LESSON 5/January 2329, 2016

The Controversy Continues

Surveying the Source
Genesis 3; Joshua 24:15; 1 Kings 18:21; 2 Kings 1; Esther 3 and 4; 8:1114; 9; Rev.
12:79, 1117.

Teachers
Guide

Plotting the Course

The students will:

Understand that the controversy between God and Satan plays out in their
lives every day.
Learn strategies that will help them

to be victorious in the battle between

good and evil.
Plan how to offer the knowledge of
that victory to others.

Preparing to Lead
There is an old story about a king who
played a melody and then offered a prize
to anyone who could travel through the
forest and arrive on the other side still
remembering the melody.
The story recounts the adventures of
people who battled all types of deceptions in order to retain the melody in their
mind. In the end, the one who did remember the melody and receive the prize

Materials

pens or pencils; paper; a

musician; a musical instrument

won because he brought with him on the

journey the musician who played the
melody. Thus, the tune was always fresh
in his mind.
We cannot be victorious in the controversy between good and evil unless we
have Jesus, the God of love, walking with
us every step of the way.

Getting Started
A. Have a musician in your gr oup
play on the piano or on another instrument a few bars of an unfamiliar melody.
Ask for volunteers to try to repeat the
melody accurately. After trying this a few
times, explain how we need to be in constant contact with God through His Spirit
in order to resist the deceptions of this
world and to keep Gods Word in our
hearts.

B. Ask ever yone to r ate their joy

quotient at this exact moment on a scale
of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest. Get
an average for the class. Then ask each
person to write down one thing for which
he or she is thankful.
Have each person read what he or she
wrote. Close with a popcorn prayer where
each person says a phrase of praise or
gratitude.

Delving Into the Word

A. Say: When you are overwhelmed
by the great controversy, there are things
you can remember that will help to silence the devils voice. Divide into four

groups and assign each group one of the

following categories. Have them look up
the texts, write down the key ideas in
each category, and then share their reCopyright 2016
General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

13

sponse with the whole class.

1. God says I am: John 1:12; 15:15; 2
Cor. 5:17; Eph. 2:8, 9.
2. God says He will: Matt. 6:33; Phil
4:19; Heb. 13:5; 2 Pet. 3:9.
3. God says He has: Deut. 3:24; 1 Cor.
1:9; Heb. 11:16; 1 John 1:5.
4. God says I can: Luke 18:27; 1 Cor.
1:30; Phil. 4:13; 2 Tim. 1:17.*
B. Have someone r ead 1 Kings 19:1
14. Discuss what Elijahs reason and underlying emotions were for running
away. Say: Ultimately, our choices in
life boil down to serving ourselves or

serving others, selfishness or unselfishness.

Divide the class into groups, and give
each group a copy of the reproducible
activity (p. 35).
Have each group discuss their scenario
and be prepared to share with the class
how they would handle their situation
based on making unselfish choices and
treating people in ways that would exhibit what Gods character is and bring glory
to Him.

Discussing the Ideas

1. How do you know that what you are
hearing is really Gods voice?
2. What things distract us from hearing
Gods voice?
3. What methods did Jesus use to defeat
Satan?
4. How do we access the Holy Spirit
when we are tempted?

5. What key text or idea can you hang

onto to help you make the right choice in
a moment of controversy?
6. How does God help us to be selfless
instead of selfish in a moment of crisis?
7. How can you model these concepts
to a friend?

Closing the Activity

If you chose A in Getting Started, ask
if anyone can reproduce accurately the
original melody. After giving people the
opportunity to try, ask the musician to
play the tune again.
Remind the students that they can have
access to God anytime through prayer.
Also remind them that the Holy Spirit is
their constant companion and can therefore keep them connected to Gods voice.
Close with prayer, asking God to help
you and your class to always listen to His

song.
If you chose B in Getting Started,
have the class take the joy quotient scale
again. Recalculate the class average. Has
the average number gone up? Is there a
difference in attitudes after spending time
being thankful and reading Gods Word?
Ask: How does this concept help win
battles in the great controversy?

Kris
Coffin Stevenson, North Saanich, British Columbia, Canada
____________
* Steven Furtick, Crash the Chatterbox (Colorado Springs, Colo.: Multnomah Books, 2015).

Copyright 2016
General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

14

1. You are going into Walmart when you see a woman coming out pushing a cart
full of plastic shelving. She is trying to carry one in her hand and push the cart
with the other hand while looking over the top of the pile in her cart. Youre
meeting a friend and are running late.

2. You are at a church retreat and are excited because some friends you rarely see
are there. You have all arranged to sit together for lunch. You go early to save
seats for everyone at a table in the crowded dining area. While your friends are
still in the serving line, you see a person all by themself looking for an open
place to sit and eat. There are no extra seats at your table.

3. You come home from a long trip, tired, hot, hungry, and thirsty. You just want
to take a shower and crash. Your landlords are outside repainting the trim on the
house.

4. You come home to find your mom has made your favorite pizza as a special treat
for you. You gobble down several pieces. Still hungry, you reach for the last
piece and see your little sister look longingly at it.

5. You hurry into the restroom during a quick break at school. You discover that
someone has left a big mess behind.

6.

Theres a bully in your neighborhood who likes to rough up younger kids to get
money from them. Youve managed to avoid him so far. You hear that he has
been harassing some friends of yours. But when you try to investigate, youre
clearly told to stay out of it, or else. . .

Copyright 2016
General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

Lesson 5

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