During the lesson, the information for you to know is written in regular type, and what we suggest speaking or reading aloud to children is in bold. All resources for this lesson, including the Teacher Guide, Student Page, Family Connection Card, and other resources can be downloaded in a ZIP file by clicking on the following link:
In some lessons you will find "resource articles." These are articles written by experts from around the world to help equip you for your work with children and adolescents. Share them with parents or guardians if you consider it appropriate.
Food gained by fraud tastes sweet, but one ends up with a mouth full of gravel.
Proverbs 20:17
Imagine eating a bowlful of gravel. How would it taste? How would it feel against your teeth? What a horrible thought! This is the image Solomon uses in Proverbs 20:17 to describe fraud, or deceiving others for your own benefit. Think about your community. How common is deception? Can you trust most people to be honest in business and in their relationships? Or is it common for people to lie and deceive?
Now think about your own life. Are there areas where you are not completely honest with others? Maybe you tell little lies to protect someone’s feelings. Maybe you exaggerate to make yourself look more important. Keep a personal honesty journal this week. Every day record each dishonest thing you say or do, even the small ones. Bring your dishonesty before God, the source of all truth. Ask Him to make you aware of the deceit in your heart. Then spit the gravel out of your mouth! Ask God to forgive you and to fill you with truth.
Let families know that their children will learn that deception is dishonesty. Deception is very common in many communities. Dishonesty in business is seen as an accepted way to make money. It could be that even the families of the students are dishonest and use deception in some way. Pray that as the children share what they are learning about honesty, families and communities will be transformed.
Teacher Tip: If possible, email or text the Family Connection Card to the families of your students.
Welcome the children warmly. As they arrive, ask them if they told the truth in difficult situations since the last lesson. Encourage them to share about these situations.
Divide children into two equal teams. Point out the two paths. Have the first team line up at the starting point of the crooked path. Have second team line up at the starting point of the straight path. Explain that this is a relay race. The first person on each team will follow their path to the end, run back to the beginning, and tag the next teammate’s hand. Each team member will take a turn running to the end of the path and back again until everyone has gone. Whichever team finishes first is the winner. Allow both teams to finish the relay. Children can cheer for their teammates and encourage the other team as well! Say, “Go” to begin the race.
After the game is over, clap for the winners and ask the children to all sit in their regular places.
The team with the straight path will most likely win because their path is more direct.
In life we have a choice of two paths. These are not actual paths like the ones we just ran on. These are symbolic paths. We take the crooked path when we lie and are dishonest. Sometimes being dishonest might seem like the easier choice, but it is always wrong. We take the straight path when we tell the truth. The straight path is always the right path and the best path, even if it is not always easy.
Today we will learn about deception. It is a type of dishonesty, and it is always wrong.
Listen to a Bible verse about two paths. The Bible verse uses the word “integrity.” Some of you learned about integrity last year.
Allow the children to briefly share what they remember.
If we have integrity, we are trustworthy. We show we are trustworthy by doing what is right and saying what is true. People of integrity are honest. They tell the truth. Christians with integrity rely on God and His Holy Spirit to help them be honest. If you are not a Christian, you can still show integrity by telling the truth.
As I read Proverbs 10:9 from the Bible, remember that integrity and honesty are closely connected.
Read Proverbs 10:9 from your Bible if possible. Show the Memory Verse poster if you are using it.
Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out.
Proverbs 10:9
Reminder: All resources are available for download at the end of this lesson.
That person’s path is secure. There is nothing to turn that person around or trip him up.
That person’s path is crooked.
That person’s lies and deceptions will be discovered.
One type of dishonesty is called deception. To deceive someone is to cause them to believe something that is not true. When a person deceives someone else, it is usually in order to gain some personal advantage, such as money or friends.
Deception is very common in the world and in our community. Let’s talk about three common ways people deceive each other. The three deceptions are exaggeration, fibs or little lies, and omission. We will do a quick activity to understand each one.
Exaggeration: Exaggeration is a statement that makes something seem better or worse than it really is.
Have children quickly find partners.
I will say a statement. You and your partner will each restate it but with exaggeration. For example, if I say, “It is hot today,” you might exaggerate by saying, “It is so hot today that I fainted from the heat on my way to class.” If you did not actually faint, your statement is an untrue exaggeration. It is a lie.
Say 2–3 statements of the statements below and allow the children to respond.
Fibs, or little lies: These are small lies that seem harmless when you tell them. Sometimes we tell little lies or fibs to avoid hurting someone else’s feelings. Listen to these two situations. Think about a little lie someone might tell in each situation. Remember, fibs or little lies are dishonest and wrong.
Situation 1: A child who is new in the area invites another girl to play with her. The girl does not want to play, but she does not have any other plans. What is a little lie she might tell?
Allow 2–3 children to share.
Situation 2: A boy is asked to speak at a presentation at school, but he does not want to because he is scared of speaking in front of others. What is a little lie or fib he might tell?
Allow 2–3 children to share.
Many fibs or little lies seem harmless when you tell them. But remember that there are always negative consequences any time we lie.
Allow the children to share their ideas. The other people may discover the lies and no longer trust those children. There may also be negative consequences in school for not participating.
Omission: To omit means to leave something out. Lies of omission happen when you tell someone part of the truth but not all of it. I will tell you about a situation from the Bible. Think about what is dishonestly omitted in this story. Remember, when you only tell part of the truth, you deceive the other person. This is a lie, and it is wrong.
This situation happened in Joseph’s story. Remember that his brothers sold him into slavery. Before they sold him, they took off the special robe that his father had given him. They did not know what they would tell their father about where Joseph was. Listen to what happened.
Then they got Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. They took the ornate robe back to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son’s robe.” He recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! Some ferocious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces.” Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days.
Genesis 37:31–34
If possible, show The Action Bible image as you tell the story.
Jacob thought that Joseph had been killed by a wild animal.
The brothers deceived their father by dipping the robe in blood. And they did not tell their father the whole truth.
When a person uses exaggeration, fibs or little lies, or omission to deceive another person, he chooses the crooked path. He chooses dishonesty.
When people deceive others for their own gain, they might feel good at first. They might benefit by making money. They might benefit by being popular or well-liked by others. But eventually the dishonesty and deception will be discovered, just as the verse we learned at the beginning of the lesson says.
Deception is very common in many communities. For many people, deception is a regular way of life. Some people might be so used to deceiving others that they do not even think about it.
It is important to think now about what you will do when you are in a situation where you could deceive someone. Let’s talk about two simple steps to telling the truth instead of deceiving others.
Step 1: Tell the truth simply. Tell the other person what is true. We learned last week that you do not need to say a lot. You only need to state the truth.
Step 2: Tell the truth kindly. Even if someone has hurt you or acted unkindly toward you, you do not have to say mean things to her. Tell the truth without yelling or calling people names.
One important way to tell the truth kindly is to choose words that are true but that do not hurt other people. For example, if your aunt asks how she looks, telling the truth does not mean you should tell her that her clothes are ugly. Instead, you can say one kind, true thing about her, such as “Your eyes look very pretty.”
Pair up the children. Tell them you will read a situation. Then the partners will take turns speaking the truth kindly and without deception. This should take about 5 minutes.
You are an adult. Your job is to sell an important product. A customer wants to buy more of the product than you have available, so he places an advance order. You take his money and promise to deliver the product as you get it. Then you find out that the company you work for is going out of business. You will lose your job, but you still have all the money your customer paid in advance.
Give children about 5 minutes to role-play with their partners.
Optional: If you are using the Student Pages, allow the children to do the mazes on them.
You have learned that telling the truth is always right. God is the source of truth. When you tell the truth, you reflect His character and experience peace. But telling the truth can sometimes be hard. When you are tempted to lie and to deceive others, it is important to have a friend to help you do what is right.
An accountability partner is someone you see regularly who encourages you to make good choices and tell the truth. It is someone you can share your struggles with. Accountability partners often pray for each other.
Encourage each child to pick an accountability partner from the class. Girls should pick girls and boys should pick boys. Tell the group that these partners should ask each other every day, “Did you tell the truth today?” After a child has answered, she will ask her partner the same question. It is okay to have 3 people together but no more than that. Make sure that all children are included in a group.
Encourage the children to ask their accountability partners the same question every time they see them: did you tell the truth today?
Have the partners talk and pray together.
Close class by praying this blessing based on Isaiah 59:8:
Blessing: May you know the way of peace and walk on the straight road. With God’s help and the encouragement of your friends, may you tell the truth in every situation.
Lead the students in singing this quarter’s song, if possible.
Life on Life ©2020 David C Cook. Reproducible for home or classroom use only. All other uses require written permission from David C Cook [email protected]. All rights reserved.
