TOPIC: The Crucial Judgment [RCCG Sunday School Manual 12 August 2018]

Opening Prayer: Father, do not ever let me go back to sin, in the name of Jesus (Scroll down for RCCG Sunday School Manual 12 August, 2018 Hymn)

Bible Passage: Revelation 20:11-15 (RCCG Sunday School TEACHER’s Manual 12 August 2018)

11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

MEMORY VERSE: “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” – Hebrews 9:27

INTRODUCTION:
Judgment is one of the common destinies awaiting all men – Heb. 9:27. Believers and unbelievers, the young and old, the rich and poor, will all face judgment. The judgment will not be corporate but personal. As there is more than one resurrection, there is more than one judgment. Some of the judgments the Bible speak about include the believers’ self-judgment at the communion table – 1Cor. 11:29-31, the judgment of the believers at the judgment seat of Christ- 2 Cor.5:10, the judgment of the nations, Matt. 25:32, and the judgment of the unsaved at the Great white Throne, Rev. 20:11. In this lesson, our focus is on the judgment of the believers and the judgment of the unsaved.

TEXT REVIEW: REVELATION 20:11-15:
At the Great White Throne:
i. The present earth and heaven would have fled away. Rev. 20:11

ii. Sinners will stand before God. Rev. 20:12a

iii. Book of records of the individuals would be opened. Rev. 20:12b

iv. Book of life would also be opened. Rev. 20:12a

v. Individual will be judged based on the contents of the books. Rev. 20:12a

vi. Death and hell will release their captives to be judged accordingly. Rev. 20:13

vii. Death and hell too will be judged. Rev. 20:14

viii. They will be cast into the lake of fire. Rev. 20:14

ix. No excuse or escape for whose name is not written in the book of life. Rev. 20:15.

x. They will die the second death in the lake of fire, that is, be in torment forever. Rev. 20:15

LESSON OUTLINES:
1. The judgment of the saint
2. The judgment of the sinners

THE JUDGEMENT OF THE SAINTS:

A. THE SAINTS:
Believers will no longer be judged for sin, as long as they do not go back to sin. The believers sins, which have been repented of and forsaken, have been judged in Christ at Calvary. Rom. 8:1.However, there is a judgment the believers must go through. This is the judgment of the believers works for the purpose of rewards. Matt. 16:27

B. ABOUT THE JUDGMENT:
i. The focus of the judgment: The quality of work, the motive behind every work and the level of faithfulness. 1Cor.3:113; 2Tim. 2:20; 2Cor. 5:10

ii. The candidates for the judgment- The resurrected ‘dead in Christ’and the living who remain in Christ when He comes at rapture. 1Thess.4:16-17

iii. The place of the judgment:- The judgment seat of Christ. 2Cor. 5:10

iv. The time for the judgment: After Christ’s coming at rapture, during the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Rev. 19:9; Rev. 20:1-5

C. THE RESULTS OF THE JUDGMENT:
i. Rewards and crowns for the faithful. 1 Cor. 3:14; 2 Tim. 4:7-8

ii. Losses for those whose works lack the required divine quality. 1 Cor. 3:15

CLASS ACTIVITY 1:
Class should identify and discuss what the saint must do to receive rewards and crowns for the faithful.

THE JUDGMENT OF THE SINNERS:
This is the final judgment that will climax the end o this age. The judgment of sinners is certain. Prov.11:21.

i. The candidates for the judgment: those whose names are not in the Book of Life. Rev20:15. These include the abominable [homosexuals, lesbians, etc], all liars, sexually immoral, the friends of the world, idolaters, murderers, thieves, etc. Rev. 21:8

ii. The place of the judgment: The GreatWhite Throne. God, the impartial and all knowing God sits on the throne. Rev. 20:11

iii. The time for the judgment: After the millennial [[One thousand years], reign of Christ on earth. Rev. 20:5-6

iv. The result of judgment: sinners shall be cast into the lake of fire. Rev. 20:15; Ps. 9:17

CLASS ACTIVITY 2:
Identify and discuss what the sinners must do to escape the White Throne judgment

SUMMARY:
i. At Christ’s judgment seat the work of the saint will be judged for reward. 2Cor. 5:10.
ii. At the Great White Throne judgment, the sinners will be judged for eternal punishment. Rev. 20:11
iii. Both the sinners and the saints have a choice to make now!

CONCLUSION:
Earthly judgment can be influenced and compromised, but divine judgment cannot. It is judgment in righteousness and truth. The judgment of both the saints and the sinners is certain. Gal. 6:7-8

CLOSING PRAYER:
Father, do not allow to turn my back at you. Let me follow you to the end.

ASSIGNMENT:
Use five (5) points to differentiate between the earthly judgment and the judgment of the sinners.

Read previous RCCG Sunday School Teacher’s Manual Here

RCCG Sunday School Manual 12 August 2018 HYMN

1. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,
O how I love Thee well,
I am happy, it makes me glad
To rejoice at Thy birth.

2. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day, Thy friendship suits me well,
Both young and old will sing Thy song,
We long for Sunday School.

3. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,
Christ was Thy first teacher,
The Holy Spirit, great teacher,
Does manifest in thee.

4. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,
This testimony is sure,
That God, the Father Almighty,
Poured His blessing on Thee.

5. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,
Though the sun be so bright,
Or if the clouds black with rain,
I’ll be in Sunday School.

6. O Sunday School, on the Lord’s day,
I rejoice to see Thee,
Will thou pass over me today?
Without my being blest?

Topic: The Peaceful Mind [Joyce Meyer’s Devotional Saturday August 11, 2018]

This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds. — Hebrews 10:16

What is it about nighttime that makes us more vulnerable to satanic attack? Is it because daylight is gone and it’s dark? Is there some kind of association between evil and the dark hours of night? We are usually able to cope with whatever happens to us during the day, but sometimes it’s a different story at night.

My theory is that by evening, most of us are tired and weary, and we just want to lie down, close our eyes, and drift into peaceful sleep. That is one of Satan’s favorite times to engage us in the battle for our minds. He knows that when we are exhausted and sleepy, we are not as resistant to his attacks. And just as we are about to drop off to sleep, he makes his move.

If we recognize that we’re more susceptible to the attack of the enemy at night, we can take steps to be better prepared to stand against him. Some of my friends tell me that they find it helps to meditate on scriptures such as Philippians 4:8 (AMP), which tells us to think on good things—things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, and excellent.

Or they claim the promise of Isaiah 26:3: You will keep in perfect and constant peace the one whose mind is steadfast [that is, committed and focused on You—in both inclination and character]…. These words from the Bible enable us to remain vigilant even in the dark hours of night. By using the Word of God, we can defeat every onslaught of the enemy—even in our weakest hours.

But if we have not armed ourselves with the Word and spent some time in prayer, we will fall for Satan’s plan when he brings to mind some troublesome event of the day, and asks, “Why did you say that? How could you have been so insensitive?”

He takes advantage of us when he knows we are weak and the most vulnerable to his influence. His goal is to disturb our thoughts and rob us of the peaceful rest that our bodies need. One of his tricks is to cause us to focus on the problems of the day, suggesting that we must immediately—in the middle of the night—determine the best way to settle the issue.

I experienced nights like this years ago, and I didn’t always win the battle. But as a mature Christian, I now know how to fight the good fight of faith. Here’s one thing I figured out a long time ago: It is not wise to make decisions in the middle of the night. There may be times when God demands an immediate surrender, and those are powerful moments in our lives. But most decisions can wait until the next day.

Perhaps we spoke hastily or didn’t respond kindly to someone’s need. The issues are often little things that we probably could have handled better. But as Satan wages his battle in the dark of night, those little things seem to take on importance and urgency—so much so that we believe we will never sleep unless we settle the issue immediately.

When Satan tries to pull that nighttime trick on me, I’ve learned to say, “I’ll deal with this issue in the morning, when the sun is shining. After I’ve rested, I can cope.” I’ve also learned that I can say, “Lord, I surrender this to You. Give me Your rest, Your peace, and help me to make the right decision in the morning.” That works for me!

Prayer Starter: Holy Spirit, thank You for being with me, for protecting me, and for guiding my life. When I face those dark nights and the enemy tries to attack my mind, protect me. I trust You and ask You to keep me in Your perfect peace. Amen.

If you missed yesterday devotional, please click to read “Joyce Meyer Daily Devotional HERE’’

From Joyce Meyer’s Ministries.

Topic: The Unmerited Favor of God [Billy Graham Daily Devotional 11 August, 2018]

For by grace are ye saved . . . — Ephesians 2:8

“Grace,” according to the dictionary, is the unmerited favor of God toward mankind. The word “grace” is used over 170 times in the New Testament alone. Grace is not bought. It is a free gift of almighty God to needy mankind. When I picture Jesus Christ dying on the cross, I see the free gift of God’s grace in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself. I sing with the songwriter, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see.” Your human mind, with its philosophy of an equal return for favors done, can hardly comprehend the full meaning of this grace of God. But when you catch, by the inspiration of God, its full meaning, you will leave the limits of human reasoning and revel in the spiritual riches of divine truth and privilege.

Yes, the grace of God is a reality. Thousands have tried, tested, and proved that it is more than a cold creed, a docile doctrine, or a tedious theory. The grace of God has been tested in the crucible of human experience, and has been found to be more than an equal for the problems and sins of humanity.

Prayer for the day: Lord, this day help me to come to a more full and abundant awareness of Your bountiful grace. Stimulate me to serve You.

“If you missed yesterday devotional, please click to read Billy Graham’s Daily Devotional HERE

Written by Billy Graham, Founder of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association(BGEA). BGEA exists to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ by every effective means and to equip the church and others to do the same.