Creative Bible Lessons in Revelation: 12 Futuristic Sessions on Never-Ending Worship

Chapter One

What You'll Need Bibles

Pens Index cards (optional)

TV and DVD player (optional)

Movies with futuristic themes (optional)

Magic 8-Ball

Whiteboard and markers

Copies ofA Letter from John(pages 16-17), one for each student

Copies ofYou're in Good Hands(page 18), one for each student

1 Kickoff Option

I Predict

This activity will work especially well if you have a small group whose members are familiar with each other. Before the session, hand out index cards and ask students to write down four predictions of things they think will happen during the meeting. Emphasize that the predictions must be specific in order to be counted.

Specific, acceptable predictions might include things like-

Abdul will make Mallory laugh.

Lindsay will ask if we can play volleyball tonight.

Carlos will begin his prayer by saying, "Our gracious heavenly Father."

Vague, unacceptable predictions might include things like-

People will stand up after the meeting.

We will play a game tonight.

Someone will pray sometime during the meeting.

If a student's prediction comes true during the meeting, she should say, "I called it!" loud enough for everyone to hear. After you verify the prediction, reward the "prophet" with a piece of gum or candy. Do the same for anyone else whose predictions come true.

Segue into the session topic using questions like-

YOUTH WORKER SCRIPT

Without telling us your predictions, what did you base them on?

If you were to make a prediction about the distant future, what would it be?

When you think about what the future is going to be like, what do you base your impressions on?

NOTE: This activity-and the one that follows, involving a Magic 8-Ball-isn't meant to endorse divination or any other unbiblical practice. Quite the contrary! You'll find at the conclusion of the Magic 8-Ball activity that you're encouraged to clue your students into the fact that human attempts to figure everything out are futile-and that God has all the answers we'll ever need.

2 Kickoff Option

Clips Ahoy

Show several brief video clips from films either set in the future or depicting the future. (Be sure to screen each clip for objectionable material before you show it to your students.) Among the movie titles you might consider for these clips are-

12 Monkeys

2001: A Space Odyssey A.I.-Artificial Intelligence Blade Runner The Fifth Element The Matrix Minority Report Planet of the Apes

Sleeper

Soylent Green Star Trek Star Wars THX 1138 The Terminator The Time Machine Total Recall

Find a scene in each film illustrating its depiction of the future. For example in The Time Machine, you might show the scene in which the time traveler wakes up hundreds of thousands of years in the future in the seemingly peaceful, post-technological society of the Eloi.

After your mini film fest, segue into the lesson with questions like-

YOUTH WORKER SCRIPT

Which, if any, of these visions of the future do you think will turn out to be most accurate?

What do you think the world will be like 100 years from now? How about 500 years from now? How about 1,000 years from now?

Will the world get better or worse in the future? What makes you think so?

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Clips Ahoy

If you want to take this idea to the next level, check out www.FuturistMovies.com on the Internet. Created by a professional futurist, this site offers expert analysis on the way the future is depicted in various movies. You'll find information on everything from the feasibility of various type of space travel to the problems with alien portrayals in movies. You may be able to find some nuggets of wisdom to sprinkle on your discussion of the future. If you get vague responses, encourage your students to think about specific aspects of the future, such as medical technology, transportation, climate conditions, crime, or fashion.

Focusing In

Once Upon the Future

Pass around a Magic 8-Ball and let students take turns asking it questions about the future ("Will we beat Central this weekend?" "Will I pass my English midterm?" "Will this youth group meeting turn out to be the best time I've ever had in my life?") and then revealing its answers to the group. Then ask-

YOUTH WORKER SCRIPT

What are some other things people do to try to figure out what's going to happen in the future?

If no one else mentions it, point out that some people have tealeaves or tarot cards read for them by so-called psychics. Others have their palms or the bumps on their heads read. Others rely on horoscopes and astrology, and still others look for clues about the future in their dreams.

Emphasize that contrary to the claims of countless psychic hotline commercials, there's only one guaranteed revelation of the future. Lest any of your students miss the point, hold up a Bible.

Use any or all of the following questions to gauge your students' knowledge and opinion of the book of Revelation:

YOUTH WORKER SCRIPT

How many of you have ever studied the book of Revelation before? What did you think of it? What advice would you give to someone who was just beginning to study it?

How many of you have ever tried to just read the book of Revelation? How would you describe the book?

If someone were to ask you what the book of Revelation was about, what would you tell them?

Record students' answers on a flip chart or whiteboard. If any of your students are fans of theLeft Behind series, be prepared to explain the difference between the events portrayed in those books (in other words the creative license taken by the authors) and the events actually described in the book of Revelation.

If you find your students don't have a lot of previous experience with or opinions about the book of Revelation, give them a minute or so to get a taste of it. Distribute Bibles and instruct them to search Revelation as fast as they can to find one verse they can understand and one verse that makes absolutely no sense to them. Ask a couple of volunteers to share their discoveries. Briefly discuss some of the strange images and passages your students find.

Afterward introduce the next section by saying something like-

YOUTH WORKER SCRIPT

If Revelation seems like a strange book to you, join the club. Scholars and theologians have been arguing for centuries about what the book actually means and what it tells us about the future. The reason for the debate becomes obvious when you take a look at how the apostle John wrote the book. Some parts of Revelation read like a science fiction novel. Other parts read like a script for a disaster movie. Still other parts read like a hymnal. Very few parts are done in a straightforward way, which leaves it open to a lot of interpretation.

The good news is we don't have to know exactly what each image in the book represents or what each prophecy means in order to discover some life-changing facts about our future.

Hitting the Book

A Letter from John

Distribute pens and copies of A Letter from John (pages 16-17) to your students while they're in the large group . then let 'em work in small groups to complete the sheet. Also, please gauge how much time you think this worksheet will take your group-feel free to highlight only key questions while eliminating others. Now . you may want to use the following comments in your discussion of Revelation 1:

YOUTH WORKER SCRIPT

The fact that the book of Revelation is the Word of God means it's entirely truthful. We may not be able to understand everything in it, but we know God will accomplish everything he says he will do.

The fact that Revelation is God's Word also means its every bit as deserving of our attention as the seemingly easy books of the Bible. In other words we can't shrug off Revelation as being too hard to understand and leave it at that. We have a responsibility to study and understand it to the best of our ability.

Though the book is addressed to "the seven churches in the province of Asia"-and no doubt deals with some specific problems they were facing or would face-its truths also apply to the lives of believers today.

The book of Revelation isn't intended to answer every question we have about the future-it's merely a sneak preview of what lies ahead.

Despite the disturbing nature of some images and descriptions in Revelation, the book is intended to provide comfort and assurance for believers. Ultimately the future lies in the hands of our heavenly Father.

Making it Count

You're in Good Hands

Distribute copies of You're in Good Hands (page 18). Give students a few minutes to complete the top half of the sheet, then ask volunteers to share which events they rated highest and why. Then you might say something like-

YOUTH WORKER SCRIPT

The reason God is able to reveal the future to us in his Word is he's all-knowing. He knows exactly when every future event is going to happen and what the results will be. On a personal level, he knows every decision we will ever face, as well as every possible outcome. On top of that, God is all-powerful. Nothing is beyond his control-not even future events. Nothing can happen if he doesn't allow it.

The icing on the cake, though, is that God loves, protects, and takes care of us in ways we can't possibly imagine. Don't take my word for it though. See for yourself.

Ask new volunteers to read the following verses:

Joshua 1:5b "I will never leave you nor forsake you."

Matthew 11:28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

1 Peter 5:7 "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you."

Then continue with something like-

YOUTH WORKER SCRIPTS

God-the one who holds the future-invites us to give him our fears and worries about the future and let him take care of them. That's a great offer-especially when you consider he's the only one who can do something about them!

Instruct students to look back at You're in Good Hands and choose one item from the list of future concerns-the one they rated as causing them the most anxiety-and really place it in God's hands by writing it in the picture on the bottom half of the sheet. Wrap up the session by asking volunteers to share briefly what it means to place a concern in God's hands and how it should affect our feelings about it.

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You're in Good Hands

Ask your students how they feel about the future. Rather than having them answer with their mouths though, let them do it with their feet.

Set up an imaginary continuum in your meeting area. Announce that one wall represents Complete Excitement and Eagerness while the wall on the other side of the room represents Complete Fear and Dread. Ask students to stand in a place on the continuum representing their true feelings. Ask several students, especially those at each end, to explain their responses.

(Continues.)