Sunday School Lesson—Grammar Method
This is meant for at least two Sunday School Lesson.
A1 Review
B1 God knows what He authors--"But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the things of a man, except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so, no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we did not receive the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is from God, in order that we might know the things freely given to us by God;" (1 Corinthians 2:10-12, EMTV)
B2 The author is God; the writers are human.
B3 Not everything is what God has said. God authenticates it as accurate.
C1 The sayings of satan
D1 "Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?" And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'" But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:1-5, ESV2011)
D2 "Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." But he answered, "It is written, "'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" (Matthew 4:1-4, ESV2011)
C2 People
D1 "And he said, "I may not return with you, or go in with you, neither will I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place, for it was said to me by the word of the LORD, 'You shall neither eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by the way that you came.'" And he said to him, "I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD, saying, 'Bring him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water.'" But he lied to him. "(1 Kings 13:16-18, ESV2011)
D2 "Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting on their thrones, arrayed in their robes, at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria, and all the prophets were prophesying before them. And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made for himself horns of iron and said, "Thus says the LORD, 'With these you shall push the Syrians until they are destroyed.'" And all the prophets prophesied so and said, "Go up to Ramoth-gilead and triumph; the LORD will give it into the hand of the king." And the messenger who went to summon Micaiah said to him, "Behold, the words of the prophets with one accord are favorable to the king. Let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak favorably." But Micaiah said, "As the LORD lives, what the LORD says to me, that I will speak." And when he had come to the king, the king said to him, "Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we refrain?" And he answered him, "Go up and triumph; the LORD will give it into the hand of the king." But the king said to him, "How many times shall I make you swear that you speak to me nothing but the truth in the name of the LORD?" And he said, "I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd. And the LORD said, 'These have no master; let each return to his home in peace.'" And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?" (1 Kings 22:10-18, ESV2011)
B4 Pray
B5 Context
C1 Vertical—the same or similar topic
C2 Horizontal—the preceding and following
B6 Cross References—center column, Naves, Torrey's, etc.
B7 Conservative commentaries/notes
A2 Read
B1 The whole book to understand the general feel and message.
B2 Try to find a main topic or theme.
B3 Under the historical, cultural, and people to whom it was written.
B4 Pay attention to grammar.
B5 Word studies via interlinear version and/or Strong's numbers.
C1 Basic definition
C2 Where and how the word is used elsewhere.
A3 1 John
B1 Read all
C1 I read all of 1 John at a steady pace in 10.5 minutes.
C2 Try to find the main topic. While there are many opinions, I feel that this is speaking to people, Christians, to know if they are really Christians. "These things I write to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may believe in the name of the Son of God." (1 John 5:13, EMTV)
B2 Considering grammar
C1 Greek grammar
C2 English grammar—not as accurate but close enough to help understand what the passage teaches.
B3 Write your own outline of the book. We can do this chapter at a time or the whole book at once.
A4 1 John 1:8-10
B1 What word does each sentence start with? (If).
B2 What type of sentence does if represent? (Conditional)
C1 Three types of conditional sentences.
D1 Possible
E1 Example 1—"If you don't clean your room, then..."
E2 Example 2—"If you study your Bible, then you will be a stronger Christian."
D2 Impossible
E1 Example 1—If I were you, I won't do that."
E2 Example 2—If I were a King, then I would..."
D3 In the past
E1 Example 1—If I had only done that, then I wouldn't have to..."
E2 Example 2—If she would have treated me like that, I would just walk away."
B3 1 John 1:8
C1 What is the subject and verb of 1 John 1:8? (We say)
D1 Who is we referring to?
D2 Is there anything special about the word say? (No)
C2 Consider the word that.
D1 It is NOT a pronoun.
E1 God is good. If I say that, I am nice.
E2 "...the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanses us from all sin." If I say that, we have no sin.
E3 Most native English speakers will not make that mistake, but if they do, then that is how some heresies are started.
D2 It is not an adjective or adverb
D3 It is used as a conjunction. It can be used as the subject or the object
D4 Dictionary dot com has this definition: "used to introduce a subordinate clause as the subject or object of the principal verb or as the necessary complement to a statement made, or a clause expressing cause or reason, purpose or aim, result or consequence, etc.)." 4. When that introduces a relative clause, the clause is usually restrictive; that is, essential to the complete meaning of the sentence because it restricts or specifies the noun or pronoun it modifies. In the sentence The keys that I lost last month have been found, it is clear that keys referred to are a particular set. Without the that clause, the sentence The keys have been found would be vague and probably puzzling. That is used to refer to animate and inanimate nouns and thus can substitute in most uses for who(m) and which: Many of the workers that (or who) built the pyramids died while working. The negotiator made an offer that (or which) was very attractive to the union. Experienced writers choose among these forms not only on the basis of grammar and the kind of noun referred to but also on the basis of sound of the sentence and their own personal preference.
The relative pronoun that is sometimes omitted. Its omission as a subject is usually considered nonstandard, but the construction is heard occasionally even from educated speakers: A fellow (that) lives near here takes people rafting. Most often it is as an object that the relative pronoun is omitted. The omission almost always occurs when the dependent clause begins with a personal pronoun or a proper name: The mechanic (that) we take our car to is very competent. The films (that) Chaplin made have become classics. The omission of the relative pronoun as in the two preceding examples is standard in all varieties of speech and writing.
13. The conjunction that, which introduces a noun clause, is, like the relative pronoun that, sometimes omitted, often after verbs of thinking, saying, believing, etc.: She said (that) they would come in separate cars. He dismissed the idea (that) he was being followed. As with the omission of the relative pronoun, the omission of the conjunction almost always occurs when the dependent clause begins with a personal pronoun or with a proper name. This omission of the conjunction that occurs most frequently in informal speech and writing, but it is a stylistic option often chosen in more formal speech and writing."
Reference: that. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved September 24, 2015, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/that
D5 That in this sentence is for a noun clause, best I can tell, used as a direct object.
D6 The sentence makes no sense without this clause.
D7 The Greek word is ὅτι hoti. It is a conjunction.
D8 Often that used as a conjunction for a noun clause can be left out.
C3 The direct object then is "we have no sin."
D1 Note it does not say "we have not sinned."
D2 Sin is a noun.
D3 Knowing this also helps prevent false interpretations and even heresies.
D4 Who is we?
C4 The word sin then can be used for a word study.
D1 The Greek word for sin here is ἀμαρτία amartia.
D2 It means failure. (A failing to hit the mark)
E1 A failure to follow the rules of a game or competition.
E2 A failure to follow the rules of God, law, or morals.
E3 Some might understand this to be original sin or of sin before salvation, but most understand this to mean every sins in general.
E4 If I am caught stealing, and I claim that I have no sin, we understand this phrase.
D3 Other passages using the same word.
E1 "The next day John saw Jesus coming to him, and said, "The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29, EMTV)
E2 "Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I AM, you will die in your sins." (John 8:24, EMTV)
E3 ""Blessed are they whose lawless deeds have been forgiven, and whose sins have been covered;" (Romans 4:7, EMTV)
E4 "All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death." (1 John 5:17, EMTV)
C5 Cross references.
D1 Treasure of Scripture Knowledge by Torrey
E1 "Who can say, "I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin"?" (Proverbs 20:9, NKJV)
E2 This is reality. "All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all." (Isaiah 53:6, NKJV)
D2 Center column, etc.
C6 Horizontal context, same topic.
D1 Naves has a long, complete entry on sin.
D2 Other reference book as New and Complete Analysis of the Bible by Hitchcock.
D3 Bible dictionaries as the Bridgeway Bible Dictionary.
C7 The main clause contains two parts
D1 We deceive ourselves
E1 Who is we?
E2 Who do we deceive?
E3 Word study on deceive.
F1 The Greek word is πλανάω planao
F2 It means to cause or lead astray, to deceive, to mislead
F3 Uses
G1 "Jesus answered and said to them, "You err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God!" (Matthew 22:29, EMTV)
G2 "And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many." (Matthew 24:4-5, EMTV)
E4 Cross references
F1 "But evil men and impostors shall advance worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived." (2 Timothy 3:13, EMTV)
F2 "receiving the wages of unrighteousness, counting as a pleasure to revel in the daytime, they are spots and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions while they feast with you," (2 Peter 2:13, EMTV)
E5 Topical study
F1 "An oracle within my heart concerning the transgression of the wicked: There is no fear of God before his eyes. For he flatters himself in his own eyes, When he finds out his iniquity and when he hates. The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit; He has ceased to be wise and to do good. He devises wickedness on his bed; He sets himself in a way that is not good; He does not abhor evil." (Psalms 36:1-4, NKJV)
F2 "Moreover, your skirts are stained with the blood of the innocent poor. You did not catch them breaking and entering. But in spite of all these things you claim, "I am innocent. His anger is sure to turn away from me." But I will certainly judge you because you have said, "I have not sinned." (Jeremiah 2:34-35, HCSB)
E6 How does all of this help us interpret this phrase?
D2 The truth is not in us
E1 Who is us?
E2 What is the importance of the word not?
E3 Is there any importance in the word in?
E4 Word study on truth
F1 The Greek word is ἀλήθεια aletheia
F2 It means truth, reality.
F3 Give some examples of a truth.
F4 Give some examples of reality. (What if I tell you that I am a great singer?)
F5 ""You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. "But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me. "Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? "He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God." (John 8:44-47, NKJV)
E5 Cross References
F1 "Get the truth, and do not surrender it, as well as wisdom, instruction, and understanding." (Proverbs 23:23, WEL)
F2 "Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding." (Proverbs 4:7, NKJV)
E5 Topical Study
F1 Bible Dictionaries
F2 Topical Bibles
E6 How can truth be in us?
B4 1 John 1:9
C1 Verse—"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. "(1 John 1:9, EMTV)
C2 What is the difference between 1 John 1:8 and 1 John 1:9? Is there a different attitude?
C3 What does this verse teach about God?
C4 Can people do anything that would forgive sins or supplement confession?
C5 Who do we confess our sins to?
C6 If clause
D1 What is the subject and verb?
D2 What is the direct object of confess?
D3 What are we to confess?
D4 Whose sins do we confess?
D5 Who is we?
D6 Word study
E1 The Greek word for confess is ὁμολογέω homologeo
E2 It means agree with, thus acknowledge, then confess.
E3 Confess in English means to acknowledge something, many times a wrong.
E4 Other verses
F1 "Therefore whoever who will confess Me before men, I also will confess Him before My Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 10:32, EMTV)
F2 "These things his parents said because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone should confess that He was Christ, he would be excommunicated." (John 9:22, EMTV)
F3 "Nevertheless even from among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be excommunicated"; (John 12:42, EMTV)
F4 "They profess to know God, but in their works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work." (Titus 1:16, EMTV)
D7 Cross references
E1 "I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD," And You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah" (Psalms 32:5, NKJV)
E2 "He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy." (Proverbs 28:13, NKJV)
E3 "and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins." (Matthew 3:6, NKJV)
E4 "And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds." (Acts 19:18, NKJV)
D8 Topical Studies
C7 Main clause
D1 First part—"He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins"
E1 What is the subject and verb? (He is)
E2 Who is He?
E3 Is this He the only one who forgives sins?
E4 What is the direct object? (Faithful and just)
E5 What is the purpose these words are added "...to forgive us our sins." (To answer the question of faithful and just for what. If those words were not added, then is would describe character traits of God instead of action by God).
E6 "...to forgive us our sins" is an infinitive clause. In this case it is in the objective case, that is, as a direct object.
E7 Who does He forgive?
E8 Word study
F1 Faithful
G1 The Greek word is πιστός pistos and means faithful.
G2 The idea is to give a responsibility or command to, and it will be done, or if a teaching/doctrine the person will hold to that belief.
H1 ""Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master appointed over his household, to give them food in due season?" (Matthew 24:45, EMTV)
H2 "God is faithful, through whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord." (1 Corinthians 1:9, EMTV)
H3 "And the things which you have heard from me through many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be competent to teach others also." (2 Timothy 2:2, EMTV)
H4 "These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, and elect, and faithful." (Revelation 17:14, EMTV)
G3 Cross Reference
H1 "There has no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted above that you are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that you may be able to bear it." 1 Corinthians 10:13 KJ2000
H2 "Therefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator." 1 Peter 4:19 KJ2000
F2 Just
G1 The Greek word is δίκαιος dikaios and means lawful and just.
G2 God cannot be accused of forgiving someone for no reason. The reason is that the penalty has been paid. The Bridgeway Bible Dictionary has this under the topic of justification: "The forgiveness that believers need day by day is concerned not with the basic work of justification, but with their daily enjoyment of fellowship with God. Although the penalty of sin has been paid, the evil effects of sin are still in the world and believers cannot escape them. Their failures may disappoint themselves and God, but as they confess those failures they are assured of God's forgiveness."
G3 The idea is that God shows no favoritism in any form. Therefore we can be sure that what He does is right.
H1 Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. (John 7:24KJ2000)
H2 And said unto them; Go you also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way. (Matthew 20:4KJ2000)
G4 Cross references
H1 Tell and bring forth your case; yea, let them take counsel together: who has declared this from ancient time? who has told it from that time? have not I the LORD? and there is no other God besides me; a just God and a Savior; there is none besides me. (Isaiah 45:21KJ2000)
H2 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him who believes in Jesus. (Romans 3:26KJ2000)
H3 And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are your works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are your ways, you King of saints. (Revelation 15:3KJ2000)
D2 Second part—to cleanse us from all unrighteousness
E1 What is the subject and verb? (He is)
E2 The thought is this—He is faithful and just...to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
E3 Ask the question, faithful and just, for what? (To cleanse us from all unrighteous, which is an infinitive used as an object. A direct object answers the question of what; what is He faithful and just to do. Us is an indirect object. An indirect object answers the question to or for who does He do this).
E4 How is He faithful and just to cleanse us?
E5 Who is us?
E6 What is cleansed from us?
E7 What does cleanse mean?
F1 The Greek word is cleanse. It is used as clearing the ground of weeds, to prune away, and even to sift wheat. In referring to humans, it is used to purify as to heal leprosy and to forgive sins.
F2 Uses
G1 Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (2 Corinthians 7:1KJ2000)
G2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshiped him, saying, Lord, if you will, you can make me clean. (Matthew 8:2KJ2000)
G3 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (Hebrews 9:14KJ2000)
F3 Cross references
G1 And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, by which they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, by which they have sinned, and by which they have transgressed against me. (Jeremiah 33:8KJ2000)
G2 And such were some of you: but you are washed, but you are sanctified, but you are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
(1 Corinthians 6:11KJ2000)
B4 1 John 1:10
C1 Verse—If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:10KJ2000)
C2 If clause—If we claim that we have not sinned
D1 The word if signifies what type of sentence? (Conditional)
D2 What type of conditional sentence is this? (Possible)
D3 Who is we?
D4 What is the subject/verb?
D5 Note that this time sin is a verb.
D6 Does sinned mean the attitude of sin, original sin, sin nature, sinful thoughts, desires, words, and deeds, or something else?
D7 What is sin?
D8 What is it that we are saying?
D9 Can this be true?
D10 A good comment from Robertson Word Pictures on this verse. "David Smith observes that the claim to personal perfectionism has two causes, one the stifling of conscience in making God a liar (pseustēn, the word used of the devil by Jesus in John 8:44), and the other ignorance of God's word, which is not in us, else we should not make such a claim. "
C3 Main clause
D1 What are the two truths about a person who claims to have not sinned?
E1 We make God a liar.
E2 God's word is not in us.
D2 We make God a liar.
E1 Why is this?
E2 Who is we?
E3 How can we make God a liar?
E4 What does God say about our sin? Consider: "Therefore seeing we also are surrounded with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which does so easily ensnare us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such hostility of sinners against himself, lest you be wearied and faint in your minds. You have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin. And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks unto you as unto children, My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when you are rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loves he chastens, and scourges every son whom he receives. If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chastens not? But if you be without chastisement, of which all are partakers, then are you illegitimate children, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh who corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seems to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them who are trained by it." (Hebrews 12:1-11KJ2000). In this life we still have the flesh which wants its own desires instead of God's desires.
D3 The truth is not in us.
E1 What is the truth?
E2 How can it be in us?
F1 Yea, they despised the pleasant land, they believed not his word: (Psalms 106:24KJ2000)
F2 He that says, I know him, and keeps not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. (1 John 2:4KJ2000)
E3 What is the importance of believing God?
E4 What is the attitude of this type of person?
E5 If this attitude is present, is this person a Christian?
E6 How can someone actually believe this about themselves?
E7 What is the standard of truth?
E8 How do verses 8-10 give us insight if we are or are not a Christian?
E9 How important is it to know the truth?
E10 How important is reality?
