An inspirational and instructive study resource for the Sunday School classes, small groups and Bible studies.

This is the first installment of a new curriculum offering you an exciting opportunity to challenge your Sunday School or small group ministry to greater spiritual growth. This curriculum is designed to provide solidly biblical, spiritually-stretching lessons that minister to both the teacher and the students. For the teacher, a variety of tools have been provided to help improve your grasp of the material and to aid you in presenting it effectively to the student. For the students, a handout has been designed for every lesson which will draw them into the text of Scripture and encourage them to think through its relevance to their lives. Other volumes in this series on principles of the Christian life will include: Loving God, Glorifying God, and Holiness; Loving God while Living in the World, and Loving God and Others.

Curriculum Goals: Two goals energized the creation of this curriculum. Much of the Sunday School literature available today is designed for a lecture-style class in which the teacher lectures to the students. With a few outstanding exceptions, this style of Sunday School teaching fosters a passive atmosphere where students sit more or less numbly through their umpteenth Sunday School lesson without ever engaging their minds to learn or apply the Scriptures.

Studies of how adults learn have shown repeatedly they gain and retain the most value from instruction that invites them to engage their minds in the learning process. When a student, guided by a well-prepared instructor, discovers what the Scriptures teach for themselves, their excitement and interest increases tremendously. To facilitate active learning on the part of adult Sunday School students, this curriculum provides a set of student handouts for each lesson that are tightly integrated with the teacher's guide.

The student handouts are not fill-in-the-blanks that can only be answered if one has a copy of the teacher's guide. Instead, the handouts engage the students' minds with two types of questions. The first are content-oriented questions whose answers are derived directly from the text of Scripture. The second are application-oriented questions that challenge the student to make specific, concrete application of the truths they are learning to their lives.

The second goal behind the creation of this curriculum was to address the need for solid biblical lessons that move through a topic slowly enough to permit the students to gain more than a surface understanding of what the Scriptures say on the topic. Most of us have either listened to or taught a lesson on the Great Commandment. In contrast to a single lesson on this subject, this entire quarter's worth of lessons has been devoted to exploring this vital truth.

Recommendations

Philip Brown has responded to the need for good holiness literature with the pen of a scholar and the heart of a devout Christian. The result is the Loving God series. It is biblically sound and spiritually challenging. It will be a welcomed resource for Sunday School teachers, small group leaders, pastors, or anyone interested in the vital subject of loving God. —Dr. Michael Avery, President, God's Bible School and College

The primary principles of the Christian life have possibly never been presented more clearly or in a more teachable manner. Loving God, if thoroughly studied and presented, will surely lift Sunday School out of the doldrums. I am certain this writing will demand a sequel. —Dr. James B. Keaton, Sr., General Chairman, Bible Methodist Connection of Churches

As a solid, biblically-based resource for our Sunday School classes and other study groups, I heartily welcome Philip Brown's excellent teaching material. The lessons are uniquely designed to stimulate thinking, encourage discussion and create life-changing applications. In the choice of subjects, the theme, Loving God makes this curriculum a must. I will use this material for my own personal study. —Rev. Paul Pierpoint, Senior Pastor, Hobe Sound Bible Church

Philip Brown has given us a full-orbed study resource that is instructive and inspirational. This material will prove to be an exceptional curriculum for Sunday School classes, small groups, and Bible studies. The pastor and teacher and learner will all find great profit in accessing these studies. —Leonard Sankey, General Secretary, Interchurch Holiness Convention