew
Woe to you God will punish you for disobeying Him
Rue A herb
Neglect Ignore
You Pharisees are clean on the outside, but inside you are full of __ __ __ __ __ and F Q D D C __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ V H B J D C M D R R
think!
Do you ever pretend to be good and godly when inside you’re not obeying God?
Read verse 41 The Pharisees should __ __ __ __ to the __ __ __ __ F H U D O N N Q instead of being greedy and wicked.
action!
This week, what can you do to actually live for God instead of just pretending to? ______________________ ______________________ ______________________
Read verse 42 They gave God their __ __ __ __ __ but didn’t live G D Q A R the rest of their lives for Him.
pray! Ask God to help you to serve Him and kick out the sin in your life.
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9 Luke 11 v 43-46 April 9 Wed
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Weight and see Now Jesus says “Woe to you...” a few more times. He is pointing out how these people disobey God. Woe to you means that God will punish them for their wrongs.
Find three things that Jesus got angry about. Read the Bible bits and use the word pool to fill in the blanks. The Pharisees were the religious top dogs. They were respected because they knew God’s law so well. But maybe they were not so godly after all...
weird words Synagogues Where people met to pray and learn from the Old Testament
Burdens Heavy things
walk knowing seats help carry load synagogues graves love
1. Read Luke 11 v 43
2. Read verse 44 You are like unmarked g___________ which men w________ over without k______________ it The Pharisees believed that if you walked over a grave, you became unclean to God. These men were like that. They made people unclean with their sinful ways.
think!
Is there anything you do or say that might cause other people to do wrong?
You l________ the most important s__________ in
3. Read verses 45-46
the s__________________
You l________ people down
These people enjoyed being well-respected and being recognised in the marketplace. They were more interested in impressing people than pleasing God.
with weights they can’t
pray! Say sorry to God for the times you try to please others rather than Him. Ask God to help you please Him more with the way you live your life.
c__________ but you don’t h_______ them yourselves They kept adding extra rules to God’s commands, and they didn’t even bother to help people serve God.
pray! On spare paper, write down ways you can help other people live for God. Maybe praying for them, or listening to their problems.
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10 Luke 11 v 47-54 April 10 Thurs
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Prophet and loss So God sent men called prophets to teach the people how to live for God. They also prophesied that God’s King (Jesus) would come to rescue His people from sin.
Read Luke 11 v 47-51
Back in Old Testament times, the Jewish people were called the Israelites. They were God’s special people but they often disobeyed God.
The people didn’t listen to the prophets. They ignored them and wouldn’t turn back to God. Now they were rejecting Jesus, God’s Son. One day they would be punished for all this.
Who tells you about God? Minister at church Parent Youth leader Teacher Discover
Do you listen to them...
weird words Prophets/ Apostles Messengers from God
always sometimes hardly ever
think!
Will you listen more to people who teach you about Jesus? Don’t reject the message of Jesus. He’s the ONLY ONE who can save us from our sins.
Read verses 52-54 The key of knowledge (v52) is the key to knowing God and living with Him forever. These people led others away from God instead of to Jesus! Because they refused to follow Jesus.
action!
Do you tell your friends about Jesus?
On spare paper, write down how to become a Christian. Write down what being a Christian means. Ask an older Christian to help you make it better. Then maybe you can use it to tell your friends the fantastic truth about Jesus...
Forefathers Ancestors
Testify Admit
Persecute Hassle for serving God
For a free fact sheet on how to tell people about Jesus write to: Discover, The Good Book Company, Blenheim House, 1 Blenheim Road, Epsom, Surrey, KT19 9AP, UK or email: discover@thegoodbook.co.uk
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Get more discover E Don’t miss out on the next exciting instalment of Discover. If you live in the UK, order the next issue now (£3.49 + £1 postage) or a whole year’s supply for just £13.95, including postage! You can get your parents to pay by cheque or credit/debit card (cheques payable to The Good Book Company Ltd). Or they can visit our website: www.thegoodbook.co.uk Please send me the next issue of Discover (£4.49 including postage) Please send me a One-year Subscription (£13.95 including postage) Please send me ____ copies of the Discover Starter Pack (£1.50 each)
For prices in other countries, see the websites at the bottom of the page. Name __________________________________________________ Address ________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________
Card number _____________________________________ Expiry __________ Start date __________ Issue no. _______
Send this page to: The Good Book Company, Blenheim House, 1 Blenheim Road, Epsom, Surrey, KT19 9AP, UK Phone: UK 0333 123 0880; International + 44 (0)208 942 0880 email: discover@thegoodbook.co.uk www.thegoodbook.co.uk Apr-Jun 2014
USA & CANADA: www.thegoodbook.com AUSTRALIA: www.thegoodbook.com.au SOUTH AFRICA: www.christianbooks.co.za NEW ZEALAND: www.thegoodbook.co.nz
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Write in to discover E Got any questions about the Bible or stuff you struggle with? Got any answers to prayer you’d love to share with us? Anything you’d like to see in Discover in the future? Write a letter to us at: The Good Book Company, Blenheim House, 1 Blenheim Road, Epsom, Surrey, KT19 9AP, UK Or send emails to discover@thegoodbook.co.uk
Dear Discover,
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In the next exciting issue of Discover... • ROMANS — Right with God • JESUS — The perfect teacher • • NUMBERS — Towards the promised land • God’s truth from RUTH Place your orders on one of our websites. UK: www.thegoodbook.co.uk USA: www.thegoodbook.com Australia: www.thegoodbook.com.au New Zealand: www.thegoodbook.co.nz