It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”
A Take of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
All children, except one, grow up.”
Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
In a whole in the ground there lived a hobbit.”
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it.”
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis
There’s just something powerful about a good opening line—one that catches you and pulls you right in—to a story. Of all the sentences an author writes, it is, perhaps, the most important.
And that takes us to the opening line of the Gospel of Matthew:
An account of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:”
Matthew 1:1 CSB
Curious, isn’t it? If God is the master storyteller—which He is—this seems like an odd way to begin the most important story of all history—the true story of Jesus Christ. With a genealogy for 17 verses. Really?
A Perfect Line
Yes, really. While this opening line may seem quite unspectacular, it is the perfect line to open the New Testament because it reminds us that this is not the beginning of the story, but rather a continuation of the story that began with this line:
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 1:1 CSB
The Holy Spirit, through Matthew, is careful to connect what follows with what precedes. All of the Bible is one big story of God’s plan to redeem people through Jesus Christ.
A Common Thread
It’s the same reason why Mark and Luke open on John rather than Jesus. John is an important link between Malachi’s prophecy from 400 years before to the advent of Jesus. He is, so to speak, a bridge connecting the Old and New Testaments.
And it is the same reason why John began with his prologue centering on the Word. John is careful to connect His Gospel with the Book of Genesis. Read Genesis 1 and John 1 side-by-side and it is easy to see how they are connected.
All four Gospels start the same way, not with a beginning but a continuation. Beautiful storytelling, isn’t it?
When God looks upon the human race, He sees but two men—Adam and Christ. Every human being is either ‘in Adam’ and lost, or ‘in Christ’ and saved; there is no middle ground.” — Warren Wiersbe (1929-2019)
Warren W. Wiersbe, Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the New Testament (Colorado Springs, CO: Victor Books, 1992), 376.
Tips for Teaching this Week’s Session
Starting this week, you’ll notice that we are no longer offering the weekly leader training videos. Instead, we’re shifting to an audio format. Starting this week, Karen Jones and I are offering guidance to help you as you prepare to teach every session of The Gospel Project for Preschool and Kids. Listen in as we discuss:
- The big idea of the session
- Any areas of caution or requiring additional prep time
- What hope God will do through this session
Podcast (kidsleadertraining): Play in new window | Download
This training is available on Ministry Grid, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and other podcast platforms.
Beverly Offutt says
Will there be an adult teacher leader pack this week?
Brian Dembowczyk says
Hi. I am sorry, but I am not sure what your question means. If you mean a leader pack for the adult content, you can purchase one by clicking Shop, then choose adults and the volume you are on. If you mean materials for kids leaders, everything is provided through a Leader Kit for the ministry and then the leader guides.
Aaron Armstrong says
Adult leader training will be live tomorrow morning.
Deana says
I can’t find this in apple podcasts – what is the title I should be looking for?
Aaron Armstrong says
We’ve had a slight delay on approvals in Apple Podcasts, but it’s on the way.
Shannon Custer says
Love, love, love the new podcast! I love hearing both perspectives. Thank you! Keep it up.
Karl I Davis says
While I like the podcasts, I think the training videos would be compliment these as it increases engagement. We typically provide the video links ahead of class time and then watch them together as leaders before class starts.
Of course, we still can do this but listening to audio instead.
Please consider providing both video and audio.
Aaron Armstrong says
Thanks for this feedback, Karl, and I’m glad you all found the videos helpful. Unfortunately there are no plans to resume the video training.
Doriann O'Connell says
Do you have pod cast or leader training starting in Unit 1 Session 1?
Your website is so very difficult to navigate.
Love your curriculum but trying to obtain resources has me in tears….
Aaron Armstrong says
Hi Doriann,
I’m sorry you’re experiencing difficulty finding what you’re looking for. The leader training for unit 1, session 1 is found here: https://www.gospelproject.com/additional-resources-preschool-kids-fall-18/
You can find all the additional resources for every volume at https://gospelproject.com/additional-resources under the name of each volume in the available study plan.