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Family Worship Time Guide- Zephaniah

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Family Worship Time Guide- Zephaniah Family Worship Time Overview Goal of the worship guide - God has called dads and moms to proclaim the gospel to, and disciple, their children. How does this happen? Rob Rienow says it best, “Comprehensive family discipleship…flows out of family worship in the home.” Goal of the series - Spend time in worship as a family looking through Scripture at the Minor Prophets. We will discover some truths that God wants us to know from His Word in the Minor Prophets. Need To Know (General) - 1. Use the outline on page two as a guide 2. Use the Family Worship Intro guide at www.fbctown.com 3. Set an actual time to have Family Worship. Discuss this as a family. 4. Remember that this is a time to love God through worship, love on your children by training them up in the Lord and have fun! Aspects of the Guide 1. Pray and Sing Together- Start of with prayer asking the Holy Spirit to guide your worship time together. Take time to then sing praises to the Lord. You can use the selected song or one you would like. 2. Discover Together - This will be the theme for the time of Family Worship. This is also a section that gives you a little background on what you are reading, allowing you to discover what is taking place in the passage 3. Open His Word Together- This is a time to open God’s Word & study together. Questions, Discussion Starters and Things To Think About are listed. 4. Hide It In Your Hearts- This is a time to memorize Scripture together. Here are some tips a. Write down all the verses that you have memorized on index card b. Put them in a box and then pull them one out during Family Worship c. Always remind your family about Psalm 119:11 Truth During The Day 1. Take time during the day to connect with your kids. Ask about their day, see what is going on, talk about God’s Word and pray with them. Notes For Bible Time ( Note to Dads-make sure you take the lead in this) If you have preschool children, 1. Find a good children’s bible storybook (The Jesus Story Bible Book) If you have both preschool and older children… 1. Use a picture bible (while at the same time open to Bible and show your elementary children where they can read along) 2. Go over the questions below beforehand and pick out a few that will help your aged children understand the story Family Worship Ti me - Zephaniah Before You Begin Parents - If you would like, take time to read through the entire book of Zephaniah since this worship guide only highlights a few verses. Also, get out a good study Bible for kids (I recommend “The Big Picture Interactive Bible” HCSB: Connecting Christ Throughout God’s Story ) Pray Together - Ask if anyone in your family has something on their heart that they need prayed about. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide your time! Sing Together … ( Find these songs at You Tube). Come Thou Fount, Behold Our God, Mighty To Save Discover Together - Optional “Hook ‘Em In” Question/Activity : Has anyone ever stepped up to help you out in a situation that you could not solve on your own? How did that make you feel? Read or Summarize : Today, we continue our study in the Minor Prophets by looking at Zephaniah who prophesied during the reign of King Josiah (who reigned as king from 640- 609 BC). Remember that this is at the same time that Nahum prophesied the judgment of God to Nineveh and Habakkuk prophesied against Judah. King Josiah was trying to restore the people of Israel and bring back true worship of the one true God! Zephaniah is used by God to show the people the wrong they have done, the judgment that is coming and the hope that is there for those who will obey Him. As we look through the book of Zephaniah, we see that God punishes sins but He will provide a way for His people to come back to Him. Say : God used the prophet Zephaniah to bring His message to the people of Judah. Open His Word Together –(See Notes For Bible Time from page 1) Read Zephaniah 1:1-6 Say: In verses 2 and 3, “the prophet began by noting the far fulfillment of the Day of the Lord, when even animal and physical creation will be affected,” by the Lord’s judgment of the earth (John MacArthur, The MacArthur Bible Commenatry page 1038). Ask : In verses 4 -6, what does God say He will do to Judah? (judge those who… …have turned to worship false idols, …say they live for the Lord yet worship other gods, …have turned back from following the Lord) Say : God would do what He said He would do in. Mark Dever tells us that, “One generation after Zephaniah’s prophecy, Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians. First, they invaded the city and carried away many exiles. Then, they came back and destroyed the city, its walls, and the great temple of the Lord.” (Mark Dever- “The Message of the Old Testament”, page 864-865) Read Zephaniah 2:1-3 and Zephaniah 3:9-20 Ask : What does God offer the people? (a way to come back to the Lord) Say : We see that even though the people are sinful, God offers a way for them to come back to Him, to “seek the Lord…to seek righteousness…seek humility…” Say: Zephaniah talks about the coming day of the Lord, “the day when God would judge the world for all its sins.” (The Big Picture Interactive Bible) As Zephaniah prophesies, “he sees both the fall of Jerusalem that occurred several decades later and a preview of God’s final judgment of the world.” (Mark Dever- The Message of the Old Testament, pg. 870) Ask : What is the great hope found in Zephaniah 3:9-20? (God will bring restoration to His people). Application For Your Family- Ask: How did God provide a way for us to come back to Him even though we are sinners? Read II Corinthians 5:21 Say : In Zephaniah 2:3 God says if the people seek Him that they may be hidden in the day of the Lord’s anger. Today we can rest in the assurance that God has provided a way for us to come back to Him so we will not receive His wrath for our sins. In II Corinthians 5:21 we see the truth that Jesus is the one who died in our place so that we might become the righteousness of God. I John 2:2, I John 4:10 and Romans 3:25 tells us that Jesus was the propitiation for our sins, meaning He was the sacrifice that bore God’s wrath for our sins. He sent Jesus to die in our place, so our sins could be forgiven. What an awesome hope we have that allows us to shout out Zephaniah 3:17 (read that verse out loud one more time). Hide It In Your Hearts - Memory Verses (choose one or all)- Zephaniah 2:3, Zephaniah 3:17, II Corinthians 5:21 Tip For Memorizing : Find a dry erase board (any size) or a sheet of paper. If you are using paper, make sure to use a pencil. Write the entire verse out on the board or paper. Read the verse together as a family out loud a few times. Then, erase one or more words from the verse at a time. After you erase the word(s), say the verse over again. Do this until you have only one word left in the verse and see if you can say it all together. Prayer Time Together- Prayer idea for tonight: Find a people group ( www.joshuaproject.org ) to pray for tonight. Pray that missionaries would be sent there to tell them about Jesus, the one who was our substitute on the cross. Prayer Bucket Idea: Put names (of friends, family, missionaries, lost friends, sick, shut-in) into a prayer bucket. Pick a name & pray for that person(s) during prayer time. As you pray, feel free to use the A.C.T.S acronym as a guide. Adoration – How can we adore God in our prayer time (God you are powerful…) Confession- What sins do you need to confess? (Remember I John 1:9) Thanksgiving- Testimonies in which we can give God thanks? Supplication- Who needs prayer, Who is in need of salvation .
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