Hello Sunday school teachers, preachers, and students! Welcome to SundaySchoolPreacher.com. In this overview of the Winter Quarter I want to lift for you the major themes and movements of the next thirteen lessons. So as we study these lessons you will have some idea of where the lesson series is taking us.
King David made a place for the Ark of the covenant in Jerusalem. The time came when the Tabernacle was replaced by the Temple. Solomon the son of King David built the Temple in Jerusalem. Moses built the tabernacle, but the time came when the tabernacle was replaced by the Temple. Solomon built the Temple. But the time came when that Temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon in 583 B.C. The second rebuilt Temple survived until King Herod rebuilt it. It was that Temple that Jesus walked in. But that temple was also destroyed. Now let’s walk though how our Winter Quarter get us here.
The overall focus of the Winter Quarter is honoring God in worship. We have thirteen lessons through December, January, and February divided into three units.
Unit one deals with David as he honors God. Unit two deals with dedicating the temple of God. And unit three deals with Jesus teaching us about true worship.
For each of the three units and each of the four or five lessons in the units I’ll give you a mind map graphic that highlights the big picture. In this overview I’ll focus on key characters, key words Key scripture texts, and since we are dealing with honoring God in worship I list the key places of worship the text shows us.
The theme for unit one is “David Honors God”.
The theme for unit two is Dedicating the Temple of God
And unit three is Jesus Teaches about True Worship.
So let’s take a look at unit one. There are five lessons in unit one all of which come from 1 Chronicles except our Christmas lesson which comes from the Gospel according to Luke.
So in very broad terms we are going to look at the Ark of the Covenant of God which was housed in a tabernacle (tent). We move from the tabernacle to the Temple in Jerusalem and then from the Temple in Jerusalem to the heart of every believer.
So the time came when the Tabernacle was replaced by the Temple. Solomon the son of King David built the Temple in Jerusalem. That Temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and the Israelites were taken prisoner to Babylon. About seventy years later, a remnant of those in captivity returned to Jerusalem and rebuilt the first Temple. Moses built the tabernacle, but the time came when the tabernacle was replaced by the Temple. Solomon built the Temple. But the time came when that Temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon. That rebuilt second temple survived until King Herod rebuilt it, taking forty six years to do so (John 2:20). It was this Temple which Jesus visited, but even this temple was destroyed. It was destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70. And that Temple has never been rebuilt to its former glory. And that leads us to where God dwells today. The tabernacle no longer exists; the Temple made with human hands has been destroyed. It is the book of Acts that reminds us that “God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth. Does not dwell in temples made with hands” (Acts 17:24). As Christians, we have been redeemed through the death of Jesus. And as Peter reminded us last quarter “You were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold … but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:18, 19). And because of that redemption, because of that shed blood on Calvary’s cross, God now dwells in, amongst, and with every believer. Knowing that God is with us is good reason to honor God and celebrate God’s presence with us. Unit one deals with how David honors God. Unit two deals with how Solomon his son built the Temple or God and unit three brings it home with Jesus Christ teaching us about true worship. The tabernacle is gone, the temple is destroyed, but God is with us through the presence and power of God’s Holy Spirit. I hope you will join me each week this quarter as I explore David, Solomon, and Jesus in the weekly Sunday School lesson. Thank you and may God bless you real good.
Sunday School Preacher 