BETHEL UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

 CHRISTIAN EDUCATION OBJECTIVES & GOALS

Making disciples and declaring God’s power to the next generation.

(Matthew 28:19, Psalms 71:18, 78:4)

The mission of Bethel’s PreK–12 Christian Education is to teach our children to value the Bible as God’s word, to follow the teachings of Jesus, to become a part of the church community, and to recognize the call to be loving servants of a loving God. To this end, we have constructed educational programs which teach our children:

•   To love God
•   To love others
•   To become familiar with God’s word
•   To serve
•   To have a sense of God’s call on their lives

In order to be responsive to a child's developmental and faith stages, we will encourage our teachers and leaders to tailor their teaching to the following emphases:

Pre-Kindergarten through Third Grade:  Teaching Love for God and Others

 
 1. Provide a beginning in theological understanding
    a. God is love
    b. God has created a wonderful world
    c. Jesus is God's son
    d. Jesus is our friend

2. Help them to love themselves

3. Teach them to love each other

4. Begin to give them a sense of belonging to the church community

5. Familiarize them with the books of the Bible, Bible characters and Bible stories

•   Goal: Help them to feel that church is a fun place to be and that they are loved by God and others.

Grades Four through Six:  Teaching Love and Service

 1. Providing a theological understanding of
    a. What it means to be a Christian
    b. Moral foundation of Christianity
    c. The teachings of Jesus

2. Help them to see how Christian teachings are carried into daily life

3. Familiarize them with the New Testament and its application to their lives
 

•   Goal: Help them to internalize Jesus' teaching and to begin to establish a sense of their place as Christians in the world.

Grades Seven and Eight:  Teaching Love, Service, and Call

1. Help them to discover their strengths and gifts

2. Help them to learn how to use their gifts to serve others

3. Help them to recognize the conflict between Christian values and world values

4. Teach them to take responsibility for their moral and spiritual choices

5. Familiarize them with the history of the church, especially the Book of Acts

6. Familiarize them with

a. the organization of the local church

b. requirements for becoming a member

7. Help them to develop, write, and profess a personal statement of faith

•   Goal: Help them to affirm their gifts and begin to see their value and call to God's service in the body of Christ.

Grades nine through twelve:  Toward a Maturity in Faith
 

1. Expose them to basic Christian doctrines  

2. Acquaint them with a variety of worship experiences and service opportunities

3. Teach them how to share their faith with others

4. Let them grapple with questions of faith and world issues as related to faith  

5. Move them toward a deeper personal relationship with God and His word

6. Encourage them to learn about and pray for the church around the world

•   Goal: Challenge them to ask hard questions about themselves, the world, and God, and encourage them to integrate personal spiritual disciplines into their daily lives.

Adult Classes and Small Groups *

Sunday school and small groups serve as a place to study God’s word and also as a means of fellowship, helping to assimilate people into the congregation. New classes and groups should be added on a regular basis to meet the needs of various groups of adults within the congregation.

1. The first objective of adults in Sunday school and small groups is fellowship. Adults are more likely to develop spiritually if fellowship needs are met.

2. Leaders must guide adults in interacting rationally, not just emotionally. God’s word demands a cognitive as well as a behavioral response.

3. Leaders should encourage participation of all members. When members can verbalize God’s word in a Christian context, they can do the same in a secular setting.

4. God’s word is reality. Adults should be encouraged to measure their lives according to God’s word.

5. Adults should be encouraged to develop new spiritual skills and habits and to be accountable to others in the group.

6. Leaders should be facilitators, encouraging adults to decide for themselves what they should do with the truth they have studied.

7. Teaching materials should provide a comprehensive overview of scripture and a full range of theology.

8. Leaders are encouraged to

    a. determine the needs of the class or group

    b. enlist their participation in planning

    c. formulate clear objectives

    d. design a program plan

    e. plan and carry out a system of evaluation

•   Goal: To recognize the needs of adults at various life stages and to provide fellowship, instruction, and support with as much variety and choice as possible

 * Based on research from The Christian Educator's Handbook on Adult Education, Baker Books, 1993.