RCCG SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER’S MANUAL Y.A.Y.A EDITION LESSON: 12 – DATE: SUNDAY 17TH NOVEMBER 2024 | TOPIC: CULTURAL CHRISTIANITY

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RCCG SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER’S MANUAL
Y.A.Y.A EDITION
LESSON: TWELVE
DATE: SUNDAY 17TH NOVEMBER 2024

TOPIC: CULTURAL CHRISTIANITY

SUNDAY SCHOOL 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 be 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?

OPENING PRAYER
Father, help me to understand what it means to be a true Christian in Jesus’ name.

MEMORY VERSE: “And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.”. – Acts 11:26

BIBLE PASSAGE: Matthew 7:21-23

[21]Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

[22]Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

[23]And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

INTRODUCTION
The Christian faith is the experience of daily living in a dynamic and new personal relationship with God (Rom. 10:9-10; Jn. 1:11-13). The very term “Christian” was coined in the city of Antioch as a way to identify the first followers of Christ (Acts 11:26). The first disciples were so much like Jesus that they were called little Christs by their detractors. It is unfortunate that nowadays, some people have made Christianity represent an ideology or a social class rather than a lifestyle or obedience to God. Today, there are two shades of Christianity: Cultural Christianity and biblical Christianity.

TEXT REVIEW: Matthew 7:21-23

i. For those who follow Christ not according to His will (biblical tenets) like the cultural Christians,the Lord Jesus Christ explains that not all who call his name will enter the kingdom of Heaven, V12.

ii. Except those who do the will of the Father (Those who abide by biblical principles),…………. V21b.

iii. For many will say in that ……….. V22.

iv. But Jesus confesses that He …………… V23.

LESSON OUTLINES

1. CULTURAL CHRISTIANITY DESCRIBED
2. IDENTIFICATION MARKS

CULTURAL CHRISTIANITY DESCRIBED

i. Cultural Christians are nominal believers who superficially identify themselves as “Christians” but do not truly adhere to the tenets of the Christian faith (Matt. 15:8).

ii. They wear the label “Christian” without personal conviction that Jesus is Lord (2Tim. 3:5).

iii. Cultural Christianity is more social than spiritual (1Cor. 2:14-15).

iv. A cultural Christian identifies with certain aspects of Christianity, such as the good works of Jesus (Jn. 6:26-27), but rejects the spiritual aspects required to be a biblically defined Christian (Rom. 8:5).

v. Some people consider themselves Christians because of family background, charity giving, place of residence, Christian name or title, churchgoing or social environment.

vi. Others identify as Christians as a way of declaring a religious affliction.

vii. Cultural Christianity is not true Christianity. There was no such thing as cultural Christianity in the days of the early church.

CLASS ACTIVITY 1
According to the text of the lesson (Matthew 7:21-23) what will be Jesus’ justification for labelling some “Christians” workers of iniquity on the last day?

IDENTIFICATION MARKS

The following are some identifying marks of cultural Christians:

1. They deny the inspiration of Scripture or part of Scripture (2Timothy 3:16; 2Peter 1:21).
2. They ignore or downplay true repentance as the first step towards knowing God (Matthew 4:17; act 2:38).
3. The focus on Jesus’ love and acceptance to the exculsion of His teaching on hell, obedience, and self-sacrifice (Mark 9:43; luke 12:5).
4. They tolerate or even celebrate ongoing sin while claiming to know God (1Corinthians 5: 1-2).
5. They redefine scriptural truths to accommodate culture (Numbers 23:19)
6. Claiming God’s promises while ignoring the requirement included with them (Psm. 50:1 6)
7. They deny or minimize Jesus’ claim that He is the only way to God (John 14:6).
8. They perform enough religious activity to gain a sense of well-being without a true devotion ot Jesus (Rom 8:9).
9. They see protection and blessing as goals to be achieved, rather than by-products of a love relationship with God (Mark 12:30).
10. They are lukewarm and choose the church to attend based on any of all of the above (Revelation 3:15 -17).

CLASS ACTIVITY 2
Students should examine themselves in the face of the aforementioned identification marks, and share with the class, the biblically acceptably option they would embrace going forward.

CONCLUSION
Jesus’ warning in Matthew 7:21-23 should be a wake-up call to cultural Christians.

CLOSING PRAYER
Father, work in me to do Your will and live up to Your expectation of true Christ in Jesus’ name.

ASSIGNMENT
Write five differences between a true Christian and a cultural Christian (2×5=10 marks).

Open Heavens 2024 Daily Devotional guide was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer’s Ministries. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC.

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