Books of the Bible Sunday School Lesson
Here is our FREE Books of the Bible Sunday School Lesson! God says the Bible is like a sword. Just like a sword takes practice to use, we need to practice using God’s Word. One of the ways we can do that is by knowing what God has included in the Bible and where we can find it.Β Teach kids that God wants us to know what is in the Bible and where we can find it. After using this lesson kids will learn how many books are in the Bible (66), how many are in the Old Testament (39) and how many are in the New Testament (27). If you love this lesson, you're definitely going to want to check out ourΒ Books of the Bible 12-Week Children's Ministry Curriculum.Β This lesson is great for every Children's Ministry, Kids Church, and Sunday School!Β  And, if you like this lesson we have over 100 more free Sunday School Lessons for Kids!

Books of the BibleΒ Sunday School Lesson for Kids:

BOTTOM LINE:

God wants us to know what’s in the Bible and where to find it.

OBJECTIVE:

Kids will learn how many books are in the Bible (66), how many are in the Old Testament (39) and how many are in the New Testament (27).

KEY PASSAGE:

Hebrews 4:12, Ephesians 6:17

MEMORY VERSE:

β€œAll Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16 (NIV)

SUMMARY:

God says the Bible is like a sword.Just like a sword takes practice to use, we need to practice using God’s Word.One of the ways we can do that is by knowing what God has included in the Bible and where we can find it.

SIMPLE PRAYER:

Dear God,

Thank you for giving us the Bible.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen

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MEMORY VERSE

β€œAll Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16 (NIV)

"God has breathed life into all Scripture. It is useful for teaching us what is true. It is useful for correcting our mistakes. It is useful for making our lives whole again. It is useful for training us to do what is right." 2 Timothy 3:16 (NIrV)

LARGE GROUP:

Put the verse on the big screen and read it aloud with the kids.

SMALL GROUP:

Ask the kids what they think the writer was trying to say when he wrote these words. Then ask them how this verse is connected to today’slesson.

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SKIT

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THE BIBLE IN 3 MINUTES

ITEMS NEEDED:

None

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN:

1M, 1F

CHARACTERS:

Mike and Elaine - Bible fans

Mike and Elaine enter.

MIKE: Hey guys, I’m Mike.

ELAINE: And I’m Elaine.

MIKE: And we are Bible fanatics!

ELAINE: Huge, huge Bible fanatics.

MIKE: We love the Bible, and we love all that God has told us through the Bible.

ELAINE: We love it! Like a McDonalds commercial, we are lovin’it!

MIKE: In the next twelve weeks, you guys are going to learn about every book in the Bible.

ELAINE: But not us. Because we already know about all the books.

MIKE: Not to brag, but we do.

ELAINE: But don’t worry. We’ll get you guys up to speed. Soon you’ll know it like we do.

MIKE: There are sixty-six books in the Bible.

ELAINE: Thirty-nine in the Old Testament, and twenty-seven in the New Testament.

MIKE: And like us, you’ll be able to go through the entire Bible in only three minutes.

ELAINE: Let’s do this!

MIKE: Genesis tells us that in the beginning God made the world. It also tells us that we messed things up, but in spite of that, God loved us and decided to stick with us!

ELAINE: Exodus is the story of how Moses saved God’s chosen people from slavery.

MIKE: In Leviticus, God tells the people how to live so that they won’t sin.

ELAINE: In Numbers, Moses counts God’s chosen people.

MIKE: And in Deuteronomy, God tells the people how to live without sin again because they just didn’t get it!

ELAINE: Joshua led the people into the promised land and knocked down the walls of Jericho.

MIKE: Then here come the Judges, here come the Judges! Order in the court now, here come the Judges!

ELAINE: Ruth is a typical love story. Girl meets boy. Boy dies. Girl moves in with boy’s mom and marries his cousin.

MIKE: Samuel was such a great prophet…

ELAINE: How great was he?

MIKE: He got two books to tell the story of Israel’s first two kings.

ELAINE: Speaking of Kings, 1 and 2 Kings tell the story of the rest of Israel’s leaders.

MIKE: And 1 and 2 Chronicles tell the story all over again.

ELAINE: Ezra tells the story of how God forgave his people after their kings led them astray.

MIKE: Nehemiah rebuilt the wall that protected the city of Jerusalem.

ELAINE: Esther saved her people when she went to see the king. Girl power!

MIKE: Job was a man who had a very bad day.

ELAINE: Psalms is a big book of praise right in the middle of the Bible.

MIKE: Proverbs and Ecclesiastes are filled with wisdom.

ELAINE: And Song of Solomon is all about love.

MIKE: Isaiah was a prophet, who tried to tell the people they needed to obey God.

ELAINE: Jeremiah was the weeping prophet who wrote his own book and the book of Lamentations to mourn for God’s people.

MIKE: Ezekiel had some amazing visions from God that he shared with God’s people while they were in exile.

ELAINE: Daniel was a prophet too, and something of a daredevil. Wait until you hear about the night he spent in a lion’s den!

MIKE: And then there are the minor prophets, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonahβ€”

ELAINE: Boy was that guy fishy!

MIKE: Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

ELAINE: They all warned the people to follow God. They all warned that God would punish them if they didn’t stop sinning. And some of them, well, they talked about the Messiah who would one day come and save us all.

MIKE: Matthew is all about the Messiah. It’s one man’s way of saying,β€œHey, have you met my friend Jesus?”

ELAINE: Mark also wrote a book about his friend Jesus.

MIKE: Luke was a doctor who said, β€œHey, have you met my friend Jesus?

ELAINE: John wrote, β€œIn the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was my friend Jesus. Have you met my friend Jesus?”

MIKE: Acts tells us how Jesus’followers started the early church.

ELAINE: One of the early church leaders, a man named Paul, wrote a bunch of letters to those churches: one to the Romans, two to the Corinthians, and one each to the Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians.

MIKE: Paul wrote some personal letters too: two to the Thessalonians, two to his buddy Timothy, and one to Titus and Philemon.

ELAINE: Paul wasn’t the only one to write letters. There’s one for the Hebrews.

MIKE: One from Jesus’brother James.

ELAINE: Two from Peter.

MIKE: Three from John

ELAINE: And one from Jude.

MIKE: And then there’s Revelation, where God tells us how the story ends.

ELAINE: But the story’s not over yet! We’re still in it!

MIKE: You’re right! All the more reason to get to know the 66 books of the Bible!

ELAINE: Maybe you won’t be able to do them in three minutes like we did. But the more you know them, the better you’ll know Jesus!

OBJECT LESSON

ITEMS NEEDED:

A list of emergency phone numbers

How many of you have a list like this on the refrigerator or by a telephone at home? There are some important numbers on here. Everyone needs to know 911 in case of emergency, but there’s also police, fire, poison control, and the hospital. Some people even add relatives like grandma and grandpa, people who can be reached if Mom and Dad aren’t available, in case of an emergency.

Numbers like these are important. They help us to stay safe, and they reassure us that we can reach out for help if we need it. The more you know these numbers, the safer you’ll be.

The Bible is filled with stories and lessons, things that can keep us safe from sin. The more we know our Bibles, the better we will know Jesus. The better we know Jesus, the more we will live in a way that honors Jesus and loves other people.

In the next twelve weeks, we’re going to challenge you to make a list of the books of the Bible, not on paper, but in your heads. If you can memorize the books of the Bible, you’ll have a leg up in finding anything you need in God’s Word.

Make a commitment to be here the next twelve weeks. Make a commitment to learn the books of the Bible so you can better understand all that it has to teach you!

LARGE GROUP GAME

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OLD OR NEW?

ITEMS NEEDED:

Buzzers (if available)

INSTRUCTIONS:

This is a quiz game for two kids. In this game, the moderator will give the players a book of the Bible, one at a time. The first kid to buzz in will say if the book is in the Old Testament or the New Testament. If they get it right, they get a point. If they get it wrong, no point is awarded. Keep playing until someone reaches five points.

VARIATION:

For older kids, throw in some trick questions like the book of Hezekiah, or the book of Judas. See if they can correctly say that these are NOT real books of the Bible.

WHAT’S THE POINT?

God wants us to learn what’s in the Bible.

LARGE GROUP LESSON

BOTTOM LINE:

God wants us to know what’s in the Bible and where to find it.

OBJECTIVE:

Kids will learn how many books are in the Bible (66), how many are in the Old Testament (39) and how many are in the New Testament (27).

KEY PASSAGE:

Hebrews 4:12, Ephesians 6:17

INTRO:

How many of you have ever had the excitement of getting a brand new video game system? How thrilling was it to unwrap that box and see a brand new XBox, or PlayStation, or Nintendo game system in that box? That box held the promise of hours upon hours of fun. It’s the ultimate kids’ toy - and truth be told, the ultimate toy for most adults as well.

Inside that box, you found the game system, a power cord, a cable to connect to the TV, and some controllers, all that you need to start plugging in games and playing. But there was one more thing in that box, wasn’t there? It was an instruction book to tell you how to set up the game system so you can start playing.

That little instruction book wasn’t the reason you bought the game system, but without it, you might not have been able to hook up the games and start playing. What’s more, every game comes with its own set of instructions. That doesn’t mean you couldn’t play without reading the instructions, but I think we can all agree the more we learn the instructions to the game and the game system, the more fun we have and the better we’ll be playing the games!

Life isn’t a game, but life does come with a set of instructions. It’s a little thicker than the booklet that taught you how to hook up your XBox, but it’s filled with information that can help you through anything life throws at you. Every week, when we gather here at church, we open up that book to see what God has to teach us. The Bible, God’s Holy Word, is God’s instruction book. It tells us who we are, who God is, what God has done for us, and how we should live in response to all God has done. Let’s read what a few people had to say about the Word of God.

READ HEBREWS4:12, EPHESIANS6:17

MAIN POINT:

The author of Hebrews tells us that God’s Word is alive. It’s not an ancient book that’s out of date and no longer important in today’s world. The Word of God is filled with wisdom and knowledge we can use today. The Word of God still speaks to us. It speaks to people picking it up to read it for the first time, and it speaks to people who have read it all their lives. You can never read it enough, and you can never learn enough from its pages.

The author of Hebrews and Paul both describe the Bible as a sword. It can cut us deep, showing us what’s wrong with our lives so we can get it fixed. It can also defend us and save us from sin.

The Bible is a powerful tool for life. It’s a weapon to fight temptation, and it’s an instruction book for following God.

DRIVE IT HOME:

So what’s in the Bible, anyway? What are we going to discover in the next several weeks?

For starters, the Bible is divided into two parts. The Old Testament is the older section of the Bible. These books were written before the birth of Jesus. Some were written by great heroes of the faith like Moses. Some were written by prophets, men God chose to give messages to his people. The Old Testament books tell us how the world began. They tell the story of the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people. They tell how the people of Israel were saved from slavery and taken to a promised land. They tell how the people rebelled against God and were sent into exile. They tell how God forgave his people and promised to send them a Savior. There are 39 books in all in the Old Testament, and they all set the stage for the coming of Jesus.

The New Testament begins with the birth of Christ. Four books called the Gospels tell the story of Jesus, how he died for our sins so he could give us new life. The fifth book of the New Testament, Acts, tells the story of the early church, and the rest of the New Testament is filled with messages for God’s people and his church on how we should live for Christ. There are twenty-seven books of the New Testament, ending with one final book, Revelation, that tells how the world will end.

Two Testaments. Sixty-six books in all. That sounds like a lot, doesn’t it? But the more we know about those sixty-six books, the better we will know not only the Bible, but the God who gave us the Bible.

I hope all of you will make a commitment to come here each week and learn a few more books of the Bible. I hope all of you will work hard to learn the books as we teach them to you. Knowing the books of the Bible may not seem important in the age of Google, but it’s a powerful piece of knowledge that will help you use the Bible like a sword.

CLOSE WITH A SIMPLE PRAYER:

Dear God,

Thank you for giving us the Bible.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen

SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION (K-2ND)

ICEBREAKER:

What’s the longest book you’ve ever read?

MEMORY VERSE ACTIVITY:

2 Timothy 3:16

Ask the kids what they think the writer was trying to say when he wrote these words. Then ask them how this verse is connected to today’slesson.

SMALL GROUP GAME/ACTIVITY:

Have everyone stand in a circle. Go around the group and have each person say the name of a book from the Bible. If someone repeats a book or gets stuck, they have to sit down. See how many books you as a group can name without repeating.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

Read Hebrews 4:12, Ephesians 6:17

Why is the Bible like a sword?

How many books are in the Bible?

How many books are in the Old Testament?

How many books are in the New Testament?

Why do you think it’s important to get to know the books of the Bible?

SIMPLE PRAYER:

Dear God,

Help us to learn more about the Bible.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen

SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION (3RD-5TH)

ICEBREAKER:

What’s the longest book you’ve ever read?

MEMORY VERSE ACTIVITY:

2 Timothy 3:16

Ask the kids what they think the writer was trying to say when he wrote these words. Then ask them how this verse is connected to today’slesson.

SMALL GROUP GAME/ACTIVITY:

Have everyone stand in a circle. Go around the group and have each person say the name of a book from the Bible. If someone repeats a book or gets stuck, they have to sit down. See how many books you as a group can name without repeating.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

Read Hebrews 4:12, Ephesians 6:17

Why is the Bible like a sword?

How many books are in the Bible?

How many books are in the Old Testament?

How many books are in the New Testament?

Why do you think it’s important to get to know the books of the Bible?

SIMPLE PRAYER:

Dear God,

Help us to learn more about the Bible.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen

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For your convenience, you can also download the entire PDF version of thisΒ Books of the Bible Children's Ministry LessonΒ (just click the link).Β 

Take a look at the links below for other ideas for teaching a Books of the Bible Sunday School Lesson:

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Free Sunday School Lessons: The Bible (Lesson 1)

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Memorize the Books of the Bible - Ministry-To-Children

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Books of the Bible Sunday School Lesson Plan

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Sunday School Teacher's Guide - God's book the Bible - DLTK-Bible

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