Jesus is King, ruling over all of creation and guiding and directing His people, the church.
Scripture: Colossians 1:18-20; Hebrews 1:5-9; Revelation 22:12-13
Central Truth
Our King, unlike every other king in history, didn’t stay dead. Our King lived a perfect life, honoring the Father. Jesus was resurrected and ascended to His throne in heaven. He guides believers in wisdom, and one day He will return and reward those who are faithful to Him.
Key Question
All of heaven and earth will worship Jesus as king one day (see Phil. 2:10). How can you live to show others you worship Jesus?
Keep in Mind
When we call out to God to save us, He is faithful to do so. But then we have the amazing opportunity to live for Him and make a difference in our world. When we work for our reward in heaven, we aren’t striving to earn salvation because Christ already accomplished it on the cross. We want to make sure students know the different between salvation and reward. Salvation is a free gift. Our reward in heaven is based on how we live our lives for Christ. Our heavenly Father wants to give us good gifts, but we often forget God wants to reward us for the things we do for Him. We get caught up in what’s temporary and forget our focus should be on what’s eternal. As students live their lives and take part in the activities they love, they can use every opportunity to serve others and point them to Jesus.
APPLICATION
What do we allow to direct our lives, and even our churches, besides Christ?
THE WIN
FOR THE STUDENT: There will be times when students may be asked to do something for the greater good of their group or church. In other words, we don’t always get exactly what we want because we have to be willing to put others first. There is a temptation to make church all about us, but really, it’s an opportunity to worship God and serve others. When we view church this way, we model Jesus, who came as a servant (see Phil. 2:7).
FOR THE LEADER: There will also be numerous times when we may be tempted to come with our own agendas, even in our churches. As leaders we do make decisions for our groups, but we must be willing to submit to the leading of Christ above our own agendas. We can best lead our groups when we are spending time in prayer, asking God to lead us.
