Break the Ice.
- When you’re browsing the internet, how do you distinguish fake news stories from true news stories?
- What’s really at stake here? Why is fake news a problem?
Bring the Word.
The Gibeonites go to great length to make it appear as though they’ve travelled from a far, even though they were neighbors. The spoke lies, produced false evidence, and Israel fell for it. Today we’ll discover the reason why, and what we can do to protect ourselves from false teaching.
Read Joshua 9:3-15
- What did the Gibeonites do to deceive Israel?
- Verse 4 says “they acted craftily.” What is some of the false evidence they showed to Israel?
- Why did Israel fall for the Gibeonites’ lies and deception? (see verse 14.)
- Was Israel walking by faith or by sight? What’s the difference?
Read Joshua 9:22-27
- What does Joshua do when he learns of the Gibeonites’ deception?
- What’s the long-term consequence of the Gibeonites remaining in the land?
Bring it Home.
- How is the serpent (satan) described in Genesis 3:1?
- What happens when we starting walking by sight and not by faith?
- Read John 8:31-32
- There is so much deception in the world around us. So many different opinions about life, eternity, purpose, etc. How can we know the truth?
- What is the result of knowing truth?
- How can we pray for one another?