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.
The appeal we make is based on truth. It comes from a pure heart. We are not trying to trick you. In fact, it is just the opposite. God has approved us to preach. He has trusted us with the good news. We aren’t trying to please people. We want to please God. He tests our hearts.
1 Thessalonians 2:3–4
Honesty builds relationships. How? When we are honest with others and speak the truth to them, this builds trust. Trust is an important part of a healthy relationship. When trust is there, it is possible to tell someone anything, even difficult things.
Think of a time when telling the truth helped your relationship with someone. How did you show the person that you had pure intentions? Who were you trying to please by being honest? When you are honest with someone, you please God. It is not always easy to be honest. Perhaps this is why honesty can be so impactful in your relationships with others. Ask God to show you where you have been honest in your relationships with others and where you need to grow in that. Ask Him to fill you with truth and honesty.
Encourage families to play an honesty tower-building game at home. For each item placed on the tower, ask family members to share something true about themselves. By speaking the truth, family members will not only build towers, they will build their relationships!
Teacher Tip: If possible, email or text the Family Connection Card to the families of your students.
Greet the children as they come to class. Ask them to sit in 2 lines that are facing each other. Make sure there are about the same number of children in each line.
You are probably wondering why you are sitting in 2 lines. Your line is your team for this next activity. In a moment, I will ask 1 team to stand up and hold hands. Your goal is to try not to let your line be broken.
The second team will also stand up. The second team will send 1 child at a time to try to break the other team’s line. This child will run between 2 children on the first team. If the child breaks the handhold of the 2 children, those children will not hold hands again. Once you have tried to run through the first team, sit to the side of your team and cheer for your other teammates.
Ask both teams of children to stand up. Tell 1 team to hold hands. Call 1 child from the second team to try to run through the handhold of some children on the first team. Then call another child to run to the other team. Continue to play for about 3 minutes. If time allows, ask the teams to switch roles and play again for about 3 minutes. After the game, ask all of the children to sit in their regular places for the lesson.
The team holding hands showed what it is like to have a good relationship. When you are in a good relationship with someone, you are connected to that person. Remember when you learned about friendship? Friends help each other in everything they do. They build a strong relationship by being kind and by caring about each other. Honesty also builds relationships.
The children who tried to break the handholds of the other team showed us what lies and dishonesty do to relationships. When you lie and are not honest with someone you care about, it can cause your relationship to break. Honesty builds relationships, and dishonesty breaks them apart.
Today, we will learn about the ways honesty can help build relationships. Listen to these Bible verses about what it means to be honest.
Read these verses directly from your Bible.
“Here is what you must do. Speak the truth to one another. Make true and wise decisions in your courts. Do not make evil plans against one another. When you promise to tell the truth, do not lie. Many people love to do that. But I hate all these things,” announces the Lord.
Zechariah 8:16–17
Allow 3–4 children to respond.
We can do these things to be honest:
Allow 2–3 children to respond.
Honesty builds relationships. When someone knows that you are always honest, she knows she can trust you. Trust is important because God created us to live together in community. God did not intend for us to be alone. God created families and friends and others to be in our community. When you trust those in your community, you can help one another and have good relationships with them.
God created us to live in community. Honesty builds relationships.
To find out what it means to live in a way that is honest, let’s look in the Bible. The apostle Paul and his friends wrote a letter to a group of believers called the Thessalonians. Paul tried to convince the Thessalonians that he and his friends were preaching the truth about God and the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Listen to what Paul says:
The appeal we make is based on truth. It comes from a pure heart. We are not trying to trick you. In fact, it is just the opposite. God has approved us to preach. He has trusted us with the good news. We aren’t trying to please people. We want to please God. He tests our hearts.
1 Thessalonians 2:3–4
In this letter, Paul explains that he and his friends are trusted by God. Paul is trying to build the relationship with the Thessalonians. Paul lists many reasons why people should trust him and his friends. After I read each thing Paul said, you will help me show how you can live honestly by creating a motion.
Let’s practice these motions together to help you remember the ways you can be honest. I will call out what I can be honest with, and you repeat my words with our motions.
Read the following in any order. Pause after each statement to allow the children to repeat the words and do the motions.
Optional: If you are using Student Pages, give the children crayons to draw and colour the parts of the body they can use to be honest with others.
In the Bible verses we read about Paul and his friends, Paul used the fact that God trusted him and his friends to encourage the Thessalonians to also trust them. He did not stop there. He also explained to them that he and his friends were honest. Paul showed honesty through his words and thoughts. Just as with Paul, others see when we tell the truth and try to do what is right. The more we are honest with others, the more they may choose to trust us. Honesty builds relationships because it creates trust.
Today, you learned many ways honesty can build relationships.
Ask 2–3 children to respond.
Honesty creates trust with other people. When others trust you, they will share their thoughts with you. They will also trust you to do things. The more you tell the truth, the more others will trust you.
Let’s build an honesty tower to show how being truthful can build relationships. To do this, I will divide the class into 2 teams. The children on 1 side of the teaching space will be the Builders. The children on the other side of the space will be the Talkers. When I tell you a statement about being honest, the Talkers will take turns naming ways to be honest.
Optional Supplies: If you are using objects other than boxes for the children to stack, make sure they are light enough for children to safely lift and stack on top of each other.
Builders, you will take turns adding a box to the tower each time a Talker names a way to be honest. You may start by placing several of the largest boxes to form the bottom of the tower. Then add a few boxes to form the next level. Keep adding a box to the tower for every honest answer the other team says.
Repeat the questions, allowing other children to answer and to build. If possible, allow each child to have the opportunity to participate.
Look at how strong and tall our honesty tower is! You all thought of some wonderful ways to be honest. Our memory verse this week talks about what it looks like to be honest.
Show the Memory Verse poster if you are using it.
My God, I know that you tested our hearts. And you are pleased when we are honest.
1 Chronicles 29:17a
Sing the words to the Bible verse with children. Use the same song you created in Lesson 5. Have the children repeat the song with you 3 times. Remember the song so you can sing it again for each lesson about truth and honesty.
End class by saying a blessing, based on 1 Thessalonians 2:3–4, over the children.
Blessing: May you want to be honest. May you want to please God, not people. May you know that honesty is possible in your life.
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.
